Junie A GMA Book Club Pick, Erin Crosby Eckstine
Junie A GMA Book Club Pick, Erin Crosby Eckstine
List: $26.00 | Sale: $18.20
Club: $13.00

Junie: A GMA Book Club Pick

Author: Erin Crosby Eckstine

Narrator: Angel Pean

Unabridged: 13 hr 29 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 02/04/2025


Synopsis

GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK • As the Civil War looms, a young girl must face a life-altering decision after awakening her sister’s ghost in this “poignant story of love, family and friendship [that] celebrates the power of liberation” (People).

“An enrapturing tale of survival . . . Eckstine has poured a ton of heart into her characters.”—The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

“The richly textured prose quickly pulled me into [Junie’s] treacherous yet magical world.”—Charmaine Wilkerson, New York Times bestselling author of Black Cake

Sixteen years old and enslaved since she was born, Junie has spent her life on Bellereine Plantation in Alabama, cooking and cleaning alongside her family, and tending to the white master’s daughter, Violet. Her daydreams are filled with poetry and faraway worlds, while she spends her nights secretly roaming through the forest, consumed with grief over the sudden death of her older sister, Minnie.

When wealthy guests arrive from New Orleans, hinting at marriage for Violet and upending Junie’s life, she commits a desperate act—one that rouses Minnie’s spirit from the grave, tethered to this world unless Junie can free her. She enlists the aid of Caleb, the guests’ coachman, and their friendship soon becomes something more. Yet as long-held truths begin to crumble, she realizes Bellereine is harboring dark and horrifying secrets that can no longer be ignored.

With time ticking down, Junie begins to push against the harsh current that has controlled her entire life. As she grapples with an increasingly unfamiliar world in which she has little control, she is forced to ask herself: When we choose love and liberation, what must we leave behind?

About The Author

Erin Crosby Eckstine is an author of speculative historical fiction, personal essays, and anything else she’s in the mood for. Born in Montgomery, Alabama, Eckstine grew up between the South and Los Angeles before moving to New York City to attend Barnard College. She earned a master’s in secondary English education from Stanford University and taught high school English for six years. She lives in Brooklyn with her partner and their cats.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Kezia on February 21, 2025

My head says 3, but my heart says 4—so naturally, I have to go with 4⭐️! As my first sentence makes clear, it wasn’t exactly easy to decide how I ultimately felt about this book, but I loved all the emotions it evoked in me. It was a slow-paced read, which left me a little bored at times, but I stil......more

Goodreads review by Sadie on February 17, 2025

Title/Author: JUNIE by Erin Crosby Eckstine Page Count: 368 Publisher: Ballantine Books/ Penguin Format: Hardcover review copy and NetGalley (I read it as the eBook) Other Books I Enjoyed by This Author: DEBUT Affiliate Link: [URL not allowed] Release Date: February 4th, 2025 General......more

Goodreads review by Norma ~ The Sisters on March 30, 2025

4.5 ⭐️ Mesmerizing, haunting, and unforgettable! JUNIE by Erin Crosby Eckstine wrapped itself around me from the very first page, weaving a story as breathtaking as it is heartbreaking. The setting is steeped in history, every shadow whispering with secrets, and the presence of Minnie’s spirit linger......more

Goodreads review by emilybookedup on March 04, 2025

what a debut!! this was such an enjoyable read and definitely one of my faves from february. i listened to this on audio and really enjoyed the narrator—i highly recommend that format! 🎧 what i liked most about this book is how it spans across nearly every genre. you have some historical fiction as i......more

Goodreads review by Maren’s Reads on March 11, 2025

Junie, Erin Crosby Eckstine’s haunting debut, is the story of an enslaved young woman in Alabama, pre civil war, who loves literature and poetry and dreams of a future where she and her family are free. When her master’s daughter receives a new suitor and his family, Junie and the guest’s coachman,......more


Quotes

“A poignant story of love, family and friendship [that] celebrates the power of liberation and claiming agency, even in the face of terrifying forces.”People

“A bold, original work of historical fiction that earns its place on any shelf.”—Women

Junie . . . has such a raw beauty that absolutely captivated me. . . . Junie’s quiet strength comes from the stark, uncompromising truth of enslavement, creating a tension that kept me completely immersed in her world. Eckstine crafts a narrative that is both haunting and profoundly moving, and her prose is wildly vivid.”CityBeat (Cincinnati)

“The richly textured prose quickly pulled me into the protagonist’s treacherous yet magical world. I was drawn to the story of Junie, an enslaved teenager with a love of books and nature who must navigate difficult truths about her family and friendships in order to survive her times.”—Charmaine Wilkerson, New York Times bestselling author of Black Cake

“[A] layered and lyrical debut.”—Ms.

“A deeply emotional historical fiction book, Erin Crosby Eckstine’s Junie is an absolute triumph and belongs on high school reading lists.”Reader’s Digest

“Propulsive and haunting, young Junie takes on the many burdens handed to her while reaching for the hope she wasn’t meant to have. Erin Crosby Eckstine breathes urgency, wit, and resilience into her preternaturally gifted protagonist. Junie is a lush and immersive story about power, reckoning, love, and redemption.”—Diane Marie Brown, author of Black Candle Women

“Junie is the beating heart of this powerful and moving coming-of-age novel, insisting on her right to language, love, and a life on her own terms. Rich in historical detail and packed with suspense, this is a story of survival I will not forget.”—Erin Swan, author of Walk the Vanished Earth

“A haunting tale about power, family, and the difficult choices we sometimes have to make for (or in spite of) the people we love. Here is a novel that takes a clear-eyed look at the brutality of slavery without ever depriving the people harmed by it of their agency and humanity.”—Rita Chang-Eppig, author of Deep as the Sky, Red as the Sea

“Eckstine combines the lyricism of Jesmyn Ward and Toni Morrison with the speculative historical fiction of Tananarive Due and Leslye Penelope in a stunning debut that will also appeal to fans of Percival Everett’s James.”Booklist, starred review

“A compelling portrait of the psychological, emotional, and social degradations of slavery . . . Eckstine is a talented writer to watch.”Kirkus Reviews

“Bringing elements of magical realism that will remind readers of Janelle M. Williams and Jesmyn Ward, Junie is a stunning debut novel about resilience and ancestral power that is both haunting and inspiring.”—She Reads

“The complex plot and righteous protagonist will keep readers turning the pages. Eckstine evokes the earthly and supernatural to equally powerful effect in this richly layered tale.”Publishers Weekly