I teach Canadian First Nations (Indigenous) students, and I'm excited to share this series with them. Many love fantasy but haven't had a chance yet to read novels that feature Indigenous characters. I have already started recommending it.

This is the tale of two books. The first half is mediocre at best. Very repetitive, cliche and just all around boring. Yet the second half of Trail of Lightning is wonderful! It has spunk, excitement, and intrigue (Coyote is sooo interesting!).

Native American Representation
Without a doubt the best part of Trail of Lightning is Rebecca Roanhorse's use of her Indigenous culture to give us a look at what a dystopian society, based in (what was) the USA which has since been taken back by the Navajo, might look like. Roanhorse gives us a truly unique and wonderful insight into Indigenous stories and beliefs. It feels natural and cyclical that in 'the end' of society as we know it the Indigenous return to the land, protect themselves and ultimately survive. Certainly no one else in North America is likely to be able to return to the land the way someone who has grown up learning about the land could.
I loved the use of myth, magic and story here to populate the Navajo land with elements and entities that currently aren't known to the world. For this reason alone I will definitely read book 2!

Writing
While the second half is much better than the first half; the one thing that doesn't change is the writing style. Unfortunately Roanhorse's writing feels a little like an early-on, amateur writer. That's not to say that she can't improve; it's only to say that this story comes off as simple in it's use of language. I know it's strange to say anything critical of the writing from someone who has been nominated for a World Fantasy Award; but to me it just lacked the depth I'm used to from fantasy writers.
For example:
""I know you never gave me an answer on that ‘being friends’ thing, but after everything that’s happened . . . ?" He leaves it hanging."
Did we really need the "he lives it hanging" comment? I feel like other authors would have left that out and allowed the ellipses to do the work of letting the reader know our character trailed off.

Overall
Here's the thing; amazing writing or not, reading Roanhorse's own voice and having her relate Indigenous culture, tellings and lore via her characters is well worth reading book 2, Storm of Locusts. While you may find many typical or cliche dystopian pieces in Trail of Lightning; what you won't find is any deities, myths or lore you've likely encountered before. And you may pick-up some Navajo words along the way! I love when authors use another language just enough to give the book a flavour and culture that helps build the setting and characters. That is one thing Roanhorse has done perfectly, in my opinion, is incorporate a level of Indigenous culture that allowed me to learn new things but also follow along (and feel fairly comfortable) in this clever dystopian world.
If nothing else read this to learn more about Coyote. I won't say anything more as I fear spoiling even a tiny portion of the magic.

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

I wish there was a glossary or better explanations for things (it felt a little like I wasn't cool enough to already know what the author was referencing, which was a disappointing feeling) but in general it was really engaging and the characters were some of my favourites! I talked about the book here: https://youtu.be/5YpKZjfnv9U?t=5m46s

Trail of Lightning is a style of book I have never seen before. One the one hand, it's an urban fantasy with monsters and gods walking the Earth. On the seconds hand, it's a post-apocalyptic world (it's called the Big Water, but the tidbits dropped indicate that it was faster and more violent than just sea level rise from climate change). On the third hand (shit, where did that third hand come from?) it's a book set on an Indian reserve that raised a magical wall made of turquoise to protect their territory from the outside world and refugees. Again, we get hints about the outside world, but nothing detailed. Hopefully we'll find out more in a future volume in the series.

Maggie Hoskie is a monster slayer, recently abandoned by her god-like mentor who saved her life after her grandmother was killed. She gets called on to find a child kidnapped by a new type of monster. From there, she ungraciously accepts the help of her neighbour's healer grandson to track down the origins of these new monsters. Oh, and Coyote is harassing her to do something for him.

The world is incredibly well-drawn, both in the mundane and the supernatural elements. Non-humans walk the reserve, and people's clan histories give them unusual abilities. Maggie is a wonderfully damaged heroine, and Kai is an intriguing side-kick, although I do hope for more of his history in the next book. The book could have used a pronunciation guide (it took me a while to get over trying to figure out how to pronounce those bizarre accented characters), but eventually I got used to it.

And while the book has a tied up conclusion, you can see hints of where it is going in the next book, which I can't wait to read.

I really enjoyed this novel and I'm looking forward to the next book in the series. The world building was interesting and I've got a ton of questions about it that I hope will be answered in later books. The Navajo mythology that was incorporated was fascinating and it was both a nice and necessary change from the overused Greek, Roman, and Norse ones. The one issue that I had was that some of the characters and relationships felt underdeveloped. I didn't completely buy the personal stakes of the climactic battle because of that; there was too much tell and not enough show. That said, I did like the main characters. All in all, an intriguing introduction to the series.

Well-written, powerful, and original, Rebecca Roanhorse’s TRAIL OF LIGHTNING is one of the most important and exciting SFF books of 2018.

Maggie Hoskie is a Monsterslayer, a woman whose clan powers make her a supernaturally skilled killer and an outcast among her own people. Once the apprentice of Neizghání, the immortal child of two Diné gods, Maggie’s skills are unparalleled. So when disturbingly fast and hard-to-kill monsters begin plaguing Dinétah, Maggie’s called in to take them out. But when it becomes clear that there’s more going on than meets the eye, Maggie will have to defy all her instincts and rely on someone else for a change.

Every single character in TRAIL OF LIGHTNING feels like a real person, with charm, secrets, and contradictions aplenty. Sometimes they make poor decisions, especially Maggie. I’d even go as far as to characterize her as an unreliable narrator, at least when it comes to her self-conception. Maggie’s opinion of herself is warped by the traumatic incident that triggered her clan powers…and it’s compounded a thousand-fold by the emotional abuse she suffered under Neizghání. Watching Maggie grapple with the harsh realities of her devotion to her former mentor is hard to watch at times, but it’s so important. I haven’t rooted for a character like this in forever!

The supporting cast is also incredible, especially Maggie’s new friend Kai Arviso, a pretty boy medicine man in training with enough skeletons to fill a walk-in closet. Much like Maggie, I was suspicious of him at first but I was charmed by him in spite of myself. Clive and Clarissa Goodacre, tough as nails siblings with a penchant for danger – and a great party – also have a special place in my heart. But as far as the secondary cast goes, the real scene stealer is Ma’ii, often called Coyote. You may think that you know Coyote from other stories, but trust me, you’ve never seen him like this. He’s absolutely terrifying.

Roanhorse deftly introduces the history of the Sixth World and the culture and magic of Dinétah without overwhelming readers with detail, which is impressive when you consider just how rich and layered the world of TRAIL OF LIGHTNING is. Of all the fascinating world building that Roanhorse presents to her readers, my favourite is the concept of clan powers, which are triggered by traumatic events and are determined by a person’s clan heritage. While some of the Diné see clan powers as blessings, most consider Maggie’s violent powers a curse – Maggie among them.

The legacy of trauma is at the core of this story, which is unsurprising given the impact of intergenerational trauma on indigenous populations. Roanhorse doesn’t shy away from this darkness but instead embraces it, illustrating how events that could be the end of someone can actually lead to their rebirth. From the world building to the characters to its messages, TRAIL OF LIGHTNING is unlike any other urban fantasy novel I’ve ever read. The emotional resonance of this story is incredibly powerful, and the first steps of Maggie’s journey to healing shook me to my core. Her story is going to stay with me for a long time.

I, for one, cannot wait to see where she takes Maggie’s story in the sequel. Rebecca Roanhorse is an incredibly talented storyteller who brings much-needed originality and emotional weight to urban fantasy, and I whole-heartedly recommend TRAIL OF LIGHTNING to everyone.

Pros:

- Badass Indigenous woman as a monster-slaying lead character
- Nuanced protagonist; she's a good person with some serious bloodlust, who's also haunted by past trauma and shame
- Love when authors weave traditional stories/legends/mythology/folk tales into their fantasy writing
- The side characters! So fun and well-written, especially everyone's favourite trickster, Coyote.
- Just enough romance for my taste

Cons:

- Neizgháni
- Maggie seems way too smart to not figure out some of the supposed twists in the story
- The end was a little underwhelming

Overall though, I'd absolutely recommend this, and I'll definitely be looking for the second book in the series! Thanks to Net Galley and Simon & Schuster Canada for my review copy.

This is one of the best books I’ve ever read. The incredible storytelling and the descriptions in the text bring the characters to life so clearly. It is a roller coaster of an emotional journey, it is the Diné Mad Max that we have been promised and so much more. The amount of plot and backstory and character development from five average books is in this one book. Rebecca Roanhorse is such a fantastic author.

I would feel irresponsible if I didn’t mention how dark this book gets. I had to stop reading for a few weeks because the imagery was too graphic for me. After finishing the book, I now know that everything, every word, every horrific thing has its purpose. There is no gratuitous violence in this book. But if you don’t have a strong stomach, it may be best to read it in small sections.

I think that everyone should read this book. This is a new wave in dystopian fiction and I’m so happy to ride it.

This book is described as an “Indigenous Mad Max: Fury Road.” This description is perfect.

I 110% needed a salty, bad-ass Navajo protagonist in my life. Maggie is wonderful. Oh, and did I mention that she’s a monster slayer? There’s a lot to love about her, but most of all she’s a wonderfully flawed protagonist. She makes terrible decisions, misses some obvious things, but does so in a wonderfully human and relatable way. Most of all, Maggie’s voice grabbed me right from the get-go and made me want to pay attention and follow her and her growth as a character. And yes, she is a character that has amazing growth throughout the book as she deals with her trauma and starts to grow up.

The world is brought to life in a wonderfully vivid way, with complex characters that had conflicting and hidden motivations. I have to admit that I cheered when Coyote showed up. Coyote stories are always my favourite and Roanhorse’s depiction of him is amazing. Everything about the world is seamless, and at no point does it feel like a history lesson or a lecture. The world is real and the characters live in it, end of story, no talking down to the reader about it. I am so excited for Roanhorse’s next books, because I needed to be embroiled in an unapologetically indigenous world, and especially one with such an empowering protagonist.

The plot is lightning quick and works perfectly with the immediacy created by the first person present tense narration. It was nearly impossible to put down, and if sleep hadn’t been a physical necessity, I would have read the book in one sitting (that might happen still, cause I can’t wait to read it again - if I hadn’t have needed to adult, I might have just started it over again right there.)

My one complaint (and it’s minor cause I forgave it by the end of the book) was the depiction of Kai and Neizghání, (like why are they both so gorgeous? - though this is a classic Cheyanne complaint haha, so maybe ignore if it that’s the sort of thing you like). It’s one thing that will make me pause in a book and sigh loudly. I get it. They’re hot. But really, it was a minor annoyance. No spoilers, but I promise by the end I wasn’t thinking about that, I was too busy cheering for Maggie, because her character growth is spot on.

I recommend the book to absolutely everyone and their dog. And no I will not stop talking about it, cause this Nêhiyaw iskwêw (Cree woman) is so excited to have a super badass native protagonist to love. (Is this what fan-girling feels like? Cause I think I’m fan-girling).

3.5

Trail of Lightning was good but it wasn't the story I thought it was going to be. It ended up being driven by the characters, rather than the story. There wasn't nearly enough actual monster hunting, which is what I went into this story for. Instead, it was an interesting take on "what makes a monster a monster" without actually delving too deep into the topic.

I have pretty mixed feelings. I loved that this was a diverse post-apocalyptic fantasy with lore that I hadn't even heard of, let alone seen, before. The pacing was great. The characters were easy to love. Unfortunately, I feel like there was something missing that I can't quite put my finger on. I did really enjoy my time reading this, and I will most likely pick up the next book whenever it comes out.

Out of Ten: 8/10

Review at a Glance: A dominantly character-driven (though action-filled) journey through a post-climate-apocalypse world haunted by supernatural monsters and immortals.

Review: I do love a good climate apocalypse. This is a bit more of a supernatural climate apocalypse (or at least: this climate apocalypse blurs the lines between "humans messed with the natural world and feedback loops led to the climate apocalypse" and "humans messed with the natural world and the natural world messed back"). My mental map of the United States, especially the Southern states, is a little bit disgraceful (and even more disgraceful when it comes to my awareness of the extent of traditional Indigenous territories... most of the territory maps I've studied are more Northern). (Which is my long winded way of saying that I am familiar with neither the traditions and beliefs of the Diné, nor where in America Albuquerque is located. I had to do a bit of Googling.)

Maggie joins the ranks of so many main characters before her in that her life is just constantly being interrupted by supernatural beings who want something from her and like to meddle. Seriously the immortals in this book are... hmm... entitled and creepily involved in Maggie's personal life, like, back off. It's bad enough that you keep sending her off on random quests and things, please let her have her own personal life, maintain professional boundaries, or whatever. MYOB, Ancient Immortal Powers, M.Y.O.B.



Maggie is kind of the withdrawn, jaded, hit-first-ask-questions-later hero type. Honestly she's one of the best examples of the trope I've seen in YA- partly, I think, because so often in the fantasy literature I'm familiar with, this role is almost exclusively both a) given to male characters and b) played off as something totally appealing and cool and a good thing to be. Trail of Lighting gives us Maggie, a character fits this trope, but lets us see that she's a person who is struggling, she's scared a lot of the time, she's still trying to come to terms with her power, and that she's had her faith (in people, in her abilities, in the world) badly shaken (if not totally shattered) on multiple occasions. She's faced a lot of trauma that she's still struggling to process, and she's got her walls up. Basically I really appreciate how this particular trope is fleshed out and given new dimension in Maggie as a character. It isn't necessarily that the trope is deconstructed on Maggie, although I'd love to see it continue to work it's way there, but it's certainly more believable on her. I hope you realise that I'm restraining myself from writing an essay about her character. You came here for a review, not an essay. (Or possibly you came here for pizza and are confused and disappointed to find just words. I don't pretend to know your business).

Kai was a more difficult character for me to fully wrap my head around, possibly because, unlike Maggie, I didn't spend the entire book seeing from his point of view. By the time I was about halfway though I did kind of feel like yelling "Maggie he's hiding something I don't know what it's something and I know you've got more than enough of your own crap going on but please ask him about it because I just know it's going to come back and bite us later" and I was. Not wrong. So that did add a bit of frustration to the reading experience. That aside his dynamic with Maggie was otherwise interesting because- with her taking the stoic warrior role who has Seen Some Things- he winds up in a role that makes him seem more open by comparison. He also provides knowledge and insight that we wouldn't otherwise have had (sometimes literally: he's better with seeing into the supernatural world that Maggie is during at least one confrontation), and his abilities remain a bit mysterious... His relationship with Maggie proceeded kind of in fits and starts just because of who they both were as people and also because of the situation they were in, and it didn't really feel unrealistic, which I appreciated.

With these two as the lead characters, it did kind of stand out when many of the supporting characters didn't feel nearly as developed or authentic. There were some that felt real despite having spent little time with, and others that just... somehow didn't. Some felt mostly just like... concepts of a character (the one character we know is on-page stated LGBT+ felt a bit trope-y, for example... not so much that there aren't people in the community with the traits he has but more that he hadn't been... fleshed out enough around them?) This might be because they're slated for further fleshing out in successive books, given that we're certainly not done with all of them. Neizghání was a strange case in that I struggled to find... justification for any of his actions beyond ~vague supernatural reasons~ and "being a genuinely terrible person who DOES NOT know our heroine as well as he thinks he does" felt kind of mystifying, partly because... there just isn't that much else to him? Like I get that people think of him as a hero because he's fought monsters but he's awful to Maggie. Like. Abusive awful? Never meet your heroes, I guess. The contrast between her memories of him and him when we meet him is staggering.

I feel like I'm beginning to ramble so I've just got to say: when Maggie stood on top of the truck in the book I was super excited because. COVER IMAGE! IN THE BOOK! (I get excited about weird things, possibly.)

The plot itself does kind of feel like a standard quest in a lot of ways: supernatural being shows up, assigns the hero a task, hero tries to accomplish said task while getting sidetracked. Combined with another sort of quest: hero discovers horrible thing, hero must investigate. The plot in a lot of ways felt like it took a back seat to the characters. It wasn't that I was uninterested in the plot, I was just more interested in Maggie's journey. The plot itself acted as a vessel for that, as well as to draw attention to the history of the Diné and the effects of colonialism- there was a line that I swear I highlighted but that isn't showing up in my eARC that essentially just says that, for the Diné the rising water wasn't the apocalypse-that had happened a long time before, which was an impactful and meaningful line- and. Okay. Also the plot was a vessel for some pretty cool monster-fighting scenes. The only thing about the plot that did bother me a little was it kind of felt like there was a cliffhanger at the end just for the sake of there being a cliffhanger?

Overall this novel was an intriguing peak into Diné lore, a quest rich in action and meddling supernatural beings, and, above all, a character driven journey. I really enjoyed reading it and I'm looking forward to seeing where the story goes next.

I had an incredibly hard time sorting out my feelings on this book and I don't know if I can say that I succeeded. There are many aspects of it that I absolutely loved, but also ones that I really disliked. And the two overlap one another, leaving me conflicted and with a frown line that's about to become permanent.

Let's just begin with all the things that I loved. A Trail of Lighting is a post-apocalyptic fantasy that revolves around Native American culture and history, written by a Native American author, and for that alone it deserves recognition. Roanhorse deftly weaves Navajo mythology into a Mad Max-esque world and the result is unique and exciting.

The characters that inhabit this world are strange and vibrant. From mercenaries and medicine men, to a woman who manifests as a cat-person (and I don't mean that she really loves cats; I mean that she has facial features and mannerisms of a cat), the story occasionally dips into a Wonderland-level of creepy and weird and I adored it to bits. And what I always look forward to in Aboriginal speculative fiction is the depiction of Coyote, the trickster figure. Because he varies from one culture to the next, no two authors write him quite the same way, and Roanhorse's version doesn't disappoint. With appearance and mannerisms reminiscent of Neil Gaiman's Anansi in American Gods--irreverent and dressed as a dandy--he's probably my favourite side character.

The best urban fantasies have strong, distinctive narrative voices and this one has that in spades. Maggie's narration is introspective, a little anti-social, and a little smoky--a-lone-ranger-staring-across-the-desert-as-the-sun-sets kind of vibe. The author uses a lot of fragmentation, which can sometimes make for choppy action sequences, but all in all, it's highly readable and engaging.

Maggie herself is a fascinating and rather unconventional urban fantasy protagonist. She's a monster hunter gifted--or cursed, in her opinion--with the power of speed and the ability to kill. This makes her feared and disliked by many. The entirety of the story (and probably the rest of the series) is her struggling to rein in her clan power, known as "K'aahanaánii", and keep its bloodlust from consuming her. And the thing that I especially love is that Maggie, to some level, enjoys the killing. She loves the adrenaline and the control of it, and that comes with the baggage of guilt and self-hatred. And that's one of my favourite kinds of stories--those of powerful men and women whose power is a double edged sword, one that comes with the risk of being devoured from the inside out. It adds extra layers of internal conflict that can potentially be catalysts for interesting character growth.

"Wow, that all sounds fantastic," you might say. And you're right--it is pretty fantastic!

And now here come the criticisms to rain all over this parade.

Let's talk about the plot--or rather, the lack of one. While there's a vague overarching goal that gets introduced at the beginning of the story, Maggie and her companion Kai spend most of their time doing the literary equivalent of accidental side quests. They travel from point A to point B, at which point something happens and they're forced to deal with it before moving on. They end up having to constantly react to the things that happen in the world, as opposed to proactively moving the plot forward. And while some of the diversions are fun, it's all very meandering and lacks cohesion.

Secondly, the antagonist. At the foundation of the story is Maggie's relationship with her former mentor Neizgháni, who Maggie is kind-of-sort-of-maybe in love with. He's built up to be this mysterious presence looming above our MC, and so much of her thought process and behaviour are rooted in this relationship that they'd had. Needless to say, I was very much looking forward to meeting the man.

So imagine my bafflement when Neizgháni finally makes his entrance and he turns out to be the embodiment of the worst of the "bad boy antagonist" trope, complete with cockiness, possessiveness, no sense of personal boundary, and long, flowing dark hair. He falls under the Kylo Ren column of character archetypes--the ones who strut around with their capes (or hair) billowing and saying things like, "Join me and we will set our thrones atop the corpses of our enemies and bathe in their blood," with zero hint of irony. For someone who's had so much impact on the protagonist's life, he felt incredibly shallow and campy. Picture a very pretty, very vapid Final Fantasy villain and you won't be far off from Neizgháni.

The thing is, I don't mind these types of characters too much in popcorn paranormal fantasy. With those, I enjoy the campiness for what it is. But a story with worldbuilding and a protagonist of this caliber deserves someone a lot better.

The ending also adds another bewildering layer to the story. Its big reveal is underwhelming and the motivations of the villain rather nonsensical, and moreover, it ends incredibly abruptly and on a not-insignificant cliffhanger.

And here's the most confusing part of all this: I don't dislike the book. While I did dislike so many of its individual parts, as a whole I kind of enjoyed it and actually find myself looking forward to the sequel.

Is it the most polished, exciting fantasy I've read this year? No.

Is it something I would recommend to people? Hell yes.

Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I think this novel has been a LONG time coming and I'm glad it's here. Now.

My only concern is that this UF series came out so late in the whole UF cycle thing. I needed this a decade ago. I needed a full American Indian mythological romp with Coyote and so many fantastic supernatural additions to my reading schedule!

Not just fae and vamps and druids and wizards... I needed THIS!

That being said, I really liked it. :) Flooding took out most of the world and it was like coming back home to New Mexico, one of the few places to survive the wipeout and the breakdown of society.

So here we are... post-apocalyptic breakdown with a tight, tight supernatural native American pantheon coming to life. :) And I love Maggie. :)

No spoilers. I will say that the plot is solid as hell and the magic is gorgeous and the action delightful. It's a primo UF that delivers on the fun factor, the mythological factor, and the character factor. :)

Definitely looking forward to the whole series.

I was first introduced to Rebecca Roanhorse’s writing through her incredible short story Welcome To Your Authentic Indian Experience™ which was rightfully nominated for a bunch of awards like the Nebula and Hugo last year. So when I saw her name on Netgalley I knew whatever it was would rocket straight to the top of my to-read list. I had no idea that I was about to become totally obsessed with the world and characters she created but I should have, she’s really just that good.

Roanhorse’s debut novel Trail of Lightning (available June 2018) is the first in a fantasy series called The Sixth World, a dystopian look at what happens to the world after a climate crisis and flooding called The Big Water decimates life as we know it and strengthens the Earth’s links to the heavenly and supernatural. Set on the former Navajo Reservation, Dinétah, Maggie Hoskie is a badass Dinétah monster hunter whose traumatic past has manifested special clan powers that give her strength and speed but also a terrifying bloodlust that she’s struggling to control when she’s called upon to save a kidnapped girl and finds herself fighting an element of dark magic she’s never seen before.

With the help of a preternaturally good looking medicine man named Kai, Maggie searches their crumbling world for answers that lead from a trickster Coyote to a lightning god ex-teacher/lover?, underground clubs, highway gangs, terrible monsters, and more, all the while under the suspicious eye of a corrupt tribal police force threatening their already heavily targeted lives.

It’s not enough to say that this is the fantasy series I’ve been waiting my whole life for—Roanhorse takes Harry Potter-level lore and originality and grounds it firmly in a torn world populated with complicated and burdened people. In the midst of Rowlings’ blundering and cultural appropriation throughout her new content on Pottermore, it is a gift to finally see a fantasy series do right by indigenous legend and depict actual contemporary native people with accuracy. Not to say Trail of Lightning is anything like Harry Potter, because it’s not, but the scope is there and it does have magic and relunctant heroes. Instead, this series is going somewhere completely new and I am strapped in dying, ready for the ride.

God I hope someone buys the rights so I can see it on the big screen.

I’m ignorant when it comes to indigenous people and culture (shameful, I know), so I jumped at the opportunity to read a fantasy novel where indigenous culture was the focus. Trail of Lightning is an exciting introduction to an interesting world with a kickass main character.

One aspect of the novel that doesn’t work as well as it should is the world building. The world is so deeply entrenched in Navajo legends, myths, and stories that having a basic working knowledge of their history is almost required before reading. Roanhorse doesn’t clearly communicate the legends, myths, and stories that are central to the novel. As a result, there were things that went over my head or didn’t click until several chapters later. This lack of clear world building did negatively affect my enjoyment of the novel since some key plot points were slightly difficult to understand.

As with the world building, the magic system in this world is tired to Navajo culture. Clan members are sometimes bestowed with powers. Maggie has the power of death. She’s able to kill effectively and efficiently. Her power almost becomes a burden as she’s forced to rein it in when it’s not needed. Roanhorse accomplishes the magic system flawlessly compared to the world building.

The main character, Maggie, is fierce, kickass, and deadly. She reminds me of Katniss in that she’s determined and fiercely independent. Maggie also reminds me a little of Celaena Sardothien in that she’s just as deadly if not more. I could sit here and compare her to almost every poplar YA heroine, but there’s something about Maggie that makes her unique. While most of her YA counterparts that are deadly eventually face a crisis of morality in terms of their killing, Maggie never does. It’s refreshing to read a character in the YA genre that isn’t bogged down by a by the numbers morality arc.

Overall, Trail of Lightning is a fantastic introduction to a captivating world full of complex characters. Throughout the novel, I had to put it down to research the Navajo people and culture for clarity and curiosity. Some may see this as a negative, but I see it as a positive. Anytime a novel forces me to see a different perspective or learn about a different culture, the novel has accomplished its job.

YA fantasy needs more books like this!

This was excellent!.

It straddles the line quite nicely between comfortable urban fantasy, and unique and different- with diversity in cast, and setting, that a lot of us are looking for.

For me, the use of the Navajo legends to build the magic and setting was a huge draw and satisfied my love of folktales. This was paced well and not over-done. I was excited every time we got a new story or some world building and also, the post/apoc/flood water scenario was something that with the current environmental concerns, worked to make this feel like a possible outcome.


I loved the characters-

Maggie is a perfect blend of a smart, capable, angry ball of hurt, while still being someone that we can love, and hope she wins- the guy, the battle, friends, everything...the girl just needs a hug.

Kai- He’s got the charm and the smarts but also feels like he’s got his own angry ball of hurt to deal with. I am a little in love with Kai.

Coyote couldn’t be any more perfect- somewhere between likeable and don’t turn your back on him. He’s a trickster and he Feels like one.

All the secondary characters are just as well done. Even the cat at Grace’s bar felt like something tangible.

The humor is my kind of humor- sometimes a little silly, sometimes dry, and sometimes a bit on the dark side. Loved it.


It had such a strong start, I was worried the story was going to hit the middle and drag. When that didn’t happen, I worried towards the end that it was going to fall apart because it didn’t seem like there was going to be enough time to tie it up, but that didn’t happen either. It kicked it!

I think this might have been a case of right time, right book, it truly was my perfect book. And that ending guarantees I will be back for the next one (Please let there be a next one).


Other notes-

Coolest scene- Kai ‘s Weather Ways display at the tent city.

Grace’s hugging Maggie was perfect (like I said the girl needs a hug).

The present tense first person (is this a trend?) worked very well for me.



Thank you to Netgalley, the publishers (Simon & Schuster/Saga Press) and the author, for the opportunity to read an ARC.