Status
Available
Call number
Call number
FIC JOH c.1
Collection
Description
In this gripping, horror-laced debut, a young Cree woman's dreams lead her on a perilous journey of self-discovery that ultimately forces her to confront the toll of a legacy of violence on her family, her community and the land they call home. "A mystery and a horror story about grief, but one with defiant hope in its beating heart." --Paul Tremblay, author of A Head Full of Ghosts and The Pallbearers Club When Mackenzie wakes up with a severed crow's head in her hands, she panics. Only moments earlier she had been fending off masses of birds in a snow-covered forest. In bed, when she blinks, the head disappears. Night after night, Mackenzie's dreams return her to a memory from before her sister Sabrina's untimely death: a weekend at the family's lakefront campsite, long obscured by a fog of guilt. But when the waking world starts closing in, too--a murder of crows stalks her every move around the city, she wakes up from a dream of drowning throwing up water, and gets threatening text messages from someone claiming to be Sabrina--Mackenzie knows this is more than she can handle alone. Traveling north to her rural hometown in Alberta, she finds her family still steeped in the same grief that she ran away to Vancouver to escape. They welcome her back, but their shaky reunion only seems to intensify her dreams--and make them more dangerous. What really happened that night at the lake, and what did it have to do with Sabrina's death? Only a bad Cree would put their family at risk, but what if whatever has been calling Mackenzie home was already inside?… (more)
Genres
Publication
HarperCollins Publishers (2023), 304 pages
Original language
English
Language
User reviews
LibraryThing member Booklover217
"The worst part about missing someone is when you forget for a second that they're gone. When you remember, the pain hits you harder than before. Forgetting can feel like a gift, but a lot of the time it's just hard lying in wait."
I'm still ruminating on how beautiful of a story Bad Cree by
The slow pace and tension of this one kept me glued to the pages. I adored the fact that this was a multi-genrational story about Indigenous women and family. I loved the whispers of Cree history and culture echoing through the text. The atmospheric and vivid prose was stunning. There were so many moments where I had to pause and reflect about what could be happening. The suspense was on high throughout. the heavy themes woven throughout really added a twist and gave the horror genre new layers and elements. If you're looking for a story with strong storytelling and suspense then pick this one up. I am excited to see what John's has in store in the future. Thanks to @doubledaybooks for the gifted copy.
I'm still ruminating on how beautiful of a story Bad Cree by
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Jessica Johns was despite it being "horror". I love how it talks about grief, as something that hides in the body and never quite leaves. Grief comes in waves and sometimes lays roots in the land waiting to be rebirthed and remembered. Sometimes going home is the only way to resolve grief and move forward. Indigenous grief echoes the aftermath of settler colonialism, boarding schools, forced removal of land and language, missing women, addiction and separation of families. Grief also looks like the tension in the backbones of this woman-led family as the continue to stay strong through the continued losses of one of their own and the continued abuse of their homeland.The slow pace and tension of this one kept me glued to the pages. I adored the fact that this was a multi-genrational story about Indigenous women and family. I loved the whispers of Cree history and culture echoing through the text. The atmospheric and vivid prose was stunning. There were so many moments where I had to pause and reflect about what could be happening. The suspense was on high throughout. the heavy themes woven throughout really added a twist and gave the horror genre new layers and elements. If you're looking for a story with strong storytelling and suspense then pick this one up. I am excited to see what John's has in store in the future. Thanks to @doubledaybooks for the gifted copy.
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LibraryThing member viviennestrauss
Found on the new arrivals shelf at the library - of course once I knew this book had crows in it, I was going to read it. A really compelling page turner, my only complaint is some weird pronoun usage for just one of the characters that led to some unnecessary confusion.
LibraryThing member psalva
I felt like the first half of this book was amazing. I loved the atmosphere and the premise, and I was invested in the characters. The second half started to drag and I found the ending a bit anticlimactic, maybe because the focus became more external to the characters. I think this would make an
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interesting film, and for what it brings to the horror genre I think it’s worth reading. However, overall, it left me unsatisfied in the end. Show Less
LibraryThing member spiritedstardust
This was like a very tame episode of supernatural but with a boring main character.
I didn’t like the writing style but I persevered because I wanted to know what happened to the sister.
This felt like more of a creepy mystery than a horror novel.
I liked learning about their Cree heritage and the
I didn’t like the writing style but I persevered because I wanted to know what happened to the sister.
This felt like more of a creepy mystery than a horror novel.
I liked learning about their Cree heritage and the
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folktales but I didn’t connect to any of the characters and it just felt unsatisfying overall. Show Less
LibraryThing member gypsysmom
The blurb for this book on the Canada Reads website did not cause me to think I would enjoy it: "a horror-infused novel that centres around a young woman named Mackenzie, who is haunted by terrifying nightmares and wracked with guilt about her sister Sabrina's untimely death." I have never enjoyed
Mackenzie grew up in Alberta but left her home and family to go to Vancouver. She is in regular communication with her mom and aunties and cousins but she hasn't been back home in three years. She didn't even go home when her sister Sabrina died suddenly. Now she is having terrifying dreams about her sister. In one she saw her sister lying on the ground in a forested area with crows all over her, tearing at her flesh. In the dream Mackenzie killed one of the crows and as she woke up in her bed she could feel the crow's head in her hands and blood covering her. Yet there was nothing there when she tore back the covers. She is finding it difficult to cope with her job at Whole Foods. Finally, she asks her manager for time off so she can go back home. Unfortunately, she keeps having the dreams even back in her parents' house. She finally tells her family about the dreams and they start to see if they can help her. Her Mom and aunties talk to all the elders around and they come to the conclusion that the Sabrina in the dream is a whetigo, a spirit that shows up when bad things start happening and, like a vampire, takes over humans. The elders think that the whetigo started showing up when the oil companies came to the area and disturbed the earth. Once the oil boom was done and the oil workers left the area it started to attack the indigenous people. Sabrina was one of the whetigo's victims and the whetigo is now using her likeness to attract the rest of the family.
While the book centres on Mackenzie, it is her whole extended family that captivated me. No-one was ever abandoned by this family.They loved and hugged and fed and helped everyone. It seemed like some one was always in the kitchen cooking up a meal or baking or playing cards or telling stories. So,for me, this wasn't horror, this was a story about family and love.
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horror fiction and I usually pass on them. However, since it was going to be part of the Canada Reads debate I put a hold on it at my library. Maybe other people were turned off by the blurb because I got it quite quickly. To my surprise, I quite enjoyed the book and I hope Jessica Johns will write more.Mackenzie grew up in Alberta but left her home and family to go to Vancouver. She is in regular communication with her mom and aunties and cousins but she hasn't been back home in three years. She didn't even go home when her sister Sabrina died suddenly. Now she is having terrifying dreams about her sister. In one she saw her sister lying on the ground in a forested area with crows all over her, tearing at her flesh. In the dream Mackenzie killed one of the crows and as she woke up in her bed she could feel the crow's head in her hands and blood covering her. Yet there was nothing there when she tore back the covers. She is finding it difficult to cope with her job at Whole Foods. Finally, she asks her manager for time off so she can go back home. Unfortunately, she keeps having the dreams even back in her parents' house. She finally tells her family about the dreams and they start to see if they can help her. Her Mom and aunties talk to all the elders around and they come to the conclusion that the Sabrina in the dream is a whetigo, a spirit that shows up when bad things start happening and, like a vampire, takes over humans. The elders think that the whetigo started showing up when the oil companies came to the area and disturbed the earth. Once the oil boom was done and the oil workers left the area it started to attack the indigenous people. Sabrina was one of the whetigo's victims and the whetigo is now using her likeness to attract the rest of the family.
While the book centres on Mackenzie, it is her whole extended family that captivated me. No-one was ever abandoned by this family.They loved and hugged and fed and helped everyone. It seemed like some one was always in the kitchen cooking up a meal or baking or playing cards or telling stories. So,for me, this wasn't horror, this was a story about family and love.
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LibraryThing member LynnB
This is the story of Mackenzie and her family, who are being haunted by a wheetigo who has taken the form of Mackenzie's deceased sister, Sabrina. The horror parts of this novel left me somewhat confused...I'm still not sure why some of the things happened or what they may mean going forward. But
The men were virtually absent throughout the story. It was a story of women supporting each other, which is probably a common scenario but I felt a missed opportunity to show men supporting -- not rescuing -- and admiring the strength of their female kin.
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this is also a story of a family whose members have experienced grief and who support each other. I enjoyed that aspect of the book very much. I thought the lingering aspects of grief were really well portrayed.The men were virtually absent throughout the story. It was a story of women supporting each other, which is probably a common scenario but I felt a missed opportunity to show men supporting -- not rescuing -- and admiring the strength of their female kin.
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LibraryThing member Romonko
It was recommended that I read this book by one of my book sites, so I listened to it on audio. I am sorry, but I just didn't connect with Mackenzie and her family. There is a lot of folklore about the First Nations people referred to continually in this book, and that includes a lot of their
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beliefs and superstitions, but I couldn't relate. The book is very well-written, and the characters are realistic. If you like fantasy and things that go bump in the night, this book might be for you. It is written by a Canadian First Nations author, and I liked the Canadiana scenery both in Vancouver and in Northern Alberta. I also enjoyed the family closeness displayed by this one Cree family located in High Prairie, Alberta. Show Less
ISBN
1443465488 / 9781443465489