Yellow Wife by Sadeqa Johnson

 This story is inspired by the story of Mary Lumpkin and Lumpkin’s jail in Richmond, Virginia.

Bell Plantation, Charles City, Virginia, 1850. Pheby Delores Brown, after losing her mother and after broken promise of freedom, she is being sold to traders. At an auction, she is “rescued by gentleman’s kindness.” Rubin Lapier is the owner of the jail, where Pheby spent the night before the auction. And now is one of the workers at the jail sewing, mostly mending clothing. Her constant companion is “the click-clack sounds” of slaves’ iron confinements and “the moaning from inside the jail…” Should she follow in the footsteps of a woman she saw at the market? A woman like her, who isn’t free, “yet she lived a life better than some white women.” There is a reason why the jail is called the Devil’s Half Acre. Whenever she thinks she can endure this place, there is a reminder that she cannot.

The fastest page-turner ever and heart-pounding read. On one hand, the jail owner, known as the Bully Trader and on the other, a beautiful young slave woman. He is one of the cruelest people if not the cruelest person in town. He trades slaves without any scruples and enforces brutal punishments when requested by other slave owners. He is also a master of his “wife,” who is forced first to make the right decision for herself and later for her children. Once a mother she needs to protect her children at any cost.

This story brings heart-wrenching scenes of flogging, of slaves bidding, degrading transactions and agony of mothers being separated from their children and other members of the family. It’s all very real.

This is a story of an extraordinary woman, who learns that as a mulatto she is worth more than a black slave. She was promised freedom at the age of eighteen. When that eludes her, she weighs her options very carefully. Does she want to be a run-away slave or make a life out of situation the life presented her with?

With riveting prose the pages fly and the heart beats for the astonishing heroine. Well-developed character pulls you into the story immediately and stirs emotions within you. A grim time of history masterfully narrated.

Publication date: 12 January 2021

Source: Simon & Schuster