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Forsaken
In April 1912 white, 18-year-old reporter Charles Mears covers his first murder case, a trial that roiled racial tensions in Hampton, Virginia. An uneducated black girl just five feet tall, Virginia Christian was tried for killing her white employer, a widow. "Virgie" died in the electric chair at the state penitentiary one day after her seventeenth birthday, the only female juvenile executed in Virginia history.
Young Charlie tells the story of the trial and its aftermath. Woven into his narrative are actual court records, letters, newspaper stories, and personal accounts, reflecting the true arc of history in characters large and small, in events local and global. Charlie falls in love with Harriet, a girl orphaned by the murder; meets Virgie's blind attorney George Fields, a former slave; and encounters physician Walter Plecker, a state official who relentlessly pursues racial purity laws later emulated in Nazi Germany.
There is much to admire in the pages of Forsaken, especially the wonderfully vivid sense of time and place, Hampton Roads after the Civil War and Reconstruction. The novel's premise is ambitious, its events striking and tragic, and fiction and reality are deftly blended. Yet despite the tragedy of this intriguing and well-crafted novel, its story is one of redemption and hope.
Young Charlie tells the story of the trial and its aftermath. Woven into his narrative are actual court records, letters, newspaper stories, and personal accounts, reflecting the true arc of history in characters large and small, in events local and global. Charlie falls in love with Harriet, a girl orphaned by the murder; meets Virgie's blind attorney George Fields, a former slave; and encounters physician Walter Plecker, a state official who relentlessly pursues racial purity laws later emulated in Nazi Germany.
There is much to admire in the pages of Forsaken, especially the wonderfully vivid sense of time and place, Hampton Roads after the Civil War and Reconstruction. The novel's premise is ambitious, its events striking and tragic, and fiction and reality are deftly blended. Yet despite the tragedy of this intriguing and well-crafted novel, its story is one of redemption and hope.
300 pages, Hardcover
First published February 1, 2016
7 people are currently reading
990 people want to read
About the author
Ross Howell Jr.
1 book38 followersRoss Howell Jr. graduated from the University of Virginia with a degree in English and American Literature. He later earned a Master’s degree in English and American Literature from Harvard University and an M.F.A. degree in fiction writing from the Writers’ Workshop at the University of Iowa.
A winner of the Gray-Carrington Scholarship Award, the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award, and the Raven Award at the University of Virginia, Howell is a member of the Raven Society and Phi Beta Kappa. He was the recipient of a Danforth Foundation fellowship to attend graduate school.
His fiction has been published in the Virginia Quarterly Review, Sewanee Review, Gettysburg Review, and other magazines. He writes, freelance edits, and teaches at Elon University. His home is in Greensboro, North Carolina, where he lives with his wife Mary Leigh, English cocker spaniel Pinot, and two rescued pit bulls, Ellie and Sam.
A winner of the Gray-Carrington Scholarship Award, the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award, and the Raven Award at the University of Virginia, Howell is a member of the Raven Society and Phi Beta Kappa. He was the recipient of a Danforth Foundation fellowship to attend graduate school.
His fiction has been published in the Virginia Quarterly Review, Sewanee Review, Gettysburg Review, and other magazines. He writes, freelance edits, and teaches at Elon University. His home is in Greensboro, North Carolina, where he lives with his wife Mary Leigh, English cocker spaniel Pinot, and two rescued pit bulls, Ellie and Sam.
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
March 2, 2016
I have nothing to say about this book except that it hurt. Every bit of this book hurt. But it was beautiful.
January 29, 2023
I received a copy to facilitate my review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
This book was the story of Virginia Christian, the youngest African American female to be executed. Virginia Christian was put on trial and then found guilty of killing the white woman for whom she did laundry. A white reporter named Charlie Mears covered the story. This story takes place from his perspective. Virgie was only 17 when she was executed in Virginia’s electric chair. They waited until the day after she turned 17 to perform the execution. The author used actual court documents, actual stories from the newspaper to tell this story.
There was so much tension throughout the book. My initial reaction was shock that they would just decide she deserved to die because she was African American. This is an eye opener whe it comes to showing the lopsided rules and laws when it came to dealing with African Americans
I am glad I read this book. We need to take a look back in time and see what really happened. I definitely will recommend this book to those I know enjoy reading historical fiction. You must read the book then truthfully ask yourself has much really changed today?
This book was the story of Virginia Christian, the youngest African American female to be executed. Virginia Christian was put on trial and then found guilty of killing the white woman for whom she did laundry. A white reporter named Charlie Mears covered the story. This story takes place from his perspective. Virgie was only 17 when she was executed in Virginia’s electric chair. They waited until the day after she turned 17 to perform the execution. The author used actual court documents, actual stories from the newspaper to tell this story.
There was so much tension throughout the book. My initial reaction was shock that they would just decide she deserved to die because she was African American. This is an eye opener whe it comes to showing the lopsided rules and laws when it came to dealing with African Americans
I am glad I read this book. We need to take a look back in time and see what really happened. I definitely will recommend this book to those I know enjoy reading historical fiction. You must read the book then truthfully ask yourself has much really changed today?
April 17, 2017
This historical novel is reminiscent of Southern tales of injustice such as "To Kill a Mockingbird." The writing is beautiful and sets the reader very much in the time and place of the year 1912. It is based on the true story, as told here, by a very young newspaper man, Charlie Mears, of Virginia "Virgie" Christian, a barely seventeen-year-old black woman who is accused of killing the white woman for whom she works. Charlie's sympathy for Virgie can be felt with every cigarette he smokes and every kindness he shows an abused dog he nurses back to health. It is a heartbreaking story, but one that needed to be told. The author has done a fine job of weaving the details of the real case with a heartfelt story that supposes what might have been the circumstances of Virigie's life and untimely death. It's a book that will keep you thinking long after you've finished reading. Highly recommend!
January 14, 2016
On March 18, 1912, in racially segregated Hampton Roads, Virginia, 18-year old Charlie Mears was a cub reporter for the “Times-Herald” when Ida Belote’s murdered body was discovered by her daughters, Harriet and Sadie. Virginia (Virgie) Christian, a young black girl who washed clothes for Mrs. Belote, was found with the dead woman’s purse and quickly arrested for her murder. While covering the case for the newspaper, Charlie was troubled by the lack of a thorough investigation and the presumption of Virgie’s guilt. Through his many visits to her jail cell, he learned she was an illiterate 16-year old girl with a very limited understanding of her dire circumstances, none of which was taken in account by the jury of 12 white men. And so, even though she was a child and mentally incompetent to stand trial, she was convicted of first degree murder and died in the electric chair the day after her 17th birthday.
Virginia Christian bears the tragic legacy of being the only female juvenile executed in Virginia. Even though “Forsaken” is a work of historical fiction, it is based on the true story of one of the most infamous and sensational murder trials and executions in the early 20th century. Author Ross Howell allows this compelling story to unfold through the eyes of Charlie Mears, a young white reporter who became so deeply entangled with the individuals involved in the case that his life was threatened and forever altered. Howell’s attention to not only the details of the case but also the time and place in history draw readers into this gripping drama in which southern sensibilities cover up a ruthless underworld of brutal racism. “Forsaken” reveals the smoldering traditions of in-bred, hard core racial bigotry that fan the flames of the vicious hatred and racial discrimination we are witnessing these days, a hundred years later.
Virginia Christian bears the tragic legacy of being the only female juvenile executed in Virginia. Even though “Forsaken” is a work of historical fiction, it is based on the true story of one of the most infamous and sensational murder trials and executions in the early 20th century. Author Ross Howell allows this compelling story to unfold through the eyes of Charlie Mears, a young white reporter who became so deeply entangled with the individuals involved in the case that his life was threatened and forever altered. Howell’s attention to not only the details of the case but also the time and place in history draw readers into this gripping drama in which southern sensibilities cover up a ruthless underworld of brutal racism. “Forsaken” reveals the smoldering traditions of in-bred, hard core racial bigotry that fan the flames of the vicious hatred and racial discrimination we are witnessing these days, a hundred years later.
March 1, 2016
This book is a work of fiction based on the true story of a young African American girl who was accused of murdering the white woman she worked as a washer woman. She was tried by her " peers" a jury of 12 white males! The jury was out for all of 30 minutes. She was sentenced to die in the electric chair even though Virginia state law forbid the execution of anyone under the age of 18. This case happened in 1912 in Virginia.
The true facts are woven around the fictional story of Charlie Mears, a reporter, who follows the case for his paper and ultimately tries to stop the execution. In the process he sees the injustice of Jim Crow. He then begins a personal crusade to report the injustice of segregation. The results were predictable he runs afoul of the racists. One of the interesting aspects of the story was the fact that many Progressives were as racist as as the so called rednecks. The author also details the pseudo science that purported to show Blacks as an inferior race. A good historical novel.
The true facts are woven around the fictional story of Charlie Mears, a reporter, who follows the case for his paper and ultimately tries to stop the execution. In the process he sees the injustice of Jim Crow. He then begins a personal crusade to report the injustice of segregation. The results were predictable he runs afoul of the racists. One of the interesting aspects of the story was the fact that many Progressives were as racist as as the so called rednecks. The author also details the pseudo science that purported to show Blacks as an inferior race. A good historical novel.
August 31, 2016
Very emotional historical fiction, based on Virginia Christian, a 16 yr old black girl of Virginia in the early 1900s, who was accused of killing her employer, a middle-aged white woman.
The book focuses on Charlie, who is a young reporter that has had trials of his own in his short life. Although very difficult to read at times, it was written in such a way that I could not put the book down. It weaves the factual information about the murder and consequences of the murder in with the life of Charlie and what he endures as he tries to bring forth justice for the child and save her from the electric chair.
It will (or should) cause the reader to pause and wonder how far we have (or haven't) come since this incident. Highly recommended.
*I received a copy of this book from the Author and Goodreads in exchange for an honest review*
The book focuses on Charlie, who is a young reporter that has had trials of his own in his short life. Although very difficult to read at times, it was written in such a way that I could not put the book down. It weaves the factual information about the murder and consequences of the murder in with the life of Charlie and what he endures as he tries to bring forth justice for the child and save her from the electric chair.
It will (or should) cause the reader to pause and wonder how far we have (or haven't) come since this incident. Highly recommended.
*I received a copy of this book from the Author and Goodreads in exchange for an honest review*
August 8, 2016
The description of the book is a little misleading as a reader approaching it would think the story is about Virginia Christian. And it is, but only partly and only through the first half of the book. The book is about Charles Mears and his attempts to live an honest life. The story of his befriending Virgie is based upon history, I believe the continuing story of his working for an all-black newspaper and the prejudice and violence he endured is primarily fiction. But, it is a good fiction--it illustrates the awful responsibility a white man took on in 1912 when he attempted to treat black men and women as equals. Sometimes Charlie seemed just a little too nice to be true but the people and the stories he encountered were true enough to be fascinating and heartbreaking.
June 15, 2016
It started out very well done. About 2/3 of the way in, it appeared to change story line and not as well developed.
October 10, 2016
3.5. I'd like to learn more about the people and stories this book was based on. Didn't love the writing though and felt kind of conflicted about the author himself.
January 2, 2016
A story that takes place in the town where I grew up in another time. The year of 1912 and although the outcome of the civil war is well behind the south, the tensions between races is still high. A white male journalist gets caught up in the racial tensions as he tries to find the truth behind a murder where a young African American girl is the prime suspect in many people's eyes.
I was initially drawn to this book because it takes place miles from where I was born and raised. I had heard stories about my particular city and its not so positive origins and how the city lines were decided, so when I heard about this book, I had to read it. It was a good read. I felt as though the book was more about the journalist then it was about the murder and the girl. I wanted him to do more investigative journalism and less "cultural" journalism, I wanted him to get to the bottom of the crime and I didn't feel like he did.
I did enjoy reading about this time period and so close to my home. I know there was truth in this book and that made it an enjoyable tread.
If you have a hard time with dialects this will be a slow read for you. I had to take my time to really read slowly to make sure I was getting all the bits and pieces. With any historical fiction, I always love them more when there is truth behind the fiction.
I was initially drawn to this book because it takes place miles from where I was born and raised. I had heard stories about my particular city and its not so positive origins and how the city lines were decided, so when I heard about this book, I had to read it. It was a good read. I felt as though the book was more about the journalist then it was about the murder and the girl. I wanted him to do more investigative journalism and less "cultural" journalism, I wanted him to get to the bottom of the crime and I didn't feel like he did.
I did enjoy reading about this time period and so close to my home. I know there was truth in this book and that made it an enjoyable tread.
If you have a hard time with dialects this will be a slow read for you. I had to take my time to really read slowly to make sure I was getting all the bits and pieces. With any historical fiction, I always love them more when there is truth behind the fiction.
February 10, 2017
A high school classmate who lives in North Carolina suggested this book to me. It's historical fiction, telling the true story of Virginia Christian, a black youth sent to the electric chair after being found guilty of slaying a 51-year-old white woman -- and of the young newspaperman who covered her trial, advocated for her pardon, risked his own life advocating for equal justice, and fell in love with the victim's daughter. Christian, 17 at the time of her death in 1912, is the only female juvenile ever executed by the state of Virginia. Author Ross Howell Jr. (who spoke to my classmate's book group!) does a splendid job of weaving historical fact with imagined dialogue, and painting a realistic picture of Southern life and race relations in the early 20th century.
March 4, 2016
On August 16th 1912, the day after her 17th birthday, Virginia Christian died in the electric chair in Richmond Virginia. She was the only female juvenile executed in the commonwealths history. She had been found guilty of murdering 51 year old Ida Belote. >>>> Charles Gilbert Mears was born August 21, 1893 in Southampton County, Virginia. He never knew his father. >>>>> In April of 1912, white 18 year old Charles would cover his first murder case against an African American girl, Virginia Christian. This was a trial that roiled racial tensions. >> A PAGE TURNER>> THANK YOU GOODREADS FIRSTREADS FOR THIS FREE BOOK!!!!
October 4, 2016
This book will draw you in.
Each character is written so well and you can tell the distinct personalitys.
The fact that this is a true story really drew me in and I even went online to see what other information I could find out about this case.
From jump I thought there was conflicting evidence on wether or not this young lady had killed the woman she worked for.
There are a few twists and turns that I am sure you will enjoy.
Well done.
Each character is written so well and you can tell the distinct personalitys.
The fact that this is a true story really drew me in and I even went online to see what other information I could find out about this case.
From jump I thought there was conflicting evidence on wether or not this young lady had killed the woman she worked for.
There are a few twists and turns that I am sure you will enjoy.
Well done.
January 1, 2017
Good book with which to end the year. A story about a young reporter in the Hampton Roads, VA area during the 1910s. He covers the murder of a white woman by her black maid and the railroad of a trial that lead to the only death by the state of an underaged black girl. It also includes many cultural references and attitudes about the mixing of races. Although some of the travel time between locations in the area are shorter than in real life, it was still a well written, good book.
April 28, 2016
Told in the first person through an 18-year old newspaper reporter, this book depicts the brutality of Jim Crow in the South. In telling the story of Virginia, a black teenage girl convicted of the murder of a young white mother the author also shows the day-to-day horrors and kindnesses that occurred during that time and in that place.
June 6, 2016
I was only able to read the first chapter when work intervened -- the book sat unopened until this past weekend. Forsaken turned out to be so much more than what I had expected. While based on a "real" case and the lives of "real" people in 19th and 20th century Tidewater, it proved to be an engaging novel that folded racial and societal issues from that time into a fast-paced narrative.
September 3, 2016
As someone who has just published a non-fiction book on a similar subject (The Family Tree: A Lynching in Georgia, A Legacy of Secrets, and My Search for the Truth) I marvel at how beautifully Ross has woven fact with fiction to make real, to make true, and to make hauntingly unforgettable a long-buried historical story.
August 13, 2016
Wonderful book!!
November 13, 2017
I read this book for one of my RL book groups. The story drew me in as I live in the Richmond, VA area near where the real life event occurred. The first 3/4 of the book was really well-written and once I adjusted to the dialect, I was reading along at a good clip and with high interest. The author did a great job of describing the setting and mixing fiction with fact.
Disappointingly, the wheels came off at chapter 26 (The Colony) when there was a big shift in the story. I really can't figure out what the author's intention was, but he abruptly inserted a completely different perspective, which impacted the ending in a negative manner. There were also some major character shifts that just didn't make sense. Due to this inconsistency I was torn between 3 and 4 stars, but I'm rounding it up to 4 stars because the writing was so strong in the earlier part. Overall, I recommend reading this book; it will make a good book group discussion on many levels.
Disappointingly, the wheels came off at chapter 26 (The Colony) when there was a big shift in the story. I really can't figure out what the author's intention was, but he abruptly inserted a completely different perspective, which impacted the ending in a negative manner. There were also some major character shifts that just didn't make sense. Due to this inconsistency I was torn between 3 and 4 stars, but I'm rounding it up to 4 stars because the writing was so strong in the earlier part. Overall, I recommend reading this book; it will make a good book group discussion on many levels.
May 5, 2017
An interesting look at racism in the early 1900s and the beginning of the eugenics movement.
February 15, 2018
Boring and depressing.
September 25, 2023
I read this book because It was my book clubs selection for April. This is not a book that I would have chosen from the library shelves and I didn't love it, but I'm glad I read it. Set in Virginia about 100 years ago, The book is based on a true story about a 15 year old African American girl who is convicted of killing her employer and is electrocuted in Virginia. At the time, Virginia law prohibited the execution of anyone under 17, but the prosecution argued that because her father said he thought she was 17 even though school documents showed that she was only 15, that she must indeed be 17. That whole process occurs over only a few months. Crime, conviction and execution in a matter of months. The story is told from the point of view of a young (19 years old) newspaper reporter who flows pretty seamlessly between the black and white communities he reports on. The really hard question this book raises is whether it is worth the life of one child who was guilty of murder and would have spent the rest of her life in jail if by doing so you avoid race riots and insure that the blacks in the community, who rely on the income from their work as domestics to support their families, will be able to continue to work in the homes of the whites. As I said, I didn't love this book, but I'm glad I read it. Lots of topics for discussion if you're looking for a book club selection.
March 28, 2016
I "liked it" in parts and "really liked it" in others so I decided to round up. =) I enjoyed the history that was within the story and, being one who lives near many of the landmarks mentioned, appreciated that I could picture exactly the location of many events. The story took off quite a bit from Virginia Christian's plight but was enjoyable enough. Quick read with good background into what was going on in the segregated south in 1912.
April 2, 2016
Wow! Really good story and well written.
I am so glad that that I was a lucky winner of
Goodreads Giveaway. I've already recommended Forsaken to several friends and I know I will read it again and again. If you're a Historical Fiction fan, you've got to read this book. I Loved it!
I am so glad that that I was a lucky winner of
Goodreads Giveaway. I've already recommended Forsaken to several friends and I know I will read it again and again. If you're a Historical Fiction fan, you've got to read this book. I Loved it!
April 15, 2016
This is not typically a book that I would pick up and read but, surprisingly "Forsaken" turned out to
be a page turner that I couldn't put down. I am so glad that I won this on GoodReads and
I will for sure be paying it forward and give it to a friend or a library to read. Thanks again.
be a page turner that I couldn't put down. I am so glad that I won this on GoodReads and
I will for sure be paying it forward and give it to a friend or a library to read. Thanks again.
April 3, 2016
Includes the most enlightened post-Civil war protagonist. Interesting, sad story based in fact.
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews