The Weight of Blood: Chapters 1–2

by Tiffany D. Jackson
In the small town of Springville, Georgia, the struggle to hide family secrets comes to a bloody end in Madison Washington's senior year of high school.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Chapters 1–2, Chapters 3–4, Chapters 5–11, Chapters 12–15, Chapters 16–29
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. quip
    make jokes or witty remarks
    “Don’t you want to stay nice and thin for your prom dresses?” Coach teased.
    “I don’t have to worry about that,” Jules quipped, bumping Wendy with her butt.
  2. permeate
    spread or diffuse through
    The stench of damp mulch permeated the air.
  3. blanch
    turn pale, as if in fear
    Moist lashes rimmed her hazel-green eyes, skin blanched white.
  4. render
    cause to become
    Coach Bates stormed out of her office, eyes falling on Maddy’s hair, rendering her speechless.
  5. resign
    accept as inevitable
    Maddy took one last long look in the mirror and resigned herself to her impending fate with a small prayer.
  6. stifle
    conceal or hide
    She shuffled to her third-row seat while her classmates failed to stifle their collective giggles.
  7. seethe
    be in an agitated emotional state
    “Jason," Mrs. Morgan said, seething. “Do you want to go to the office and explain why you're disrupting my class? Do any of you? If not, then I suggest you knock it off."
  8. convulse
    be overcome with laughter
    The girls convulsed with laughter.
  9. fateful
    having extremely unfortunate or dire consequences
    But if you ask anyone from Springville, or at least anyone still alive, what happened that fateful night, they all say the same as Cole Lecter—“Maddy did it.”
  10. disclosure
    the act of making something evident
    Michael: How about you tell us a little about yourself, Tanya?
    Tanya: Sure. I’m an anthropologist and professor at the University of Sydney.
    Michael: Okay, so full disclosure: Tanya and I met at a bar a little over six months ago.
  11. conservative
    having social or political views favoring the right wing
    You also have the conservative swamp believing Black Lives Black Pride, or BLBP, had something to do with it, given all the protests that took place in the weeks prior to Prom Night.
  12. virtually
    slightly short of or not quite accomplished; all but
    Tanya: I believe kids died. I believe they existed. I just don’t believe the cause of their death.
    Michael: Yeah, neither did the state of Georgia. Neither did most of America, which is why Portman’s book went virtually unnoticed.
  13. loafer
    a low leather shoe with no laces
    Maddy kept her eyes focused on her lap, ignoring the gawking stares from the administrative staff, mostly women in their midsixties, dressed in mom jeans, grandma sweater vests, shift dresses, and clunky loafers.
  14. elude
    escape, either physically or mentally
    She replayed that morning several times, frustrated by all the witty responses she had finally come up with that eluded her while the students had been mocking Maddy’s hair.
  15. mousy
    quiet, timid, and ineffectual
    Her priority was the frightened, mousy student sitting outside Mr. O’Donnell's office.
  16. chastise
    scold or criticize severely
    She couldn’t possibly be white with hair like that, Mrs. Morgan thought, and immediately chastised herself.
  17. curt
    brief and to the point
    She gave a curt nod. “Agreed.”
  18. balk
    show unwillingness towards
    “What does the staff have to do with this?” he balked.
  19. heckle
    challenge aggressively
    And she couldn’t use the front doors, where most of the windows faced and others could see her enormous hair and heckle her further.
  20. precedence
    status established in order of importance or urgency
    The hallways of Springville High were abuzz with gossip. Sure, some had heard about the natural disaster that had hit Mrs. Morgan’s classroom. But news about Maddy took precedence.
  21. taut
    pulled or drawn tight
    Kenny chuckled, his back muscles taut.
  22. rein
    keep in check
    Struggling to rein in his annoyance, Kenny took one last sip of air before pasting on the standard generic smile he would maintain for the rest of the day.
  23. stoic
    seeming unaffected by pleasure or pain; impassive
    Rashad looked up and noticed Kenny staring, his face going stoic.
  24. influx
    the process of flowing in
    When reviewing school records and reports from that day, I found that the nurse’s office had an influx of students with near-identical symptoms.
  25. vertigo
    a reeling sensation; a feeling that you are about to fall
    Headaches, nausea, extreme earaches, vertigo.
  26. incite
    provoke or stir up
    These so-called “powers," they had to come from somewhere, right? They didn’t suddenly appear out of the blue. This incident, while traumatic, couldn’t have been the inciting source.
  27. facade
    a showy misrepresentation to conceal something unpleasant
    The rising heat erased all traces of the downpour that had ruined her carefully crafted facade.
  28. materialize
    come into being; become reality
    How would she begin to explain that their biggest fear had materialized?
  29. relent
    give in, as to influence or pressure
    The headache she’d complained about earlier had not relented, even after two aspirins.
  30. snippet
    a small piece of anything
    Wendy massaged her temple, only catching snippets of the conversation Jules and the girls were having across from her.
  31. foyer
    a large entrance or reception room or area
    Papa stood in the narrow foyer, the light above him muted by dust.
  32. immaculate
    free from stain or blemish
    Papa had even gone so far as to paste eyes in the collage. Blue eyes, all staring down at Maddy and her frizzy mane. Real beauties, their hair styled perfectly, milky skin immaculate...everything she could never be.
  33. quaint
    attractively old-fashioned
    You pass miles of farmland, truck stops, and fast-food chains before reaching its center, a quaint Main Street of mom- and-pop-owned businesses.
  34. hub
    a focal point around which events revolve
    Springville was once a thriving industrial hub, true to its Bible Belt roots.
  35. debutante
    a young woman making her formal entrance into society
    Friday night lights during football season. Thanksgiving Day parades, Christmas carolers, Easter egg hunts, and debutante balls. The all-American dream.
  36. progressive
    favoring or promoting modern or innovative ideas
    But hidden away from progressive cities, Springville was also the type of town where racism was passed down like family jewels.
  37. disheveled
    in disarray; extremely disorderly
    Maddy waited, then emerged from the closet, her clothes disheveled, face puffy and red from tears.
  38. nape
    the back side of the neck
    At the nape of her neck, Papa parted her hair, applying a dollop of grease, then gently glided the hot comb from her scalp to her ends.
  39. meticulous
    marked by extreme care in treatment of details
    Papa slid through another section, meticulous and precise.
  40. casually
    in an unconcerned manner
    Papa continued testing Maddy’s knowledge. Any mistake, and Papa would casually let a finger slip, burning her.
Created on Fri Dec 29 13:19:29 EST 2023 (updated Wed Jan 03 11:06:55 EST 2024)

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