Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger
When Ellie’s cousin Trevor dies unexpectedly in a car crash, Ellie is one of the first people to know—even though she’s hundreds of miles away. Ellie, who is Lipan Apache and descended from the great Elatsoe, Ellie’s namesake, has the power to communicate with and even raise ghosts, just like her mother, her mother’s mother, and on and on through her family line. But when Trevor’s departing ghost communicates with her, it is to impart a chilling message: his death was no accident, but murder.
Swiftly, the mystery deepens and contorts. Working together with her mother and her best friend, Jay, Ellie journeys to the town where Trevor died, and finds an eerie place where New England green grass sprouts in the arid Texan desert, and eyes seem to follow them everywhere. The world that Ellie inhabits is one where various forms of magic exist. There are “cursed ones,” or vampires. There are those who, like Ellie, can communicate with ghosts. There are fairy folk and wizards. There are animal people, like Coyote, who have mostly secreted themselves away in hiding as the changing world has grown more and more threatening. Even in this alternate universe, where magic ripples and Ellie’s ghost dog Kirby can accompany her everywhere, some elements of reality remain chillingly consistent with our own: Indigenous land has been stolen and appropriated; Indigenous history and spirituality are denied or overlooked, and White people are quick to save or enrich themselves at the expense of others.
Elatsoe is a thrilling, chilling, enthralling read. Rich with elements of fantasy and horror alike, it also feels refreshingly grounded, with realistic friendships and relationships, moving passages about grief, family, and the interconnectivity of all life on earth, and an adept combination of magic and modern technology. I loved this book for its focus on friendship, storytelling, and the suppressed truths of US American history, as well as for absolutely keeping me on the edge of my seat and introducing me to the wise, funny, and powerful character of Elatsoe.