A stunning debut! What a unique and interesting story weaving Cree culture and lore into a beautiful story about grief and family.

This is a horror book following our main characters Mackenzie, a Cree woman, who decides to go home to her family and back to her roots after she starts having vivid dreams involving her deceased sister.

Let’s be honest, the death of a loved one is one of real life’s horrors. This book incorporates grief beautifully into a genuinely frightening story. Some of the imagery in here was terrifying and extremely eerie. Normally I am not a fan of dream sequences in books but the dreams featured in this book were really well done and unfolded the story for us. I felt so connected to the characters, the family in this book are gold. The author regularly shows us snippets of their lives and flashbacks help us to feel connected to the characters.

This book really delves into Cree culture and I found that really interesting to learn about. I love it when a book is educational and powerful while being a creepy horror story as well. The writing was absolutely beautiful and I’m honestly flawed that this is a debut work. Another thing I really appreciated about this book is we get straight into the story from the first page and the pace sticks to that. Some parts of the book are slower but they are meant to be slower and they add to the overall story.

I can’t wait to see what else Jessica Johns writes, she is clearly a talented author with a lot of powerful messages to spread.

I wasn’t really sure what to expect going into this one based on the synopsis but unfortunately this one wasn’t for me, it’s not really my kind of horror. It’s very much a slow burn and more fantasy/supernatural than I go for and I don’t think it will be particularly memorable so sadly this is going to be a 1.5 rounded up.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ecopy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Overall I really loved this and love the twists and didn’t find it predictable. The only reason it wasn’t 5 stars was I found some of characterisations unrealistic/not believable.

Native Canadian folktale nightmare.
I actually loved this book.
The aunties were something I particularly enjoyed, their gentle wisdom and welcoming love.
There is a lot going on in this novel. Many messages threaded through the narrative, though I feel some were aimed at Native Canadian readers - traditions continue; keep family together; remember the old wisdom, stories and legends; crows - though this might change depending on tribal totems; respect the elders and listen to the Aunties!
The 'horror' aspect wasn't poured on too heavily, which was good for me, but would maybe dissappoint someone who was attracted by the horror tag.
I enjoyed so much of this, including the prophetic dreaming, the push to not carry things alone, that the crows *Spoiler* turn out to be good (doesn't seem that way at first).
The reason I'm only giving four stars rather than five is that the younger generation of characters seem younger than they are meant to be and slightly annnoy me at times. Also, at the very end of the novel, everything - well no the magical realism of the dreams that bleed through to waking hours - seemed to wrap up a bit too quickly.
I suppose what that leaves is the 'big picture' message of grief, healing, and the danger of unhealthy coping mechanisms - alcoholism and addiction plague Native communities.
So while this isn't quite a five star read for me, but is definitely a solid four and I was recommend it to others, from older teens on up.

Bad dreams turn into a waking nightmare for Mackenzie and the proof is in her hands as she brought something from the dreamworld to the present.

Almost a year since Mackenzie older sister pasted away the nightmare continues, every dream takes Mack to a snowy forest full of crows and the dead body of her sister. Or is it.

This debut brings a new voice to the Indigenous readership, with family and I can't wait for Jessica's next novel.

Thank you to Scribe UK / Scribble for providing an arc via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Bad Cree is a novel about a woman whose unnerving dreams lead her to return home and confront the death of her sister. Mackenzie is a young Cree woman living in Vancouver, spending time with her friend Joli and hardly speaking to her family. When her dreams result in her waking up with a crow's head in her hands, and they feature memories of the campsite in the woods where she went with her twin sisters and cousin, she knows she has to speak to her family again, and face the death of one of her sisters that she's been avoiding. But when she returns home, the dreams continue, and Mackenzie and her family must face what happened at the campsite by the lake.

Told from Mackenzie's point of view, the book draws you into not only the world of her creepy dreams and the threat within, but also her waking world, in which she is trying to survive without thinking of her grief or the family she has run from. There's a lot of things explored in the book, not only grief and family, but also use of the land, addiction, and generational trauma, but it is at its heart Mackenzie learning to reconnect with her family and solve the mystery of her dreams, both of which are connected. I liked how it combined horror and coming of age elements alongside Cree traditions and modern day realities, bringing layers to the book, and it is also very readable with great characters (I particularly liked Mackenzie's friend Joli and sister Tracey).