Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yellow Crocus | 2010 | Laila Ibrahim | Buy |
| 2 | Mustard Seed | 2017 | Laila Ibrahim | Buy |
| 3 | Golden Poppies | 2020 | Laila Ibrahim | Buy |
| 4 | Scarlet Carnation | 2022 | Laila Ibrahim | Buy |
| 5 | Falling Wisteria | 2024 | Laila Ibrahim | Buy |
The Freedman/Johnson series by Laila Ibrahim is a multigenerational saga that begins with Yellow Crocus (2010), set on a Virginia plantation in the years before the Civil War. The novel follows Mattie, an enslaved woman forced to serve as wet nurse to Lisbeth, the plantation owner’s daughter. The intense bond that forms between them defies the social order of the antebellum South and sets the stage for the rest of the series.
Mustard Seed (2017) picks up the story after the Civil War, and Golden Poppies (2020), Scarlet Carnation (2022), and Falling Wisteria (2024) continue tracing both families through later decades. Each book is named after a flower and advances the timeline while examining how the legacies of slavery and freedom shape subsequent generations. Ibrahim’s writing focuses on the women in both families and the choices they make in the face of systemic injustice.