Continuing the theme from last week of "authors I only discovered in the last year", this week's review is the author of one of my 2021 favourites - My Heart is a Chainsaw. A book that penetrated deep into my heart and stuck with me for weeks afterwards, Chainsaw catapulted Stephen Graham Jones into my bookcase and my awareness, and guaranteed that I would be investing more of my time and money in his books.
Ten years ago, on the last day of hunting season, Ricky, Lewis, Gabe and Cassidy went elk hunting. Frustrated by the lack of game they strayed into an illegal area, resulting in a violation of tribal rules and a desecration of nature. Now, the four men are the hunted. Stalked by their past, they must face up to their actions as nature seeks its revenge...
Well. Just like Chainsaw, The Only Good Indians pulled me right in. I wanted to read it non stop, but at the same time, I had to keep putting it down for a bit because it was a lot. Not that it was consistently full on all the way through though. There are three different stagings - Ricky in the prologue, then Lewis, then Gabe and Cassidy - and since each section has its climax, the pacing is naturally going to undulate. An intense prologue gave way to a slow first third, until an event happened (no spoilers, don't worry), that made me swear aloud and have to walk away for a bit, and that does not often happen. The same thing happens again as we move into the final POVs, Gabe and Cassidy back on the reservation, things slow down for a while, until suddenly we're racing headlong into the final, bloody climax.
Stephen Graham Jones appears to be a bit polarising in some reviews, but he's 2 for 2 with me so far - I think his horror is excellent. His style of writing is almost like a train of thought or an in joke, and sometimes I have to read things a couple of times to fully realise what's going on. This means that when the horror does happen, it can catch you completely by surprise with a "wait, what?" His horror is brutal and bloody, and hits hard - Jones is great at describing violence. It's also raw and heart-breaking in places - The Only Good Indians stayed with me for days afterwards, just like My Heart is a Chainsaw did. Horror isn't just about violence though, the creeping tension here is relentless, and it is scary. If you're easily spooked, don't read this alone at night - especially not on a camping trip in the wilderness... or maybe do, maybe the scares are exactly what you're after.
The story revolves around the idea of paying for past sins and promises not kept, of guilt chasing for years, and cold, unadulterated revenge. Some of you may be thinking, "how do you base a horror story around an elk", and if you think herbivorous animals that large are not scary, then you've clearly never either a) seen an elk - those things are massive, or b) been in the same field as some upset cows. Grass-eating or not, any animal that large can do you a damage if they want to, so add an element of the supernatural into that and actually, elk can be pretty terrifying. I did also learn that elk are not the same as moose, nor are they the same as reindeer, which I'm sure will come in handy at some point.
One thing I love about Stephen Graham Jones' books is how he brings Indigenous stories to the mainstream. Both books I've read are from the point of view of members of the Blackfoot Tribe, of which Jones is also a member. It's a point of view we don't often get to see, and it's something I'm always keen to learn more about. In addition to the culture references, and representations of tradition, there's a definite commentary on what it is to be a Native American in today's society, and how that affects the community in different ways. This is not diluted for white people, and I support that. Of course, it's impossible for me to make any conclusions on Jones' representation of Indigenous culture, so if you're interested I'd encourage you to seek out indigenous reviews - like this one from Native Lady Book Warrior.
This is another Stephen Graham Jones win for me. If you want visceral horror centred around the revenge of nature, I can't recommend this enough. I personally can't wait to read more of Jones' work - I think the world of horror needs more voices like this.
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