Showing results for "Girls" in Victorian

1875. With their father missing and their mother suddenly passing, Esme and Gabriel are forced to track down their estranged grandfather in Lincolnshire. Cold and unwelcoming, he is reluctant to take them in, but aware of his standing as the village vicar, he knows must protect his reputation, and allow the children to stay with him. Esme's relief at finding refuge soon turns to despair when Gabriel is sent to boarding school, leaving her alone in their grandfather's unhappy home. But the house isn't as empty as it first appeared.

Lily Moon, the local miner's daughter, spends her days as a parlour maid for Lord and Lady Bellingham at Oakley Manor, on the outskirts of Nuneaton. She's always been happy with her lot in life, and never expected more. But one day, everything changes when she temporarily becomes lady's maid to the Bellingham's daughter, Arabella, who is pregnant with the illegitimate child of her lover, and about to be unhappily married off to a man double her age.

Nuneaton, 1880. Twenty year old Daisy Armstrong lives a happy life with her loving father, Jed. They have a special bond, particularly after losing her beloved Irish mother and younger brother. But when Jed falls in love with a local widow, everything is set to change for them both. With expensive tastes and a lavish lifestyle, moving into Daisy and Jed's humble forge is not what the widow or her spoiled son, Gilbert, expected - and they make that very clear. Worked to the bone trying to look after their busy home, Daisy is exhausted.

As the much doted-on daughter of the local doctor Violet Stroud had a comfortable, happy childhood - despite a distinct lack of love from her cold-hearted mother. But when her father unexpectedly dies, Violet's life is turned upside down. As secrets about the family come to light, Violet finds herself homeless and with no one to turn to apart from Edie, the family's gentle and loving housekeeper.

Mari Evans has always known life would be hard, but nothing could have prepared her for how quickly things would fall apart. First, the devastating news that her father has a second family – and chose them over her. Then the tragic accident in the pit that leaves her eldest brother unable to work. It started as an off-hand joke, a comment by her brother. ‘Cut your hair, Mari. You could pass for a lad and work the pit in my place.’

Lady Moria had accomplished the first three on her own...until a chance meeting with a captain with tattooed hands a gentle soul who sees past her facade to the jaded-but-lovable woman beneath. Except she's still her, her schemes are still her schemes, and he has a duty to uphold. Now he's back from active duty, and ready to do whatever it takes to win her for good this time before he has to ship out again.

Verity Lockwood despises life at Far View House, where her father and mill owner, Jebediah Lockwood, drowns his fortune—and his wits—in drink. With debts mounting, whispers spread—how much longer can Lockwood’s Mill survive? The dark and dirty mills of Yorkshire are no place for a gently bred young woman, but when Verity learns that her father’s ruin threatens not only her home but the livelihoods of the workers who depend on it, she refuses to stand idly by.

'This heartfelt story is perfect for fans of Dilly Court and Katie Flynn' - Candis 'Gritty and moving story-telling' - Peterborough Telegraph Annie Murray's The Pearl Button Girl is book one in the Children of Birmingham series, starting in Victorian Birmingham and following the trials and...

Elizabeth Thornton has every reason to want to escape from home — a ramshackle farm in the middle of nowhere on the wilds of Dartmoor. Since her father's death, she's been trapped here, in the clutches of her lascivious uncle. When a position opens up at Rosebank Hall, she jumps at the chance. She will be a domestic drudge at the beck and call of the house's cantankerous master.

London’s East End. Life for Hope Daniels in the public house run by her parents is not as it seems. Pa drinks and gambles, brother John longs for a place of his own, sister Violet dreams of a life on stage and little Alfie is being bullied at school. Silas Quirk, the charismatic owner of a local gentlemen’s club and disreputable gambling den her father frequents, has his own plans for Hope. When disaster strikes, the family lose everything and the future they planned is snatched away from them. Secrets are revealed that make Hope question all she’s ever believed in.

Being dared to kiss a man in the moonlight is all well and good, but men and moonlight do not fall from the skies at will. Until they do. Under instruction from a friend, drab Alice Dowding lingers alone on a moonlit balcony. Not the most sensible course of action for a usually sensible girl. Yet, being sensible has gained Alice a seat among the wallflowers, and her only likely chance of marriage to a man she finds nigh on repulsive. Something must be done.

Dartmoor, 1875. Rose Maddiford, beautiful, vivacious and intelligent, could have her pick of men across Dartmoor. But she is in no hurry to marry unless it is for true love - and certainly not while she can help her father manage the Cherrybrook Gunpowder Mills. Then tragedy strikes. Rose’s father is injured by an explosion at the mill, and the family is left teetering on the edge of poverty. Rose is left with just two options: accept arrogant, controlling Charles Chadwicks’ proposal and move to London or let her family perish. Rose must choose duty over love.

The close, loving family life Rose has known is shattered when the country goes to war. Rose resolves to do her bit so, aged 16, she leaves home to train as a nurse in London. There she finds freedom, excitement and a different way of life. A brief encounter with a soldier opens her eyes to romance, but is he the man she thinks he is? Can first love survive long separation or will Rose discover that her heart belongs to another? When the war brings searing loss and heartbreak, can Rose find the strength to look to the future?

August 1883. The future for Ling Southcott, a quarryman’s daughter, seems to be already mapped. Marriage to her childhood sweetheart, Barney, a cluster of children, a life contained to the hamlet of Foggintor Quarry. For Ling, with her sharp, enquiring mind and love of books, it is an accepted, if unwelcome fate. But then the new Princetown Railway opens across Dartmoor, connecting her remote hamlet to the neighbouring town of Tavistock, and even Plymouth.

Nan Turpin is in trouble again, accused of stealing. She's guilty. Cast out by her family, she turns to the House of Help for Friendless Girls, which promises Nan a fresh start - it's the House or gaol. She and warden Hetty immediately clash, but Hetty has her own secrets to keep her busy. With her sister Amelia drawing ever closer to their dark family past, will Hetty find the courage to reveal the truth before it's too late? As romance blossoms for Nan outside of the House, can she resist falling back into her lightfingered ways and forge a future for herself?

Violet Daniels isn't perfect. She's made mistakes in her life, but the deep love she has for her five-year-old twins is beyond dispute. When their feckless and often violent father turns up out of the blue, demanding to see them, she's terrified he might snatch them from her. She flees with them to a place of safety where she meets the handsome and charming Gabriel Stone. He shows her a better way of life, but is he everything he appears to be? Violet decides to stop running and finds the courage to return to London to confront the children's father.

Devon, 1887. Life has not been kind to dairymaid Tresca Ladycott. She can’t rely on her flighty farmhand father, Emmanuel, so she relies on herself. Then comes a devastating blow. Tresca is sacked from the dairy, and the pair lose their home. She and her father seek a new life in bustling Tavistock. More hardship lies ahead. The only work to be found is hard labour on the London and South West Railway. Before long, Emmanual is out of work yet again, and Tresca is faced with keeping them both in their tiny garret home.

After facing the horrors of the Crimean War, Adam Brooksbank returns to Black Moss Farm filled with regret over the path in life he has chosen. Starting anew, he decides to focus on rebuilding his family’s rundown farm and make it a home again. Lucy Bancroft lives with her parents on Prospect Terrace which backs onto the local tannery and is the most beautiful girl in the village. But unfortunately her wealth doesn’t match her looks, and she soon realises that nobody wants to court a girl from the filthy Flay Pits, let alone marry her.

An expert in etiquette, Emma takes her pristine reputation most seriously. But the devilish Lord Marlowe is determined to prove that some rules of proper behavior are made to be broken....

When Annie and her brother Cory are orphaned Hettie's mother takes them in. Hettie and Annie sell watercress on the streets of Victorian London to make a living. Annie's dissatisfaction grows and her reckless ambition takes her on a separate path. After she disappears in mysterious circumstances, Hettie sets out to find her. While searching for Annie, in the darkest and most dangerous part of London, she uncovers the corruption and depravity of Victorian society. Secrets are revealed that put both their lives put in danger. Can Hettie find her friend before it's too late?