Book · 2020
The Only Good Indians
by Stephen Graham Jones
Four Blackfeet men who broke a hunting taboo a decade ago get hunted back, one at a time, on the reservation and off it.
What does Reddit think of The Only Good Indians?
r/horrorlit carries this one, and the disagreement is about prose, not premise. An ↑153 comment says "thought my brain was broken trying to read it, couldn't follow what was going on," then adds that this is apparently a common complaint about Stephen Graham Jones generally, not a fluke with this book specifically. A Native American reader from Montana and North Dakota, ↑122, comes at it from the other side: respects the writing, confirms the cultural detail is real, and still can't get into any of Jones's work. Nobody argues with the audiobook recommendation, though. One ↑98 comment singles out the narrators' handling of reservation and off-reservation dialect as reason enough to listen rather than read. Some readers bounce off it on a first try and stop. Others come back to it after loving The Buffalo Hunter Hunter first. r/suggestmeabook mostly files it under horror recs without much comment either way.
Community feedback & reader fit
Themes
- · Blackfeet reservation horror
- · disorienting nonlinear prose
- · dialect and code-switching
- · hit-or-miss author reception
Common praise
- + An ↑98 r/horrorlit commenter says the audiobook's narrators nail the switch between reservation and off-reservation dialect.
- + A Native American reader from Montana/North Dakota confirms the cultural detail lands, even while saying Jones isn't for them personally.
- + One reader finished it in under 24 hours once they actually got into it.
Common criticism
- − An ↑153 comment says the prose left them lost and calls that 'a fairly common criticism of the author,' not a one-off gripe.
- − One reader started it years ago, didn't get gripped, and put it down without finishing.
- − Even a commenter who respects the writing says they can't get into any of Jones's books.
Who it's for
Try this if you want horror that comes from a specific place, the Blackfeet reservation in Montana, rather than a generic haunted house; r/horrorlit backs the setting even when it argues about everything else. Bounce off dense, nonlinear sentences easily? The ↑153 comment about losing track of what's happening is your warning, and apparently it's a common one. Consider the audiobook before giving up on the page version; the dialect work there gets called out on its own merits. Already tried and stalled once? At least one reader here did the same and came back later after reading The Buffalo Hunter Hunter first.
Mentions over time
Top subreddits
- r/horrorlit 1,471
- r/suggestmeabook 837
- r/booksuggestions 287
- r/Fantasy 82
- r/printSF 9
- r/TrueLit 8
- r/RomanceBooks 4
- r/YAlit 4
Which Reddit comments matter for The Only Good Indians?
The most relevant excerpts across the subreddits where this book is mentioned — opinionated, argued takes first, then top-upvoted mentions. Click through to read the full thread.
“The Only Good Indians. Thought my brain was broken trying to read it, couldn’t follow what was going on, had to reread passages multiple times to track the action. Turns out it’s a fairly common criticism of the author.
“The Only Good Indians comes to mind, Stephen Graham Jones writes mostly horror, crime and science fiction so he probably has some other good spooky stories but I've only read this one:)
“Oof Definitely The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones. I am a Native American from Montana/North Dakota and understood the importance of cultural stuff. I will not deny his ability to write and he’s a talented writer but I can’t get into any of his works because it’s so….idk it’s just not…
“SGJ is one author where I highly recommend using the audiobook to accompany any read through. They employ native speakers who effortlessly flow between the different dialects and languages. A great example is in The Only Good Indians: how differently they speak off and on the reservation, it is lo…
“I started The Only Good Indians a few years ago and wasn’t gripped by it so I didn’t get far, but I’ve been meaning to go back and give it another chance because I was maybe just not in the right mood for it at the time. I read The Buffalo Hunter Hunter earlier this year and it’s one of my favorite…
“I just finished The Only Good Indians. Definitely not what I thought it would be, and I wasn’t huge on it.
“Unpopular opinion on this sub, but Stephen Graham Jones books just do nothing for me, and I actually find them quite boring. The Only Good Indians was one of the most boring books I've ever read with almost 0 character development. The characters all felt too similar and like fodder for the plot to …
“Here's my #1 issue with the book. It's fully going to spoil a lot of the book so be warned. The book starts with a discussion about the misappropriation of Indigenous horror and how a lot of the time Indigenous characters are used as nothing more than "spirit guides" or whatever. I'm paraphrasin…
“The only good Indians, really underwhelmed me and dragged on
“I've only ever read The Only Good Indians. But I grew up near one of the two tribes referenced. He gets the speech pattern absolutely spot on. As well as the basketball obsession. Immediately took me back to my childhood. That said, if you didn't grow up with it I can see how it would be jarring.
“The Only Good Indians. I didn't dislike it, actually, but I think I would have liked it better had I gone in without the hype. A lot of threads made it seem like some groundbreaking horror novel and it was...fine? Just fine. There was so much hype around it and I was so excited that when I did r…
“Stephen Graham Jones perhaps most folkloric novel might be *The Only Good Indians*. He has a very particular style that takes some getting used to (kind of reminds of Faulkner), but it's worth the depth he brings when you do find the rhythm. For a shorter work, read *Mapping the Interior*. The rec…
“The Only Good Indians is super creepy and is entrenched in Native American folk horror. Would highly recommend.
“I love the basketball scene in The Only Good Indians and I’m tired of people acting like it wasn’t iconic
“The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones had a few scenes and imagery that really creeped me out
Convinced? Pick up The Only Good Indians
What else does r/horrorlit read?
Other books mentioned in the same sub, ranked. Shared-sub overlap with this title breaks ties.
The Only Good Indians — frequently asked
Is The Only Good Indians hard to follow?+
Reddit says often, yes. An ↑153 r/horrorlit comment describes losing track of the action and rereading passages, adding that this is 'a fairly common criticism' of Stephen Graham Jones's writing generally, not something unique to this book.
Is The Only Good Indians culturally accurate about reservation life?+
The strongest testimony says yes. A Native American reader from Montana/North Dakota, ↑122 in r/horrorlit, confirms the cultural specificity is real and calls Jones a talented writer, even while admitting the books still don't click for them personally.
Should I read The Only Good Indians or get the audiobook?+
Get the audiobook if you can, per an ↑98 r/horrorlit comment recommending it specifically for how the narrators handle the shifts between reservation and off-reservation dialect, calling that dialect work a highlight worth hearing rather than reading.
Is The Only Good Indians similar to The Buffalo Hunter Hunter?+
They're not the same story, but at least one r/horrorlit reader used one to get back into the other: after loving The Buffalo Hunter Hunter, they went back to give The Only Good Indians a second chance having bounced off it years earlier.