An animal crawling from her elbow to her shoulder. She opened her eyes and glimpsed a flash of shiny exoskeleton. An impression of the trilobite’s ghost. However, it had been dreaming so long, its drowsiness lingered. The trilobite shimmered, faded, and slipped back to the underworld. But for a moment, she’d brushed a little soul that had lived on Earth five hundred million years ago. [loc. 1207]
Ellie lives in Texas. She's seventeen, Lipan Apache, uninterested in dating, and has two close friends: Jay, who is White and a descendant of Oberon, and Kirby, who is a ghost dog.
Ellie has grown up with tales of 'Six Great', her six-times-great-grandmother, who fought monsters and called ghosts. Ellie has inherited this talent, and with it the warnings of what might happen if a human ghost is called. This becomes highly pertinent when her cousin Trevor dies -- and subsequently comes to Ellie in a dream to tell her that he was murdered, and give the name of his killer. Trevor's grieving wife Lenore wants her husband back: everyone in the family wants justice, and supports Ellie (who is, after all, the one who received Trevor's message) in her attempts to solve the mystery of her cousin's death.
I liked the alternate America depicted here: it's reminiscent of the early Anita Blake books, with cars and cell phones and ice creams but also vampires and faeries and ghosts (oh my). Elatsoe differs, though, in that it centres indigenous traditions and shows those European nasties as invaders: there's a lovely scene where Ellie's mother Vivian banishes a vampire because he's in her ancestral lands. “I know what Apaches were—” “Were? This land is still our home, and Euro-vamps can’t occupy a home when they’re unwelcome.” [loc 1985]. Later, Vivian notes that this 'raises uncomfortable facts about dispossession and colonization'.
Ellie's parents are an integral part of the story: it was really refreshing to read YA fantasy where, instead of being absent or dead, older family members are very much present, and support Ellie in her endeavours. They recognise her unique abilities, and her agency, and they respect her as a gifted individual.
I was charmed by Ellie's ghost-dog Kirby - 'her best friend for seventeen years — twelve alive and five dead' -- and her adventures with other animal ghosts, especially the trilobite. ("despite the eons that separate humans and prehistoric critters, we are all earthlings, you know?") She is a very likeable heroine, confident in herself but aware that she's still young and has a lot to learn. Her story also echoes parts of her illustrious ancestor's -- and her full name is Elatsoe, like Six Great. This helped to anchor the story within a rich cultural tradition, rather than present Ellie as a solitary heroine.
Elatsoe is an easy read, though sometimes unevenly paced: the prose is deceptively simple, with short sentences and a plainspoken feel. I was slightly disappointed that there wasn't more of Ellie's asexuality, but it wouldn't have improved the story and wasn't relevant to her everyday life. (Nice that family and friends were so accepting, though!)
I'll definitely look out for more by this author: her writing is honest, authentic, truthful.
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