The Reformatory by Tananarive Due

 

Ghosts, Injustice, and Heartbreak: The Reformatory by Tananarive Due is a Haunting Must-Read

Genre: Historical Fiction, Horror
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆ (4 out of 5)

“There are stories this place don’t want told. But the dead remember everything.”

🔥 Based on a Real Horror

Tananarive Due’s The Reformatory is a chilling blend of historical fiction and supernatural horror, inspired by the real-life atrocities committed at the Florida School for Boys. This institution operated for over 111 years, with a terrifying history of abuse, rape, and murder. Due’s story imagines what it might’ve felt like to live—and maybe die—within its walls. It's harrowing, heartbreaking, and hard to put down.

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📖 The Plot: Ghosts, Justice, and Family

Robbie Stephens, Jr., a 12-year-old Black boy in 1950s Florida, is sentenced to the reformatory after defending his older sister, Gloria, from harassment by Lyle McCormack, a white boy from a powerful family. Robbie’s punishment isn't about justice—it's about sending a message. He’s thrown into a terrifying, violent institution with a sinister reputation.

But the school isn’t just brutal—it’s haunted. Literally.

Robbie has the gift (or curse) of seeing ghosts, known here as "haints." Most boys can’t see them, but Robbie does—and one of them, Blue, is visible to nearly everyone and may hold the key to the school’s dark past. Robbie is assigned kitchen duty and becomes friends with Redbone (a fellow inmate) and Blue, who he doesn’t realize at first is a haint.

Meanwhile, Gloria is doing everything in her power to get Robbie released. She appeals to her employer, Miss Anne Powell, and Anne’s secret girlfriend, Channing Holt, a law student. Gloria also contacts the NAACP. Despite all her efforts, the judge refuses to release Robbie—he’s using Robbie as bait to lure out Robert Stephens, Robbie’s father, who’s in hiding after being falsely accused of raping a white woman.

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🕯️ The Horror Deepens

The reformatory’s Superintendent, Fenton Haddock, catches wind of Robbie’s ability to see haints. He reassigns Robbie from the kitchen to a new horrifying job: capturing haints using a ritual involving ashes and jars. Haddock is trying to rid the school of ghosts that are damaging its reputation—especially the ones connected to a deadly fire he set in 1920 that killed several boys.

Blue, who died in that fire, begins pushing Robbie to fight back. He tells Robbie to steal photographic evidence of Haddock’s crimes—rape, torture, and murder—that's hidden in Haddock's office. But Robbie is hesitant. Things come to a head when the administration kills Redbone as punishment for Robbie’s refusal to comply. That’s the final straw.

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🚨 The Escape

Robbie, with help from Blue’s ghostly guidance, sneaks into Haddock’s office, steals the evidence, and escapes with a jar full of angry haints. Gloria, Miz Lottie, and her grandnephew Uncle June are waiting for him outside the fence.

But Haddock is hot on their trail. He and his brutal dog, Colonel, track Robbie to a creek—the designated meeting spot. Just as Haddock threatens Robbie’s life, Blue and the other haints attack. In an incredible supernatural showdown, Colonel turns on Haddock, ripping out his throat. The haints are finally freed.

Robbie and Gloria barely escape. They flee to Chicago, where they reunite with Robert, Robbie’s father. The photographs serve as evidence to help shut down the reformatory and rescue the other boys still inside.

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🧠 Final Thoughts

This is a powerful and painful read, rooted in real history. It’s a story about family, survival, and the ghosts of injustice—both literal and figurative.

That said, I’m giving it ⭐⭐⭐⭐4 out of 5 stars instead of a perfect score for a couple reasons:

• The chapters focused on Gloria felt repetitive and slowed the momentum.

• The supernatural element, while effective for atmosphere and metaphor, sometimes clashed with the otherwise hyper-realistic narrative.

Still, this is a book everyone should read. It doesn’t just entertain—it bears witness.

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💬 If You Liked The Reformatory, Try These:

• The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead — Another Florida reform school novel based on the same real-life horrors, but with a more grounded approach.

• Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi — A multi-generational epic on Black history, legacy, and trauma.

• Kindred by Octavia E. Butler — A genre-defying blend of speculative fiction and historical truth.

• Beloved by Toni Morrison — A ghost story rooted in the horrors of slavery and its aftermath.

• Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward — Haunting, lyrical, and filled with familial ghosts.

What did you think of the mix of horror and history? Let’s talk about it in the comments.