Reviewed by Jamie Michele for Readers' Favorite

The Shadow of Death: A Tragedy of Yellow Fever by McKenna Rowell is set in 1793 Philadelphia, where Deborah Allard becomes entangled in a dispute that threatens David Byrne’s family after Mr. Foster accuses his father of a ruinous debt. Just when Deborah uncovers a document with the probability of turning the situation around and altering David’s future, an outbreak of yellow fever engulfs the city and makes legal justice secondary to survival. As homes empty and fear reshapes daily life, Deborah refuses to flee. She commits herself to caring for the sick while guarding the very fragile hope that David’s name might be restored. Illness enters their households, food grows scarce, and law gives way to desperation. In a city strained by disease and suspicion, Deborah’s determination links together questions of inheritance, loyalty, and endurance, as she works to preserve both a family’s standing and the lives entrusted to her care.

McKenna Rowell’s The Shadow of Death reimagines Philadelphia’s 1793 epidemic in spectacular detail. Rowell evokes the period through era-specific practices that can only come from exhaustive research and knowledge, like Deborah studying the prevailing treatments of the time, public health responses ringing through the cannon fire meant to cleanse the air, and red ribbons marking the infected houses. Deborah anchors the story as a powerhouse of intelligence and agency rarely afforded to women at the time, frequently choosing her own judgment over convention. I love Azuba, who is also a fully realized character. Her counsel alters lives in a novel where the antagonist is primarily yellow fever itself, advancing through jaundice, delirium, and black vomit. The settings are cinematically described, from deserted streets where the death carts roll at dawn to the outbuilding of Bush Hills, where pallets line hay-strewn floors. Elegantly written and completely immersive, this is a book well worth the time investment. Very highly recommended.