Groomed to be a Bride: Can Maggie protect a vulnerable young girl from the nightmares of her past?

by Maggie Hartley

'Mama is gone and I cry every night.'When a terrified young girl is discovered hiding in the back of a lorry, she is quickly taken into the care of social services. Arriving on the doorstep of foster carer Maggie Hartley, she is painfully thin, bruised and unable to speak a word of English. What atrocities has she escaped to bring her here? Woken each night by the screams of Halima's nightmares, Maggie is desperate to reach this damaged young girl. But without a shared language, she fears that she may never uncover the truth behind her terror. Can Maggie help Halima recover from the horrors she has endured, and help her build a new life for herself? Or will Halima forever be haunted by the ghosts of her past?A true story of hope from Sunday Times bestselling author Maggie Hartley, a foster carer for over 20 years.'A gripping story' 5* Amazon reader review

Genres: Nonfiction, Fostering, Biography

214 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 6, 2020

Reviews

[Fiona MacDonald]

Maggie Hartley's latest foster child is a 15 year old girl named Halima who arrives in the UK after leaving Iraq. She can barely speak English, and as a result no one can understand what has happened to her and where her family are. Then one day, this timid and scared girl starts reacting uncharacteristically angrily to Maggie's younger foster child Natalie when she mentions celebrating Halloween, and again so when she notices Natalie going outside wearing clothes that show her flesh. Maggie can't understand what is going on, but when she finally uncovers the truth it is more horrific than she could've ever imagined. Such a heart-breaking story.

[Maureen H]

Emotional and enlightening

Maggie's stories are always well written. A good read, touching on a subject that is very much in the news today. I can't put her books down until I've read them right through.

[Kelly Ferrett]

Groomed to be a Bride. bt Maggie Hartley.
Maggie gets a call one morning .. There is a girl in her teens who has been found trying to sneak into the back of a van. She can’t speak English or understand it ...can Maggie take her as they can’t find anyone that can take her ... No information is available ... at the moment.
The girl is 15 years old and they know her name is Halima! She won’t say anymore ...they don’t know how she has got to the UK from what they think is Iran.
A lot of tears from a very frighten girl ... in time she speaks to a friend of Maggie’s who is able to communicate in her language...... the story starts to unravel of her life back home and how she got there.
All in all a terrific book from a genuinely caring foster carer!

[Brooklynne]

4.5 ⭐️

[Tamara]

As all books by Maggie Hartley I enjoyed this one. The way she shows all sides of foster care is eye opening

[Michelle Smith]

A real great story

Such a sad but beautiful story. You always have such an amazing gift, To help anyone. Always a great and moving story. And a great way to learn about people and there customs. Thanks for all you do.

[Karen]

Maggie always moves me with her fostering memoirs and this one was no different. Radicalisation really shouldn't be happening but it is and I suspect, not only in the UK. It is something which most volunteer organisation's are including in their safeguarding training these days. Thank you for writing a much needed insight into how it affects young people, I hope Halima is living the life she deserves now.

[Rachel Miller]

I couldn’t put it down.

What a great story. It kept me glued to my kindle for hours at a time. Definitely worth the time it took to read it.

[Tracey]

Absolutely amazing

I have read all of Maggie’s books. And enjoyed all of them. However. This book I could not put down. It was so good.

[mois reads]

Halima

What a great book and one very lucky girl thanks to Maggie and halimas social worker I'm not saying anything about the story line please read it definitely a 5 star read.

[Lou]

Book Review:
Groomed to Be a Bride by Maggie Hartley
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This powerful true story follows Halima, a young girl found hiding in a lorry and placed in foster care. She doesn’t speak English and is deeply frightened. As foster carer Maggie Hartley gains her trust, she learns the heartbreaking truth, Halima was being groomed for a forced marriage.

The book is emotional and eye-opening, highlighting the horrors of human trafficking and forced marriage. Maggie’s care and patience help Halima begin to heal, showing the impact of love and support on a child’s life.

A touching and inspiring read, Groomed to Be a Bride is a story of survival, hope, and the power of kindness.

If you love books like this that explore this topic and more, come join us at Fostering, Memoirs and Fiction Book Club on Facebook! Connect with like-minded book lovers and authors as we discuss new releases, upcoming reads, and beloved classics. We’d love to have you!

[Barbara Doodson]

Thank goodness for Maggie and those who foster

A young girl comes into Maggie's care - all Social Services know is that she came from Iraq. She was found climbing back into a lorry she had hidden in, after going to a toilet. The driver rang the police and that is how she came to Maggies.

Speaking not a word of English, traumatised and so frightened. Maggie gradually learns what has happened to her.

This story will certainly shock the reader and you also need tissues to read this very difficult heart breaking account.

Thank goodness for foster carers xxx with love Maggie and thanks for the tremendous work you do xxxx

[Kylie]

Always look forward to Maggie’s latest books. She is such a caring beautiful soul who is definitely in the right profession. Love seeing how her kids progress from the time they arrive on Maggie’s doorstep to the time they leave. She gives them wings so they can learn to fly ❤️❤️

[Jenny McAteer]

Hope

Such a powerful word and given the circumstances amazing that the ending turned out the way it did. Devastating to think what could have happened if Maggie hadn't found what she did.

[Shirley Healy]

Maggie has written a fantastic story it is a great read highly recommended a topic that is in the news alas nowadays. Once you start this book you will not be able to put it down. It is a terrific read.

[Lynd]

I've read quite a few of Maggie's books but this is the only one I've read in less then 24 hours and bawled over. Things like this really shouldn't happen yet unfortunately is becoming increasingly more common though we hate to admit it.

[Belinda Bishop]

Another compelling read

It's heart breaking to read these stories but wonderful to know there are special people like Maggie who help so many young children. I'm not sure why but this book touched more than one nerve

[Barbara]

This book describes the experience of the author in fostering a teenage Iraqi refugee girl who is in danger of being radicalised and lured to Syria to be the fourth(?) wife of an IS fighter. This is quite enlightening on this subject. Don't worry - she doesn't go to Syria!

[Vanessa]

Very good book, but I just want to make a point that this book illustrates exactly how dangerous religion is. Because people aren't content with just practicing their religion. They feel the need to impose it on everyone around them.

[katie bennett]

Another good read

Maggie's stories never disappoint. Such sad stories yet brave young people with the help of a real good foster caregiver. This story ended well for the young 16 year old.

[Katie Young]

Fake, fake, fake.

Nothing about this book makes sense. It definitely isn’t a true story and is a complete insult to any Iraqi or Syrian refugee.

[Paige]

Absolutely excellent

[Joanne Dickinson]

I couldn't put the book down. Well written. Easy to picture the characters .
Love Maggie Hartley books 📚

[Rebecca Rorick]

Great read

I like true stories and this one was a great read. I will definitely read more of her books soon..

[Charlotte]

Good book

[Laura Bagnall]

Read at hmlr on train very good background July 2021 from Sat LibrAry visits halima has an 😢 awful Iraq's story dignity stripped

[Gayle]

Another fantastic read by maggie Hartley

[Elizabeth Ray]

I think I accidentally read this twice. But it was good!

[Donna Marie]

Another amazing read, Maggie never fails to keep me gripped.

[Vina]

An extremely eye opening read