The Spirit Woman

Arapaho Indian Mysteries

By: Margaret Coel

Narrated by: Stephanie Brush

Length: 8 hrs and 17 mins

Publisher's summary

An historian, who is convinced that the memoirs of 19th-century Shoshone heroine Sacajawea are stashed somewhere on the reservation, has disappeared.

Investigate another Arapaho Indian Mystery.

©2000 Margaret Coel (P)2000 Books in Motion

Critic reviews

"Readers will be engrossed in the expertly crafted suspense." ( Publishers Weekly)
"This offers another solid reading by Stephanie Brush and will be in demand by the author's legion of fans." ( Library Journal)

History of Sacajawea, Father John and Murder

The Spirit Woman is one of my favorite in the Arapaho Indian Mysteries. Father John O'Malley is about to be sent away after eight years at the Wind River Reservation. Vicky Holden is attempting a reconciliation with her ex-husband Ben, and its rocky . . . She's doing it for the benefit of their grown children. Walks Along, Father O'Malley's three legged dog has dug up some old bones on the reservation, and at first the tribal leaders believe they belong to an ancient ancestor. Soon it is determined, however, that the bones belong to a professor who was doing research on Sacajawea about twenty years ago on the reservation and disappeared. When Laura Simmons, another university professor shows up and takes up the same research, looking for the lost diaries of Sacajawea, strange things start to happen. The mysteries surrounding the lost diaries and the hardships that Sacajawea likely went through were really interesting. The stories of the battered women, including Vicky Holden and Laura Simmons, and the women's shelter available for the women on the reservation were very well done. I, for one, appreciate the openness with which these stories are told, and believe that in doing so, more women will seek the help that they need. The investigations into the disappearance of Laura Simmons, the missing diaries of Sacajawea, and the twenty-year-old murder of the professor were told simultaneously. Father O'Malley and Vicky Holden both helped look for the killer. The things going on in their personal lives really made the story for me. And the new priest at the church was a very nice addition, as well.

Narration is OUTSTANDING.

I am binge-listening to Margaret Coel's Father John O'Malley series. The first several books were nail-biters, excellent and I gave them 5-Stars. While the narrator, Stephanie Brush, is fantastic, this storyline was ... not a 5-Star. A platform to highlight domestic abuse is admirable, but all the situations in this tome were wife-beater, women-haters, 'I tasted the blood in my mouth' repetitive descriptions. I have already purchased Thunder Keeper and look forward to more of Vicki and Father John.

It is what it is

Should this book be given special consideration because it helps express some underrepresented voices? Perhaps, it does. And certainly the underlying theme that runs throughout the book is one that should be shared and exposed, particularly as it pertains to native women. But two dimensional characters and cliched gender relationships are dime a dozen in these kinds of stories, and unfortunately, this one does not rise above. Some of the prose is a bit overwrought in an attempt to be extravagantly descriptive, but it fell flat for me. Which is sad, because I tried this book because it was different than my usual fare...(and despite the garish cover art, as if Thomas Kinkade were born Shoshone).

All in all, it's just okay, not terrible, but nothing special either.

Attention Holder

I’ve read many mysteries and this one held my attention ! Definitely a great Audible adventure

Domestic Abuse on the Indian Reservation

I thought the story was very well written, and found the possible story that Sacajawea lived among the Shoshone until she was 100 fascinating. The constant focus on domestic abuse however was just too much. There is no doubt that this exists far more than is reported but I think this didn’t need to be the entire focus of the book.