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The Wabanaki Trilogy
Wabanaki Blues
When Mona Lisa LaPierre, aka “the girl who never smiles,” is sent to stay with Grumps, her reclusive grandfather, she is not exactly thrilled. Still, she slings her beloved guitar, Rosalita, over her shoulder and sets out to meet her destiny – which pops up, variously, as a blonde bear named Marilynn, a fellow musician named Del, and a green-flamed motorcycle that was last seen racing away from her high school the day a student named Mia Delaney disappeared eighteen years ago. Mona’s search for Mia’s murderer becomes a quest for identity, love and meaning, and she is guided along the way by Grumps and her dead grandmother, Bilki, whose spirit speaks to her in moments of need.
327 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2015
3 people are currently reading
233 people want to read
About the author
Melissa Tantaquidgeon Zobel
5 books16 followersMelissa Tantaquidgeon Zobel is the Medicine Woman of the Mohegan Tribal Nation of Connecticut. She received her MFA in Creative Writing from Fairfield University, her MA in History from the University of Connecticut and her BSFS in History/Diplomacy from Georgetown University.
Zobel grew up giving tours at Tantaquidgeon Indian Museum on the Mohegan Reservation, learning tribal tradition from her great aunt, Medicine Woman Gladys Tantaquidgeon whose life she chronicled ih the book Medicine Trail: The Life and Lessons of Gladys Tantaquidgeon (Univ. of AZ Press, 2000).
Melissa has been employed by her tribe as a cultural leader for twenty-two years and has three grown children—Rachel Beth Sayet, Madeline Fielding Sayet, and David Uncas Sayet.
She is married to her high school sweetheart, Randall Zobel.
You can also find Melissa on Facebook.
Zobel grew up giving tours at Tantaquidgeon Indian Museum on the Mohegan Reservation, learning tribal tradition from her great aunt, Medicine Woman Gladys Tantaquidgeon whose life she chronicled ih the book Medicine Trail: The Life and Lessons of Gladys Tantaquidgeon (Univ. of AZ Press, 2000).
Melissa has been employed by her tribe as a cultural leader for twenty-two years and has three grown children—Rachel Beth Sayet, Madeline Fielding Sayet, and David Uncas Sayet.
She is married to her high school sweetheart, Randall Zobel.
You can also find Melissa on Facebook.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
November 3, 2015
The immediate plot is the unsolved mystery of the death of a high school girl who is found dead in a locked closet at her high school after an extended time. Decades have passed and Mona (central character) takes it upon herself to see that justice is done. Other subplots include her getting in touch with her Native American roots by spending the Summer with her grandfather, expressing her love for music by singing and playing her guitar and her relationship with two boys who are competing for her affections. I would assume the book is geared to young adults but my copy doesn't indicate that. Promising start to a new trilogy.
May 6, 2015
Review to come! Very enjoyable!
May 26, 2018
“He has burtterscotch bangs, licorice eyes, a switchblade smirk, and he wears pastel polos that seem to make him glow. I have mudwood eyes, treebark hair, and I actually wear black band tee shirts that turn me into my own shadow.”
Now, that’s a way to write a description. I was actually hooked from the opening line of Wabanaki Blues.
“Some days, you appreciate the dead; others, you don’t dare think about them.”
51c0jjnupzl-_sy346_Wabanaki Blues is a couple years old, but don’t let that stop you from checking it out, particularly if you’re interested in a coming-of-age story about a young Native girl who talks to the dead and is struggling to find her place. She’s descended from two different tribes and she also has French Canadian ancestry. Mona also grew up in the city – Hartford – and has a lot to learn about her ancestors and their beliefs.
On the last day of school Mona’s parents inform her she’ll be heading away the next day to stay with her grandfather – Grumps. She’s dropped in the middle of the woods by her absentee parents and left to find her way to her grandfather’s cabin on her own.
Before she left school, however, she was visited by a new ghost that has joined her for her journey. Mia Delaney died in her school’s basement years before and her murder was never solved. Now Mia is visiting Mona. Mona would rather stick to communing with her grandmother’s spirit but Mia has other plans.
The one thing Mona knows she has going for her is her musical talent. She’s a great guitar player and her musical abilities will place her between two young men who are vying for her attention, and pulling her in different directions. Meanwhile, people in Mona’s family seem to think she has some special purpose to fulfill and she’s frustrated by the persistence of Mia’s spirit, who seems determined not to rest until Mona finds out the truth about who killed her.
In some respects this book is less about solving a murder and more about a young person finding their way in the world and making sense of their destiny. The threads of the mystery are woven throughout, along with the mystery of Mona LaPierre and her future. She’s a great character who comes alive early on and has a lot of spunk and integrity. It’s possible this book would have been more appropriate if targeted at YA readers but I was hooked from the start and the story never let me go. There’s an added plus of getting some authentic insights about the Abanaki and Mohegan tribes and their beliefs and customs. The author is the Mohegan Indian Tribe Medicine Woman and she infuses interesting details throughout the story.
I can’t believe I didn’t read this book until now. I want more from this author and will be seeking out her other works.
Now, that’s a way to write a description. I was actually hooked from the opening line of Wabanaki Blues.
“Some days, you appreciate the dead; others, you don’t dare think about them.”
51c0jjnupzl-_sy346_Wabanaki Blues is a couple years old, but don’t let that stop you from checking it out, particularly if you’re interested in a coming-of-age story about a young Native girl who talks to the dead and is struggling to find her place. She’s descended from two different tribes and she also has French Canadian ancestry. Mona also grew up in the city – Hartford – and has a lot to learn about her ancestors and their beliefs.
On the last day of school Mona’s parents inform her she’ll be heading away the next day to stay with her grandfather – Grumps. She’s dropped in the middle of the woods by her absentee parents and left to find her way to her grandfather’s cabin on her own.
Before she left school, however, she was visited by a new ghost that has joined her for her journey. Mia Delaney died in her school’s basement years before and her murder was never solved. Now Mia is visiting Mona. Mona would rather stick to communing with her grandmother’s spirit but Mia has other plans.
The one thing Mona knows she has going for her is her musical talent. She’s a great guitar player and her musical abilities will place her between two young men who are vying for her attention, and pulling her in different directions. Meanwhile, people in Mona’s family seem to think she has some special purpose to fulfill and she’s frustrated by the persistence of Mia’s spirit, who seems determined not to rest until Mona finds out the truth about who killed her.
In some respects this book is less about solving a murder and more about a young person finding their way in the world and making sense of their destiny. The threads of the mystery are woven throughout, along with the mystery of Mona LaPierre and her future. She’s a great character who comes alive early on and has a lot of spunk and integrity. It’s possible this book would have been more appropriate if targeted at YA readers but I was hooked from the start and the story never let me go. There’s an added plus of getting some authentic insights about the Abanaki and Mohegan tribes and their beliefs and customs. The author is the Mohegan Indian Tribe Medicine Woman and she infuses interesting details throughout the story.
I can’t believe I didn’t read this book until now. I want more from this author and will be seeking out her other works.
September 11, 2018
When your parents are lost or ignore you, who or what do you turn to if you want to survive? This is Mona Lisa LaPierre's dilemma. She's angry and somewhat depressed, but under the circumstances, she has every right to be that way. When Dad ships her to remote Vermont to spend the summer with Grumps, after her confrontation with the high school principal just before graduation, she believes it's the end of the world.
Instead, she discovers a new way of looking at the natural world...and herself. Grumps grows on her and in the process, she begins to wonder about her heritage as well as the connections stretching back to a mysterious death nineteen years earlier at her school. What follows is part romance, part mystery, a lot of growing up and overall a very satisfying read.
Instead, she discovers a new way of looking at the natural world...and herself. Grumps grows on her and in the process, she begins to wonder about her heritage as well as the connections stretching back to a mysterious death nineteen years earlier at her school. What follows is part romance, part mystery, a lot of growing up and overall a very satisfying read.
November 29, 2020
Wow! The editing to Kindle was a little off, but what an intriguing book! Really enjoyed it!
November 4, 2015
Mona Lisa LaPierre is a complex teen. She is the daughter of a Native American mother, who has turned her back on tradition and her family. Mona’s father is older than her mother, is ignorant or oblivious to Mona’s needs, other than basic food and shelter.
The teen retreats into her music. She is a talented guitarist and blues singer, writing her own music, drawing from her own experiences. These experiences include hearing her dead grandmother’s voice advising her and seeing a girl that was murdered years ago in her high school.
Mona is shipped up to New Hampshire to stay in a cabin with her grandfather, appropriately named Grumps while her parents go to an archaeological dig in Russia. Not only does she miss her high school graduation, but Grumps lives off the grid. No cell phone, no electricity, no Beetle (a guy she would love to spend more time with) and no one to talk to except Grumps. This is not how Mona planned to spend the summer after her high school graduation.
Things begin to look up for her when she meets Del, a guy her age. He plays in a band and asks her to jam with them, and surprisingly Grumps encourages them to hang out together. When she discovers he is the son of the dead girl that has been urging her to bring her killer to justice, Mona becomes obsessed with the case. And she might just be falling for Del.
Danger lurks in the woods and in unlikely places that would normally be considered safe. Mona has angered people by uncovering long buried secrets. The deeper she digs the more help she needs from Grumps and her extended Native American family.
Zobel created one of the most memorable characters I've read about in a long time. Mona develops from a snarky teen to a mature young woman over the course of this novel - but she still has rough edges. She learns about herself while digging into her family’s history and culture.
This Young Adult Mystery was so much more than a “whodunit”. The mystery of the murder developed along with the characters, making Zobel’s novel fast paced and interesting. I loved the rich history and tradition that I learned along with Mona. This is the first book in a trilogy, and I can’t wait to read the next two books.
Copyright © 2015 Laura Hartman
DISCLOSURE OF MATERIAL CONNECTION: I have a material connection because I received a review copy that I can keep for consideration in preparing to write this content. I was not expected to return this item after my review.
The teen retreats into her music. She is a talented guitarist and blues singer, writing her own music, drawing from her own experiences. These experiences include hearing her dead grandmother’s voice advising her and seeing a girl that was murdered years ago in her high school.
Mona is shipped up to New Hampshire to stay in a cabin with her grandfather, appropriately named Grumps while her parents go to an archaeological dig in Russia. Not only does she miss her high school graduation, but Grumps lives off the grid. No cell phone, no electricity, no Beetle (a guy she would love to spend more time with) and no one to talk to except Grumps. This is not how Mona planned to spend the summer after her high school graduation.
Things begin to look up for her when she meets Del, a guy her age. He plays in a band and asks her to jam with them, and surprisingly Grumps encourages them to hang out together. When she discovers he is the son of the dead girl that has been urging her to bring her killer to justice, Mona becomes obsessed with the case. And she might just be falling for Del.
Danger lurks in the woods and in unlikely places that would normally be considered safe. Mona has angered people by uncovering long buried secrets. The deeper she digs the more help she needs from Grumps and her extended Native American family.
Zobel created one of the most memorable characters I've read about in a long time. Mona develops from a snarky teen to a mature young woman over the course of this novel - but she still has rough edges. She learns about herself while digging into her family’s history and culture.
This Young Adult Mystery was so much more than a “whodunit”. The mystery of the murder developed along with the characters, making Zobel’s novel fast paced and interesting. I loved the rich history and tradition that I learned along with Mona. This is the first book in a trilogy, and I can’t wait to read the next two books.
Copyright © 2015 Laura Hartman
DISCLOSURE OF MATERIAL CONNECTION: I have a material connection because I received a review copy that I can keep for consideration in preparing to write this content. I was not expected to return this item after my review.
May 14, 2015
*Disclaimer: I was provided a free review copy of this book by the publisher.*
Mona Lisa LaPierre is your typical tortured teenage musician. She's not popular at school, her principal seems to have it out for her, and her parents are weird and not engaged in her life. Well, she's mostly typical - she suspects that most of her classmates do not see and hear from the dead. Shortly before graduation, she finds out her parents are shipping her off to her cranky grandfather's cabin in the middle of nowhere, New Hampshire, for the summer while they go off on an academic hunt for bear rituals in Russia. There, she makes some new friends, becomes closer to her grandfather, and weirdly gets caught up in an unsolved murder mystery for a girl who was murdered at her high school decades ago and hundreds of miles away.
There is so much potential in this book...I wanted to like it so much. But ultimately, the structure of the book felt all over the place and the writing needed some revision. (The first half of the book also uses some form of the word "inveigle" on every other page, which was funny at first, and then became increasingly hard to read.) The story, at its heart, is an interesting one. I had no trouble getting through the book. But it wanders all over the place without a consistent path - if I were editing, I would have recommended some serious revisions to make the structure a lot tighter. Ultimately, I was really excited to read this and then kind of disappointed in it. I think with the right editor, the author could write some great books - her creativity is clearly not the problem.
Mona Lisa LaPierre is your typical tortured teenage musician. She's not popular at school, her principal seems to have it out for her, and her parents are weird and not engaged in her life. Well, she's mostly typical - she suspects that most of her classmates do not see and hear from the dead. Shortly before graduation, she finds out her parents are shipping her off to her cranky grandfather's cabin in the middle of nowhere, New Hampshire, for the summer while they go off on an academic hunt for bear rituals in Russia. There, she makes some new friends, becomes closer to her grandfather, and weirdly gets caught up in an unsolved murder mystery for a girl who was murdered at her high school decades ago and hundreds of miles away.
There is so much potential in this book...I wanted to like it so much. But ultimately, the structure of the book felt all over the place and the writing needed some revision. (The first half of the book also uses some form of the word "inveigle" on every other page, which was funny at first, and then became increasingly hard to read.) The story, at its heart, is an interesting one. I had no trouble getting through the book. But it wanders all over the place without a consistent path - if I were editing, I would have recommended some serious revisions to make the structure a lot tighter. Ultimately, I was really excited to read this and then kind of disappointed in it. I think with the right editor, the author could write some great books - her creativity is clearly not the problem.
May 17, 2015
When Mona's parents announce they'll be heading to Russia to study bears, Mona is shocked to learn she'll be spending the time with her granfather in remote New England woods. She is forced to miss graduation and the chance to get her crush, Beetle, to notice her before they part.
Mona, the child of both Mohegan and Abenaki tribes, has a passion for blues. This passion and the voice of her grandmother Bilki keep her grounded as she goes on a journey to learn the truth about a young woman's disappearance and in reality, about herself.
Zobel, being Native American herself, really paid tribute to her heritage. Instead of watering down Native traditions and stories, they took forefront in this novel. Zobel shares her traditions and writes them with such reverence and respect.
I REALLY wanted to like this book. Unfortunately, too many story lines and crossing details made it hard to keep the different parts of the story straight. It's a genuine coming of age story told in an uncoventional way, which I appreciate. It just became very complex in a way that wasn't able to keep me engaged. Complex in the name of suspense is fantastic. This just fell short of that for me.
**This book was provided by the publisher as a review copy.
Mona, the child of both Mohegan and Abenaki tribes, has a passion for blues. This passion and the voice of her grandmother Bilki keep her grounded as she goes on a journey to learn the truth about a young woman's disappearance and in reality, about herself.
Zobel, being Native American herself, really paid tribute to her heritage. Instead of watering down Native traditions and stories, they took forefront in this novel. Zobel shares her traditions and writes them with such reverence and respect.
I REALLY wanted to like this book. Unfortunately, too many story lines and crossing details made it hard to keep the different parts of the story straight. It's a genuine coming of age story told in an uncoventional way, which I appreciate. It just became very complex in a way that wasn't able to keep me engaged. Complex in the name of suspense is fantastic. This just fell short of that for me.
**This book was provided by the publisher as a review copy.
August 29, 2015
Melancholy Mona Lisa searches for a murderer, while being helped along by the strategic use of Native American traditions in this tale of a young musician's unlikely choices between music, love and truth. Like her quest to find truth, the story wanders about, making it hard to follow what is happening in this mishmash of characters and places.
July 26, 2015
Beautiful and deep book of a young woman growing up to discover herself, justice and wisdom. There is so much feeling in the New England woods that you can touch, taste and smell them. A wonderful read!
June 8, 2016
Loved that part of the story takes place in Hartford. A little disappointed in how the story is written. Feels like the author took too much time on some things and too little time on other things
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July 1, 2016This book has some potential, but I do think it needed some more editing.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews