The Gift of the Seer (Spirit Keeper)
Katie O’Toole begins her journal of facts and secrets after being captured by two Indians from Pennsylvania in 1747. This enables her to endure the memories of seventeen years of degrading acts that result in literal and figurative scars. After being rescued, she hears the words of Syawa the Seer and later falls in love with Hector. She has been told that she carries the position of “Spirit Keeper” for the Indian people. Initially, Hector is her savior, loving her through innumerable bouts of “madness” and moments of unspeakable confusion while she tries to adapt to Indian ways. She will be challenged by other jealous Indian men and women, insist that Hector can only have one wife, reject and accept certain Indian traditions, participate in a “duel” with another holy man, and much more.
Lest someone think this is a stereotypical depiction of Indians or white people, pay close attention to how the best and worst of these people are portrayed. Katie uses magical stories about animals and even scenes from classic literature and the Bible to convince her new Indian family that she has magic that only a seer could possess. Is it all a lie or truth? The reader cannot be sure. Syawa, whose Spirit Katie carries, gives her a vision that is much more than a forecast about annihilation. These are riveting pages that compel the reader to relish this unique tale about the real and fantastic world of everyday life as well as in literature, myth and legends. Astonishing historical fiction that is a highly entertaining and a thought-provoking read.
