Description
Monette is a young girl who is still mourning the passing of her father. The sadness that overwhelms her is soon coupled with shock as she is whisked away with a group of slaves that her desperate half-brother sold. Monette’s worry is eased by a young boy named Cyrus, who accompanies Monette on a journey where neither knows their ultimate destination. The year is 1843, and the world Monette and Cyrus inhabit views them as inferior labor to be bought and sold at the whim of a plantation owner.
William Jensey inherited the sprawling plantation dubbed Fox Creek from his father, and William accepted his birthright and made it his own by expanding the labor force and land. William runs his homestead with an uncompromising hand, meting out punishment for even minor infractions. He is married and devoted to his Wife, Sarah, and has two children named Breck and Kate. The paths of Cyrus and Monette intersect with the Jenseys as William Jensey seeks to add additional manpower. Kate is smitten with the adorable Monette and believes she will be her playmate for the foreseeable future. She convinces William to purchase the young girl. Meanwhile, Breck had a brief but memorable encounter with Cyrus, which made an impression on him. Breck defies convention and makes a bid for Cyrus in his father’s name.
Breck is unaware of the harsh nature of his father’s profession until he witnesses his father shoot a runaway slave. His emotional reaction disgusts his father, who believes that Breck needs to toughen up if he plans to take over the plantation in the future. Despite Monette and Kate being joined at the hip, the cruel reality of Monette’s status at Fox Creek is reinforced by Sarah when she tells her that Monette is part of the help, not family. However, Breck defies the rules by teaching Monette to read, and Kate lets her sleep next to her.
As the years pass, trouble looms on the horizon as Fox Creek begins to see various escape attempts. The antebellum South has begun to become unsettled, and the Jenseys and others on the farm are about to bear witness to it.
Fox Creek is a sweeping historical fiction novel that explores nearly a decade in the lives of a slaveholding family and their involuntary servants. The cruel nature of slavery is well illustrated primarily through the actions of William Jensey in his role as a planter. He believes that his actions are justifiable due to a perceived supremacy over his enslaved employees. His desire to educate his son in the ways of the plantation reflects the generational misteachings that allowed the historical wrong to survive. Author M.E. Torrey has created characters that are multifaceted and absorbing while penning a heartrending story about life, love, family, and finding freedom in any conceivable way. This is an unforgettable book that will linger with the reader well after its conclusion.
