J.H. Moncrief blends the supernatural, historical, political, and folklore genres of the Native American people to create a gruesome and enjoyable read, with some lessons learned along the way. The Ones Who Came Before is a campfire story gone horrifically wrong, and we have no one to blame but ourselves for the bloody aftermath.
An idyllic camping trip goes horribly wrong for Reese and his friends. When he becomes the lone survivor of a brutal attack, killing his friends, he also becomes suspect number one, especially since his story makes little to no sense- a disembodied voice warning him to leave the camp? A strange blackened tree that gave Reese an electric shock? Detective Greyeyes isn't believing it, but then she hears a disembodied voice as well and finds an arrowhead at the crime scene that she can't seem to get rid of. Extremely disturbing nightmares of a doomed Native American Tribe who once called the campground home, rumors of cursed land, and a mythical beast begin to plague the detectives thoughts and her doubt in Reese's story begins to diminish.
The Ones Who Came Before is a cautionary tale I'm seeing more and more of, and glad of it. The book has strong themes of bigotry and racism towards Native Americans- a subject that needs to be brought to the forefront and I praise Moncrief for doing so. This book shows the ugly history and horrific treatment of our indigenous people, not just historically, but currently, and we're shown some of the hardships they continue to endure. Growing up in a part of the country where Native culture is prevalent, I'm very passionate about this subject and I can be a harsh critic when it comes to stories written around Native culture. But this one didn't disappoint in the least! The depiction of Native Americans as a people and the lore surrounding certain tribes was incredibly well done. The tribe and the lore were grounded solidly in historical facts and tradition. The entire subject was definitely well researched and it showed, particularly in the character of Kinew. What a fantastic character! And his story line created a great dynamic within the story itself- especially his interactions with Reese. The visions the Detective had and the arrowhead were great building blocks connecting the past and the present.
I loved the history that was woven into the story! It was accurate- at least to my knowledge and needed to be, to successfully pull of this tale rich in Native culture. When I realized that this story was going to be written around Native lore, I immediately thought of the Wendigo, and I was so
pumped to be right! *BTW- this is not a spoiler.* The Wendigo is a fascinating creature among Native legends and is somewhat different depending on the tribe and the different parts of the country the tribes reside. Usually described as half man and half demon in some type of animal form, the different variations gave Moncrief some wiggle room to create her own Wendigo, and I have to say, she definitely did the creature justice!
My only complaint was the characterization. It was well done and the characters had depth, but none of the characters besides Kinew were likable to me. This might have been done on purpose, however it's a crap shoot due to the ability of the reader to stay invested in a story where you don't care what happens to most of the main characters.
Those Who Came Before by J.H. Moncrief is a fascinating horror story on different levels. It depicts the two different monsters in this world. The monsters who act like humans and the humans who act like monsters. It's hard to tell which is which and the jury is still out on which is worse. Sometimes reality is more terrifying than a scary campfire tale any of us can dream up. And Moncrief proves it.
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