Common Sense Media Review
Smoldering murder mystery debut about missing Native women.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 14+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
LOOKING FOR SMOKE opens at the North American Indian Days Festival in Montana, where high schooler Mara Racette, new to the area, feels like an outsider from her tribal community. A young powwow dancer goes missing, and Mara and three other students are the last ones to have seen her. The story is told from multiple points of view and full of modern teenage drama as Mara, Loren, Eli, and Brody become central voices and players in the shady investigation over the disappearance of two young Native girls. Throughout the murder mystery, these teens steer through personal conflicts, friendships, and romance while also navigating some of the most pressing social issues facing Native communities today, including generational trauma, poverty, drugs, and the epidemic of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.
Is It Any Good?
A well-executed and gripping debut, this thriller will keep readers guessing till the very end. Saturated in teenage drama and cultural traditions, this book at times feels like a darker style of the show Reservation Dogs. K.A. Cobell is deliberate in the details, generous in humanizing all of her characters, and unsparing in the social complexities that exist in family traumas and Native communities. Gorgeously utilizing the motif of smoke and fire, Cobell moves her reader from soft moments to intense ones in the same way she moves her reader between a fictional world and a realistic one, ultimately provoking important conversation and awareness for the MMIW movement.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the statistics of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) provided in Looking for Smoke and listen to interviews by the author on this subject. Why are Native girls more at risk? What do you think can be done about it?
The story opens with a traditional Blackfeet giveaway, which played a pivotal part in the entire story. What were some of the gifts given? Why did they do this? How did this giveaway change the lives of some of the characters?
In the story, the main characters offer several points of view. The author also includes one "Unknown" perspective. Who do you think this is? Why do you think the author would include this point of view and keep it secret through most of the novel?
For fun, look up some of the Indigenous slang words used by characters in the story, like "sko" or "skoden." These words have been used by various Indigenous communities for a long time, but have recently gained more notice in social media and books like this one. Do you have any fun inside jokes or slang words between your family or friends?
In the back of the book, the author-curator of Heartdrum, the publisher of this book, says, "Even amid tragedy and loss, there are everyday heroes in our communities. We are so much more than the worst of what can happen to us." How did courage change the course of events in the story? How have you seen courage in yourself, others, or your community?
Book Details
- Author :
- Genre : Contemporary Fiction
- Topics : Friendship , School ( High School )
- Character Strengths : Courage
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Heartdrum
- Publication date : June 4, 2024
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 13 - 17
- Number of pages : 416
- Available on : Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, Apple Books
- Last updated : April 19, 2026
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