After a climate apocalypse that causes the ocean levels to
rise quickly, most of the world is destroyed. In the Southwest United States,
Dinétah, a former Navajo reservation, remains standing thanks to the help of
mythological gods who have returned to Earth. The residents of Dinétah are
scared, distrustful, and plagued by monsters that were unleashed when the
waters rose. Maggie Hoskie is not your typical hero; she is a monster hunter
with great and volatile clan powers and a difficult past. Her grandmother was
killed by monsters when she was a teen, and now Neizghání, an immortal prince
to whom she was apprenticed, has abandoned her. Adrift and heartbroken, Maggie
sets off on her own on a job from the trickster god, Coyote. She’s not alone
for long, though, as she grudgingly accepts the help of Kai, a medicine man
with his own mysterious past. As Maggie and Kai set off on their mission, they
discover that dark forces are gathering to oppose them and Coyote’s task is not
nearly be as straightforward as he said it would be.
Trail of Lightning is Rebecca Roanhorse’s debut novel, and
the first book in The Sixth World series. Her short story ‘‘Welcome to
Your Authentic Indian Experience’’ (Apex, 2017) recently won the 2018 Hugo and
Nebula awards. I have a feeling we will be seeing a lot more of her in the
future, and I can’t wait.
-Portia
