Crow Mary: A Novel by Kathleen Grissom

 

n 1872, sixteen-year-old Goes First, a Crow Native woman, marries Abe Farwell, a white fur trader. He gives her the name Mary, and they set off on the long trip to his trading post in the Cypress Hills of Saskatchewan, Canada. Along the way, she finds a fast friend in a Métis named Jeannie; makes a lifelong enemy in a wolfer named Stiller; and despite learning a dark secret of Farwell’s past, falls in love with her husband.

The winter trading season passes peacefully. Then, on the eve of their return to Montana, a group of drunken whiskey traders slaughters forty Nakota—despite Farwell’s efforts to stop them. Mary, hiding from the hail of bullets, sees the murderers, including Stiller, take five Nakota women back to their fort. She begs Farwell to save them, and when he refuses, Mary takes two guns, creeps into the fort, and saves the women from certain death. Thus, she sets off a whirlwind of colliding cultures that brings out the worst and best in the cast of unforgettable characters and pushes the love between Farwell and Crow Mary to the breaking point.

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About The Author

Born and raised in Saskatchewan, Kathleen Grissom is now happily rooted in south-side Virginia, where she and her husband live in the plantation tavern they renovated. The Kitchen House is her first novel.

 

My Review

This quickly became a book a page turner, one that I couldn't put down. A read that is fictional, but if you read the author's notes, based on fact.
I was soon walking in Goes First's [Crow Mary] shoes. We are with her as she grows up, and at 16 she marries Abe Farwell.
What a journey the author shares with us, and yes, we see how the Indian soon became a second class citizen of their own Country!
This is a rich story highlighting the beauty of this world and the people in it. People proud of their heritage, and unfortunately, not for many years able to celebrate whom they are.
I did love this story, and found myself holding my breath at times, but the author did a wonderful job of bringing Mary to life!
I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Atria Books, and was not required to give a positive review.