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Between Two Fires: The Creek Murders and the Birth of the Oil Capital of the World
Kill the Indian, Save the Man. That is the goal of the Dawes Commission, a federal agency. The Commission is charged with destroying the Muscogee-Creek Nation by allotting communally owned tribal lands to individual members. Forced assimilation is the zeitgeist of 1920s Oklahoma.
SAM DAVIS is a handsome, roguish, half-breed. He brokers real estate between illiterate Creeks and land-hungry palefaces. Assimilation makes for good business. Oil strikes bring thousands of fortune-seeking whites to Tulsa. Sam's commissions soar against cascading reports of missing and murdered Creeks.
When Sam is asked to find MILLIE NEHARKY, a missing Creek girl, he meets ZITKALA-SA, a beautiful Lakota-Creek activist from the Indian Rights Association. Determined to protect the Creeks, Zitkala is investigating stories of graft and murder. Sam and Zitkala discover a grand conspiracy to steal Creek allotments in the Glenn Pool. It is the world's largest reservoir of oil. The trail leads to Tulsa City Hall and powerful mayor JOHN SIMMONS. The mayor has a grandiose vision of creating The Magic City.
Sam is unwittingly but deeply entangled in the conspiracy. As he descends deeper into the darkness of the web of deceit, the luminosity of his Native identity increases. Sam and Zitkala carry on a passionate and tempestuous love affair as they struggle to defeat Mayor Simmons and his oil baron cronies. In Millie, Zitkala must confront a tragic secret from her past while Sam grapples with the clarion call of his Creek culture.
SAM DAVIS is a handsome, roguish, half-breed. He brokers real estate between illiterate Creeks and land-hungry palefaces. Assimilation makes for good business. Oil strikes bring thousands of fortune-seeking whites to Tulsa. Sam's commissions soar against cascading reports of missing and murdered Creeks.
When Sam is asked to find MILLIE NEHARKY, a missing Creek girl, he meets ZITKALA-SA, a beautiful Lakota-Creek activist from the Indian Rights Association. Determined to protect the Creeks, Zitkala is investigating stories of graft and murder. Sam and Zitkala discover a grand conspiracy to steal Creek allotments in the Glenn Pool. It is the world's largest reservoir of oil. The trail leads to Tulsa City Hall and powerful mayor JOHN SIMMONS. The mayor has a grandiose vision of creating The Magic City.
Sam is unwittingly but deeply entangled in the conspiracy. As he descends deeper into the darkness of the web of deceit, the luminosity of his Native identity increases. Sam and Zitkala carry on a passionate and tempestuous love affair as they struggle to defeat Mayor Simmons and his oil baron cronies. In Millie, Zitkala must confront a tragic secret from her past while Sam grapples with the clarion call of his Creek culture.
393 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 25, 2022
13 people are currently reading
34 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
January 15, 2023
A Must Read!!!!
I couldn’t put this book down! It was so well written and the plot kept you on your toes!!! I promise, if you have a heart, you will never look at Tulsa the same again.
I couldn’t put this book down! It was so well written and the plot kept you on your toes!!! I promise, if you have a heart, you will never look at Tulsa the same again.
January 9, 2023
Exciting, suspenseful, and funny.
Between Two Fires is a creative take on the crimes against American Indians in Indian Territory during the allotment era. The exploits of Sam Davis and Zitkala are a compilation of real people and actual events that took place in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Native American storyteller and historian, J.D. Colbert does an excellent job of blending the Muscogee culture and language into his book which provides a warm sense of Mvskoke kinship, even in times of conflict. We see the atrocities Sam Davis caused his Creek people unfold in front of him, as a result of his ambition to succeed in the colonized (white mans) world. If you are not familiar with the murders, assaults, land and mineral theft of the Mvskoke people during the early 1900’s, Between Two Fires is a great introduction. Might I mention, within all the conflict…there is a love story😊
Indeed a pleasure to read!
(Bonus-Sam Davis recites many poems by the great Muscogee Creek poet, Alexander Posey.)
Between Two Fires is a creative take on the crimes against American Indians in Indian Territory during the allotment era. The exploits of Sam Davis and Zitkala are a compilation of real people and actual events that took place in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Native American storyteller and historian, J.D. Colbert does an excellent job of blending the Muscogee culture and language into his book which provides a warm sense of Mvskoke kinship, even in times of conflict. We see the atrocities Sam Davis caused his Creek people unfold in front of him, as a result of his ambition to succeed in the colonized (white mans) world. If you are not familiar with the murders, assaults, land and mineral theft of the Mvskoke people during the early 1900’s, Between Two Fires is a great introduction. Might I mention, within all the conflict…there is a love story😊
Indeed a pleasure to read!
(Bonus-Sam Davis recites many poems by the great Muscogee Creek poet, Alexander Posey.)
November 5, 2025
Kill the Indian, Save the Man is an unforgettable historical novel that captures both the brutality and the beauty of early 20th-century Oklahoma. Set against the backdrop of forced assimilation and the devastating policies of the Dawes Commission, this story immerses readers in a world of greed, betrayal, and the unbreakable spirit of Native identity.
Sam Davis is a compelling protagonist, flawed, charismatic, and torn between two worlds. His journey from opportunistic land broker to a man awakening to his cultural roots is profoundly moving. The addition of Zitkala-Sa, a fearless and passionate activist, brings strength, romance, and moral clarity to the story. Together, they uncover a conspiracy that reaches from the oil fields to the highest levels of power, exposing both human darkness and resilience.
Sam Davis is a compelling protagonist, flawed, charismatic, and torn between two worlds. His journey from opportunistic land broker to a man awakening to his cultural roots is profoundly moving. The addition of Zitkala-Sa, a fearless and passionate activist, brings strength, romance, and moral clarity to the story. Together, they uncover a conspiracy that reaches from the oil fields to the highest levels of power, exposing both human darkness and resilience.
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December 13, 2022A compelling story
This book was about 90% new material for me and it just shows me the lengths that we will go when greed has us in is hold. Oil was more valuable that human lives or the health and wellbeing of our Earth. I look forward to delving more into the history of the Creek and hope that some day the disgraceful ways in which our Indigenous folk will be truly common knowledge and the wounds lay bare can be truly healed and we as a human race can finally care about each other and this beautiful planet that we were gifted and given stewardship of.
This book was about 90% new material for me and it just shows me the lengths that we will go when greed has us in is hold. Oil was more valuable that human lives or the health and wellbeing of our Earth. I look forward to delving more into the history of the Creek and hope that some day the disgraceful ways in which our Indigenous folk will be truly common knowledge and the wounds lay bare can be truly healed and we as a human race can finally care about each other and this beautiful planet that we were gifted and given stewardship of.
February 11, 2024
The book is not that well written but I gave it four stars because I learned a lot about the Creek experience in Oklahoma. Like the Osage the Creeks were also murdered for their oil rights. I always thought they were in Tennessee not Oklahoma.
February 19, 2023
Tulsa history
This historical novel tells about the Creek Land allotments and how many were basically stolen. Very interesting since I live so close to where it all happened.
This historical novel tells about the Creek Land allotments and how many were basically stolen. Very interesting since I live so close to where it all happened.
July 5, 2023
Excellent read. I couldn’t put the book down. I definitely won’t look at Tulsa the same.
October 29, 2025
Spellbinding
Incredibly sad history. This taught me to be aware, there is evil in people but there is also good in people. I loved the poems that was added to the story
Incredibly sad history. This taught me to be aware, there is evil in people but there is also good in people. I loved the poems that was added to the story
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews