Welcome to my fifth Muse Monday post. It’s a chance for a character who inspires me to guest on the blog. Today, we have Raven Kabatay, the youngest sibling and black sheep of the Kabatay family from Sanctified, book three in The Matawapit Family series. Check out what Raven has to say.
Mom always hated the Matawapit family, but she never said why, other than they couldn’t be trusted, especially Deacon Matawapit. So yeah, because my older brother and sisters hated them, I grew up hating them, too. I guess because I was born much later than my siblings. They’d been pushing eleven and twelve when I came along, so I learned to hate a family I didn’t really know.
I never met my dad. He died before I was born. While I was growing up, nobody talked about him either. There were lots of secrets happening in my family, secrets I didn’t know about, and never cared about, probably because I was too busy living my own life.
All I know is Mom had it out for me starting from the day she gave birth to me. I was the imperfect one in her eyes, someone to bitch out. She took pleasure in pointing out everything wrong with me.
I got out fast. Left the rez when I was eighteen. But that only led to trouble. I did what Mom said I would do: fucked up my life bigtime with drugs and lousy men.
So I’m back to make something of myself. I’m drug-free. I’m ready to win the respect of my family. And I can do this by helping my brother become the chief. He promised me the diner where I work if he trumps Darryl Keejik in the election. Then Mom has no reason to call me a slut who’ll never amount to anything. My sisters won’t be able to shake their heads in disgust anymore.
Then Jude Matawapit came along…
I didn’t expect to get knocked off my feet.
He’s beyond gorgeous and the complete opposite of guys I dated in the past.
But he’s the enemy of my family.
If I date him, they’ll hate me forever.
****
In the midst of a battle for leadership at their Ojibway community, two enemies of opposing families fall in love…
After suffering a humiliating divorce, infuriated Catholic Jude Matawapit bolts to his family’s Ojibway community to begin a new job—but finds himself thrown into a battle for chief as his brother-in-law’s campaign manager. The radical Kabatay clan, with their extreme ideas about traditional Ojibway life, will stop at nothing to claim the leadership position and rid the reserve of Western culture and its religion once and for all, which threatens not only the non-traditional people of the community, but Jude’s chance at a brand-new life he’s creating for his children.
Recovering addict Raven Kabatay will do anything to win the respect and trust of her older siblings and mother after falling deep into drug addiction that brought shame and anger to her family. Not only does she have the opportunity to redeem herself by becoming her brother’s campaign manager for chief—if he wins, she’ll have the reserve’s backing to purchase the gold-mine diner where she works, finally making something of herself. But falling in love with the family’s sworn enemy—the deacon’s eldest son, Jude—will not just betray the Kabatay clan. It could destroy everything Raven believes in and has worked so hard for.
Genre(s): Multicultural, Contemporary Romance, First Nations Romance, Adult, Inspirational.
Heat Rating: Level 3
Publication Date: September 20, 2019
Publisher: eXtasy Books
Maggie Blackbird 