This was a really great story! I enjoyed the characters and the different relationships throughout. I was totally thrown off by the ghost side of the story and it definitely added in to the plot, for the most part. Sometimes it was a bit jarring to read the modern dialogue in a story set in the 1800s. The cover is also SO beautiful

Junie by Erin Crosby Eckstine
Release date February 4, 2025

Alabama 1860’s, Junie is a 16 year old enslaved girl holding much guilt over the recent death of her sister Minnie. Minnie was the perfect daughter and Junie is carefree. Junie visits the slave cemetery and removes something from the jar at Minnie’s grave. This stirs Minnie’s spirit.

Minnie’s spirit gives Junie three challenges to earn possible freedom from slavery. Junie has issues achieving each challenge because of the white family that own her. The dreams of freedom seem unreachable at times but Junie persists.

The humor, heartache and hope in this book is immeasurable. The plot twists are numerous and
unfathomable. In the end, Junie discover all the heart wrenching truths.

I loved this historical fiction (adult) story. I loved and hated Junie and Violet’s relationship throughout their lives. It’s difficult to imagine Junie’s journey as a young child growing up best friend’s with her master’s daughter “Vi”. The love she felt for Vi as a child, later turns to anger and hatred about her whole situation because of her slavery.

❤️I will cherish the magic in this novel. This was an honor to ARC read! Thank you for this masterpiece Erin Crosby Eckstine, #Junie, #NetGalley.

Forbidden love
Violence
SA

Finished Reading

Pre-Read notes

I requested this book because I love stories about people and their communities, and I love coming of age stories. Seems like a win-win here. This wonderful story is beautifully atmospheric and filled with authentic character work.

Final Review

She has [her favorite poem] memorized, but keeping it in her pocket makes her feel like the limitlessness of the poet’s world is within reach. p13

Review summary and recommendations

If Beloved and Roots had a book baby, it would be Junie. Just a gorgeous read! Honestly, anything I write about this book just won't do it justice.

Recommended to fans of southern drama lit fic, like Gone with the Wind.

Reading Notes

Three (or more) things I loved:

1. She holds her hands up, measuring the sun’s distance from the field line. It sits on the horizon like a freshly cracked yolk, and on days as hot as this one, the McQueens won’t wake for breakfast until the sun’s at least a half-hand above the horizon. p10 The descriptive writing here is gorgeous.

2. "Miss Big-Words" is my favorite insult of all time!

3. A kernel for the audience: “You ain’t the only one with hurt, Junie. This world is full of it, and going through it thinking you’re the only one carrying something is an easy way to lose the bit of love you might have.” p63

4. I love the turn at 25%! At this point, the story introduces supernatural elements, landing this one squarely in magical realism territory. It's quite good plot work.

5. This book is as beautiful and romantic a testament to pre-Civil War Southern life as was Gone with the Wind. Only better, because not racist.

Three (or less) things I didn't love:

This section isn't only for criticisms. It's merely for items that I felt something for other than "love" or some interpretation thereof.

1. “You gotta be sure you look your finest and keep a big smile on that pretty face all day, you hear? No nose in the books, either . Nobody likes a bookworm.” p41 Here, a plantation owner and father of a young girl, Violet, discusses his expectations for her behavior during an upcoming visit with a potential suitor. It's a deeply unsettling scene considering Violet's age and lack of maturity. And what does her mother have to say about it? Only this:“I’d prefer her to appear a nun than a harlot. Her figure is already more indecent than I’d like.” p41 This book is honest about the many forms of discrimination one encounters in the rural South of the US. The beginning of the story takes place just before the onset of the Civil War.

Rating: 👩🏼‍🤝‍👩🏾👩🏼‍🤝‍👩🏾👩🏼‍🤝‍👩🏾👩🏼‍🤝‍👩🏾👩🏼‍🤝‍👩🏾 /5 friendships torn asunder
Recommend? definitely!
Finished: Jan 25 '25
Format: accessible digital arc, NetGalley
Read this book if you like:
👩🏼‍🤝‍👩🏾 stories of friendship
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 family stories / family drama
🕰 historical fiction
📜 literary fiction
🗝 stories about slavery
👻 ghost stories

Thank you to the author Erin Crosby Eckstine, publishers Ballantine Books, and NetGalley for an advance digital copy of JUNIE. All views are mine.
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Junie is an interesting story about a sad time in U.S. history; the Civil War is looming in this summer of 1860. The author does a good job of helping the reader to see the situation through the eyes of sixteen-year-old Junie, a slave since birth who now tends to the master's seventeen-year-old daughter. Unfortunately for many of the plantation occupants, both Black and white, this plantation is in a downward spiral, thanks in part to its mostly absent but drunk-when-present Master. The race to try and save the plantation is the impetus for the fast pace in the book.
The characters are sure to elicit emotional responses in readers: the Master's missus is obnoxious (in my opinion), and Violet is being pushed into an arranged marriage that is not welcomed by all of the possible groom's family. There are snarky comments and high emotions. I am a fan of historical fiction, and I would definitely welcome reading another book by this author, Erin Crosby Eckstine. What made this book a 4 rather than a 5 for me was the supernatural element with a deceased young slave. I'm trying to avoid spoilers, so I will leave it at that.
The cover is eye-catching! Thank you to the author, NetGalley, and Ballantine !!

Junie by Erin Crosby Eckstine 5/5 💫
*out in the US 4 February 2025*

What an absolutely beautiful, all-consuming debut. I finished this a few days ago and I’m still thinking about it. Eckstine does a brilliant job balancing the reality enslaved people experienced, while creating characters that have hopes, experience love, and make mistakes. I genuinely didn’t know what was going to happen by the end, and I really enjoyed that.
I love the speculative fiction and paranormal aspects of this story!

The authors note is a MUST read, and made me love Junie even more.
Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley for the advance copy.

Content warnings!!!
Graphic: Slavery, Violence, Physical abuse
Moderate: Bullying, Domestic abuse, Racial slurs, murder
Minor: Sexual content, Suicide, Pregnancy

Beautifully written, and stunningly poignant, Junie pulled me in immediately and held tight.

Junie is a compelling and admirable character and her story is one that since I finished reading, I’ve continued to think about. I think I’ll be thinking of this one for a long while.

Recommended!



Thank you to Ballantine Books and NetGalley for the DRC

A ghost story. Magical realism on a plantation in Alabama. A meshing of historical fiction and fantasy that will really work for some but did not work for me.

This captivating story begins in 1860 in Alabama. Junie and her relatives are enslaved by William McQueen, an alcoholic whose cotton plantation is struggling. Mrs. McQueen is consumed with keeping up appearances. Mr. McQueen meets Beau Taylor, a wealthy merchant, and invites him and his sister, to stay with the family, hoping he will marry Violet, his 17-year-old daughter, and solve their financial problems. Sixteen-year-old Junie, Violet's maid, fears that she will have to leave her family if the marriage occurs. Junie is also grieving the death of her older sister Minnie, who died after she rescued Junie from the river. While visiting Minnie's grave, Junie sees a vision of her sister, who gives her a series of tasks to release her spirit. Family secrets are revealed to Junie, igniting a new desire to escape and gain her freedom.

Inspired by her family history, Erin Crosby Eckstine has created a stirring debut with Junie. It offers a unique portrayal of an enslaved family in the years leading up to the Civil War, with people who have known no other existence. Typically, I am not a fan of books with a fantastical element, but in this case, it worked well and did not overshadow the story's main focus. I was captivated and couldn't put it down. 

It's a powerful book with a gorgeous cover.

4.5 stars.

This one was a slow read for me, but an enjoyable and important story. The author combines elements of historical fiction, suspense, romance, drama, and fantasy into this story. Difficult to read at times based on the subject matter, but an important look into history.

This is such a beautiful book. I love how the author captures all the characters and tells the story. It's not often you get to read powerful historical fiction with a wonderful element of magical realism. Thank you, NetGalley.

This book delves far deeper than the tale of a sixteen-year-old enslaved girl communicating with her sister's ghost. That unique bond enables her to confront and navigate the various challenges of her harsh reality. The author skillfully explores universal emotions as her captivating characters journey through the narrative.

Junie
4.25 ⭐️

This was such a well written story of Junie, a slave right at the start of the Civil War. She grows up next to Violet, she she’s a ladies maid for. The two have an unusual and obviously imbalanced friendship. While growing up, Junie finds love and learns how to hold onto what she cares most about.

This book had such a well written character in Junie. The authors note talked about how she wanted to write a story on the humane and empathetic life of a slave and I think she did it so well.

Thanks to @netgalley for this ARC!

Enslaved sixteen-year-old Junie dreams of freedom while mourning her sister, Minnie, whose spirit is now tethered to her. The arrival of wealthy guests disrupts Junie’s life, leading her to a desperate act. With the help of Caleb, the guests’ coachman, Junie uncovers Bellereine Plantation’s dark secrets while fighting for her and Minnie’s liberation. But freedom may come at a cost.

This novel is beautifully written. The story is vivid and engaging, the style literary yet readable. Recommended for fans of Toni Morrison.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

I can express how much I LOVED this book! You will fall in love with Junie. I will never be able to get her out of my mind. This story is beautifully told in all of its hope and heartbreak. This book has become one of my favorite books I have ever read. Do yourself a favor and read this novel. It will change you.

A gorgeously moving historical fiction novel, with an exceptional and memorable protagonist. As Crosby Eckstine writes in her author’s note, there are many stories about slavery that tokenize and trivialize the experience, or that exclusively show horrific trauma heaped upon the characters. She explains that her goal with this book was to focus on the individual humanity of an enslaved girl, with a full spectrum of emotions and flaws and ambitions despite her appalling circumstances.

The story centers on Junie, a 16-year-old born into slavery on a pre-Civil War Alabama plantation; though her family all serve the McQueens, Junie maintains a slightly elevated place in the house due to a close friendship with the daughter Violet McQueen. Junie shares Violet’s love of books, especially the Romantic poets, and sees beauty everywhere, though she finds it difficult to continue doing so since her sister’s recent death. As the months pass, and new guests threaten to change everything in Junie’s life, she begins to realize that she cannot continue living on the margins.

This is a deeply emotional and introspective book, and I found it incredibly affecting. The author’s personal connection to Junie’s story, detailed in her wonderful author’s note, really came through; though the writing felt effortless, there was care and consideration in each phrase, creating intricately layered characterization and an engrossing plot. I felt the supernatural elements were very effective as well, lending Junie strength from those who had come before her. A phenomenal read, with a warmth that gives the reader hope for a happy ending against the odds.

Thanks to Ballantine Books and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Junie by Erin Crosby Eckstein, this book is about teenage Junie, who is a slave and lives on the Queenie plantation, and She is a servant for their only daughter Violet, who also taught her how to read and write. Junie also lives in the shadow of her perfect deceased sister Minnie, who she can never live up to. soon they get a visitor to Queenie plantation and everyone knows he is coming to marry Miss Violet but little does Junie know he is bringing his man servant/slave Caleb and for the first time in June‘s life she wants her freedom. with the appearance of the visitor and his sister, many things change at the plantation secrets come out things that could never be undone or done in many also appears to Junie as a ghost. Mini ghost is something I could’ve totally lived without when I first started reading this book. I really thought not only was this book not historically accurate and didn’t really depict slavery in all its horror but a more Disneyland type slavery and I am not gonna lie. I was going to give this book 2 stars and then I got to the last six chapters and OMG it really turned my whole opinion about this book around. I love this book. I love Junie Violet there’s just a lot to overlook and a lot to love in this one book. had the ending not been so great, but I always say and ending can really make a break a book and this one definitely makes it. I absolutely recommend this book and please if you get caught up on the historical inaccuracies and all the eye rolling just keep going. It is definitely worth it. #NetGalley, #ErinCrosbyEckstein, #Junie,#RandomHouse,bB

"Junie" is a poignant and unforgettable coming-of-age story set against the backdrop of the antebellum South. Junie, a sixteen-year-old enslaved girl on the Bellereine Plantation, forms a unique bond with her young mistress, Violet. Their shared secrets, including Violet's clandestine act of teaching Junie to read, create a fragile sisterhood amidst the oppressive reality of slavery.
The arrival of guests disrupts the delicate balance of their relationship, forcing both girls to confront the limitations of their social positions. Haunted by the ghost of her recently deceased sister, Junie grapples with the injustices of her existence and yearns for a life beyond the plantation's confines. The novel masterfully weaves together themes of sisterhood, freedom, and the enduring power of hope, leaving a profound and lasting impact on the reader.

Junie by Erin Crosby Eckstine is both beautiful and heartbreaking. It’s difficult to imagine that people lived through such struggles, yet the book brings these harsh realities to life in a powerful way. Despite all the pain, the story reminds us that friendship and love can persist even in the darkest times. Books like this are so important; they not only shed light on the hardships of the past but also serve as a reminder to never forget these struggles, so history doesn’t repeat itself. It’s a moving and impactful read.

This was such a great debut novel! I loved the storytelling and all the characters- I could see everything so clearing in my mind. It was very emotional and I enjoyed the magical realism aspect. Highly recommend!

This is a touching and emotional story from beginning to end as the author tells of an enslaved teenage girl during pre-Civil War years who brings up back the ghost of her dead sister. This story is both a coming-of-age story as she longs for freedom and is experiencing a yearning for more in life: being able to write, being able to fall in love without losing those she loves due to slavery. This book and author beautifully assists the reader in seeing slavery from the eyes of this young girl. I also enjoyed that there was a bit of magical realism as well involved in the story. I thoroughly enjoyed it and will forward to more from this author.