Elatsoe

By: Darcie Little Badger

Narrated by: Kinsale Hueston

Length: 9 hrs and 1 min

Publisher's Summary

Imagine an America very similar to our own. It's got homework, best friends, and pistachio ice cream. 

There are some differences. This America has been shaped dramatically by the magic, monsters, knowledge, and legends of its peoples, those Indigenous and those not. Some of these forces are charmingly everyday, like the ability to make an orb of light appear or travel across the world through rings of fungi. But other forces are less charming and should never see the light of day. 

Elatsoe lives in this slightly stranger America. She can raise the ghosts of dead animals, a skill passed down through generations of her Lipan Apache family. Her beloved cousin has just been murdered in a town that wants no prying eyes. But she is going to do more than pry. The picture-perfect facade of Willowbee masks gruesome secrets, and she will rely on her wits, skills, and friends to tear off the mask and protect her family. 

Darcie Little Badger is an extraordinary debut talent in the world of speculative fiction.

©2020 Darcie Little Badger (P)2020 Dreamscape Media, LLC

Critic Reviews

"[A] refreshing voice. Indigenous myths, modern-day technology, and the supernatural successfully blend to build a fast-paced murder mystery." (Publishers Weekly, starred review)

I highly recommend Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger

For Indigenous Peoples day (or any time) I highly recommend Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger!

A great piece of Indiginous Fiction full of Indigenous mythology and stories in a modern tale.

It is available on Audible, Kindle and via Amazon.

It seems appropriate for young adult and older kids, as well as readers of all ages, and has relatable as well as digestible experiences of being a native youth, sprinkled with history and Lipan Apache stories.

The main Character is a young Lipan Apache high schooler. She can raise the ghosts of dead animals, a skill passed down through generations of her Lipan Apache family. Her beloved cousin has just been murdered, in a town that wants no prying eyes. But she is going to do more than pry. The picture-perfect facade of Willowbee masks gruesome secrets, and she will rely on her wits, skills, and friends to tear off the mask and protect her family.

This is a wonderful Indigenous Nancy Drew type mystery novel, filled with magic and myth. I can't recommend it more and truely hope Darcie gives us more stories of Elatsoe's adventures. A great story for those looking for Indigenous fiction and Indigenous authors, as well as those who just enjoy truely good writing!

Darcie Little Badger is an enrolled member of the Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas.

A different kind of ghost story

It’s a nice simple who/how done-it told from the perspective of a young, Apache, asexual, super powerful, ghost whispering, still in high school, female POV.

Spoilers:

Magic and psychics and fraudsters are all real and will routinely kill you almost as fast as falling from a bridge while graffitiing symbols of love on a bridge.

The world is a confusing mess of 1920s crotchety old people who will shoot you for walking on their lawn to cellphones and googling skills critical (and more than sufficient) to unraveling a multiple century old serial murder cabal.

Interesting, enjoyable story w mystery & magic

The characters in this story were well-drawn, and the mystery was interesting. You know what the outcome was, but you have to follow along with the main characters to figure out what exactly is going on. Just enough hints dropped that I figured it out about the same time the main character did. I loved the culture (#weneeddiversebooks); as a middle-aged mom, I can tell you that we didn't get these kinds of stories when I was a teen. The narrator did a good job, but I wish her director had let her or asked her to act it out more. I had trouble in a few places telling characters apart in dialogue, and I'm a listener who prefers when narrators act it out and give each character a really distinct voice.

Not Bad

Nice mystical story, although like most reviews, the story seems to be confused on where to be. The narration follows teenagers in a scooby-doo style investigation, to which the vocabulary used is more middle schoolers then young adults. Nonetheless, not a bad experience.

Absolutely riveting

One of the best stories I have listened to this year. Darcie Little Badger creates a fascinating world similar to our own but with touches of mythology from many cultures. The protagonist Elatsoe is fully believable and the kind of person I’d want to know in real life. Her struggles after the death of her cousin were so realistic. I felt like I learned things about the culture she comes from. Her Best friend was wonderful a true helper and equal. I sincerely hope that this is the first in a series and that we get to see much more of this incredible world. The narrator Kinsale Hueston did an excellent job of breathing life into the characters and world. I strongly recommend this book.

Riveting and impressive world building

I binged this book in less than two days. It is a great and imaginative piece of speculative fiction in which the world of magic is so normal. And a wonderful way for POCs to be SEEN in this world.

Such a great story

The author did a fantastic job of weaving in indigenous American story, with early US history and current day in a weird bit of magical realism. I really loved it. The learning curve, for the indigenous magic wasn’t too steep, and the characters were endearing, especially the a little dog. The narrator did a great job too.

Elatsoe- Indigenous Scare Story

Elatsoe is a great listen especially during the Halloween season here in the States.
The entanglement of Native American spiritual gifts and knowledge versus bad guy omnipotence!
The storyteller was easy to listen to and the story unfolded just as easily.
I would recommend this book for anyone interested in YA sci-fi fantasy, scary stories, and supporting an indigenous author.

Superb story

The performer was great and provided a ton of depth to the characters. The author had created a gem of a novel and I highly recommend it to all.

Could have been amazing.

Struggled to finish. The author couldn't decide if it was for preteens or young adults. Great idea for a story line, it just wasn't executed well.