Snakes in Paha Sapa

STOLEN from the Lakota people: the glorious beauty of the Black Hills located in South Dakota and Wyoming, also known as Paha Sapa, that radiated for miles receiving their name due to the closely woven foliage that forms their unique, rich color of blackish-green. Paha Sapa was the center of their universe where all creatures were created from. The loss of Paha Sapa to the Lakota people was the turning point in their heritage and their spiritual culture. After being confined to a reservation and following a lifetime of preventing the Whites from stealing resources from his sacred land, a 40 year old once-feared Lakota warrior begins recruiting allies for a legal journey to reclaim Paha Sapa for his people. In his quest during the 1880s, he experiences new things for the first time being thrust into a White man's way of life as if seeing it through the eyes of a child. He enlists the help of a Lakota tribe member educated by the White man and a fiercely independent White woman rancher who restores his faith that he is not alone in his fight for his land, freedom and spirit. She finds a new mission in life - to bring awareness to the theft of Paha Sapa. This independent woman discovers love for the first time in an aging Lakota warrior - beginning a love story that becomes legendary. He fights next to her when her treacherous neighbor tries to steal her ranch, legacy, and her very life. Lakota customs and legends unfold as this courageous warrior tells his story and about the wrongdoings that they have faced. The heroine's ranchhands are misfits who aren't accepted anywhere other than working for a woman in that era, which adds even more character to their lives. This strong woman brings together nationalities from many heritages to live and work under the same umbrella of unity. The tribe member educated by the Whites devotedly dedicates his life for the legal crusade that the Lakota face in the regaining of their sacred Paha Sapa. Snakes in Paha Sapa leads the reader through endless adventure, a multitude of action, sprinkled with historic elements, and a bit of humor. Author Cyndie M. Styles, also of Crossing Burning Bridges, brings intrigue to the many startling events that happen along the way which keeps the story emotionally-charged, interesting, educational, romantic and entertaining from the courageous people living at the Paradise Valley Ranch.