A Northern Lass: A gripping and page-turning historical fiction book from the bestselling author

by Emma Hornby

Don't miss Emma's next gripping historical saga, available to pre-order now!

She’s fallen on hard times but she’ll come back stronger…

Slung out from her home and onto the slum streets of Manchester at the tender age of twelve, Perdita Barratt has fallen on hard times. Each day she must toil to earn a penny to secure a bed at a lodging house. Each day is a struggle to survive.

But after a chance encounter with Silas Winkworth, a widowed cart driver who is in search of someone to look after his household, things start to look less bleak… And as Perdy settles into the domestic routine of her new life as a daily, Winkworth Cottage becomes her safe haven.

Yet this soon falls to the wayside when Honora, Silas’s estranged granddaughter, appears on their doorstep. Unbeknownst to Silas, who has welcomed Honora into his home with open arms, Perdy must steel herself to rise above her incessant snide remarks and wicked taunts…

But is there a darker motive than greed behind Honora’s return to Collyhurst, and how far will Perdy go to uncover the truth?

Readers LOVE Emma

'A great read from start to finish' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
'A marvellous true-to-life story of how some people in the not-too-distant past struggled to survive in terrible conditions' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
'I was hooked from page one!' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

329 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 9, 2026

About the author

Emma Hornby was born and raised on a tight-knit, working-class estate in Bolton, England. She is a mother of three wonderful children and fiancée to one very patient man.

History has always been her passion and she grew up with her nose buried in sagas. Before pursuing a career as a novelist, she had a variety of jobs, from care assistant for the elderly to working in a Blackpool rock factory. She later wrote short stories and non-fiction pieces for the internet, print and stage, and also worked as a freelance poet.

Her books are gritty historical family sagas, set in Victorian and WWII Bolton and Manchester, which she began writing after researching her family history. The colourful folk she unearthed gave her plenty of inspiration; like the characters in her novels, many generations of her family eked out life amidst the squalor and poverty of Lancashire's slums.

Emma's first book, A Shilling for a Wife, was the bestselling debut saga novel of 2017. Her debut WWII book, Her Wartime Secret, was shortlisted for the 2022 RNA Romantic Saga Award. Her other titles regularly appear in the official bestsellers' charts.

Visit Emma's website at emmahornby.com for more.

Reviews

[Booklover BEV · Rating 5 out of 5]

She's fallen on hard times,
But she's come back stronger.
Collyhurst 1882.
Perdy Barratt get a housekeeping job looking after his household and finding herself homeless moves in with Silac Winkworth.
They get along just fine till his granddaughter Honora turns up and she has a dark motive and is trouble.
This heartbreaking story was so moving to read, with a lot of twists blending in as your reading every chapter.
Unputdownable,absolutely worth a comfy seat sitting and enjoying.
Just beautiful.