This book has been receiving a lot of hype and positive reviews and whenever that is the case for a book, I try to take it in stride – however, this novel is worthy of all the hype and then some! I was so thoroughly captivated by Robbie’s dilemma and trying to find out if his sister Gloria could truly help him get out of the Reformatory that I read it in two days (and this isn’t a short novel!). Despite learning about Jim Crow in my history classes, this book made the reality of that time period very real and honestly, this should be read in literature classes at school so that students get a better idea of what Jim Crow South truly entailed and meant.

Now, the horror aspect of this book was fascinating (who doesn’t like a good ghost story?). I found it very fascinating and although I guessed the plot twist before it actually happened it didn’t lessen my enjoyment of this book. This book is brutal, and will get you in the feels in a way not many books will be able to. It’s a haunting story of survival and coming of age, weaved into a historical setting that aims to shed some light on what actually occurred in these schools for young boys and how many didn’t live to ever make it back out.

This was my first read from Tananarive Due and I can certainly assure you that it won’t be my last – I actually look forward to checking out all of her previously published books.

If you’re going to read only one book this year, make sure it’s this one, it’s an incredible, haunting read that you won’t forget very easily after reading it. The hype is real and I truly hope this book wins all the awards it’s been nominated for.

*Thank you so much to NetGalley and Saga Press for the digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

The best book I've read in years. A little bit horror, a little bit mystery, this book will tear your heart out. Loosely based on the true story of the Dozier School for Boys, and would interest fans of Colston Whitehead. It deserves all the praise and awards it has received. One that stays with you for a long time!

This book was raw, heartbreaking, horrific, and I'm so glad I read it. The plot is well constructed, the characters are so real, and the paranormal element creepy. I'm so glad I read this book and I will think about this book so much in the future.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I had a hard time with this book, maybe it is because I listened to the audiobook? I found the book to be slow. I was interested in Robbie's pov, but when it was Gloria's pov I just checked out. I found it to be repetitive.

Tananarive Due is my favorite author of all time, so I look forward to all of her new releases! But, sadly I can’t finish this one. Partly because of the pacing. The story is moving incredibly slow. I got 39% in & I feel like everything that has happened could’ve happened within the first 20% of the novel. But, I wouldn’t mind the slow pacing much. My main problem is that the book is too triggering for me. As a Black woman, it can be hard for me at times to read Black trauma, and it’s especially hard to read trauma happening to Black children. I knew going into this novel that there would be racism, but I thought it’d be balanced out by the ghost aspect of the story. But, there were barely any ghosts, just racism and trauma.

I still feel that this is a great book and that this story needs to be told, especially knowing that it is based in truth. I’m just not in the headspace to handle the content at this time. I may come back to it when I’m more mentally prepared.

Thank you to Saga Press and NetGalley for this arc. All opinions are my own.

TW: racism, recurrent use of racial slurs, death of a parent, cancer, sexual harassment, child abuse

This is an excellent example of historical horror. The characters are multi-faceted and the author creates nuanced identities.

Little late on this, but...this is a brilliant book. Absolutely splendid annd spellbinding. Tananarive Due is extraordinary in how she crafts horror and plot.

Based on the real life Dozier School for Boys, this novel follows two siblings - Gloria and Robert. Things take a tragic turn for the two when Robert is sentenced to Gracetown School for Boys aka the reformatory for defending his sister. The school is also happened to be haunted by ghosts (haints) that Robbie can see. Gloria meanwhile is trying to get all the help she can to get her brother free.

Overall, I liked this one. I do think it was too long though - I think parts could have been condensed or eliminated to make a more captivating narrative overall, especially Gloria’s sections. I also wish the author had committed more to the supernatural or eliminated that. It felt like it was trying to be borderline horror (besides the horrors done to the boys) but never got quite there.

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was an interesting concept. It was loosely based on a school in Florida. It focused on the atrocities that happened to the incarcerated boys. It also had the point of view of the sister of Robert who was trying to free him from the institution. The story, while long, moved pretty quickly. It was a little too much sci fi for my taste, but I’m glad I read the book.

In The Reformatory by Tananarive Due, the main setting is the Gracetown School for Boys. For a place with so many tragic events tied to it, the name is very plain and unassuming. You would think it’s just a regular, terrible reform school. Oh no, reader. It is so much more nightmarish than a person can imagine.

Robbie Stephens, Jr. kicks a white, wealthy teenager, Lyle McCormack. Lyle was being too forward with Robbie’s sister, Gloria. So Robbie kicked him to make him leave her alone. Unfortunately, defending his sister against Lyle got him sent to The Reformatory.

Robbie and Gloria’s father had left them in Florida. Their mother had passed away not too long before the father’s departure. Life was not going well for the siblings but it was about to get much worse.

Gloria tried so hard to get him out of the place but was met with difficulty at every turn. Robbie was trying to adjust to this awful place. He saw ghosts on a regular basis – some friendly and others not.

The worst human in the book is definitely Warden Fenton J. Haddock. He had the power in this situation so people did what he wanted. No one had the courage to stand up to him. Haddock is a slippery slimeball, which is more kindness than he deserves.

Due is one of the best writers during the last two decades period. Her focus has been Black speculative fiction. I cannot recommend her books enough. When you start one, you won’t be able to put it down.

I created Haddock as an amalgam of a system of violence in children’s incarceration—but the truth is that no one person can explain away the reported events at the Dozier School, or the Alabama Industrial School for Negro Children, or the Indigenous “schools” in Canada where so many children were buried. No one person can be blamed for our nation’s current nightmare of mass incarceration. The Reformatory has a central villain, but the actual villain is a system of dehumanization.”
― Tananarive Due, The Reformatory

If you are ready for a great horror novel that is also historical fiction, then you are ready for The Reformatory. Whoever sees themself identifying with the villain, might not be prepared for the ending.

*This review will go live on my website on Wednesday March 13, 2024 at 10:30 AM CST.*

The Reformatory occupies a space in my mind that was previously only occupied by Stephen Graham Jones’ The Only Good Indians – i.e. a space for books that were so gut-wrenching and so intense that it physically ached.

First off, it is worth noting that The Reformatory is based upon true events. Specifically the Dozier School for Boys in Mariana, FL. If you’re unfamiliar with the name, I envy you. Don’t click that hyperlink unless you’re up for learning some truly horrific stuff. The level of evil that school is wrapped up in is truly terrifying. It is important that we not ignore the horrors of reality in order to hopefully arm ourselves to recognize the signs in future, but for real – if you’re not in a headspace for it, I totally understand. Just know that their horrific legacy is still being dealt with to this day. The school remained open until 2011 – despite over 100 years of abuse and wrongful death allegations. To date, we know of nearly 100 deaths that took place at the school. They had their own burial gound…

Sorry for the tangent, but for obvious reasons, it is applicable. The Reformatory gives us a glimpse at how horrific that school/schools like it were. This story is set in 1950 in the fictional town of Gracetown, Florida, and specifically within the Gracetown School for Boys. Robbie’s journey is heartwrenching. He goes from sweet little boy who definitely did not deserve to get into any kind of real trouble for his supposed “crime,” to a haunted child who was forced to reckon with things that even most grown folks couldn’t fathom.

And lest I forget, Robbie’s sister Gloria serves as our second POV in The Reformatory. I know some people struggle to engage with dual narrative stories (sometimes I’m one of you), but I promise – this one is exceptionally well done. They don’t compete at all. I can almost guarantee that you will be equally invested in both sides of the narrative.

Gloria’s tale revolves around her attempts to free Robbie from the Gracetown School for Boys. She begins by trying to work within the confines of the system (because they truly are both good kids). When that fails, her measures begin to become more desperate and less concerned with working within a system that definitely does not have the best interest of her or any other Black person at heart. She is a good sister to Robbie, a good person in general, and she is wonderfully tenacious.

And Robbie needs her help. The terrors of Gracetown School for Boys are seemingly never-ending. Not only does Robbie have to contend with the horrific abuses visited upon his person by those employed by the school, but he also has to deal with terrible acts committed by the other boys in an attempt to lighten their own “punishments” (I bunny-eared because these are not punishments – they are atrocities. They are straight up dehumanizing brutalities). And to top that all off, the place is (understandably) haunted by the many, many boys who were murdered over the years.

Essentially, what you get with The Reformatory is much, much more than the incredible emotional mantle you are required to to carry while reading it. Although it is without a doubt a challenging read, it is absolutely worth it. Because beyond the ghastly circumstances of the story, it is much more than the story of a boy forced to endure a literal house of horrors. It is a story about resilience, love, friendship, strength of character, and retribution. In it’s own way, The Reformatory is absolutely beautiful. Heartbreaking, yes – but also extremely powerful. Tananarive Due is an incredibly talented writer.

Is The Reformatory a masterpiece? I don’t know. I’m just some dork who loves books. But I wouldn’t be surprised to find that in the future, it has become required reading somewhere. Maybe in literature or writing courses? Horror studies? Black History courses? American History courses? I dunno. Like I said, I’m no expert. But it still wouldn’t surprise me to see it pop up in some academic settings.

I think it would be valuable in a creative writing course as well – the plotting and pacing are perfection, and as I’ve mentioned, the story is incredibly powerful. We could all learn several important lessons from The Reformatory both in terms of content and of execution.

A very good but very heavy story. I like that it mixed historical pieces with paranormal horror. It was a nice mix, to break up the real horror (the people running the school) against haints and things that go bump in the night. It was a nice mix and gave a distraction, at times, to the horrors that are based on historical fact. But it's a tough read, one that broke my heart again and again. I loved it but I also found it rough to get through.

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this review copy in exchange for an honest opinion. Review has been posted on Amazon.

I was extremely fortunate to receive this dynamic piece of modern storytelling as an ARC and I cannot proclaim enough about it. I have already bought four copies for my library and recommended it as reading in my work circles.

Honestly, this is a masterpiece. The characters, the pacing, all of it gives Ms. Due a rightful position alongside our most beloved science fiction/fantasy/horror writers who are women of color. This is absolutely distinctive.

I requested The Reformatory because I had seen lots of buzz about the book in Instagram, and it sounded like one that I would be interested in.

Robbie is a 12-year-old black boy living in Gracetown, FL in the 1950s. In defense of his sister, he unthinkingly kicks a white boy, which then gets him sent to The Reformatory for 6 months. Rumors swirl around The Reformatory and Warden Haddock, and tragedy follows the boys who get sent there. There are unexplained deaths and disappearances, yet no one has called the warden to account for his actions. Robbie knows the stories are true because he can see the haints (ghosts) who still hover in the building and on the grounds. As Robbie tries to live through the nightmare of his imprisonment, his sister Gloria is facing racial barriers in trying to get Robbie's story heard.

What I liked: I enjoyed both the supernatural terror and the terror of racism of the time. The Reformatory is a scary place, which was sometimes hard to read about, but it kept me interested in the story as well. I was also often just as terrified to read about the blatant racism of the time and the hurdles Gloria had to jump through to even get someone to listen to her side of the story on Robbie's behalf.

What didn't work for me: The book is long. Over 500 pages, it had parts that lulled and didn't move the story along very fast. That was really the only downside for me in the reading experience.

I definitely recommend this book. It was creepy and scary and intriguing. Just grab a snack and make sure you're ready to settle in because it's a long one!

I have been an avid fan of Tananarive Due and her unique take on horror that centers black experiences for years. I was reluctant to read because I was afraid of how gut wrenching it was going to be. This book is difficult to read at times but was beautifully done. I experienced all the emotions and willing experienced it again when I purchased the audiobook. Which made me love the characters more and appreciate Due's dedication to her craft. All the stars and flowers.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this amazing ARC.

This is one of the best books I have ever read. I will recommend this title to people that read horror and that don’t read horror. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher. I bought my own copy for my personal library.

Wow this book messed me up! So I’m a huge lover of Tananarive Due’s work, I think that she is the author to “go there” in a haunted house or haunting type books, as seen in the Good House, so I’ve been very excited about this new release. It didn’t disappoint! While this was such a different tone and feel from, say the Good House, it was still as haunting, if not more so.

As this takes place in, primarily, a reformatory school for boys and our MC can see haints, we are in constant communication with ghosts and seeing ghosts left and right. To me this was more haunting because of this being set in the Jim Crow South and us experiencing this reformatory school and all that our MC has to experience as a Black man. Further, when we find out the torturous experience other boys have had at this school at the hands of the dead/warden, my heart was racing!

Although this is an extremely tough and bleak read at times, I really really appreciates what Tananarive Due did with this story and I will continue to read everything she publishes!

Gripping, terrifying, touching, important. The story drew me in and had me wanting to read it all in one sitting, but breaks were necessary. The world Tananarive Due creates in The Reformatory is harsh and unflinching, but many of the characters are strong, driven, and willing to do what they have to for justice. This book will stay with me.

This was so spooky and so good. It's a story of family and community standing up for and trying to protect one another in the Jim Crow south and also of a "school" so horrible that I want to say it can't be real, but it was in-fact based on a real place.

This book has ghosts, and while they aren't the good guys necessarily, it's the human monsters that make this book terrifying.

I can see why this was ranked as one of the best books of 2023. Definitely worth the read.