The Orphan Mother: A Novel

by Robert Hicks

Overview

An epic account of one remarkable woman's quest for justice for her son after the Civil War from the New York Times bestselling author and "master storyteller" of The Widow of the South (San Francisco Chronicle).


In the years following the Civil War, Mariah Reddick, former slave to Carrie McGavock—the "Widow of the South"—has quietly built a new life for herself as a midwife to the women of Franklin, Tennessee. But when her ambitious, politically minded grown son, Theopolis, is murdered, Mariah—no stranger to loss—finds her world once more breaking apart. How could this happen? Who wanted him dead?

Mariah's journey to uncover the truth leads her to unexpected people—including George Tole, a recent arrival to town, fleeing a difficult past of his own—and forces her to confront the truths of her own past. Brimming with the vivid prose and historical research that has won Robert Hicks recognition.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780446581677
Publisher:	Grand Central Publishing
Publication date:	09/05/2017
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	462,225
Product dimensions:	5.25(w) x 8.00(h) x 0.88(d)

About the Author

Robert Hicks is the New York Times bestselling author of the novels The Widow of the South and A Separate Country. He lives in Tennessee.

Hometown:

Franklin, Tennessee

Date of Birth:

January 30, 1951

Place of Birth:

West Palm Beach, Forida

Website:

http://www.robert-hicks.com

Editorial Reviews

"Speaks to timely questions about cultural appropriation... eloquent and subtle insights into the struggles of motherhood, relationships and loss."—Atlanta Journal Constitution

"Offers a story of race and redemption...compelling...In Mariah, Hicks has created a strong and noble soul."—Fort Worth Star Telegram

"THE ORPHAN MOTHER resonates with readers on many levels-as a compelling novel documenting the violent years of Reconstruction, as a heartfelt story of the inner strengths unearthed by a mother confronted with unspeakable sorrow, and as a memorable testament to friendships between young and old, male and female, black and white. The latter offers perhaps a ray of hope in these times of racial injustice we readers are still experiencing, 150 years after the events of this gripping and timely novel."—Bookpage

"Hick's bittersweet novel reveals a woman discovering a new sense of self in slavery's aftermath... A beautifully rendered portrait for all lovers of Civil War fiction."—Library Journal

"A novel about family and friendship and the boundaries of obligation and loyalty. It's about the power of knowledge and the temptation of revenge, about the psychic and social implications of the end of slavery in a racially unjust society. Filled with beautiful dialogue and finely-wrought characters, the novel is a must-read."—Chapter 16

"When you finish THE ORPHAN MOTHER, Hicks's words seep into your soul."—Franklin Homepage

"Hicks is a talented storyteller and this story moves at a clip."—Publishers Weekly

"A fascinating continuation to the saga, THE ORPHAN MOTHERis a historical beauty."—Read It Forward

From the Publisher

07/25/2016
Hicks’s (The Widow of the South) latest yarn opens two years after the end of the Civil War, focusing on freed slave Mariah Reddick, a trusted and sought-after midwife in Franklin, Tenn. Mariah now has a grown son, Theopolis, a cobbler with political aspirations. Mariah becomes acquainted with George Tole, a free black New Yorker whose reputation as a sharp-shooting assassin precedes him to Franklin. But George has been coerced by an evil Franklin magistrate, Elijah Dixon, to do his bidding, and when a political rally at which Theopolis tries to take the stage becomes violent, the young man is killed—but it’s not clear who killed him. The lives of Mariah and George converge as Mariah seeks retribution and George seeks redemption, each playing a major role in unmasking the latent nastiness among the deeply prejudiced Franklin citizenry. Hicks is a talented storyteller, and this story moves at a clip, but it feels deliberate and inorganic, his characters sometimes seemingly just vehicles moving the story forward. Mariah has lost her only son, yet she shows an unbelievable lack of emotion. The bad guys, while compelling, are amusing caricatures. Only George seems truly flesh and blood, and is the most memorable character. Agent: Jeff Kleinman, Folio Literary. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

08/01/2016
For most of her life, midwife Mariah Reddick was a slave at Carnton, the McGavock home in Franklin, TN, that had served as a Confederate hospital and is now in 1867 a cemetery for the war dead (The Widow of the South). As a freedwoman, Mariah lives in town. Her son, Theopolis, a cobbler, is excited to be making a speech in the town square with "a man running for U.S. Congress and other bigwigs." Can just two years have brought so much change? But adapting to Reconstruction is not an easy thing for blacks or whites. George Tole is a freedman from New York. A sharpshooter during the war, he is familiar with death and with taking orders. White magistrate Elijah Dixon enlists George to help him with a matter that requires his skill. Things, of course, rarely go as planned. Theopolis ends up dead, and Mariah is determined to find out who is responsible. VERDICT Hicks's (A Separate Country) bittersweet novel reveals a woman discovering a new sense of self in slavery's aftermath. She becomes driven by a demand for justice, though justice for blacks is almost impossible to imagine. A beautifully rendered portrait for all lovers of Civil War fiction. [See Prepub Alert, 3/28/16.]—Bette-Lee Fox, Library Journal

Library Journal

The heartbreaking story of former slave and midwife Mariah Reddick is intelligently presented by narrator Adenrele Ojo. Mariah navigates the shifting relationships between Southern owners and former slaves during the the Reconstruction era. Ojo reflects Mariah’s joy at her newly won freedom and the fear and horror she suffers as her only son exercises those new rights. A tone of regret and anger creep into Ojo’s voice as Mariah seeks justice. Tenderly portrayed by Ojo, a chaste romance between Mariah and a sniper seeking redemption elevates this potential potboiler into an effective historical novel. Fans of Hicks’s bestselling WIDOW OF THE SOUTH will find some of the same characters here, now accepting new roles as the South changes. R.O. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine

NOVEMBER 2016 - AudioFile

The heartbreaking story of former slave and midwife Mariah Reddick is intelligently presented by narrator Adenrele Ojo. Mariah navigates the shifting relationships between Southern owners and former slaves during the the Reconstruction era. Ojo reflects Mariah’s joy at her newly won freedom and the fear and horror she suffers as her only son exercises those new rights. A tone of regret and anger creep into Ojo’s voice as Mariah seeks justice. Tenderly portrayed by Ojo, a chaste romance between Mariah and a sniper seeking redemption elevates this potential potboiler into an effective historical novel. Fans of Hicks’s bestselling WIDOW OF THE SOUTH will find some of the same characters here, now accepting new roles as the South changes. R.O. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine

NOVEMBER 2016 - AudioFile

2016-06-19
Hicks (A Separate Country, 2009, etc.) extends his Tennessee-set historical saga into the years immediately following the Civil War.The Reconstruction Era was one of the messiest times in American history, not least because establishing civil and political rights for African-Americans newly freed from slavery was left unfinished for another century. That turmoil forms the setting for Hicks' latest, located, as was its predecessor volume, in Franklin, Tennessee, just south of Nashville. Formerly a slave in the household of Carrie McGavock, the widow of Hicks' title, Mariah Reddick has long been renowned as a midwife, and in this work she has built up both property holdings and local esteem. Her son, Theopolis, has empire-building desires of his own that earn him a bullet and Mariah endless suffering; Carrie assures Mariah that "he was a special boy," but that does nothing to ease the pain except to establish yet another bond between the two women, one forged in "grief and rage so inarticulate and so elemental that [Mariah] would come to rely upon it, like a cane or an extra toe, to give her balance." Now the question is to find out who wanted Theopolis dead, and why. There is no shortage of suspects among the dispossessed planters and crofters "made poor and small by Reconstruction, their punishment for opposing the Republicans and fighting for the Confederacy." The villain of the piece has murkier motives still, but Hicks nicely complicates what otherwise is a historical potboiler with the arrival of a soft-spoken African-American sleuth who digs into the mystery while nursing griefs of his own. Tole has reasons for going after the conspirators who murdered Theopolis, and though Carrie assures Mariah that as the town's midwife "you're the mother of everyone in Franklin," it's a hailstorm of avenging bullets and not kind words that makes this engaging novel pop.Satisfying historical fiction, of particular appeal to readers who live near the banks of the Harpeth or Cumberland.

Kirkus Reviews