Distinguished Artist Award for 2020. She is a speaker on Native issues, leadership, and writing. The second novel in her Cash Blackbear mystery series, Girl Gone Missing, was nominated for the Sue Grafton Memorial Award. Rendon was recognized as a 50 over 50 Change-maker by Minneapolis AARP and Pollen in 2018.
Here the author dreamcasts an adaptation of her new novel, Sinister Graves, the third Cash Blackbear mystery:
Cash Blackbear is a vulnerable, yet tough-as-nails, resilient 19-year-old Ojibwe woman who has aged out of foster care in northern Minnesota. She lives on her own, works as a farm-laborer driving tractor and beet trucks while attending college; thanks to a push from her friend and mentor, Sheriff Wheaton. When not working, or shooting pool, or going to school, she helps Wheaton solve crimes that occur all to frequently in the isolation of rural farm and reservation country.Visit Marcie R. Rendon's website.
Readers love Cash and the number one comment I get, after being told she needs to quit drinking beer and smoking cigarettes, is that Cash needs her own TV series or movie. I can imagine Paulina Alexis, of Willie Jack fame from the hit Hulu series Reservation Dogs, being cast as Cash. If Julia Garner of Ozark fame were Native, she would also make a great Cash Blackbear. Gary Farmer, also seen in Reservation Dogs, would make a believable Sheriff Wheaton. However, if Dallas Goldtooth would agree to a serious character depiction he might be more age appropriate to play Wheaton.
Cash Blackbear appeared over my right shoulder as I was working on what I thought was goig to be a chicklit novel. Cash, young Ojibwe woman with long dark hair past her waist, shook her head, said, ‘no, no, no’ and proceeded to tell stories through me that have become the Cash Blackbear series. Just as I visualize her, her story begs to put on screen.
The Page 69 Test: Sinister Graves.
Q&A with Marcie R. Rendon.
--Marshal Zeringue
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