List
Native American and Indigenous Voices in Fiction
Celebrate the rich and diverse cultures, traditions, histories, and life experiences of Native and Indigenous people in these adult fiction books.
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To Shape a Dragon's Breath
2023 by Blackgoose, MoniquillGet this itemNative values suffuse this fantasy novel where a young Native woman must go to a colonizer school for dragon riders in order to keep the baby dragon that has chosen her. Gorgeously written and deeply enjoyable. Suggested by Amanda.
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The Truth According to Ember
2024 by Nava, DanicaGet this itemA delightful workplace romance featuring two Indigenous main characters. Ember and Danuwoa have great banter and chemistry, and I loved watching their relationship bloom! Suggested by Brenna.
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Wandering Stars
2024 by Orange, TommyGet this itemOrange’s sophomore effort is both more expansive–situating characters introduced in There There within a family story that stretches back to the Sand Creek Massacre–and more focused. He repeatedly upends the reader’s expectations, showing lives haunted by tragedy, trauma, and addiction, but not, perhaps, defined by them. Suggested by Andrew.
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Fire Exit
2024 by Talty, MorganGet this itemTalty writes from the perspective of an outsider named Charles who is looking in at his community and who questions if he has any right to call it his community because he does not share the one defining element of being a member: meeting the Indigenous blood quantum. This is a powerful and poignant story of belonging, dislocation, regret, and legacy. Suggested by Rummanah.
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Never Whistle at Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology
2023Get this itemPeople from a variety of Indigenous cultures may warn you that whistling at night can bring terrifying results, from hauntings to curses to disturbing creatures. This collection takes those legends to a new and spine-chilling level. This book contains 27 different paranormal short stories by various Indigenous authors, including Rebecca Roanhorse, Tommy Orange, and Darcie Little Badger. Suggested by Aubree.
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A Council of Dolls
2023 by Power, Mona SusanGet this itemOne of my favorite authors creates an authentic, compelling family saga that’s at times heart wrenching. But coming full circle, it's not without hope and resilience for her characters. This made the longlist for the 2023 National Book Award for Fiction. Suggested by Sharon.
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The Removed
2021 by Hobson, BrandonGet this itemNational Book Award finalist Brandon Hobson has crafted a lyrical and moving story of a Cherokee family’s grief and resilience after losing their son Ray-Ray. Hobson masterfully combines the past and present and appeals to nature, animals, and mystical power to help the family make their way toward healing and renewal. Suggested by Staff.
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Sun of Blood and Ruin
2024 by Lares, MarielyGet this itemAn action-packed swashbuckling, gender-flipped Zorro story set in an alternative 16th century Mexico that features indigenous characters and beautifully interweaves history, magic, mythology, romance into a read that I found hard to put down. Suggested by Rummanah.
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The Volcano Daughters
2024 by Balibrera, Gina MariaGet this itemAn illuminating and heart-wrenching novel that skillfully blends historical fiction and magical realism to the tell the story of two sisters who live in El Salvador under the rule of a brutal dictator and flee the genocide of the country's Indigenous people. Suggested by Rummanah.
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Where They Last Saw Her
2024 by Rendon, Marcie R.Get this itemAn intense slow-burn mystery/thriller that shines a necessary light on the Missing Murdered Indigenous Women Girls Two Spirit movement. I really like how this was a female centric story and the main cast of female characters came together and were determined to solve a crime that would otherwise be neglected and unsolved. The author identifies some of the issues that the tribal nation faces but also showcases their power of community, support, and resilience. Suggested by Rummanah.
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Prairie Edge
2024 by Kerr, ConorGet this itemSet loose a herd of bison in downtown Edmonton: what could go wrong? Balancing wit and sorrow in a work of satire, social commentary, and whip-smart storytelling, Prairie Edge follows Ezzy and Grey’s inspired misadventures as their zealous ideas about bringing about real change do indeed elicit change, just in unexpected and sometimes disastrous ways. Suggested by Amber.
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My Heart Is a Chainsaw
2021 by Jones, Stephen GrahamGet this itemDo you love horror novels or films? This novel mixes the hilarious with the horrifying while addressing real issues such as class, gentrification, and privilege. Publishers are marketing this book as Shirley Jackson meets Friday the 13th.
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The Only Good Indians
2020 by Jones, Stephen GrahamGet this itemA violation of the traditional rules regarding hunting--and, by extent, humanity's relationship with the natural world--leads to supernatural vengeance in this slow-burn horror novel that combines slasher-movie conventions and Blackfeet lore.
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Winter Counts
2020 by Weiden, David Heska WanbliGet this itemVirgil Wounded Horse doles out rough justice on South Dakota's Rosebud Reservation, but when a tribal politician hires him to stop heroin being sold on the reservation, he finds himself, and the few people he cares about, in the crossfire of dueling conspiracies. This series debut combines a classic noir detective plot with insights into everything from the many ways the legal system continues to fail Native Americans to the Native foods movement.
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