The Confessions of Frannie Langton: A Historical Thriller – Gothic Tale of Slavery, Murder, and Forbidden Love

The Confessions of Frannie Langton “A startling, compelling historical debut novel. . . should be on top of your vacation reading pile.” -The Washington Post I am at a loss for words at how amazing this novel was. I finished this book in two days because I could barely put it down. I had to finish and find out all the details. This novel starts out with a murder of Frannies employer and his wife. Frannie was a former slave turned house maid turned scribe. She remains adamant that she did not murder the wife, Madame, who we come to learn is a huge part of Frannies life. This novel follows the written confessions of Frannie and describes in detail all the trials and tribulations she had to deal with in her life. I felt terrible for the things she went through in her younger years, as well as the game Madame played with her like she was some rag doll to be played with. Frannie was an extremely brave soul throughout this whole ordeal and I understand why she did the things that she did. When I first received this book, I wasn’t aware of the love story that was embedded within , which was a nice added addition. Although I didn’t agree with the way Madame treated Frannie, I really felt the love Frannie felt for Madame. With Frannie confessing all she does, it may indicate her but also will show all the crimes committed by the others in this novel and that is what really matters. Revenge is sweet and everyone needs to pay for their sins. This was a very powerful novel and will…

Genre: Historical Fiction Publisher: Harper Collins Pub. Date: May 21, 2019 Martie's Rating: 3 1/2 Stars This novel is good, unusual, but not unusually good, although it could have been. There may be too much going on, which I will get to, but at its center is a gripping narrative about a female servant in England who was a former Jamaican slave. In 1826, she is accused of the brutal double murder of her employer and his wife, George and Marguerite Benham. The first half of the tale is written so well. We meet Frannie in jail writing her life’s story. She was born on a West Indian plantation whose master, John Langton, is a sadist. (Spoiler: She is her master’s bastard daughter). As a child, she was taught to read and write. She grows to be highly self-educated. The reason for her literacy was for her to participate in and take notes on her master’s pseudoscience experiments. Langton is studying racial differences. He is trying to prove that blacks are not human. He uses skulls, blood, and skin samples from dead as well as live slaves. The author chooses to leave out, what could be barbaric descriptions. You will read about a baby being used as a research subject. Rather than focusing on what is being done to the infant, Collins writes about the child’s desperate mother scratching on the outside of the locked room. Or, that Frannie knows that the woman will be sold in the near future. Less gore can equal more horror. In the endnotes, the author cites “Medical…