a must read in indigenous fiction. Daniel does a wonderful job immersing the reader into the lives 17th century Algonquin communities. looking forward to more from this author.

Daughters of the Deer by Danielle Daniel

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for an e-ARC for an honest review.

This was a very well written historical fiction story about life in New France in the 17th Century. It gives us perspective on what life was like for the Indigenous people and their alliances with the French settlers. We follow Marie, a healer from the Deer clan and Pierre, a settler from France who marry to help form an alliance between their peoples. We follow their eldest daughter, Jeanne as she grows to marrying age and the struggles that ensue.

This was a heartfelt story inspired by the author's ancestors. It's a nice change to get the perspective from an Indigenous point of view.

#NetGalley #DaughtersoftheDeer

Canadian writer Daniel’s poignant historical novel, her adult fiction debut, reveals important truths about Indigenous women’s lives. The daughters of the title are Marie and Jeanne of the Weskarini Algonkin people – the deer clan – in the place now called Quebec. “In the year they call 1657, I am to marry a white man. A white man whose blood will flow in the veins of my children and my children’s children,” says Marie, a talented healer. She agrees to wed French trader Pierre Couc to save her tribe, most of whose men were killed fighting the Iroquois. Among the coureurs de bois, Pierre seems kind and respectful of her ways, yet theirs isn’t an alliance of equals. Marie’s narrative is deeply empathetic as she worries about the white settlers’ greed – they take from the land without showing respect for its gifts – and their supplanting of Native traditions in favor of Catholicism, a religion the Weskarini chief asks his people to follow for their protection.

Marie and Pierre raise a large family, and the future of their eldest daughter, Jeanne, is always on Marie’s mind thanks to an elder’s prophecy. By the laws of the French king, thousands of miles distant, Jeanne must marry by a certain age or Pierre will be fined, but Jeanne’s beloved is her neighbor and best friend, Josephine. Although same-sex romantic relationships are honored among the Algonkins, the whites consider them shameful at best. Daniel’s crystalline prose ensures a smoothly elegant read that emphasizes the pristine beauty of the region and her compassion for what her ancestors endured (Marie and Jeanne are on her family tree). Her story also lays bare the deliberate erasures made by colonialism, which has left a tragic, long-lasting legacy. Deservedly a Canadian bestseller, this novel exemplifies historical fiction’s noble purpose of revivifying important voices from the past.

From the Historical Novels Review, Aug. 2022

My interview with the author appears in Historical Novels Review 100 (May 2022):
Danielle Daniel, Canadian author and illustrator of several children’s books about First Nations lifeways, makes her adult historical fiction debut with Daughters of the Deer (Random House Canada, 2022), a lyrical narrative about the “Brides of New France,” Algonquin women who married the French trappers and farmers moving onto their ancestral lands. Inspired by family stories of her ancestor, Marie, originally an Algonquin woman who married settler Pierre Couc, her genealogical research revealed surprises that connect her 17th-century subjects to our own time. . . .

Daughters of the Deer is an incredibly moving historical fiction about the relationship between the Jesuits and Indigenous Women in the 17th century.

I haven’t come across any Indigenous writing that focuses on this part of history. All of the Indigenous works I’ve read primarily look at everything that happened “post” colonization or during (I know that’s not really the right terminology to use since this is ongoing…).

This story follows two generations - first we follow Marie - a gifted healer part of the Deer Clan. Due to the threat of disease and starvation, the Algonquin peoples have allied with the French. Along with the other women in her community, Marie is forced to accept the proposal of a French soldier, Pierre.

Marie gives birth to her first born Jeanne, and later in the book we skip to Jeanne as a teenager.
Jeanne is seventeen years old and will need to be married off soon, otherwise her family will need to pay a large fine to the French crown.
Jeanne does not want to get married - she is in love with her friend Josephine.

This story was so much more than the synopsis on the inside of the front cover. The prose and writing are absolutely stunning.

There is a lot of insight on Indigenous ways of knowing prior to colonization, and how the arrival of the Europeans distorted and shamed this way of thinking. It was also interesting to read about the ally between the French and Algonquin peoples against the Iroquois and British. Growing up in Canada, I learned about this in school, but coming from the WESTERN perspective….it was quite different.

Although this book is set in the 17th century, Indigenous peoples are still directly affected by this generational trauma. The slow and deliberate erasure of culture, and separation of families has been an ongoing issue - as it is still happening today just through different institutions. My heart broke into a million pieces after I finished reading this, and I started sobbing even harder when I saw the family tree - Danielle Daniel’s wrote this about her actual maternal ancestor (Marie) and I am so happy her story was told.

⚠️ This book explores themes that can be sensitive and/or triggering, please take care while reading

Loved loved loved this! Danielle writes about their ancestors and their struggle with colonization and the church. It’s beautifully written and I thought about the characters long after I finished. Thanks you for this book.

DNF - I struggled immensely with the writing style for this book. I have read many a historical fiction & so I understand that the tone employed might take some getting used to but with the amply introduction of a variety of characters, events transpiring at a staggering rate & the writing style itself feeling underdeveloped; I was not able to motivate myself to continue reading. I know that this book will find success in the hands of many a reader but, it was not one that I could enjoy.

This was such a beautiful, haunting and deeply personal debut that reimagined what life was like in 17th century New France from the perspective of the Indigenous women who were encouraged (and sometimes forced) to marry white settlers and their resulting offspring.

Very few historical fiction books have been written about this time period, a notable exception being Suzanne Desrochers's Bride of New France. But whereas that book featured the white women sent from France as 'filles du roi', this story focuses on the even more marginalized women who were often abused and in this case even murdered.

I especially loved how this story focused on the love of a mother and her daughter and the struggles with acceptance Jeanne had as a 'mixed' race woman, neither fully Algonquin, nor fully accepted by her white father's people. To add to this she is two spirited, something that her mother's culture celebrated but Western society, including her father, found shameful and abnormal.

This book includes a moving author's note detailing the author's personal connection to the story and her struggles with writing it. Highly, highly recommended, especially if you want to learn more about this important part of Canadian history! Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my advance review copy.

CW: Read with care, this book deals with violence against Indigenous women, homophobia and cultural genocide with the early origins of the Jesuits

Oh, this book, this book, this book! As I write this, I already know this book will be one of my favourites of the year. I already know that the lives of Marie, Pierre, Jeanne, and Josephine will swirl in my mind for years to come.

Its about a daughter Jeanne, who is born to an Algonquin mother, and French father. Her mother, who had already lost a husband and children, who was then forced to marry a French man to form an alliance between the Algonquin and the French. Her father who is a devout Catholic, who forces his wife and children to speak only French, and who does not want to understand his wife’s beliefs and traditions. Jeanne’s internal battles of not wanting to live as the French, and not being accepted as she is. And of course, the tragic lost of her lover.

This book pulled me into he 1600’s, into the lives of the First Nation people and colonizers. It’s told by a few points of views, and youll get an incite into the thoughts of a mother, daughter, and husband. This book will have you turning page after page, but your mind will want you to slow down and cherish and value every detail the author has written.

This book is beautifully written, and will speak truths of the colonization of Canada, and the traumas that will affect many Indigenous people for generations.

it's books like these that remind me of why i read and Danielle daniel's debut novel is going to be one that will stay with for a long time.

daughters of the deer spans two generations and is inspired by the author's maternal ancestor -- Marie, an algonkin woman in the 1600s. she was an indigenous healer living in the french colony with her people; but was then encouraged to marry pierre -- a French soldier and a devout catholic to create an alliance with the french for the sake of her clan.

their firstborn daughter jeanne -- who is half-french and half-algonkin is now caught between two words and is unsure of how to navigate her identity. as jeanne enters adolescence, it becomes clear that she is two-spirited; which is considered special in her mother's culture but unnatural and sinful in the eyes of her father. told from three perspectives; we follow marie, pierre, and jeanne as they navigate life as a french-algonkin family.

this novel was devasting but so incredibly powerful. it focused on the colonial violence against missing and murdered indigenous women -- a huge part of Canadian history that is often overlooked and not taught enough in schools. there were many complex themes in this book surrounding racism, identity, religion and the relationship between the settlers and the indigenous.

my heart broke for each of the female characters for the different types of suffering they endured and the sacrifices they each made; but also inspired by their strength and bravery. there isn't really a happy ending to the novel, and i think it reflects the reality of today -- that even centuries later, not much has changed as indigenous women are still continuing to go missing and are being murdered.

i highly encourage everyone to pick up a copy and read this important story. thank you netgalley and penguin random house for the digital copy of this phenomenal novel.

Read if you like: strong female characters
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This book focuses on two main characters, Marie and her daughter Jeanne. Marie is an Algonquin woman living in the French colony of what will be Canada. Marie is a healer with a strong connection to her people and the land. When Marie is encouraged to marry Pierre, an ex soldier and French colonist, her life changes significantly. Her daughter, Jeanne, also struggles with her identity as she doesn’t feel like she fits into her fathers strict religious society.
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This book looks at a number of complex themes including identity and what shapes identity, colonialism and its impacts, religion and the role of women in colonial society, and the relationship between settlers and Indigenous tribes.
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This book completely engrossed me. I loved reading about the relationship between Marie and Jeanne and how Marie tried to hold on to her traditional values. I also loved that the book is based on the authors family history.
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CW: death, violence, colonialism, homophobia, racism, sexism, sexual harassment and assault.

I jumped into this book not knowing what to expect other than it was Indigenous lit (which is always enough for me to read anything lol), but I was impressed with the use of different perspectives and its multigenerational storytelling.

I think it goes without saying, but there is a lot of racism and homophobia in this book, as well as sexual and physical assault so please do read the trigger warnings before diving in!

The settlers/jesuits are awful, which is clearly the point, but it can be really uncomfortable and enraging to read, especially as an Indigenous woman.

The main white man gets kind of redeemed in the end, but other than that the last bit of the book is fairly painful and tragic. I was hoping for a happier ending, but reality constantly comes knocking down the door.

Assimilation is a huge theme and Marie’s story is pretty heartbreaking, at least to me since I am an Indigenous person who’s been forcefully separated from their culture.

I really loved Jeanne and the Two-Spirit representation, as well as the queer love in the book. That being said, every queer character meets tragedy, pain, and suffering, which while historically accurate is hard to read.

The writing and storytelling was incredible, but if you’re looking for a cheerful read, this is not it. Daniel did a lot of research to really stay in the time period so life is not really good for our Indigenous leads.

Overall, I do highly recommend the book because it is very insightful about how life was for our Indigenous ancestors and the first settlers so it can give a lot of perspective about things and teach readers more about the complexity of being Indigenous in North America- Canada specifically.

“I never wanted to burden my children with my pain, but maybe they've had to shoulder it anyway. Perhaps I didn't need to speak about my past for her to know the losses I hold deep inside my bones. Maybe she carries them in her blood too. Maybe they all do.”

In this haunting historical novel, Danielle Daniel tells the story of her maternal ancestor, Marie, an Algonkin women in the 1600s who is asked by her Chief to marry a French settler to solidify an alliance between the French and her People. We then follow Marie and her firstborn daughter, Jeanne, as they navigate life as an French-Indigenous family with a white, Jesuit patriarch.

Dedicated to missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, this novel is a devastating retelling of ancestral trauma and colonial violence against Indigenous women. When Jeanne grows older, she has difficulty navigating her identity, as “being half white and half Indian, half French and half Algonkin, feels like summer and winter wanting to emerge on the same day.” When she falls in love, it also becomes clear that she is Two-Spirited, which makes her special in the eyes of her Indigenous ancestors and an aberration in the eyes of her French ones, especially as she is seventeen and still unmarried. But when Jeanne’s love tragically dies, her family must decide which path to take: the path of the King, or the path of Marie’s People.

Daughters of the Deer is a heartbreaking and beautifully written look at the very origin of gendered violence against Indigenous women, told by a remarkable writer honouring her ancestors.

Daughters of the Deer is unlike anything I've ever read. It is based on the writer's own ancestors and spans two generations. At first I didn't like Pierre, but by the end I changed my mind as Pierre became more appreciative of his wife's culture and grew into being a good father. I really liked Jeanne, she is strong and fierce! Marie was exceptional in her own way as well, I liked reading her dreams throughout the book. I wasn't sure what I thought of the book until about halfway when it picks up more especially as Jeanne becomes more of a main character.
Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for this advanced copy!

Was happy to include this novel in March’s edition of Novel Encounters, my regular column highlighting the month’s most anticipated fiction for Zoomer magazine. (at link)

I can already say without a doubt that this will be one of my top books of 2022! Raw and powerful, this book took me on an emotional journey and left me with an overwhelming sense of compassion and empathy for indigenous peoples who faced the atrocities of colonization. Danielle Daniel paints a vivid picture of the French colonization of Canada’s first peoples in the Trois-Rivières region of Quebec during the 1600’s. For fans of The Last of the Mohicans, read this book!

The story follows Marie, an indigenous healer living in a shared settlement with the French. Marie and her people have already lost so much. She was widowed when her husband was killed in an Iroquois raid. Her two children were kidnapped and never seen again. She has been stripped of her indigenous name and many of the traditions her people have followed for centuries. The chief wants her to marry a French man to help strengthen their alliance with the French so they will send more soldiers to protect their settlement from the Iroquois. She reluctantly agrees to marry Pierre for the security of her people.

Pierre is a devout Catholic and Marie is still trying to hold on to her traditions. When their daughter Jeanne comes along, their relationship is strained as they both gravitate to their own belief system for raising their children. Jeanne is caught between two worlds Algonquian and French. Add to this the fact that Jeanne is two spirit which is strictly forbidden in her father’s religious community. Pierre has arranged a marriage for Jeanne. Jeanne knows she will never be happy in an arranged marriage but what can she do?

Danielle Daniel, what a phenomenal debut! 👏🏻 Your novel has left me speechless and in awe of your talent. ❤️Thank you Penguin Random House Canada and Netgalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.