The Moon-Eyed Ones

by Julie K. Johnson

Deep in the mountain forests of Southern Appalachia lives a mysterious group of mixed race and unknown origins. While myths and folklore abound, they are labeled pejoratively with one word: Melungeons.

Fifteen-year-old Silas Vanover is thrilled at the chance to make a life for himself as a trader among the white settlers. But his optimism is crushed by his family’s horror stories of lynchings, excommunication, and worse. Determined to prove them wrong, Silas ventures down from his isolated colony to trade in the valley below, attempting to pass himself off as a member of an Indian tribe. There he meets Amadahy Kingfisher, a Cherokee girl who notices how out of place he is in town but still extends kindness and curiosity toward him. The two make a deal to befriend one another for their own protection among the hostile European frontiersmen, and their encounter makes Silas hopeful that his people’s haunted memories are scarred legends of the past.

But he is mistaken. After being wrongfully accused of a crime by the white settlers, a brutal raid on his people’s beloved mountain enclave destroys everything Silas holds dear. Now he must fight for his home, his identity, and his place among the people of East Tennessee, forming alliances with the white settlers and the remaining Cherokees of the area while trying to stay true to his own people. In the end, Silas must decide where his heart and loyalties lie as the white government sets into motion what will later be known as The Trail of Tears.

274 pages, Paperback

Published October 5, 2016

About the author

Julie K. Johnson is an author of historical fiction. She was born in Indianapolis, Indiana and currently lives there, but was raised in small town Indiana and the mountains of East Tennessee. She is inspired by many things, mainly the places she has traveled to and her obsession with history, genealogy, folklore, and myth, all of which can be seen in her works. Her biggest sources of inspiration are her East Asian and Melungeon heritage and what it is like to be at home in multiple cultures at once. When not writing, Julie can be found drawing, knitting, cooking Korean food, petting cute animals, or covering everything in glitter.

Reviews

[Michael Decamp]

A very interesting peek into a small sub-culture of Eastern Tennessee in the early 1800's. Silas, a teenage boy from a rejected and reviled mixed race of uncertain origin, who resides high in the mountains finds pain, rejection, and also a home and a love when he ventures down into the world of the early Appalachian settlers. The rejection and pain are provided by the settlers, but the love and acceptance are provided by the local Cherokee village. Ms Johnson gives you a look inside Silas' heart at the pain that ignorant prejudice creates, but also allows you the hope that love and acceptance interjects. If you enjoy historical fiction, give this book a try.

[Amanda M. Lyons]

A genuinely valuable look at Malungeon life

I really liked this short novel about rural Appalachian life among the malungeon clans, Cherokee tribal villages, and small towns of the settlers of the 1800s. Knowing my ancestry and how complex it is, I feel it's likely I was visiting with my own ancestors as I was reading.

[Michael Dotson]

Full disclosure, I am friends with Julie. You will love this work of historical fiction. Silas, Amadahy, and their families will matter to you. If you love the Appalachian Mountains, the Cherokee, the Melungeons, or US history pre-Civil War, then you will want to read this book. I can't wait for the sequel... she's working on it now.

[Kathy]

Melungeon and Cherokee history during the time of the removal

I would recommend this book to anyone who has read Demon Copperhead and/or The Story Keeper. The latter by Lisa Wingate. I enjoyed a blending of people and the sharing of culture between races, including whites. There are moments of terror and loss but also gifts of hope and even a bit of bliss.