Paradise

Ruby Morgan Smith is the mother of K.D. Smith, as well as the younger sister of twins Deacon “Deek” Morgan and Steward Morgan. When she goes into labor with her sons, the people cannot find her a doctor that will treat Black patients. The delay in finding medical assistance ultimately leads to her death. As she is the first person in the new town to die, all debates on what to name the town dissipate, and the men yield to the women’s desire to call it Ruby.

Ruby was founded after the ruin of its predecessor town, Haven, when outsiders undermined its integrity. Having witnessed that mistake and knowing the painful stories of “the disallowing” that Haven’s founding families experienced, the founders of Ruby had already resolved to maintain an isolationist mentality. Ruby’s death (a result of racial prejudice) reinforces the town’s conviction that they must keep to themselves to protect from such rejection. Ninety miles from the nearest town, Ruby is framed as a pure paradise for its inhabitants. What distinguishes Ruby is its isolation. Yet, as the town begins with death, so it ends; after the violent attack on

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