First published 2016
Mariah Reddick has built a quiet life as a midwife in Franklin, Tennessee. The former slave once served Carrie McGavock, known as the Widow of the South. Now Mariah delivers babies and tends to the women of her community. Her son Theopolis has grown into an ambitious man with political aspirations. Then someone murders him. Mariah's carefully constructed world collapses. She knows loss, but this blow threatens to destroy her completely. She begins hunting for answers. Who wanted her son dead and why? Her search brings unexpected allies, including George Tole, a newcomer running from his own troubled history. As Mariah digs deeper, she must face painful truths about her past. Robert Hicks draws on detailed historical research to tell this story of a mother's determination to find justice for her child.
Genres: american-fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, mystery, 19th-century, african-american-historical-fiction, american-history
Vibes: emotional, intimate, suspenseful
Tropes: found-family, justice-seeking
Setting: Franklin, Tennessee
Period: 19th-Century
320 pages · Hardcover · Grand Central Publishing
Content warnings: racism, violence