Yellow Wife: A Novel

This was a good book! I love historical fiction involving enslaved people where we have some semblance of winning in the end. Not a perfect ending for the main character, but she saw two of her most important dreams through.

Very interesting read

Good read

This book was beautiful written, and gives a very unique insight into the lives of slave women, specifically mulatto/white passing women. This story is based on the life of slave concubine Mary Lumpkin, the bully trader (a.k.a. Master Robert Lumpkin), the Devil’s Acre plantation, Anthony Burns, and the experiences they had during slavery and her survival story. Look up Virginia Union University. I appreciate this perspective on her history however I will warn future readers interested this is a VERY heavy read. Be prepared for heartbreak, anger, and grief throughout this story. I can’t count how many times I wanted to put this down because black trauma continues to be too much to experience over and over again, but this was so beautifully written, I had to know how it ends. I respect Pheby’s journey because it wouldn’t have been an easy one for anyone by any means.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

An impactful historical fiction that is inspired by the true story of Mary Lumpkin and the Lumpkin Jail in Richmond, Virginia.

Set during the 1800's in the midst of slavery, the character of Pheby Delores Brown immediately pulls you in. She's been promised her freedom on her eighteenth birthday but events will take her in to the hands of a white man dubbed "Bully" who owns a slave jail/punishment/trade establishment referred to as the "Devil's Half Acre".

Sadeqa Johnson's writing is fluid and eloquent and for fans of historical fiction this story is not to be missed.

"Mama always said that a grateful heart served as a magnet for miracles, so I latched onto the worship and gave thanks."