Sheine Lende by Darcie Little Badger

 

Over the last few days, I read Sheine Lende by Darcie Little Badger. The prequel to Elatsoe, this fantasy novel is about Shane, a seventeen-year-old Lipan Apache girl who helps her mom, Lorenza, track down missing persons with their two living dogs, Neal and Nealey, and ghost dog, Nellie, in an alternate version of 1970s Texas in which extradimensional magic and supernatural beings, like fae and vampires, exist. When two siblings, Donnie and Bobby Park, vanish along the railroad tracks running behind their house in Less Crossing, Lorenza leaves to investigate but disappears herself. With the help of her younger brother, Marcos, and unreliable Grandpa Louis, they discover a mysterious group of mimic rings that look like fairy rings. Although Shane is able to find Donnie quickly in the Ozarks when she is accidentally transported by one of the mimic rings, Bobby and Lorenza are still missing. Over the next week, Shane, Marcos, Grandpa Louis, Donnie, Donnie's grandparents, and Shane's friend, Amelia, work together to figure out where Bobby and Lorenza are, or if they're even together, and rescue them. As they learn more from the people they meet along their journey, Shane begins to realize that Bobby and Lorenza may not be anywhere in this world or place in time.

Although I generally like books that mix fantasy and mystery elements, I was a tiny bit apprehensive before reading this book, but it was much better than I expected. I especially loved the world building, which was inspired by Lipan Apache oral history. Shane was an amazing character and I admired her determination to find her mom and Bobby no matter what it took. Her story was especially emotional because her family was displaced after Hurricane Alda flooded their home in la rancheria de los Lipanes and her father and three of her grandparents soon passed away. I also liked how the story took Shane to different parts of America. The road trip to Tanner, Colorado, was especially revealing because they visited the location of the Longfire Incident with Dr. Richards, a man who had done biological research relating to what exactly happened there. Additionally, I enjoyed Shane's friendships with Donnie and Amelia and her relationship with Marcos, and it felt realistic when she confronted Grandpa Louis about abandoning her family. The one part of Sheine Lende that I'm not sure how I feel about is the very end because I found it somewhat cryptic regarding Shane's mom. I don't want to spoil anything, so I'm not going to say anything else besides that I did like how the epilogue connected to Elatsoe, the original book in the series. The line drawings at the beginning of each chapter were a nice touch, as well. Finally, I read an advance uncorrected proof and there's a note on the title in the back of the book. As a young adult fantasy, I recommend Sheine Lende to mature middle school students who enjoy fantastical stories that mix mystery and adventure with alternate history.