Another brilliant story from Lindsey Hutchinson, this author can do no wrong (in my opinion).
A rollercoaster of emotions, wonderful characters, despair, hope and new friends all add up to a great read.
I would definitely recommend this book but make sure you have a day with no interruptions as you won't want to put this winner down.

This was a wonderful story about family and the relationship between the different members. Sometimes your closest family are those that you meet with who you have no connection, those with who you form a close bond. This is what Mary and her daughter Dora discover.

Set in the Black Country, Mary and Dora are quite lucky, they have a home, a roof over their heads, food and clothing, much more than some who live on the streets. In contrast are a group of 6 children, orphans who have been cast aside who live in two run-down cottages. A chance meeting brings these two families together.

This author definitely knows how to create a nasty character. Edith is the epitome of a curmudgeonly old woman. She has her daughter Mary running circles caring for her and at the same time, she makes the life of Dora an absolute misery. The story is one that is heartbreaking as no matter what Dora does it is never good enough.

This is nicely balanced against the warmth that is shown by the 6 orphans, rather than being the thieving sort, they have morals set down by their leader Fingers. Each child has been found and becomes part of the family.

Showing the different people react and interact with each other is wonderfully shown in this story. Whether it be the kindness of strangers or the vicious remarks from an old woman, it takes all sorts to make a story. I was curious as to why Edith was so vindictive, some people however are just this way. She does seem to live to moan and cause trouble wanting to be the centra of attention.

The characters in this story do come with backstories, some may only have a small mention, but others have much more and this is what makes this story so interesting. There is a mystery to this story and it is one that gradually comes out and when it does it will change everything.

A wonderful heartwarming story for fans of those who love their historical fiction and saga stories. It is one I would definitely recommend.

The first work that I have read by this author.
Such an easy read, you could almost see the dirt beneath the finger nails of the urchins and yet they were all a delight. Mary & her daughter were also lovely and the two old rich characters brought a smile to your face.
Amongst all this pleasantry is found one of the most vile, horrific characters I have come across in a long time. What a piece of work Edith is, her behaviour shocking me on nearly every page.
Lovely historical novel, I really enjoyed the thoughts and phraseology of the time in which it was set and I very much hope to read further novels by this author.
Thanks to NetGalley and Boldwood Books for providing me with an Advance Reader's Copy in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

Family by Choice

What a wonderful book full of love and joy. I loved these children, their nicknames and their antics and their pure joy for life and love for each other. They had nothing but they had everything they needed. They accepted life as it came to them and made the best of it. Surviving on very little and making it enough.

This book had to be written somewhere before 1930 because it talks of workhouses and they were abolished in the U.K. in 1930. It talks of a scarlet fever outbreak which is written about in 1920 as being particularly bad that year. so I am thinking that this book was set in the 1920's. I is set in Wednesbury, England close to the Tame River.

Dora and her mother live with her grandmother and have for all of Dora's life. Her grandmother is a hateful spiteful bitter woman that hates Dora and make her life and her mother Mary's life miserable. Dora and her grandmother fight all the time.

One day Dora meets a boy called John Skinner but everyone calls him Skinny. Then she meets the other children living in two abandoned houses at the edge of town. She becomes friends with them, but her grandmother tries to put a stop to Dora having friends.

Dora and Mary stay because they have no money and nowhere else to go. When Dora's Grandmother hits Dora with her cane and breaks her arm then Mary knows she has to get Dora away from there, but how and where to go.

Will Dora's friends help them or will they continue to live with the grandmother that is mean and spiteful? With no money and no job Mary does not know what to do and winter will soon arrive. She must find a way for her and Dora to survive.

This story is truly magical and the ending is so beautiful. You won't want to miss reading this wonderful story. I enjoyed every page and I recommend it.

Thanks to Lindsey Hutchinson for writing a wonderful story, to Boldwood books for publishing it and to NetGalley for making it available to me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this book in exchange for an honest review.
This is such a heartbreaking yet heartwarming story. Edith Pitt was such a terrible person but I also felt a bit sorry for her for being so unhappy. There was a bit of the book around the middle that kind of moved too slow but overall it's a great book.
I definitely want to read this author's other books.

The Runaway Children is gorgeously written and evocative, as are all of Lindsey Hutchinson's books. This unique story is gut wrenching and hauntingly beautiful with a powerful hit. It provokes the reader to ask what comprises a family and the lengths we go to protect them. Courage and hope are other themes.

Dora Parsons is a young girl who lives with her mother Mary in deplorable circumstances. Through financial necessity, they are residing with Dora's grandmother Edith who abuses them mentally and physically. She controls the purse strings therefore Mary feels beholden to her. She is her mother, after all. Dora is introduced to a different world when she meets a young friend who lives on the streets. Yet she sees in him true happiness. As the story progresses the characters grow as they tackle challenge after challenge. There are unexpected twists, too. I really like that.

My favourite aspect are the fierce loyalty described as well as the importance of kindness in action. Charity and Elijah in particular are incredibly likeable.

If you seek Historical Fiction with a unique slant, this book is for you. It is refreshingly clean, yet does not gloss over domestic abuse, a difficult and very important subject.

My sincere thank you to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for the privilege of reading this fascinating and wonderful book.

A lovely warmhearted story. Mary and her daughter Dora live with Mary's mother who is a bully and a nasty person and takes pleasure in treating them badly especially Dora.When Dora makes friends with a group of impoverished children and things get bad for them both at home they have to make a new life for themselves they find love and friendships in the most challenging circumstances. Well written in the style of her Mother Meg ,Lindsey tells a story full of warmth,charm and love and they realise that you don't have to be blood relatives to be a family..I really enjoyed it

Dora Parsons lives with her mother Mary and her grandmother Edith in Edith's home. But Edith is nasty to Dora. She has no time for Dora and often beats her with her stick. Mary would love to take Dora away from her mothers clutches but she has no money to do so. Dora makes a friend in an orphan boy. He lives with five other children in two rundown houses at Doe Bank by the heath. The beg, scavenge and try to do an odd job to keep them out of the workhouse.

This is another well written, gripping and engaging read by Lindsey Hutchinson. The characters are well developed, believable and likeable - except for Edith. We learn what it's like to give up your home comforts and live a life of poverty. I was drawn in from the first page. But there's also some good things happen, it's not all doom and gloom. I have loved all of the books that I've read by this author.

I would like to thank #NetGalley #BoldwoodBooks and the author #LindseyHutchinson for my ARC OF #TheRunawayChildren in exchange for an honest review.

This book was totally engaging from start to finish for me. There's humor, there's that which will get your dander up, good deeds and a whole lot of fun. I'd say it is a truly wholesome and delightful read for any school aged child, and ahem, the adults in their lives. There are twists and turns and surprizes that will keep any reader racing ahead to the next pages.

The reader will come to discover why poor Dora catches so much of the brunt of her Grandmother Edith's vindictiveness. Why the children ran away and how do Dora and her mom Mary fit into all of this? Who are the secret benefactors and more?

I have thoroughly enjoyed this heart warming tale and hope to some day read more from this author, Lindsey Hutchinson, in the future. I give this book my 5-Star seal of apporval.

~Eunice C. Reviewer/Blogger~

January 2022

Disclaimer: This is my honest opinion based on the review copy sent by NetGalley and the publisher.

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The Runaway Children by Lindsey Hutchinson is a late Victorian novel set in the heart of the Black Country (where all my ancestors come from).
Here, we meet people who are the salt of the earth. People do not have much but what they do have, they share with those who have nothing. Kind hearts and open hands abound as we see that the richest people are those who know how to love.
In contrast, a character with wealth is cruel and tight-fisted, intent on causing trouble and strife wherever she goes.
Family is important. Family are those who love us. We see a new family unit created by those who have nothing uniting together.
Our roots are important. We see a young girl exploring to find out where she comes from. A stash of photos creates more questions than answers.
A promise made years ago sees a family having a guardian angel watching over them. What could have been catastrophic has the potential to be something quite different.
The characters were all well drawn and likable. The villain of the piece was realistically drawn, eliciting feelings of dislike from me.
I really enjoyed The Runaway Children, not least because I was reading on home turf.
I received a free copy from Boldwood and Rachel’s Random Resources via Net Galley. A favourable review was not required. All opinions are my own.

This is a very British story of a no good, very bad, horrible woman, Edith, who sets out to make everyone around her miserable. This includes her daughter Mary and granddaughter Dora who live with her and take care of her.. When Dora starts to make friends with a group of orphans who are surviving by scrounging for food and work, Edith gets even angrier finally driving Mary and Dora from her house..

The Runaway Children, by Lindsey Hutchinson, is the story of justice for Edith and love and compassion that comes from a surprising source. I did have to pull out the dictionary a few times to look up words that are not in my vocabulary. It is not written in lyrical prose, but it is a sweet story. I was able to read an ARC on #NetGalley.

I almost didn't finish. Mental and physical abuse made me sick to my stomach. But I am glad I continued on. Its a great story and want to know, does it end there or is there another book coming out.
I wish it had included year, scarlet fever hit.
This was my first book by Lindsey Hutchinson but will not be my last.

Picking up one of Lindsey's books you feel sure that you are going to enjoy it, well this one didn't disappoint.
It is busy, exciting and pulls at the heartstrings.
We start with Dora and her mum Mary. They live with Dora's grandmother Edith, who thinks she can treat them as skivvies. On the whole Edith is not a very nice person.
Dora befriends a young lad, Skinny who lives with a group of runaway children who we get introduced to as the story develops.
Edith causes wicked injury to Dora which has devastating consequences.
Definitely recommend this book.
I especially loved that although Skinny mispronounced words I found that as the story developed I just got used to it and Instantly knee what it meant.
My favourite character was Fingers.

Heartwarming with some great characters,especially the runaway children. Very descriptive with some surprises. An enjoyable read.

I could not wait to read this book because of the description and l was not disappointed. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it as it had everything good characters , a strong storyline. I do recommend that you read this book.

A beautiful story.
Dora Parson along with her mother Mary live with her cruel awful gran Edith Pitt in the big house in Springhead. she wont even employ any staff and works poor Dora hard and threatens to throw her out she is a spiteful old woman and Dora had to be careful not to let her and her motherbecome homeless. Dora meets John Skinner [Skinny] and makes friends with him and the gang that live in Doe Bank in two run down houses, all these children are runaways living day by day with nothing.
This is such an inspiring story, that I read in one sitting , as we are taking through a journey with them all, so touching in places I loved it.

This was a lovely story, and I couldn't put it down. The only thing I would say is that some of the descriptions of times with Edith at the start of the book were a little bit repetitive, but once the story really got going, it was very exciting. It was a great story, and kept me guessing all through the middle of the book, as it was not clear which way things were going to go.

Firstly thank you Netgalley for this ARC. This is such a lovely emotional book. If you love family saga you will love this book. Cant wait to read more by this author