---
title: "How to Preserve Your Identity: Rediscovering Roots in a Story of Loss and Love"
description: A time-slip love story unites Sioux warrior and man, reframing Little Big Horn through Indigenous eyes as DNA tests and hidden heritage reshape identity.
author: Dr Marina Nani (Editor-in-Chief)
date: 2025-11-20T09:32:02.000Z
updated: 2026-06-29T08:43:16.935Z
canonical: https://richwoman.co/article/how-to-preserve-your-identity-rediscovering-roots-in-a-story-of-loss-and-love
image: https://cdn.nanimediahouse.com/dvk_ct1wg78.jpg
categories: Fiction
content_type: Book Review
region: Montana
publication: Rich Books
---

In a hotel lobby in Montana, a man stares into an antique mirror and confronts a truth that shatters everything he believed about himself.

Ben Wilson thought his Irish heritage defined him – until a mystical reflection reveals he is not only something else entirely, but someone else: White Swan, a Sioux warrior from 1876.

This moment from Russell Lloyd’s new novel [‘An Indian Love Story’ ](https://amzn.to/43EcaFv)captures something most of us know too well: we rarely understand ourselves completely until much later in life, when unexpected discoveries force us to rewrite our own stories.

The experience of discovering hidden ancestry has become increasingly common as more people turn to genetic testing. [DNA results can reveal Native American genetic markers](https://www.bia.gov/guide/tracing-american-indian-and-alaska-native-aian-ancestry) that challenge long-held family narratives, though they often raise as many questions as they answer. Russell Lloyd understands this personally – his own genealogical journey included DNA test corrections that shifted his understanding from Irish to Scottish and back to Irish again.

Both Lloyd and his protagonist Ben Wilson confront the unsettling realisation that heritage isn’t always what families pass down in stories. ‘Ben’s journey from believing he was Irish to discovering his Sioux ancestry reflects broader American experiences of disconnection from indigenous roots,’ Lloyd explains. This disconnection often stems from historical trauma, forced assimilation and the deliberate erasure of Native identities through government policies. Questions about [how we preserve our identity](https://richbooksmagazine.com/article/rich-monday-paper-how-do-you-preserve-your-identity) become particularly complex when the identity itself has been hidden or lost.

## Love Across 140 Years

At the heart of Lloyd’s novel lies an extraordinary love story between Ben and Kaata (Little Moon), a beautiful Crow princess. Their romance spans centuries through the mystical mirror in the Hotel Becker lobby, creating a connection that transcends time itself. The time-slip narrative allows readers to experience history not as distant academic study, but as immediate, emotional reality.

The dual timeline weaves between Ben’s contemporary struggles with divorce and unemployment in modern Montana, and White Swan’s experiences in the Sioux camps of 1876. This structure opens up new ways to feel history – not just to learn about it, but to inhabit it emotionally. The mirror serves as both literal portal and metaphor for how Indigenous history continues to reflect into contemporary life.

Lloyd’s novel reframes one of America’s most studied military conflicts by centring Indigenous perspectives. The [Battle of Little Big Horn represented a defining moment of resistance](https://sunyempire.edu/littlebighorn/) for the Lakota Sioux, Northern Cheyenne and Crow peoples. The book features historically significant figures including Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse and Chief Looking Glass, presenting them not as footnotes to Custer’s story, but as complex leaders defending their homeland.

The novel explores the complicated relationships between tribal nations during this pivotal moment. Kaata’s brother Big Horse, a Crow scout who ultimately chooses to fight alongside the Sioux against the 7th Cavalry, embodies the difficult loyalties tribal members faced during the Indian Wars. [Indigenous oral histories emphasise the battle’s intensity](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Little_Bighorn) and cultural significance as a temporary victory that led to increased military campaigns against Native peoples.

### Honouring Tribal Traditions

The spiritual importance of objects like the looking glass reflects authentic Native American beliefs about the power of material items to connect past and present. Lloyd incorporates traditional naming conventions and tribal customs throughout the narrative, including the protagonist’s change from Ben Wilson to White Swan – a name that carries spiritual significance in Sioux tradition.

Supporting characters like Sheriff Walt Jeffreys, whose Crow nickname is ‘Half Yellow Face’, represent the ongoing bridging between Indigenous and contemporary cultures. These details reflect Lloyd’s research into tribal practices and his respect for Native storytelling traditions.

## Addressing Historical Trauma Through Fiction

The dual-timeline structure allows Lloyd to explore how historical trauma impacts subsequent generations whilst maintaining the immediacy of both personal and historical drama. [Historical fiction increasingly addresses trauma healing](https://bookriot.com/indigenous-historical-fiction/) amongst Indigenous communities, with novels like Louise Erdrich’s ‘Tracks’ and Leslie Marmon Silko’s ‘Ceremony’ exploring similar themes of identity, healing and cultural continuity.

Lloyd’s novel contributes to ongoing conversations about cultural appropriation, land rights and representation – issues that remain contentious today. The book strikes a balance between respecting tribal traditions and remaining accessible to readers unfamiliar with Native American history, joining [a growing body of Indigenous historical fiction](https://www.strongnations.com/store/item_list.php?it=1&cat=2890) that uses storytelling as a vehicle for healing and resilience. Like [other recent fiction that tackles reconciliation](https://richbooksmagazine.com/article/australian-fiction-tackles-reconciliation-as-writers-bridge-cultural-divides-through-storytelling), Lloyd’s work shows how writers can bridge cultural divides through authentic storytelling.

The novel concludes in 2024 with Kaata, now Professor Little Moon Wilson at Little Big Horn College, delivering the 150th anniversary commemoration address at the battlefield. This fictional moment reflects real institutional efforts to preserve Indigenous knowledge and reframe historical narratives. [Little Big Horn College was chartered in 1980](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Big_Horn_College) by the Crow Tribe and dedicates itself to preserving Crow tribal knowledge, language and culture.

The college integrates Crow culture throughout its curriculum and [hosts programmes like the annual Crow Summer Institute](https://www.greatfallstribune.com/story/news/tribal-news/crow-nation/2022/05/11/little-big-horn-college-crow-language-program-language-culture-classes/65355006007/) to revive the endangered Crow language using resources from tribal elders. These efforts represent the kind of cultural continuity and adaptation that Lloyd’s novel celebrates.

## Finding Healing Through Stories

Kaata’s commemorative speech reframes the historical narrative, emphasising Indigenous perspectives often marginalised in traditional accounts. Her academic position at the college represents how Native communities are reclaiming authority over their own stories. The act of re-examining history and remembering it accurately becomes part of how families and societies heal from generational trauma.

Lloyd’s journey from business leadership in fluid power sales to writing reflects the kind of life change his protagonist experiences. His background provides an unexpected foundation for exploring themes of pressure, flow and change that permeate the novel’s spiritual and romantic elements. Like many authors who discover [writing has healing powers](https://richbooksmagazine.com/article/writing-has-healing-powers-how-a-woman-found-a-new-life-purpose-when-walked-away-from-old-tra), Lloyd found a new purpose through storytelling.

The book’s dual title – ‘An Indian Love Story’ and ‘Tale of the Looking Glass’ – reflects its layered approach to identity and storytelling. Through Ben and Kaata’s love story, readers experience how personal connections can transcend historical divisions and cultural boundaries.

The novel arrives at a moment when questions about heritage, belonging and historical truth feel particularly urgent. Lloyd’s work suggests that whilst we cannot change the past, we can choose how to understand it – and that understanding can reshape how we see ourselves and our place in continuing stories of resilience, love and hope.