Summary

Effia – Effia is born on the night of a powerful fire that destroys much of her family’s livelihood (see “Quote 1”) and leads her father to believe that his family had just been cursed for generations. As Effia matures and becomes increasingly beautiful, her mother, Baaba, continually beats and abuses her, and when she is mature enough to start menstruating, tells her to keep the fact between the two of them. Effia agrees, even though she knows that her chances of becoming a bride to the handsome new tribal chief, Abeeku (who has been interested in her ever since she was a child), would increase if he knew she had matured. Her chances of becoming his wife are ended when she finds herself accidentally present at a meeting between Abeeku and the white governor of the region, James Collins. Effia finds herself the...