Synopsis

A young girl must face a life-altering decision after awakening her sister’s ghost, navigating truths about love, friendship, and power as the Civil War looms.

Sixteen years old and enslaved since she was born, Junie has spent her life on Bellereine Plantation in Alabama, cooking and cleaning alongside her family, and tending to the white master’s daughter, Violet. Her daydreams are filled with poetry and faraway worlds, while she spends her nights secretly roaming through the forest, consumed with grief over the sudden death of her older sister, Minnie.

When wealthy guests arrive from New Orleans, hinting at marriage for Violet and upending Junie’s life, she commits a desperate act—one that rouses Minnie’s spirit from the grave, tethered to this world unless Junie can free her. She enlists the aid of Caleb, the guests’ coachman, and their friendship soon becomes something more. Yet as long-held truths begin to crumble, she realizes Bellereine is harboring dark and horrifying secrets that can no longer be ignored.

With time ticking down, Junie begins to push against the harsh current that has controlled her entire life. As she grapples with an increasingly unfamiliar world in which she has little control, she is forced to ask herself: When we choose love and liberation, what must we leave behind?

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Praise

Review

Our past is one of our darkest times in history, but hopefully, we have learned much from this time. Junie is a sixteen-year-old slave in Alabama. Her family says she is carefree, probably due to her relationship with Violet, the owner’s daughter. Violet and Junie have as close of a relationship as possible, considering their positions on the estate. Junie grew up with Violet and was taught to read. This gives Junie a broader view of the world than only what she sees on the estate. There is so much more, and she wants it all.

Do not expect to be able to race through this book. It moves at a very slow pace until close to the end. There are many factors at play in this book, including a paranormal/magical realism angle when Junie sees her sister Minnie and is given three tasks to help Minnie move on to the other side. The truths that come out alter Junie’s perception of her sister and, perhaps, even her own existence.

It is easy to see that Junie’s outlook on life is very different from that of her cousins and even her grandparents. The education she received alongside Violet contributes to her view of the world. She knows what she knows but is still naive about how the rest of the world operates. Her interactions with the various characters help her grow and learn. I enjoyed watching her relationship with Caleb blossom.

There are characters to despise, just as there are characters to love. The harsh reality of slavery and how some treated the slaves are not surprising, and I felt this added authenticity to the story.

In the end, there are some unanswered questions, at least for me. However, that adds to the novel’s mystery, which isn’t bound by the written word but by our imaginations.

We give this book 4 paws up.

About the Author

Erin Crosby Eckstine is the author of Junie, and writes speculative historical fiction, personal essays, and anything else she’s in the mood for.

Born in Montgomery, AL, Erin grew up between the South and Los Angeles before moving to New York City to attend Barnard College. Eckstine worked in a variety of digital media internships and jobs before pivoting to education and earning a master’s in secondary English education from Stanford University.

Eckstine went on to teach high school English in Brooklyn, NY, for six years before becoming a full-time writer. When she’s not writing, she’s usually making pottery, reading, cooking, or playing The Sims. She lives in Brooklyn with her partner and cats.

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