Yellow Wife

Trigger warnings: slavery, human trafficking, racism, violence, murder of children, rape, death

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Pheby is a mulatto slave living in Virginia when her life takes a drastic turn.

Pheby Delores Brown's early life is much better than most of the slaves on the Virginia plantation. As the daughter of the master, she is taught to read and write (which at the time is illegal for slaves) and is never whipped at the master's request. Her status as a mulatto means she is often called "yellow" because of her fairer skin.

Pheby lives with her mother, Ruth, in the loom shed where they work on sewing and mending. At Ruth's urging, the master has found a school in Massachusetts for Pheby to attend when she is granted her freedom on her 18th birthday.

Unfortunate circumstances lead Pheby to leave the comfort of the plantation, which means she loses the master's promise of freedom papers. She goes to a slave jail, where the jailer takes a shining to her and keeps her for his own.

Pheby's new job is to prepare the fancy women for sale. These women are lighter-skinned and are in high demand for sexual slavery, and Pheby dresses the women in nicer clothes and applies makeup to drive up their price.

The novel is hard to read at times, as the treatment of the slaves is appalling. Pheby's determination despite her many misfortunes is heroic. She protects her children at all costs, even though they tether her to a life as a slave.

Robin Miles delivers Phoebe's story matter-of-factly, as Pheby for the most part must accept the hand she is dealt and cannot change her circumstances. She does a good job of using Southern pronunciations without sounding affected.

Recommended for readers of Southern historical fiction and those interested in the pre-Civil War South.

Sadeqa Johnson formerly worked with authors in PR and currently teaches writing fiction. A Philadelphia native, she now lives in Virginia.

Publisher: Simon & Schuster (print); Simon & Schuster Audio

Narrator: Robin Miles

Running Time: 9 hours, 31 minutes

Length: 288 pages

Release Date: January 12, 2021

I received an electronic galley copy of this title from the publisher through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I also received a digital audio recording of this title from the publisher through Libro.fm as a librarian review copy. I read the latter edition. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.