The Yellow Wife

A Novel

By: Sadeqa Johnson

Narrated by: Robin Miles

From the New York Times bestselling author of House of Eve—a 2023 Reese’s Book Club Pick!

*A Best Book of the Year by NPR and Christian Science Monitor*

Called “wholly engrossing” by New York Times bestselling author Kathleen Grissom, this “fully immersive” (Lisa Wingate, #1 bestselling author of Before We Were Yours) story follows an enslaved woman forced to barter love and freedom while living in the most infamous slave jail in Virginia.

Born on a plantation in Charles City, Virginia, Pheby Delores Brown has lived a relatively sheltered life. Shielded by her mother’s position as the estate’s medicine woman and cherished by the Master’s sister, she is set apart from the others on the plantation, belonging to neither world.

She’d been promised freedom on her eighteenth birthday, but instead of the idyllic life she imagined with her true love, Essex Henry, Pheby is forced to leave the only home she has ever known. She unexpectedly finds herself thrust into the bowels of slavery at the infamous Devil’s Half Acre, a jail in Richmond, Virginia, where the enslaved are broken, tortured, and sold every day. There, Pheby is exposed not just to her Jailer’s cruelty but also to his contradictions. To survive, Pheby will have to outwit him, and she soon faces the ultimate sacrifice.

A Real page turner

A compelling story about the cruelties of slavery. Told in the voice of “the yellow wife”, a mulatto concubine of a vicious slave trader, it tells intimate stories of the lives of field hands, house slaves, stable hands, and the masters they served. Primarily though, it chronicles the life of “the yellow wife” from childhood through maturity with such passion that one’s empathy for her travails is heart wrenching. Although this is a novel, it is based on the history of a notorious slave trader in Richmond, Va.

fantastic.

I found myself pulled in from the beginning. A story of heartbreak and hope. A testament of a mother's love.

Summary

I love the way the story was told. A sad but true piece of history.

Historically one of the best books I’ve read

This book taught me how amazing mothers are.
Phoebe, made the ultimate sacrifice for her children and her first love. Thank you Sadeqa for this amazing history lesson.

A dream come true

At first I thought another story about slavery struggles, which are so depressing. This story was about hope and never giving up on a dream and helping others achieve their dream.

True based

This is a novel to read
This novel gives a view of slave auctions and life

GREAT READ!!!

I love loved everything about this book! I wish the author could write more about girls in a second book!!

Blown away!

This took you on a trip. A trip back in time. A trip into another life. Such a captivating story that speaks so much truth. A page turner that will leave wanting to know more.

The Yellow Wife

The Yellow Wife was an excellent historical
fiction story, great performance and very emotionally stirring.

Engaging and Entertaining!

The Yellow Wife is a grand story of slavery in the early 1930's. An engaging story of love and loss that keeps you interested throughout. There are parts of the story that miss detail and gave me question on how events could actually occur, but the story is very good, and a learning experience. Not familiar with slavery jails, this was a look into unforgivable past events in American history, but something everyone should be aware occurred. Although fiction, it certainly seems to be based on fact, and the author must have done significant research. A great book for listening, and well performed!