October 9, 2023
In this excellent series launch from Lillie (For the Best), Cherokee archaeologist Syd Walker investigates the disappearances of several Native American women. Syd works for the Rhode Island branch of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, an agency hoping to rehabilitate its image and establish trust with Indigenous communities despite its original mission to “exterminate Native people, culture, and ways of life.” When Syd’s old BIA ID badge from a college internship is found inside a skull on BIA-managed land near her Oklahoma hometown, dark memories resurface: 15 years earlier, two men wearing devil masks killed Syd’s best friend, Luna Myers, and Luna’s family. Syd narrowly escaped the tragedy. Guilt-ridden and haunted by Luna’s ghost, who regularly speaks to her, Syd hasn’t returned home since. The badge discovery draws her back, and upon her return, Syd learns that her sister Emma Lou, an opiate addict, has vanished, one of many Indigenous women to have recently disappeared from the area. Reassigned to the Oklahoma branch of the BIA by her boss, Syd begins to investigate the women’s disappearances, hoping her inquiry might finally bring her face-to-face with Luna’s killer. Lillie does an excellent job of balancing a riveting plot with a moving portrait of her troubled lead. Charles Todd fans will want to check this out. Agent: Jamie Carr, the Book Group.
