Customer Reviews

Raven Mocker

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This book, although set in the same series as Trail of the Spanish Bit, also succeeds as an independent novel. Snakewater, a woman healer among the Cheyenne people, is forced to leave her village when she is accused of being a Raven Mocker by a disturbed woman whose daughter died despite Snakewaters efforts to cure her. A Raven Mocker adds years to his/her own life by stealing life from others. She travels from her village, and learns to become a better, more caring person. Eventually she settles with the Elk Dog people (familiar to readers of the Spanish Bit series). The climax of the story is a final conflict with her original accuser who has also traveled to the Elk Dog sun festival.

She grew up as Corn Flower but after the death of her Mother and Father she was taken in by Snakewater an old medicine women. She learned all about the healing and treatment of different things from her. After the death of the first Snakewater, Corn Flower became know as Snakewater, after the woman who had taught her all she knew. She is accused of being a Raven Mocker, one who takes the life of another and this give her a longer life. She is forced to leave her villege and travels west where she meets new friends and finally ends up with The People. The ending has a slight twist. I think you can feel like you are there. You will wonder about the little people, do they exist or not. If you think not don't tell Lumpy. You will meet him in the book and does he or does he not save Snakewater's life? If you like stories about the early tribes you will enjoy this.

I've read nearly all of Don Coldsmith's "Spanish Bit" books and like them all. This is not one of his best, in my opinion, but it's still good. I think it might be getting close to the time for him to bring the story of "The People" up to modern times, perhaps do a book or two about how they fare in today's world, and then close that saga out. This one concerns a woman who has been accused of being a Raven Mocker, which is someone who steals other people's lives, in order to continue living. She ends up moving to another area to get away from such accusations. It was definitely worth reading, but not one of my favorites.