Stephen Graham Jones' latest novel is a dark, suspenseful journey through a decade in the lives of four friends bound together by a tragic mistake. The first chapter is one character's chilling, standalone story reflecting the racial tension and cultural biases he's endured throughout his life. The immediately ominous atmosphere represents only a glance at the dark mystery yet to unfold and demonstrates the author's ability to effortlessly create tension and character depth within a few pages. As the story explores more of the four friends' lives on and off the reservation, the reader becomes aware of the strong influence folklore has had on their personalities. .

Character authenticity makes The Only Good Indians really come alive, everyday activities infusing the plot with profound significance as each person quickly becomes three-dimensional. The story has the hallmarks of the very best horror, but events in the last half of the book effectively negate the formidable tension established in the first half. For this reader, the potential of the masterfully crafted mystery is nevery fully realized, and the end result is less satisfying than it should be. Without giving anything away, much of the established plot is rendered moot by a sharp turn of events toward the end of the book. For some, this might serve as a satisfying twist, but for others, their established loyalties and emotional investment will seem fruitless.

Fans of Pet Sematary will find this territory simultaneously familliar and foreign, with a trigger warning to anyone sensitive to animal death (though the author handles these scenes expertly with absolutely no excessive detail). I was disappointed in this book only because of the enormous scope implied in the early chapters. The end result is considerably more narrow, but still clearly crafted by a master storyteller. If anything, I wish this story had been longer, with more time to build to the shocking conclusion.

Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery/Saga Press for the ARC.

It took me awhile to really get into the story but I soon became captivated. This book took me on a roller coaster of emotions and has still stuck with me days after reading. The ending had me tears so just a heads up to have a box of tissues close by.

Thank you to Netgalley for an opportunity to read and review this book!

The Only Good Indians follows the vengeful spirit of an elk and her unborn calf as she stalks and plots revenge on four men, who in their youth, slaughtered them on tribal land reserved only for elders.

Though a slim novel, Graham really fleshes out the four main characters through their relationships with loved ones, the internal and external struggles with both staying and leaving their land, and the unspoken uneasiness of what they did years prior to the elk. This makes the carefully placed violence all the more startling - pretty sure I gasped out loud at some points.

I did find this novel disjointed at times. A bit more cohesion between the different sections and the point of view of the elk would have strengthened the story and made less confusing in parts. Despite this, I will absolutely be reading more Stephen Graham Jones in the future!

A challenging read that is worth every bit of effort it takes to enter the world of modern American Indian culture and society, The Only Good Indians is not only a riveting literary novel, it's one of the most frightening thrillers of the past decade with a "monster" that rivals Joe Lansdale's "God of the Razor" as the ultimate terrifying bit of imagery in modern horror.
Central to the novel is a short vignette about friends hunting elk illegally, finding a herd, and killing them indiscriminately. That's it. Any more would constitute a spoiler--yet from this seemingly innocuous sketch, all hell breaks loose.
The prose in The Only Good Indians rivals that of literary greats--Faulkner, Updike, Bellow, and McCullers come to mind immediately. But to go one step further, Stephen Graham Jones makes the conscious (I think) choice to switch back and forth from a hypotactic to a paratatic voice almost seamlessly throughout the novel and the effect of that leaves the reader off balance and unsure whether they're reading about a character's psychological torment or a supernatural persecution. Couple this mind-spinning "Did I just read what I think I read?" with the extraordinary snippets of personification where the reader experiences the consciousness of one of the hunted elk (sorry, can't say more) and you've got yourself an unforgettable tour-de-force unlike anything you've read before.
The complexity of this novel seems purposeful; it forces the reader's attention and it demands immersion into Indian culture, beliefs, values, and symbols. And that engagement is vital to experience the terror that awaits.
Overall, an absolutely brilliant novel.

I tend to read ravenously, often pouring myself into a book and then quickly forgetting it as I move on to the next. So it is worth stating that The Only Good Indians has stayed in my mind well after finishing it at the beginning of the year. The hook that brings me back to it is the completely unique (and awesomely bizarre) final fifty pages or so, but what holds my attention is the way Jones was able to craft brilliantly flawed yet sympathetic characters. I would recommend this book to anyone willing to handle a good amount of gore and some very unpredictable plot developments.

The Only Good Indians, by Stephen Graham Jones

Short Take: Horror that hurts in the best and deepest way.

(*Note: I received an advance copy of this book for review.*)

Hello lovelies, and welcome to my least favorite week of the year. I lost an hour of the weekend, plus there’s a new virus running around that sounds like it’ll be targeting me and my crappy lungs personally. It’s all the makings of a Mostly Miserable Monday, and my body is convinced that I absolutely should not be awake right now.

Spoiler alert: I’m awake. And not terribly happy about that.

But if there’s one thing that can always lift my mood, it’s digging into a delicious book by an author I hadn’t read before. The thrill of discovery is second only to the marvelous sensation of being completely consumed by a story, and oh my sweet nerdlings, this is one that will swallow you whole and leave you shuddering for days.

Ten years ago, four young Native American men did something stupid, and careless, and wasteful, as young men of all ages and ethnicities do. But these four young men were spitting in the face of forces they didn’t fully understand and now, they are going to Pay The Price for their actions.

I’m not going to elaborate on the story, because although it’s great (seriously, the plot and pacing and characters were all spot-on), the story itself is almost secondary to the world Mr. Jones has created (or maybe re-created?) on the page.

(I’m going to add some personal context here that might elicit a “well duh” from more than a few, but I really do live in an extremely culturally isolated place, so bear with me, k?)

I have always lived in an area where the Native population is virtually zero. Sure, some people may be part Cherokee or whatever, but that’s meaningless here. It’s like being part Irish - it’s met with indifference or an “oh that’s cool” and the conversation moves on. Which means that in this part of the US of A, we aren’t exposed to any of the Native heritage, the myths and tribal customs, the language and the dances. But we also don’t see the ugly parts of being Native today that are too common elsewhere - the discrimination, addiction, and poverty.

So while I’ve been aware of these things at a civics-class, sort of absently-intellectual level, I never really FELT the beauty of Native culture, or fury at the injustices that are still being done today, and that’s where Stephen Graham Jones kicked my pasty nerd hiney up one side and down the other, because The Only Good Indians is a full-body immersion in both sides of Native life in the 21st century, and it’s absolutely breathtaking.

And it’s that blending of ancient myth and modern-day just-getting-by that makes the horror of the story so effective. I immediately found myself caring so much about these flawed but oh-so-human and sympathetic characters, and peeking over my shoulder in case [spoiler] might be back there and getting closer, and maybe gasping just a little as I felt the heat of the sweat lodge, knowing what was lurking in the shadows.

But the real beating heart of The Only Good Indians is the author’s voice. The story is told in a stream of consciousness style that feels somehow urgent but also like a deeply personal conversation, a late-night sharing of secrets, a heartfelt truth that makes even the fantasy elements feel so real.

And oh yeah, it’s damn suspenseful and scary and all the other things you want in a horror novel too. Trust me, I’m too tired and cranky to lie.

The Nerd’s Rating: FIVE HAPPY NEURONS (and a gallon-size jug of antibacterial hand soap. Wash ‘em, people!!)

The Book Corner 3/12/2020: Stephen Graham-Jones’s The Only Good Indians
Traci Kenworth

The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham-Jones. Gallery/Saga Books. May 19,2020. Netgalley.
Amazon’s blurb: “One of 2020’s buzziest horror novels.” —Entertainment Weekly

"What Stephen Graham Jones does for me, is create new possibilities for Indigenous storymakers." —Terese Marie Mailhot, New York Times bestselling author

“The Only Good Indians is a masterpiece. Intimate, devastating, brutal, terrifying, yet warm and heartbreaking in the best way, Stephen Graham Jones has written a horror novel about injustice and, ultimately, about hope.” —Paul Tremblay, author of A Head Full of Ghosts and The Cabin at the End of the World

A tale of revenge, cultural identity, and the cost of breaking from tradition in this latest novel from the Jordan Peele of horror literature, Stephen Graham Jones.

Seamlessly blending classic horror and a dramatic narrative with sharp social commentary, The Only Good Indians follows four American Indian men after a disturbing event from their youth puts them in a desperate struggle for their lives. Tracked by an entity bent on revenge, these childhood friends are helpless as the culture and traditions they left behind catch up to them in a violent, vengeful way.

My review: It has a dry style of writing that took me a while to catch onto but once I did, the pages flew! Louis is haunted by a day that he and his three friends shared on the reservation. What’s more an entity may be coming back for revenge of the same. Starts off with a scene that leads Louis from a bar and a potential butt-kicking because he’s a Blackfoot Native American to haunted visions of a day spent with the boys of his youth. It has been ten years since Louis participated in a massacre of elk and now, he’s haunted by one in particular. When his dog dies, it seems the horror is creeping closer to him. He starts to distrust those around him. One-by-one his friends are target for that fateful day. Can any hope to survive? Much less atone. Well thought-out, masterpiece of horror! Haunting, gripping, a book to rival all hauntings! My Scorecard-B+

The Only Good Indians is the story of four American Indian men. 

Something very disturbing happened to them when they were much younger. Something that haunts them to this day and puts them in danger of being killed by some entity bent on having revenge for the act they committed. 

I am very familiar with the North Dakota reservations and the treatment of the Native Americans there. These men left their culture and lives behind to try and escape the bleakness of life on the rez.

This is a story of cultures lost, guilt, shame, and violence. It was at times difficult to read, but I did. 

At times I was lost. At times I was terrified. And in the end, I cried.

NetGalley/ May 19th, 2020 by Gallery / Saga Press

This was an incredibly well written piece of literary horror. Unfortunately, I just don’t think it was for me. I really liked the aspects of the story involving Native American culture and the stereotypes and challenges surrounding this minority group. Since this is an #ownvoice story, I believe the author did a fantastic job giving a voice to his people. However, as a story, particularly a horror story, I found this one lacking narrative drive and plot. Despite the synopsis, I found very little setup or movement in this story. I had a similar issue with the author’s other novel, Mongrals. So while I appreciated many aspects of this book, it was just not personally grabbing my attention. So, as per my review policy, I decided to put it down. Note, I do not provide ratings for me DNFs. Even though this book was not for me, I still wanted to discuss it since I definitely think there is an audience for it, especially for those that love the author’s previous works.

I loved this novel and particularly liked the ending. My previous favorites by Jones were Mapping the Interior and Mongrels, and I liked that this novel had similarities to those but also went in its own direction. Louise Erdrich was mentioned as an influence in the acknowledgments. Any who like this novel and haven’t read Erdrich might enjoy her novels. Thanks to Netgalley for providing an advance copy.

THE ONLY GOOD INDIANS is horrifying, heartbreaking, and has lingered in my mind since I finished it. Jones has taken a revenge horror story and perfectly melded it with a cautionary tale about the importance of revering traditions, and a tale about identity. The horror aspects were strong and very unsettling, from a slow burn build to body horror to disturbing imagery, and yet Jones is very careful to show the many sides and motivations of the entity that is pursuing our four hunters. As a reader I was both scared for the hunters, but also completely empathized with the entity that is stalking them (I'm trying to be vague, it's far more fun to go in blind in this story). We get to see into the minds of each character that we follow, and while the four hunters have done some bad things and made devastating mistakes in their lives, since we get to know them a bit we are invested in them, even though we know that they are more than likely doomed. I feel like the best horror stories have a laser focus on all of the players, and Jones definitely did that. On top of all that, I really liked how Jones brings in a lot of cultural and social issues when it comes to Native populations, from poverty to a loss of identity to addiction to racism. It all comes together so well and makes this book that much more unique and powerful.

THE ONLY GOOD INDIANS is a fantastic horror novel with a lot of heart. I am definitely going to need to read more Stephen Graham Jones post haste.

I tried so hard (and numerous times) to fall into this story but unfortunately it was a bust for me.. it had all the quality’s I love in a boom, in got about halfway and just had to give up. I am hoping to pick it back up later but for now this was a NF. I’m not sure if it was the writing style or the way the main character talked and told the story but it just couldn’t keep me intrigued 😕

Holy crap. I don't even know how to articulate how absolutely lacerated I feel by this book. It's a bit unlike anything else I've read in the horror or indigenous (aboriginal?) literature categories. Like all the best horror, it is warm and real and funny and evisceratingly sad as well as having an almost unbearable sense of creeping dread that actually made me feel slightly sick. The friendship between the three doomed men, the hunting camaraderie, the young male goofiness, was achingly perfect. The enraging, ridiculous nature of the racism that is woven into the very fabric of existence for indigenous people is very much present. The bad choices and the self-justifying interior monologues of the older men, the second chances and the hopefulness pinned on relationships when the reader knows the likely outcome. There are some deep, natural, archetypal rules in place but then some of them get broken which felt "unfair" to me, which I then realized was probably a big part of the point. This is my favourite Netgalley book since The Girl With All the Gifts - everything is here, amazing story, wonderful characterization, memorable imagery. This was just masterful.

"The Only Good Indians follows four American Indian men after a disturbing event from their youth puts them in a desperate struggle for their lives. Tracked by an entity bent on revenge, these childhood friends are helpless as the culture and traditions they left behind catch up to them in a violent, vengeful way."

An incisive, cutting, supernatural revenge tale. Stephen Graham Jones digs deep and cultivates an unsettling, grim atmosphere that kept me anxious until the last page. I'd be shocked if this isn't my top horror novel of the year.

If you like your horror smart and infused with social commentary, this is the book for you. I know other reviewers have mentioned that they didn't love the pacing, but I love the way the narrative shifted perspective throughout the book. There's a chance to inhabit the minds of multiple, fully fleshed characters here that really stood out to me. I want to heap praise on this book, but I also want future readers to go in as blind as I did. Look down through the spinning fan blades for the first time, without warning.

Thanks to Netgalley and Saga Press for the opportunity to read this one.

I was surprised when the publisher granted my wish on NetGalley for this book. I wished for it based on the cover (the side view of the elk) and the blurb. I was looking for a book that would scare me. While The Only Good Indians did scare me, in certain parts of the book, it also bored me.

The Only Good Indians plotline had two paces. It went between going fast and slow. I wished that it had stayed either fast or slow. The constant slowing down of the plotline made it hard to read. I did like that there were no dropped characters or storylines.

The characters in The Only Good Indians were well written. I did have a problem connecting with the characters. I can pinpoint why I couldn’t connect with them.

I loved the main plotline in The Only Good Indians. I loved that the author used Native American folklore and wove it into the plotline. I liked the build-up to the final encounter was well written. But, I do wish that there was a glossary at the end of the book. It would have helped with some of the Native American terms used in the book.

The horror angle of the book was well written. I did think that it was drawn out towards the end of the book.

The end of The Only Good Indians was interesting. I get that the cycle had to come full circle. I also wasn’t prepared for who Denorah’s stepfather was.

Stephen Jones mixes "Big Little Lies" alongside "Cabin at the End of the World" -- but with, for, and including indigenous voices. I loved this one. Warning: the book is gory at times, however, I really enjoyed the emotions that I felt while reading this novel. White people, take note. This is a book about contemporary Native American life that doesn't fall into gross colonial stereotypes or give simple explanations for sociocultural factors.

I really enjoyed this very much. It was a solid horror book. Oftentimes, it takes a lot for me to enjoy horror stories since I've read so many. This was original and not something that I've read before. I like how the feeling of dread simply escalated.

One of the things I like most about The Only Good Indians is Jones’ voice. The style feels very much free flow. Jones skillfully guides you through this story, ebbing and flowing with the current. The way he presents it is very dreamlike. It’s like you’re on the river with no paddle, but you know you will inevitably reach your destination, and you’re patient getting there because the scenery is breathtaking. That’s what it’s like reading The Only Good Indians, and Jones’ words are the scenery. You just kind of get lost in them.

You can read my full review at Horror DNA: https://www.horrordna.com/books/the-only-good-indians-stephen-graham-jones-book-review

The Only Good Indians is an outstanding horror novel that will leave readers feeling unsettled. The story focuses on four friends and a disturbing event that occurred on Thanksgiving ten years earlier. An entity bent on revenge tracks the childhood friends. The story is split into parts each following the story of the separate characters. Highly recommended to readers who enjoy early Stephen King or more currently Paul Tremblay. Stephen Graham Jones has proven to be an author to watch out for.

Some horror novels creep up on you- those slow burns- and some are just straight up hardcore slashers where you rush towards the end. But every once in a while, you come across a work that scares you because it hits too close to home, because you feel it deep in your bones. The kind of book that you are still thinking about days, weeks, months later- the kind that has you turning on lights, your heart beating a little too fast. That is what The Only Good Indians was for me, and I can’t stop thinking about it.

This is the story of the past haunting four Indian friends, and not in a metaphorical way. When they were young, these four cocky Blackfeet indians went on a hunt on forbidden elder tribal land, and what happened there has followed them into adulthood. They are coming up on the ten year anniversary of the hunt, and one of them has already died. Will any of the others survive the revenge that is coming to them? And what exactly does it mean to be a “good Indian?”

This story is raw and bloody and heart-wrenching in all the best ways. I love horror that draws from folklore and traditional stories, and this is one of the best that I have read. Graham-Jones draws from his own tribal background, and the horrifying stories of other tribes to create a heart-rending modern folk tale. Growing up in Oklahoma, all children (white & red) were told about the Deer Woman, and her story struck fear in my heart- still does- and so Jones’s twist on this old tale took me for a deeply horrifying ride.

I give this book a HUGE 5 Stars, and highly recommend that you mark your calendars for its release on May…..! I will be putting up a more thorough & spoilery review at that time.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the advanced copy!