This is an unforgettable novel. There were so many delightful plot twists and turns the narrative took that I did not see coming. The villain, Elk Head Woman, was truly haunting and the overall tone of paranoia, and dread for characters' impending doom created was remarkable. The pace was slower than expected, and the narration for some characters bordered on stream of consciousness, which took a little adjusting on my part in order to get into the novel, but once done the tale was so gripping that I didn't want to put it down. The slow burn is completely worth it once you reach the ending, which ties everything together in a genius, circular, and satisfying way. The social, political, and cultural commentary on the history of the United States and the ongoing discrimination Natives still face in the country was revelatory without seeming preachy. This book is a gift, and it's an absolute privilege for us non-Natives to be able to read it.

The Only Good Indians caught my eye because of the cultural aspect or what I thought would be a learning of an Indian culture. I must say that as I read the stories I was feeling like they were unique, nothing banal about them, and I was getting a good dose of horror. That being said, I did feel some ambiguity because of the horror and violence. I used to teach Multicultural Literature and I think my seniors would have really liked this one and that it would definitely have brought up some good discussions.

The book's first story is something else and sets the pace immediately. The pace of the story was fast, but not too fast. I felt like the pace fit the intensity and just like the characters I felt my heart racing and wondering what in the world is really going on here? Because there's this story of an elk hunt, and Elk Woman and the question of how a culture feels about spirits came to play in my mind as well. It's hard to describe, and I'm not even sure I really want to, just how effective the violence and intrigue impacted me as I was reading.

I also couldn't help but to think (here's a digression) about my trip to Alaska and Yellowstone National Park. In Alaska I saw wild moose and they are humongous, as they can weigh well over 1000 pounds and get around 6 feet or more tall! I also know that elk can get to be about 500 pounds and close to five feet tall, so I had a pretty good visual of elk hunting. I know that if the three boys who were all friends had an "issue" with an elk, it was going to be bad.

I do think that this book has some rather disturbing scenes and ones that if I had been watching on a movie screen I would've had to look away; however, that's the beauty of reading for me. I can much more easily "see" something in its totality than I can on a screen.

Kudos to the author and a huge thank you to NetGalley and to Gallery Pocket Books / Saga Press for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review, which is my own opinion.
#TheOnlyGoodIndians #NetGalley

Four Native American young men commit an horrific act and 10 years later the victim wants revenge. This just isn’t my kind of book. I am not a big fan of horror and I didn’t find any of this frightening. It also wasn’t explained by Native American lore or any other way. Frankly, if any of this were remotely possible there would be a lot more dead people and I wouldn’t miss them. There is a lot of unpleasant violence: “Maybe half a second after her neck breaks, the top of her head scalps off and her forehead tilts loosely down into the rear wheel, the spokes shearing skull as easy as anything, carving down into the pulpy-warm outside of her brain.” There is also elk hunting and some dogs are stomped to death. If that’s your thing you might like this book more than I did. The book also has a lot of basketball and basketball jargon which I didn’t care about and couldn’t really follow. I am clearly not the audience for this book.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.

This reads almost like a Native American folktale with a moral at the end. It had lots of fast-paced scenes and more than a few horror scenes to grip the reader. The strength of a mother's love and retribution is central to the novel. Most interesting to me were the descriptions of rez life and the daily struggle of the people who lived there as well as the excellent descriptions of the landscape surrounding them.

Thanks to NetGalley and Gallery/Saga Press for the ARC to read and review.

I have to admit I was completely mesmerized by this book. Stephen Graham Jones absolutely lulled me in to a horror story so brutal and real - just like animals where nature and instinct are all that matter. It's starts with 4 men who go out for a hunt. They are hoping to fill their freezers for the winter.

What follows is the story of three of them after that day. How their lives were both changed from that day but also how they have never let that day go. Lewis fled, Gabe and Cassidy each coped their own ways. Only one had a child, Denorah, that he is so proud of and yet keeps his distance from. This story is brutal but completely catches you up in both the struggle to stay alive on all sides, but also the fight to protect and to own and love. It was absolutely amazing and I loved it. It was hard to remember who the monster was.

And I hope this author gives us so many more horror stories. Eerie, spooky and brutal. I absolutely loved it.

I really enjoyed this story. It was set up in three parts which went together really well. The author really did a good job setting up the introduction, and gave me enough information to wonder if the MC in the first story was losing his mind or really seeing something. Then the second story brought me in and was really bloody. The ending was great too - loved when Denorah was playing basketball with Elk Head Woman and felt like she was playing for her tribe (which she was).

I read the pre-reviews about this book and was really looking forward to this read. However, I found this book to be a big disappointment. The theme was good but the writing was choppy and at times flowed in a rather disconnected way. In addition, a lot of irrelevant ramblings. Not an author I will again. My three- star is generous.

Synopsis:

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.
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Stephen Graham Jones is a gifted author and I look forward to seeing what he writes next.

I grew up in a world of deer hunters. My daddy shot a deer in our yard from the living room of our house when my mom was pregnant with me. My first word was "deer." We had taxidermy deer heads lining the walls of our house, and my parents still have those same deer along their walls til this day. I was raised being told my grandfather was half-Cherokee, but we never really practiced any Native lifestyles. And who knows what my heritage is? I've yet to take any kind of DNA testing, so I'm unsure of family's history. But since I wasn't raised practicing Native customs, I would not call myself Native. I do not really understand or know the struggles of Indigenous peoples. I requested a copy of The Only Good Indians because I was so intrigued by the cover, but I was a bit uncomfortable with the title once I found out the book was about Native Americans. After looking more into the book, I realized it's actually written by a very popular Indigenous horror author that I'd never heard of before. He's written tons of terrifying horror stories and is compared to Jordan Peele, which totally makes sense. Both of them write horror stories that speak much deeper than the words on the surface - they speak of racism and oppression. They're critical pieces of art (literature, film). And while I chose the book initially because I thought it was a deer on the cover, I came to find the story was actually about elk, and I spent a lot of time while reading the book trying to learn more about elks.

After an unfortunate event involving the slaughter of an elk herd on a day lovingly referred to as the "Thanksgiving Classic," a group of four friends is stalked by a vengeful entity hellbent on taking back what was taken from them. Each of the four men have taken steps away from many pieces of their culture identity and the traditions they were raised upon.

Wow. So there has been a lot of controversy surrounding this book, and oddly not because the content of the book. Many reviewers have been addressing their dislike for this book because they "couldn't relate." This book is definitely about cultural identity, and there were some things that I was not familiar with, but that absolutely did not take away from this story. The things I didn't understand, I googled. There were also some weird issues with the topic of basketball, because apparently basketball being popular about Indigenous folks is weird? I don't know. But here's the thing - I'm speaking out against these ridiculous White folks who had issues with this book because of the "relatability" of the story. If anything, I would be more understanding of complaints about the gore, violence, and death in this book of both humans and animals, because it was really, really graphic. But this is a horror story, and those things could definitely before foreseen. Even the official synopsis discusses the topics of disturbing violence, and it was certainly disturbing. And here's the thing - the point of reading is to learn about different people, different experiences, stories that are unlike your own. If we wanted things to be "relatable," would so many people love a book about a boy wizard? For Christ's sake, how many of us are boy wizards? So forget the ignorance, and read this book because it is incredible literary horror.

This book started out as a bit of a slow burn. The epilogue was incredible. But once I got into the first chapter, I was intrigued but it wasn't unputdownable. But then about of a third of the way through the book, things turned around real fast. The story got incredibly intense, terrifying, and I had to keep going because I had to know what the hell was going to happen next. This story was unbelievable in the best way, because it was so intense. I was petrified as I read. It's the kind of horror that creeps up under your skin until you're itching all over and cannot get away from your fear.

My biggest complaint about this book is, at times, the writing is almost stream of consciousness, and could get a bit confusing at points - but that's more a preference in the type of writing I enjoy. It wasn't always like that, but some parts of the book that were more focused on the perspective of a specific character were the parts that I noticed the most. But overall, the story-telling was phenomenal.

"If the only good Indian is a dead one, then she's going to be the worst Indian ever." - The Only Good Indians, Stephen Graham Jones

The Only Good Indians is a horrifying tale of revenge with violent and disturbing scenes of gore and death. This was my first time reading Stephen Graham Jones and I certainly plan to read more from him. His writing style and story-telling are reminiscent of classic Stephen King horror tales. This is a dark book, but if you are a horror fan, I would highly recommend this book.

I honestly could not get in to this one after repeated attempts. I feel that the story line is rather slow for my liking. There were aspects that peaked my interest, like the fight scene outside of the bar in the beginning; however, overall, there seemed to not be a lot happening. I may try to pick it back up in the future though since I know so many people have raved about how amazing this book is.

First of all, thank you to Macmillian and Net Galley for an eARC of The Only Good Indians!

I would like to start off this review by mentioning that I am not Blackfeet, nor do I usually read horror. I've seen so many reviews written by white reviewers that say this wasn't for them, or they didn't understand it. I am not Blackfeet and I don't read horror, but this book is still astounding.

Lewis, Gabirel, and Cassidy went on a hunt in land they shouldn't be, and killed more than they needed. Lewis killed a young, pregnant mother, and the guilt of that lasts ten years until he spirals. The book switches from third POV to a second person POV of the avenging deer who is going after Gabe and Cass.

First off, THIS WRITING. Yes, the story is a bit slow, but it's also a quick read, because you want to know what happens but don't want to (I think that's the horror suspense bit, yeah?). It's slow for a reason, because the writing is just beautiful, meant to pull the reader in with the mystery. As someone who doesn't read horror, I did have a bit of a rough time with the gore, but I knew what I was getting into after reading some reviews beforehand. Whoooo was it rough at times, but I pushed through.

I don't know how Stephen Graham Jones did it, but he switched effortlessley after Lewis' story. And despite not being a fan of horror, I really enjoyed it. Just know what you're getting into. Is this different than other horror stories? Probably. It's an own voices horror, and I just hope that readers and reviewers keep that in mind when they step into the story. Cannot recommend this enough!

I have been waiting for this book for a long time and it lives up to the hype for sure! I really wanted to read this book because it was written by a Native American author. It is something that is important to note because of story giving us a glance into what it is like living on the Rez and off it as a Native American. The author has the background to provide us with accurate information and feelings. The horror elements in the book reminds me of slasher films! I personally loved the gore and horror, but those with a weak stomach, beware!

The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️
One of the activities keeping me sane right now is reading! I just finished this novel by Stephen Graham Jones. I instantly loved this book as the author writes in a somewhat rambling, stream of consciousness fashion. I love that this book is written by an indigenous author and therefore he is writing about his culture. He definitely touches on racism and stereotypes without it being preachy.  The book provides a raw look at the internalization of harmful criticism and experiences from outside of the reservation, but also from within. I’m not sure if it was reading it under a deer head that added to the horror but this book was creeeeepy!! This book has in-your-face gore and violence woven wonderfully with supernatural elements. There is definitely an unsettling atmosphere from page 1 & I enjoyed all of it.

This was an excellent read that helped to learn something more about the Native American culture and was highly entertaining.
It's an eerie and creepy story, a well written horror that starts slow but keeps you hooked till the last page.
I loved the storytelling, the well thought characters and the world building.
It was an excellent read and I strongly recommend it.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

4.25/5⭐️

Personally I feel that the best part about reading books that have characters & plot based on a different culture, is that the reader gets to know a part of culture, gets to feel how the characters in the book felt, either fiction or based on true events. The Only Good Indians is one such book that taught me a part of Native American culture. Divided into Prologue and 3 parts, the story revolves around 4 men whose mistakes come back to haunt them - literally.

This book is equal parts literature & horror. Although I’m not that well versed or a big literature reader, I definitely was able to appreciate the incorporation of the two genres and felt the premonition. The characters, helped maintain the “suspense”. The pace of the story was off around part 2, but it made me come back to read what happens next!

If you’re expecting a preconceived notion of horror, you’re gonna be disappointed. The thrills take off slow, but it sure gives the chills. If you are a fan of literary fiction, read this one and thank me later.

Thank you Netgalley, Gallery/Saga press & author Jones for the ARC. This review is my own & is not influenced in any way.

I had literally no idea what was going on for the first 20% of the book, but I am SO glad I stuck with it because this book was absolutely amazing. Eerie and haunting, but not outright scary. You know that feeling of looking through a dark window, knowing something could be looking back on you but you can't see them, if they're really there? THAT is the feeling this book invokes. The ending was absolute perfection. Highly recommend.

The Only Good Indians was a brilliant character-driven horror story that was rich in culture and legend. This was my first book by Stephen Graham Jones, but it won't be the last!

One thing is for sure, Jones writes characters wonderfully. This was a very character-driven novel - which is my favorite kind. But in the beginning he is almost dealing with one character at a time, developing their story and how they deal with this curse and then moving on to the next one. Then he throws in the point of view of this... "entity" instead of it being sort of just a concept. And that threw me a bit. But then it all wraps up neatly at the end... well, not neatly - it was pretty messy actually - but... it wraps up.

The plotting was original. Going through each of the four friends and telling their stories almost separately, though inexplicably linked. And the very end felt like we were coming full-circle, which was satisfying.

MY RATING:
Story: 4
Characters: 5
Overall: 4.5 stars

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

Only reason I cannot rave about this book is because I don’t like horror stories. This one was a hair-raiser. It was scary and every other synonym you can think of for creepy. Following the three Blackfeet men who have been friends since they were failures as kids, along with the violence it emphasized the treatment Indians have gotten from society since the beginning of the European invasion, so maybe a horror story is the best way to treat the subject.

Book Review: The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones 🦌 ⁣
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51/50 for 2020⁣
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Thank you @netgalley and @sagasff for my digital copy of this phenomenal book. ⁣
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“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.”⁣
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This book left me speechless and breathless. I’ve sat with it tonight after finishing and I still don’t really feel like I can do it any justice with a review. ⁣
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This is unique horror on another level. The skillful build of suspense and dread, the mix of supernatural elements and pure gore, everything comes together to leave you shaken. ⁣
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In addition to dishing out pure gritty horror, SGJ illustrates Indigenous American tradition and contemporary life in a way that made the story so much deeper. ⁣
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@anishinaabekwereads has a fantastic #ownvoices review and recommendations for non-Indigenous friends reading Indigenous literature. She also speaks on the importance of representation so bop on over to her page and read her thoughts!
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@sagasff has an interview with SGJ talking about representation on their IGTV too and it’s definitely worth watching either before or after reading TOGI.⁣

Exploring the tension between traditionalism and modernity and laying bare the horrors of guilt and grief, The Only Good Indians will break your heart and make your skin crawl. Four childhood friends from the Blackfeet tribe engage in illegal hunting just before Thanksgiving. They slaughter a herd of elk, including a pregnant cow. The friends get caught in the act by the game warden, and their lifetime ban from hunting is just the beginning of their problems. The friends eventually part ways, with some leaving the reservation and others staying behind, but the past catches up with all of them in the end. 

This is my first book by Stephen Graham Jones, but it definitely won't be my last. He weaves an astonishing tale of generational trauma, atonement for your own sins and for the sins of your parents, and supernatural horror. His deceptively simple prose sometimes catches you off guard with its lyricism, and his narrative ambition amplifies the story's suspense and underscores its message of the cyclical nature of life. The Only Good Indians is a book that gets under your skin and stays there. It forces you to look back at where you've been and gaze forward at where you're going, hoping all the while that you've done enough penance to keep moving in the right direction.