The Spirit Keeper by K.B.Laugheed ~ TLC Blog tour with review

About The Spirit Keeper

Paperback: 352 pages

Publisher: Plume (September 24, 2013)

In 1747 Pennsylvania, a trading post on the American frontier was an unsettling place, allowing little opportunity for a woman’s happiness.  This is truest perhaps for seventeen-year-old Katie O’Toole, the thirteenth child of an unhappy Irish immigrant family.   Yet, Katie dreams of a different life, unaware that someone far away was dreaming of her.  Evocative of Geraldine Brook’s Caleb’s Crossing, K.B. Laugheed’s extraordinary debut novel, The Spirit Keeper (Plume Original / October 2013 / $16.00) is Katie’s engrossing first-person account, as she leaves behind her painful past in order to accept a new identity and the great love that comes with it.

When savages raid the O’Toole home, Katie is taken captive by two strange Indians who claim they have been searching for her.  Protected by his companion Hector, Syawa is a gifted holyman who can see the future through dreams.  Syawa claims he has seen Katie in his vision: a Creature of Fire and Ice who will bring a great gift to his people.

Despite her flaming red hair and ice-blue eyes, Katie looks upon him incredulously, but faced with the alternative of returning to her abusive family, she agrees to join them.  Soon, their travel westward takes an irreversible turn.  Katie discovers that to fulfill Syawa’s vision, she must become his Spirit Keeper, embarking on an epic journey that will change her life—and heart—forever.

The Spirit Keeper captures the soul of a young woman on a quest to discover herself during a remarkable adventure across the New World.

“Katie’s extraordinary journey and her unconquerable spirit haunt me.” –New York Times bestselling author Sandra Dallas

“A tale as bighearted as its trailblazer heroine, Katie O’Toole… by turns mysterious, raw, funny, and sensual.  A moving story of adventure, self-discovery, trust and loss, and a testament to how cultures as separate as continents can be bridged by love.”–Barbara Kyle, author of Blood Between Queens and The Queen’s Lady

“Remarkable… a powerful and compelling tale.”–Mary Jo Putney, author of The Bargain

About K. B. Laugheed

K.B. Laugheed is an organic gardener and master naturalist who has spent a lifetime feeding the earth.  Her efforts have culminated in The Spirit Keeper, her first novel and largest contribution to the potluck so far.

For more info on K. B. Laugheed and her work, visit her website, kblaugheed.com.

My take on "The Spirit Keeper:"

K.B.Laugheed takes readers back to the year of 1747 when Pennyslvania was still an untamed area. At the age of seventeen Katie O'Toole knows all about hardship, after all she is the thirteenth child in a family where poverty is the name of the game. When Indians attack her home Katie is kidnapped by two Indians, thing is the Indians seem to have been on a quest to find her. How could that be?  The journey that Katie finds herself taking west with these two Indians allows us to see her grow and change into the woman she is to become.

This book really started out a bit slow for me, but once it gained momentum I found myself drawn into the story of Katie and the relationship she had with Syawa and Hector was different, she learns to communicate with them and even grows close to them, and when she has a chance to be rescued doesn't want to leave them. I really found the story that we see unfold thru the eyes of Katie allowed us to see the danger that the trio sometimes found themselves in,after all  but also allowed the reader to understand the relationship that forms as well. As the journey west progresses we also see Katie grow as a character. A well researched story perfect for anyone who enjoys Native American historical fiction. Overall,"The Spirit Keeper" was a bit slow for me to get into, but once I did I found the story enjoyable.

A complimentary copy of this book was provided for review.