I really enjoyed this book. It was my first Tananarive Due work and I will definitely be on the lookout for more.

The setting really lent itself to the horror. I've not read a lot of southern gothic books but I can absolutely see the appeal now. The warm, dusty locations felt oppressive and added to the constant tension I felt throughout the whole book.
The main characters - Gloria and Robbie - were incredible. I really felt Gloria's emotions, stressed and anxious and full of rage at the injustice being dealt to her brother. Robbie was heart wrenching to read, such a young boy dealing with intense horrors, Even the supporting characters - Miz Lottie and the boys at the reformatory, were loveable and engaging. Warden Haddock was a terror all to himself.

The book did not shy away from the realities of Black people existing in the south during this time, and knowing that the true horror is a reality added to the power behind this work.

I have read two previous books by Tananarive Due and always love her writing and this most recent offering is no exception. This was an incredibly tough read and I was constantly filled with dread, predominantly because I loved Gloria and Robbie and hated the situation they found themselves in. The atmosphere was tense and as always, Due has an excellent ability to write place. You can feel the heat of the dorm room in the reformatory and smell the blood and fear of the funhouse, which just adds to the horror. A wonderful and horrific book that has cemented Due as one of my favourites.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Horror is the unusual genre where its about the reaction rather than the setting. Horror can be fantastical, science fiction-based or without any speculative elements at all. Your house may be haunted by a ghost, a dangerous AI or your next-door neighbour may be a psychopath - the reaction to both revelations can be the same. In Tananarive Due’s stunning novel The Reformatory we are taken to Florida in 1950 where one child’s rash action leads to a living nightmare of ghosts and even worse human being who do not care how far they go to control someone’s life. It is a powerful read that I think has been one of the scariest reads I’ve read in a long time.

Robert Stephens Jr is 12 years old and lives the small town of Gracetown. While walking with his sister Gloria he watches the son of a wealthy powerful landowner harasses her and to defend Gloria he kicks out once. However, Robert is Black and the teenager he kicks is belong to a powerful rich white family and so Robert finds himself in a few hours arrested, brought before a judge without a lawyer and then sentenced to six months in the local Reformatory. While Gloria desperately seeks a way to get her brother freed, Robert finds himself in daily nightmare where the sadistic Warden Haddock takes an intense interest in him and on top of that Robert realises this a place filled with haints – the ghosts of the reformatory and there are many many haints who feel that Robert too is needed by them for their own purposes.

Typically, in horror we think the ghost will be the scariest element of a horror story but actually while they are creepy and in many ways inhuman it’s the wider world that I found the incredibly disturbing. Due brings the reader into the perspective of two Black children in the age of Jim Crow and full-on societal racism. In Robert’s storyline we just get to see how even though he is a child, the state because of his skin colour treats him more as a hardened criminal and delights in horrific torture and punishment. Those in power use racial terms as a matter of course. What strikes you is that it is not simply personal it’s soon revealed this is how all the Reformatory’s kids are treated particularly those in the segregated Black section of the prison. Every scene we get to be nervous waiting for the latest cruel trick to be played or unfair punishment meted out. The guards, teachers and minor officials feel absolutely nothing is wrong with what they do. They think they need to do this as the children are feral. Its terrifying and the concept of a place called the Funhouse feels ominous and then we live through Robert’s experience going there and its one of the scariest scenes I’ve read as a young child is completely unprotected and placed in huge danger.

At the centre of this is the character appropriately named Warden Haddock. He is a cold hearted sadist sitting at the heart of the reformatory and we see that he is the most memorable villain from his very first scene. Malevolent in a quiet way and full of a temper and desire violence just awaiting an opportunity to be released which he can do so with the full authority and approval of the state. The more we find out about him we find his crimes are truly abhorrent and that he finds himself pulled into Robert’s orbit troubles us.

One of the themes of the book is that The Reformatory and Gracetown is a hotspot for these ghosts known as haints. Some see them but many people blame them for strange accidents and then at the reformatory we find it’s had a long history of horrific deaths many deemed accidents but often down to the staff and in particular Warden Haddock’s many crimes. What links the two is Robert being one of the few who can see them and if you can see where a haint is then it is possible to trap them. Haddock is very keen the haints are captured. An unusual plotline that starts to bring Robert and Haddock into an uneasy deal emerges but Haddock places Robert’s only friends as bargaining chips. Again, this never feels a safe plotline. The haints see Robert as a tool and they show a lack of care if a living person is hurt idle it helps achieve their aims. For Robert we see the danger he and his friends are in, but this is not a children’s story. Bad things can and do happen every day and surviving each day alone is a success, but we also see this young boy age into adulthood in just a few days and it’s a very powerful piece of writing making us feel how this place traumatised the kids in it.

Another plotline that I find equally important is Gloria’s role after Robert is imprisoned. It’s so easy to write Robert’s experience as simply a bad apple in power but Gloria’s story shows the societal power imbalance at play. This is a time where racism is not hidden, the towns are segregated, the police and judges are openly biased, and the Klan is openly acting when they feel a Black person has got out of rhyme which we experience and it’s the aftermath of seeing no one acting on it being the worse. We find out that Gloria and Robert’s father has been run out of town for discussing starting a union and Robert’s imprisonment is used as bait. What I think works so well is we find how powerless people are in this situation. Social workers, respectable women and sharp NAACP lawyers are met, and all find the scale of this society’s problems means there is a full brick wall none can break against and for many it’s the consequences against themselves that makes people decide not to push too hard. It’s left to Gloria and her elderly Godmother (a delightfully deceptively smart elderly woman named Miz Lottie) to engineer a way for Robert to get out. Again, like Robert’s scenes Due puts us into experiencing Gloria’s reaction to the world. She finds that being right isn’t enough, having allies isn’t enough and this world is not fair. There is a powerful nighttime scene where two police officers stop Gloria and Miz Lottie on a deserted road and it underlines exactly how dangerous this world is. As Due notes in the afterward there is a lot of inspiration from real historical events used in this story and it’s constantly troubling on those things that has not changed in many ways nearly 75 years later.

For me The Reformatory is one of the most terrifying stories I have read in many years. Due places us into a world where we experience what it is like where danger lurks everywhere and that our two young main characters are finding out that the supernatural side of things is not the scariest element, it’s the casual everyday cruelty that becomes apparent. Anyone for the simplest mistake could lose their liberty and ultimately their life. The inhumanity of it comes across powerfully and yet there is a strand of people not giving in, coming together for those they love and doing their best to take a chance. It isnot an easy read but its compelling and I could not let this book go until the final page was read. One of the best horror stories I’ve read in ages. I’m looking forward to now exploring many more of Due’s novels. Strongly recommended!

You have to believe me when I say I really wanted to like this one. Something just didn't marry up for me with the writing and the characters. I need to have a certain level of ambiguity in my horror books to enjoy them, but this was fairly self-explanatory from the off. I think this is why I kept putting it down and not picking it up again for weeks. The multiple perspectives and the length didn't help either, Robert's point of view was the only one we needed really; Gloria brought very little to the story. I will say there is a lot to be learned here about history, how the real monsters are humans, and how we need to learn from the past and never let anything like Reformatory schools happen again.

"The Reformatory" by Tananarive Due is a chilling horror novel set in Jim Crow-era Florida in the 1950s. The story follows twelve-year-old Robert Stephens Jr., who finds himself sent to The Gracetown School for Boys after a minor altercation with a white boy. However, what awaits him in the segregated reformatory is a nightmare, as the school is haunted by the ghosts of boys who have perished there. To survive the horrors of The Gracetown School, Robert must form an uneasy alliance with these vengeful spirits, all while navigating the sinister motivations of the school's governor. This atmospheric and haunting tale delves into themes of racial injustice, survival, and the supernatural, making it a gripping read for fans of horror fiction.

This was fantastic!

Intense and horrifying and complex. I really enjoyed the dual POVs of Gloria and Robbie and resonated with both of their characters so strongly as they navigated their ways through a racist legal system and Jim Crow-era Florida. At the core of this book is the insidious horror of racism, I think, which is even more chilling and confronting that ghosts or the supernatural could be. While the supernatural element is effectively written and leaps off the page, it is the almost quotidian (and that definitely hurts) horror of what Robbie and Gloria face that was even more striking. Tananarive Due has written an immensely accurate, melancholic, devastating book that will stick with me a while longer.

This is massive! Definitely not one for everyone. It’s definitely a haunting read set in a time period that the world wasn’t kind. Struggled to get through this because of the content… but worth it.

The Reformatory is a sprawling story encompassing both a teenage and adult point of view.
We follow 20-year-old Robert, a black youngster who after an innocuous incident is sent to the titular reformatory, only this isn't any old institution for bad kids. With tinges of the supernatural, this is part of a coming-of-age tale but in a time of extreme racial prejudice.
For those who didn't witness this sort of discrimination this can be initially hard to stomach until you realise everything you're reading really did happen (well except maybe the supernatural bits).
On the flipside we follow Robert's sister who is plotting to break him out of the reformatory and escape this life for good.
At nearly 600 pages this is a hefty read, but author Tananarive Due does well to keep the story moving forward and provides rich characters for us to follow, who are both good and bad.
A recommended read.

Book Review 📚
The Reformatory by Tananarive Due - 4.5/5 ⭐

If you want a POWERFUL read, then there is no doubt The Reformatory is the one to read. Parts of the book are so disturbing and heartbreaking, the fact it is based on true events really does make it a hard pill to swallow.

The gothic parts of this book really made it stand out. There's no "easy read" about this book. It's quite horrifying and mentally brutal, but it is absolutely phenomenal and beautifully written.

Due has an impeccable writing stype, I was captivated by the entirety and so overwhelmed at too many parts. I loved each and every bit.

Thank you to NetGalley and Titan Books for allowing me to read this ARC - this is an HONEST review from my own personal opinion.

This book was so good! It was intriguing and really drawed me in. I'll be reading more of this authors work.

“Everything seems fine until it ain’t. And then we come to see it wasn’t never ‘fine’.”

This is one of the most harrowing books I’ve ever read. One of the best, without a doubt, but also one of the most heartbreaking.

Before I even made it to the first chapter I knew this was going to be a confronting read. Robert Stephens, a relative of the author, died in the 1930’s at the Dozier School for Boys in Marianna, Florida.

Robert Stephens, the book’s main character, is sent to The Gracetown School for Boys. He’s only twelve years old when he’s sentenced to six months at the Reformatory for kicking a white boy.

This is Jim Crow Florida in the 1950’s and it’s just as brutal as I feared it would be.

“Nobody stays nice”

But despite everything its characters endure, their courage, strength and resilience shine brighter than I’d dared to hope.

“This isn’t everything. There’s more than this.”

I expected this to be Robert’s story. I wasn’t anticipating the chapters voiced by Gloria, Robbie’s sister. Getting to know Gloria was a double edged sword for me. I grew to love her but that came with its own fears.

It was painful enough witnessing what Robert and the other boys at the Reformatory were subjected to. Worrying about Gloria as well, almost certain that the only ways her story could end were with the loss of her brother or her sacrifice to save him, made this book even more stressful.

“I may not be brave most times, but I can be brave for Robbie.”

The brutality of the physical and emotional abuse the children in the Reformatory experienced was bad enough. That a town full of adults who could and should have protected them but didn’t, that’s a whole other level of injustice.

Books like this are so hard to read. If they’re not, something is very wrong. Books like this are necessary, though. I loved this book. I hated this book. You need to read this book. Just make sure you have tissues in arm’s reach while you’re reading it.

““Go on,” Blue said, voice husky. “Ask me what I know about this place. Ask me.””

Content warnings include mention of abuse of animals, domestic abuse, lynching, miscarriage, murder, physical abuse, racism, sexual assault, slavery, slurs and torture.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Titan Books for the opportunity to read this book.

A fascinating new take on Southern Gothic that managed to feel terrifying, funny, and ultimately hopeful all in one book. As we follow Robert through the prejudices of the Jim Crow Florida court system and into an institution intent on torturing him, if not outright killing him, we encounter the haints of murdered boys yearning for justice, and it is through these spirits that Due's brilliant social and historical exploration really shines. She manages to combine a deep, horrific sense of trauma and injustice suffered by Black people in the US South while also keeping a very firm feeling of groundedness and even, surprisingly, humour. It is testament to her writing skills that the moments of play and enjoyment did not feel out of place within the wider narrative, and she was also able to make the sadistic figures of the book, primarily Superintendent Haddock, intensely realistic, for all the harm they do, which only heightened the horror. My only quibble is that I found Robert's storyline so compelling that I was frustrated by the long stretches focusing on his sister Gloria - I understand the necessity of these sections, but I found that the length slowed the pacing.

The Reformatory is a horror novel that sinks its teeth into the Segregation times in Florida, exploring the systematic abuse lived by the Black population, especially from the perspective of children, so I strongly advise reading the content warnings before diving into the novel; Tananarive Due has written a masterpiece that portrays the cruelty and the horrors of those times, including an extra layer of supernatural elements.

The Reformatory is set in the 1950s Gracetown, following the story of Robert Stephen Jr (12-year-old) and his sister Gloria. After giving a kick to Lyle McCormack, son of a white landowner, who was trying to make advances toward his sister, Robbie is sentenced to six months at the Gracetown School for Boys, an infamous reformatory school; Gloria soon realizes this sentence is just a way of trying to destroy Robbie and the family, a sort of revenge against Robert Stephen Sr, who escaped to Chicago.
Once Robbie arrives at the reformatory, he soon realizes this place is plagued by the horrors he was told about; but not only those, as the school is also haunted by the haints (ghosts) of those that died here. But if there are real monsters in this place, those are in charge of it; not happy just with torturing those kids in the reformatory, some of them even want to trap those haints, negating the freedom of those that they consider racially inferior even in their death. And they need to use Robbie for that, as he can see those haints.

Reading this book is a highly emotional experience, as we can't forget that this is just a portrait inspired by that lived by Black people merely 70 years ago; Due pushes you to your limits due to the extreme rawness of some of the scenes. While the story of Robbie takes the big spotlight, in the background we have Gloria's suffering and struggles to save her brother.

The Reformatory is an excellent book, a novel that is not afraid of showing a horror that was the reality for Black people; the real dangers are those that were enforcing this unfair system. Due shows her talent as writer, creating an almost atemporal piece.

5 of 5 stars
https://lynns-books.com/2023/11/20/the-reformatory-by-tananarive-due/
My Five Word TL:DR Review : Wow, where to even begin

The Reformatory is without doubt one of the most powerful stories that I’ve read so far this year. An absolute tempest of shock, horror, unbridled emotions and abject terror. And then, there’s also the ghostly elements of the story to take into account. Yes, for me, the most horrifying aspect to this particular story was not the haints of tortured boys but the historical facts that this tale is grounded upon. What a story. I mean, literally this story made me want to cry, it made me feel outraged and the final chapters had my pulse racing imagining all the many disasters that felt inevitable.

The story is told from two POVs. Set in Gracetown (a fictional place) in Florida 1950 we meet Robert Stephens Jr and his older sister Gloria. The two are living on the outskirts of town, parentless and struggling. Their father has gone into hiding, classed as an agitator he has been accused of the rape of a white woman and has had to disappear to basically escape a lynching. Their mother died tragically and the two are now living day to day. Following an incident in which Robert tries to defend his sister from the son of a local influential landowner he is arrested and sentenced to six months in prison the Gracetown School for Boys – a reformatory with a terrible reputation. This is a segregated institution with both white and black boys and whilst it calls itself a ‘school’ the only real teachings here seem to come from bullying and beating and the place itself is little more than a front for modern day slavery with the boys being used as free labour on the surrounding farms.

So, the two characters. Well, I did find myself gravitating to Robert. His sister’s chapters at first felt a bit less gripping as she races around trying to get someone to help her (Gloria soon realises that Robert’s incarceration is little more than a ruse to lure their father out of hiding and is desperate to get him out) but, that being said her chapters become a horrible race against time and the conclusion had me reading and holding my breath at the sametime – which I don’t recommend to be perfectly honest. Robert is just so innocent really. I’m not saying he hasn’t suffered or been the victim of racial abuse but his incarceration into Gracetown is terrifying for him, and for the reader also as a result. At first, he finds himself a couple of friends,and that,together with the promise of regular(ish) meals lulls Robert into thinking he may be able to cope but within a very short time he has come to the attention of Warden Haddock. Dear god, this character should go down in the literary hall of fame for being the nastiest excuse for a human ever. No moustache twirling villain stereotype here. Haddock is absolutely an afront, he’s written so believably that he radiates evil and frankly I felt chills every time he appeared on the page.

Of course, on top of the bullying. the fear and the torture the school is haunted. And given the number of boys who have died over the years it’s little surprise that their souls have become trapped. This feeds so well into the story creating a perfect blend of horror with the actual horrible reality of the situation itself. Robert can see these ‘haints’ as they’re called. Without realising he soon becomes embroiled in a terrible battle between the ghosts, who want something from Robert and the Warden – who also wants something from him. The two are both pulling in opposite directions and Robert’s situation grows worse by the day .

This is so well written. It really did hold me gripped. It’s a disturbing read and very difficult to read but at the same time you have to keep going. You have to find out what was going on, what terrible secrets the Reformatory holds. And the tension and atmosphere is palpable. I was like some of the secondary characters depicted here, I wanted to know what was going on but I was scared to find out.

I don’t know what I can say. For a 600 or so pages book this one held my attention and kept the pages turning with indecent haste. Like I said, it’s not an easy story to read and this is compounded by the fact that the author based this on a real reform school although obviously Gracetown and its reform school are fictional- I would give a shout out to the Author’s note – make sure to give it a read when you finish.

Difficult to read but at the same time, I feel, a must read. A horror story contained within a story of horror based on historic happenings. Plus a fantastic twist. Did I forget to mention the twist? It’s very good but my lips are sealed.

I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the author, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.

This is not one of those entertaining horror story, this is a mix between The Nickel Boys and a ghost story.
Because reality can be worse that any ghost story and this story could be the one of the many children who died in those schools
Moving, heartbreaking and thought provoking.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

This was an incredibly tough read. The racism and other themes in this book are deeply upsetting, made more upsetting by the fact that the book is based on real life events. Despite this, this book is phenomenal. It tells the powerful story of Robert, a 12-year-old boy who is sent to a reformatory after kicking a white teenager in an attempt to defend his sister.

I loved how the supernatural elements of this booked were weaved intricately through the horrifying reality of the situation that Robert is in, and ultimately the real horror lies in the way African-American people are treated, rather than with the ghosts or ‘haints’ as they are called in the book.

This was a fantastic and heartbreaking book that I’m not sure I’ll read again due to content, but that is absolutely a 5 star read.

(I received this book from the editor and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review)
This is my first book by Tananarive Due and I know it will not be the last. I was hooked from the beginning, I was worried about them, I was angry with them, hurt with them.
From the point of view of Robie (Robert, as his father, another important character in the background of the story) and Gloria Stevenson, we see the evil that surrounds them, not only in the reformatory of the title itself, but in town.
And there are ghosts in the reformatory, haints as they call them, but they are not this evil, just more victims of society.
The author’s prose is amazingly haunting and she knows it and plays with the reader. There is a huge amount of social criticism and race, and they are intertwined with moments of such tension I felt I was reading too fast, my heart racing.
I would truly recommend this book as one of the best in horror this year. It is just so complete that leaves you broken and looking for the pieces.

The Reformatory by Tananarive Due
Publication date: 31 October 2023
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4.5 stars
Thank you to NetGalley and Titan Books for providing me with an e-copy of this book in exchange for an honest review
~~~~~
Robert Stephen Jones Jr. is sent to Gracetown School for Boys for kicking a white boy’s leg. But the Gracetown School for Boys isn’t just any reform school. As Robert finds, it’s a segregated school that is haunted from the boys who have died there.
~~~~~
Tananarive Due is an author I've been wanting to read for a while so I was so excited to be approved for this ARC. And I'm so glad I got to read it as I thought it was excellent. Now, make no mistake: it is not an easy read, simply by the nature of the story, but the writing is phenomenal, the characters are vivid and I was gripped by the story. I was also left very tearful on more than one occasion.
I saw the book described as a "horror story" and although there is a supernatural element to it (it deals with ghosts after all,) it is what those boys suffer in that "school," at the hands of sadistic and violent adults that is the true, real-life horror of the story. The characters outside of Reformatory are also going through their own hardship - this takes place in Jim Crow era Florida, and Robert Jr's family and friends have to contend with racism, prejudices, misogyny and violence amongst others. I loved the character of Gloria, Robert's sister; in the face of such adversity, she is loving, clever and brave and she fights tooth and nail to bring justice to her little brother - I was rooting for her so much.
This was a great book, if a tad long, and I definitely want to read more from this author.
~~~~~

The Reformatory is a horror story that is unflinching in its depiction of evil, but which offers hope that some of the suffering experienced is not in vain and that, sometimes, people will do the right thing.
Our main characters are Robbie and Gloria Stephens. Their father has had to flee their hometown having been accused of rape by a white woman. Nobody believes his guilt, but this is a way of punishing him for stirring up trouble and agitating for reform. When we first encounter Robbie he is in trouble for trying to defend his sister from the unwanted advances of the son of the local landowner. He is sentenced to six months in The Reformatory, the prison for local young offenders.
Following Robbie we sense his unease as he enters a world where ghosts walk unencumbered. Robbie cannot immediately articulate his fears, but he senses the danger posed to him in this prison…and we know it has something to do with Haddock, the warden.
From start to finish we knew of the systematic abuse, and had warnings of the extent to which this was known about. The conduct of some of those in charge was deplorable, and it was hard not to feel that we were looking in the face of evil at a time when the systems in place rewarded such appalling behaviour and made criminals of those who had done nothing.
Hard to read due to the subject,but a compelling experience and one which offered some (perhaps unrealistic) respite in its ending. Thanks to NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this prior to publication.

What a beautiful, terrible and grief riddled historical horror. I knew this would fill me with so many tears, reading with a pain in my heart, knowing that although fictionalised, this was based on an actual time in history, an actual place that existed- well that made this horror the most important book to be read.
The writing is gorgeous, and so easy to grip your imagination and bury yourself in that I found myself not wanting to put it down because Robert Stephens story was so important to me that I wanted to read it all at once.
Robert Stephens has already lost his mother to cancer and his father has been run out of town when he defends his sister by kicking the older, bigger white kid that is pawing at his big sister. After getting a beating from the boy's father Robert and his sister Gloria was thinking the matter was dealt with, until he was arrested and sentance to 6 months at the Reformatory. Robert is uncanny and sees the terrible fates of the boys from the past everywhere and it's not long before he finds out first hand how cruel and unjust life for boys like him are.
If you liked the film The Devil's Backbone, you'll love this book. And if you love grief horror, and ghost stories this is going to be your next read. Just make sure you have something to catch your tears.