The Salford Sioux

Jayne Sinclair Genealogical Mystery #9

by M.J. Lee

Some family trees have roots that run deeper - and darker - than anyone could imagine.

When the Walker family receive unexpected DNA results showing Native American ancestry, they turn to genealogical investigator, Jayne Sinclair, to unravel the mystery. Their family tree, all of them were born in the industrial town of Salford in England, shows no hint of such heritage - but DNA does not lie.

As Jayne delves into the family's past, she discovers a trail leading back to the smog of 1880s Salford, and a tale of forbidden love, desperate choices, and a legacy that crosses both oceans and centuries.

Who was the Native America ancestor and how did he end up living in Salford, thousands of miles away from the open prairies of the Great Plains?

This Jayne Sinclair Genealogical Mystery is perfect for readers of Rhys Bowen, Boo Walker, Steve Robinson, and Nathan Dylan Goodwin.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Historical

293 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 27, 2025

About the author

Martin has spent most of his adult life writing in one form or another.
He has spent 25 years of his life working outside the North of England. In London, Hong Kong, Taipei, Singapore, Bangkok and Shanghai.
He writes three series; the Danilov books set in 1930s Shanghai. The genealogical mysteries of Jayne Sinclair and the contemporary crime cases of DI Ridpath set in Manchester.
When he's not writing, he splits his time between the UK and Asia, taking pleasure in playing with his daughter, practicing downhill ironing, single-handedly solving the problem of the French wine lake and wishing he were George Clooney.

Reviews

[Marianne Long · Rating 4 out of 5]

The nature of genealogy is to provide a tantalizing glimpse of our ancestors' lives. M J Lee does a fine job of weaving a few unearthed clues into a vividly imagined story. This one follows a small group of native Americans who moved to England after the battle of Little Bighorn. Recommended with 4 stars.

[Patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Next book in the Jayne Sinclair series, here I come!

A welcome change from my usual library, The Salford Sioux was a treat. Usually I avoid novels jumping through multiple timelines, but in this case, it seemed quite seamless within the whole story. Will be starting book 2 in this series later today.

[Maureen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I always enjoy the books in this series. The stories are fascinating, and Jayne Sinclair is so determined to find out the person's genealogical history. I love that part as Jayne searches out the clues and the answers. I find it fascinating

[Kenneth J. Hunt · Rating 5 out of 5]

another great read from M J Lee.

Cowboys and Indians in the north of England, who would have thought it? When native American DNA turns up in the tests of a pair of Salford siblings, genealogist Jayne Sinclair takes us back to the times of Sitting Bull and Custer in this interesting and very readable novel from Martin Lee.

[HELEN · Rating 5 out of 5]

Salford sioux

Very interesting historical information well written with the genealogy twist. I've enjoyed all the Jane Sinclair novels, including the way her own life is so important to the books

[Lisa Shower · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating!

Quite the different story, yet engaging from page one. The Jayne Sinclair series is a favorite of mine!
P.S. please don't bring Paul back into the stories, he's a weasel! 😀

[Audrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

As always I really enjoy this authors work !

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one in the series included some terrific historical and cultural background! Great storytelling!

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review

I love this series and this was one of my very favorites. It had a great story and unique characters. It had a fantastic description of life on the Plains for the Sioux and others. Looking forward to the next one.

[Janice M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another superb genealogical mystery!

I’ve read all of the Jayne Sinclair series and have loved every one of them. It felt like forever waiting for The Sanford Sioux, but so very worth the wait. I look forward to more in this series!

[jayne hay · Rating 5 out of 5]

The 11th book of Jayne sinclair her client dna is a mystery

When these clients come to Jayne asking for help to find out who had the Indian dna in there family it leads to more

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating tale

Have always enjoyed MJ Lees writing, as a fan of genealogy myself.
Enjoyed the focus on Native Americans, how dreadful their story was, how badly they were treated.
Reading about how the story, around Buffalo Bill, he came to our small town on June 30th 1904,was fascinating, and the putting together of the main characters life kept me reading virtually non stop. Sad but heartwarming.

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I couldn't put this down, it is another fabulous and intriguing project for Jayne, who gets a request to find why a sister and brother have Native American DNA in their results despite knowing their family never left Salford.
I love the fact that the story melts fact with fiction involving Custer and Buffalo Bill with the view point of the native Americans. The investigation was fascinating, the narrative of the Salford Sioux gave a more rounded view point and story that kept me reading late into the night. Despite there being less of Jayne's story this time it did not disappoint and has created an interest in the story of the native Americans for me. The way these stories are written always creates an emotional response in me, thank you Martin

[Jylle Benson-Gauss · Rating 5 out of 5]

a fascinating read!

I live in an area that once belonged to the seneca people of the haudenesuanee. The history of the first peoples has always fascinated me.
This book combines a feat of genealogical research with a fresh look at a traumatic time in the history of the sioux people, seamlessly weaving them together.
I highly recommend.

[Debbie Trammell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story

The plot is wonderful, it really is a small world. The character Harold lived some many lifetimes. It is such a shame the way our ancestors treated the Native Americans. Their way of life was such a good life and way. M J books are always suberb and the character Jayne is tops, can't wait for the next book. Highly recommend this series.

[Brian E Hartzell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first M.J. Lee genealogical mystery. Better than most written in a similar vein. I had read about Buffalo Bill's trips to Europe, but mostly from the Annie Oakley perspective, so this was refreshing. I'll try some more of Lee's books, just not running through the series chronologically.

[Debbie ONeill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great

I really enjoy reading genealogical mysteries. Jayne is a great genealogist and I've loved reading each one. This was no exception.😀

[Maree Croxon Mapperson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Your history even if you don’t want to know

I enjoy the family history element of the story and the process to find the past. A great passion of mine.

[Bonnie Hodge · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great M J Lee novel

I have read every one of the 11 books. So much history and genealogy in each one. I can not wait for the next one.

[Christine Toughill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delightful! The story is thoroughly engaging, moves briskly making me want to just continue reading to find the answers. The process of delving into family history is fascinating, I've tried to do so in the past and was marginally successful. This is the 5th Jayne Sinclair book I've read and will read more. Love them.

[margaret chalmers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Moving.

A great read with a disappointing finish. A brother and sister want to know why a DNA test has shown they have American First Nation blood. The story is divided between two people, the Hunkpapa Sioux who is the source of the DNA and the modern day researcher. His story, from a witness of the famous Little Big Horn battle to working in Buffalo Bill's western show and residence in a poorhouse in Salford is fascinating and heartbreaking. I loved it. The modern researcher section is interesting in how facts are uncovered but the ending is cold, unfeeling. I wanted to know how the brother and sister dealt with the knowledge of their ancestor. But we are not told. The story ends abruptly. Didn't like that. A few brief words on whether the relatives took things further would have made a difference. Granted the researchers did not care, but this reader did.

[Julie A Morrissey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Humbling

Having Ancestors from in and the Salford area of Manchester and whilst reading on a local fb group American Indigenous settlers also living here, I naturally had to read this book.
Although a story, some based on fact, I found it moving and humble. The history around this story has been well researched.
(As children, Cowboys and Soldiers were always the hero's, but in true life, the 'Indians', America's Indigenous People, were / are the true hero's, who have lost so much over the centuries & generations to ignorance and greed.
We all have a history, we all have our own beliefs, they have to try harder in their own country to keep theirs alive.

[Nancy Lee]

Terrific read! I love how M.J. Lee intertwines the historical narrative with today's descendants and the genealogical research required to establish the connection. The truth remains the truth...DNA does not lie.

[J Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

interesting

Fun light read and jumping through time and people, the work house was almost tender, just men down on there luck unable to served in the outside world

[Jackie Cain · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a strange coincidence that I read this genealogical mystery just after reading a police detective novel based on the Navajo Reservation. Coincidences do happen. I found it a little hard to get into at first and, although the parts of the book where the man born on the Great Plains was telling his story to the other men in the Workhouse were interesting, I did know a lot about the period of the Indian Wars from The Rest is History podcast so in fact I enjoyed the genealogical research more. It was clear that the man called Harold Eccles in the Salford Workhouse was going to be part of the story but the question from the start was: how did a man called Harold Eccles become connected to Martin and Isobel Walker? I really enjoyed finding out and going with Jayne on her journey to get to the truth. Despite knowing a lot about the period, I still found it heartbreaking to read how "the white man" despise the native Americans, taking away items that are of great sentimental value to the young men who come to the school. And, on the other side, the Lakota call themselves 'oyate’, meaning a community or group of people but Chasing Horses translated it as human beings, while white people are called wasichu, which means greedy people.

[Theresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like genealogical mysteries, and I like Jayne Sinclair. But I don’t know why her husband, later ex-husband, has to be involved at all. He generally has nothing to do with the action, except annoyingly postponing some research of Jayne’s. It’s so predictable. He wants something, Jane reluctantly agrees, after remembering how wonderful their early life together was, he makes a rude remark about her livelihood being only a hobby, Jane rejects him once more. It says if the book has to be extended a few pages to make some quantity of print.

Quibbles out of the way, this was a fun book for me. I already knew a lot of the story as I had done some research on the backgrounds of the musical, Annie Get Your Gun. The conceit of the few days spent in the workhouse by Chasing Horses so he can tell his background story works beautifully. I loved the relatively happy ending. The research details were enlightening. I’ll definitely get the next book.

[Jane Irish Nelson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book somewhat disappointing. Genealogist Jayne Sinclair is hired when two siblings from Salford receive surprising DNA results that include Native American ancestry, though, as far as they know, their family has always lived in Salford. The story alternates between Jayne's research and flashbacks to life of Harold, the Salford Sioux of the title. Because of this there is no real mystery for the reader, only for Jayne as she is stymied in her research—though I noticed one clue she didn't seem to catch. I would have preferred a little more focus on the genealogy aspect and less on the history lesson, though it was interesting.

[Suzanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I always enjoy the Jayne Sinclair Mysteries and "The Salford Sioux" was no exception. Not usually a fan of dual timeline books, I especially enjoyed the way Harold's story was shared. It was easy to follow on day-to-day events. Jayne's life on the other hand had (at least for me) a few too many distractions. M.J. Lee's book are always so informative and this one gave so much information on the demise of the Native American culture and the exploitation of the "Indians" by those who conquered them--a meaningful story today.
While I enjoyed the ending of Harold's story I found it a bit abrupt for the earlier depiction of those involved and for the storyline.

[Kathleen Ring · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read!

I always enjoy the genealogical mysteries. I know they are not always action-packed but the story line , of this particular author is believable, well researched and the series is entertaining! I have recommended this series to my sister's.

[Deb · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. I love how the author explains Jayne's research strategies. And I learned a lot from the well researched historical chapters. An excellent entry in this series.