You Belong Here Now

by Dianna Rostad

In this brilliant debut reminiscent of William Kent Krueger's This Tender Land and Lisa Wingate's Before We Were Yours, three orphans journey westward from New York City to the Big Sky Country of Montana, hoping for a better life where beautiful wild horses roam free.

Montana 1925: Three brave kids from New York board the orphan train headed west. An Irish boy who lost his whole family to Spanish flu, a tiny girl who won’t talk, and a volatile young man who desperately needs to escape Hell’s Kitchen. They are paraded on platforms across the Midwest to work-worn folks and journey countless miles, racing the sun westward. Before they reach the last rejection and stop, the kids come up with a daring plan, and they set off toward the Yellowstone River and grassy mountains where the wild horses roam.

Fate guides them toward the ranch of a family stricken by loss. Broken and unable to outrun their pasts in New York, the family must do the unthinkable in order to save them.

Nara, the daughter of a successful cattleman, has grown into a brusque spinster who refuses the kids on sight. She’s worked hard to gain her father’s respect and hopes to run their operation, but if the kids stay, she’ll be stuck in the kitchen.

Nara works them without mercy, hoping they’ll run off, but they buck up and show spirit, and though Nara will never be motherly, she begins to take to them. So, when Charles is jailed for freeing wild horses that were rounded up for slaughter, and an abusive mother from New York shows up to take the youngest, Nara does the unthinkable, risking everything she holds dear to change their lives forever.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Historical, Family, Audiobook, Coming Of Age, Adult Fiction

368 pages, Paperback

First published April 6, 2021

About the author

Dianna Rostad is a USA Today Bestselling and award-winning author. Her debut novel You Belong Here Now is a 2022 WILLA Literary Award Finalist for Historical Fiction and was shortlisted for Reading the West’s Debut Fiction Award 2022. A favorite task of her creative endeavors is the discovery and research of people and places where her novels are set. She has traveled extensively to pursue the last artifacts of our shared history and breathe life, truth, and hope into her novels. Dianna was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest and spends time volunteering for various causes. She loves reading, playing with Bennee her dog, and growing flowers in her garden. She lives in Washington and Florida where she writes big-hearted novels for wide audiences.

Reviews

[Diana · Rating 4 out of 5]

YOU BELONG HERE NOW is a touching historical drama about survival, acceptance, and creating a family beyond blood. Set in Montana in the 1920s, the story follows the last three children from an orphan train who jump off to find work and possibly a new home on a cattle ranch. The family that they find are struggling with their own grief and loss.

I enjoyed this absorbing tale that brings to light the perilous lives of orphans at the time, as well as the bigotry faced by Irish immigrants and indigenous people. What a terrifying prospect it must have been to be sent west into the unknown, as you could only hope that you're taken in by decent people. The writing was a bit melodramatic at times, but overall this coming of age novel is enjoyable and uplifting.

Thank you to the publisher and LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program for an opportunity to read this book. Opinions are my own.

[CoachJim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Maybe it was the razor-sharp pine pitch or the brisk air, but it struck her that justice doesn’t come about through rules or law, but rather it rises from the courage of just one person. Someone who holds power, and a strength of mind that yields to the better judgement of their heart. It doesn’t matter whether they’re a nobody, a somebody, or a big shot, so long as they have the temerity to put one finger on the scales. (Page 327)
You Belong Here Now by Dianna Rostad

With the quote above as an example the theme of this book is the conflict between justice and the rule of law. Sometimes laws are used by people for unjust reasons.

The main character in this book is a strong, independent single woman, about 30ish, who lives and works on a ranch in Montana with her parents. She is angry that her father does not see her as capable of taking over the management of the ranch as he gets older. Her parents think it would be better for her to marry.

The story changes when 3 orphans show up at the ranch. They have escaped from an orphan train bringing orphaned children from New York City out to Montana to be adopted. When the Orphanage Agency comes looking for the children the conflict begins.

A parallel theme involves the orphans and a band of wild mustangs that roam the area. The children are thought of as unfit for civilized living—the same attitude applied to the mustangs. But the bigger message is the treatment of the mustangs by one of the orphans.

Folks around the county began to hear talk about the mustangs Patrick began training. By and by, they’d come to understand the boy had two solid boots on the ground that worked hard every day. Whenever the weather allowed, he spent time gentling them. Ivar boasted that Patrick had halter-broke three already. Word got around. They hoped to sell a few come this summer when they were fully broke. Papa wanted to know how Patrick managed it, because for the longest time folks thought they weren’t anything, that they couldn’t be tamed. … Every creature has a place. (Page 337-338)

[Darla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charlie, Patrick, and Opal get on the train in New York and ride for days. They get off at each stop hoping to be chosen for adoption. Each stop brings more humiliation and despair. In between, the three form a bond. When they get to Montana, that bond becomes stronger than the forces that try to separate them. I love books about the West and this one so beautifully depicted life on a 1920's ranch. The family the orphans become attached to has trauma in their past and it spills over into the new lives in their midst. Adjusting to new folks is complicated. Life is messy, but the relationships that are built over time and nurtured provide an abundance of love and hope. Travel out to Big Sky country and spend some time with the Stewart family.

Thank you to William Morrow and Edelweiss+ for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.

[Karren Sandercock · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charles, Patrick and Opal are aboard the orphan train leaving New York City in 1925, each time the train stops the children are hopeful, they might be picked and only to be disappointed. Charles is the oldest, he can be aggressive, he grew up in Hell’s Kitchen and he lied about his age to stay on the train. Teenage Patrick is Irish, his father died during the Great War and his mother and sister died of the Spanish flu. Opal’s 8, she’s small for her age, timid and has scars on her wrists. Bull Mountain in remote Montana is the trains last stop, Charles is worried he will be overlooked again, it’s humiliating and no way is he going back to New York.

He jumps of the train and he didn’t think Patrick and Opal would follow him and they did. Nara Stewart can’t believe it when she finds Charles in her father’s barn, her mother feeds him and she doesn’t know what to make of his story about his brother and sister waiting nearby? Her suspected horse thief wasn’t lying, her mother is delighted to have three children to fuss over and her dad needs extra help on the ranch.

The children are allowed to stay, Nara isn’t happy about it and she works the boys hard. Her parents would love to adopt the children, part of the possible adoption agreement is they must attend school and of course Charles gets into trouble. Ivar Magnusson needs help rounding up wild mustangs, Patrick has a gift when it comes to handling horses and the two boys are horrified when they find out what’s going too happened to them. When someone cuts the herd loose, Charles is the obvious suspect due to his past and is thrown in jail. Of course it wasn’t him, it’s pretty obvious who’s the real suspect and things only get worse when Opal gets a visitor!

You Belong Here Now is a story about orphaned children being sent west, considered a source of cheap help and children were examined like animals and it was a humiliating experience. Charles, Patrick and Opal thrive in Montana, the Stewart's are a kind, hardworking family, and they open their arms and hearts to the children. Three very lucky children, I received a copy of this book in exchange for and honest review and four stars from me. https://karrenreadsbooks.blogspot.com/

[Robyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

You belong here now
Dianna Rostab

I wasn’t sure whether I was going to be able to engage in this novel, I thought that it had a bit of a strange start and just jumped into the story. However, it caught up quickly and I became engaged. I was a bit concerned that some of the attitudes about boys being boys. I am pretty sure that in the ’20s there was a bit of rough brawling between boys and that teachers whipped children in schoolhouses for misbehavior. I am not sure that a boy of 16 would still be in school in such a rural area, and now that I have voiced this the story goes on, and I with it.

As America attempted to deal with the aftermath of the newly ended world war and the Spanish Flu, The Children’s Aid Society in New York took 120,000 orphans on the orphan train and relocated them from the cities to farms and ranches in the Midwest. Three orphans, Charles, Patrick, and Opal band together to form a “family unit” and to survive in Big Sky country. After a daring escape from the train, they end up on the Stewart’s cattle ranch and after a rough start begin to make a home. The Stewarts are little better than the violent (Charles), the Irish orphan (Patrick) and an emotionally and physically damaged child (Opal) as they have lost a child in a stampede years ago and the only son wants nothing to do with the ranch, while the daughter wants only to run the cattle operation and have her forbidden love.

After several incidents that Charles feels forces him to protect his sibs, the children at risk of losing their new “home” (basically Charles failing to control his temper) and the family has to work to overcome these issues during hard times. I found the writing straightforward and most consistent with what I know to be the attitude of the times, with only a tad of today’s verbiage thrown in. The story was atmospherically present, with beautiful imagery and several tender moments that touch the strings of your heart. I sniff several times and had no issue loving the characters, both “good” and “bad”…. Because I found one of the themes I recognized was that we all have our own perspective about incidents and that forgiveness is easier than carrying the grudge. In fact, love is what you make of it….. I recommend this...

4 stars

Happy Reading!

[Erika Robuck · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the moment the reader steps on the train with these orphaned children, her heart is invested in their journey. Equal parts pain and triumph, YOU BELONG HERE NOW shows how beauty can emerge from even the darkest places.

[Yelena · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not only I didn't finish this book, I barely started it. When the very first sentence contained the word "pissed", I knew this book was going to be garbage. Who was speaking that way in 1925? But the fair person that I am, I did try a few more pages. It didn't get better, it got worse. "Beating crap out of you"? Yeah, I was done. It read like something a middle school kid wrote in their diary. I hope this author find herself a better and more honest editor next time

[Sue · Rating 2 out of 5]

Predictable. Filled with cliches. Unlikable characters with too little development. Situations that never really resolve or resolve unsatisfactorily.
This book didn't do it for me.
Thank you to Goodreads for a free book. This is an honest review.

[Nursebookie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was a wow! Oh my goodness this book broke my heart in into a million pieces and pieced it back slowly in this beautiful narrative against the backdrop of Montana and Yellowstone. I had not heard of the Orphan Train before and this told the story of what it might have been like for those children. Historical Fiction fans will devour this amazing story about family, love and redemption. I loved it!

[Elizabeth of Silver's Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

Only three children left on an orphan train heading west.

We know we aren’t going to get picked. What should we do?

What they do is jump from the train.

Charles, Patrick, and Opal struggle for a few days on their own sleeping outside and searching for food.

They then come upon the Stewart farm and are taken in by the family, but they have to work hard and assure the family they are worth adopting as they hide from the The Children’s Aid Society so they won't be sent back to their dreadful lives in New York.

We follow the harsh treatment of hard work doled out as well as the love the orphans receive from the Stewarts.

YOU BELONG HERE NOW takes the reader back to the early 1900’s when an orphan train traveled across the country placing children who had no one into homes.

A very touching story. You will cry with the characters as well as be happy with them as they realize that having a family and forgiving others are the most important things in life.

Those readers who enjoy historical fiction will enjoy this book. 5/5

This book was given to me by the author in exchange for an honest review.

[Sherry Sharpnack · Rating 5 out of 5]

Three very different kids are on an orphan train, heading west. Charles is very big for his age - he says he's 16 - and we learn that he is running from the law in New York. Patrick is an Irish boy w/ a thick accent, which makes him undesirable. (Who knew that anti-Irish sentiment was still so strong in the 1920's???) Opal is a very small, very young little girl who hides her arms from everyone. At stop after stop, these children are examined like horseflesh, and treated as subhuman. The orphans on the train bully each other as well, leading to these three sort of bonding. Charles, Patrick, nor Opal are chosen at any of the stops. The last stop of the train will be a place in Montana; if the children aren't chosen, they will be sent back to orphanages in New York. None of our three protagonists want to return to New York, so Charles schemes to jump from the train before the last stop. He talks Patrick into doing so. What he doesn't count on is how stubborn Opal is; she refuses to let them hop off the train without her.
Nara Stewart is a 40-ish woman who works as hard as any man on her family's ranch in Montana, not that her father ever compliments her for it. Nara only wants to be the ranch foreman, and has no interest in being a wife and mother. although she harbors secret yearning for the Indian ranch hand, Jim. Their relationship would be scandalous in 1920's Montana, so Jim and Nara can't be together.
When Nara catches Charles trying to steal her horse, she realizes that he is starving and desperate and invites him into the house for some food. He ends up admitting that his "brother" is also along, and when they go to fetch Patrick, lo and behold! There's a little girl as well. Thus the three orphans are introduced into the Stewart family. Drama ensues, as the Children's Aid Society is trying to track down the missing children, and the local representative is loathed by the Stewart family for deeply-painful personal reasons.
There's lots of heart-pounding drama as the various relationships evolve, but besides the good story, I enjoyed a few lovely lines which I've marked, and I liked seeing that the orphan trains really weren't much better than the big-city orphanages, as the children were basically chosen as indentured servants for farmers/ranchers, and I can only imagine how some of the girls were treated.... I also enjoyed reading how the ranchers were so proud of their self-sufficiency -- yet how much they needed their neighbors when emergencies arose. I feel this concept is as applicable to farmers/ranchers today as it was in the 20's...
Anyway, "You Belong Here Now" was an enjoyable piece of fiction. 4.6 stars rounded up to 5.

[Jayme · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 rounded to 3 stars
The story had a lot of promise, the topic was interesting and the characters mostly likeable; however, the writing was choppy and distracting. I kept wanting to do a reading level analyze because I felt like I was reading a middle school level book - not for content, but readability. With some minor changes this book should have been written for and edited towards young adults.

[Sharon Huether · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the early 1900's, the Children's Aid Society rescued over 120,000 orphans from New York City, due to the Spanish Flu and immigrants. The children were placed on trains that headed west to families as young laborers, if they were lucky they had a nice new family.

Three children, an Irish boy, a small little girl and an older boy, who had lied about his age, were all looked over by the prospective parents.

The train was in Montana, nearing the Yellowstone, when the three children made a daring jump off the train. Their fate led them to a cattle ranch where the family had had many losses; and a spinster daughter Nara, that was doing her best to run the ranch.
Nara put the children to work, with little mercy. With one challenge after another they all settled in.
Nara, made a quick risky decision to keep the children together.

I loved how the author used her own family as models for the characters in the book.

[Scarlett O.H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story of Charles, Patrick and Pearl and their new family in Montana was very touching.
What I liked most about it is that the tone and the conversations were very authentic, when I had finished the book and read writer Dianna Rostads bio, it became clear to me that this authenticity is because she herself has roots in Montana and her family were cattle ranchers there. She clearly used all that family knowledge and history to get the tone just right.

I am looking forward to reading more books written by this author.

[Frosty61 · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good debut novel about the plight of three children from an Orphan Train who decide to make their own futures. It's got a heartwarming message and is a bit predictable, but it's still an interesting, well-paced book. The author captures the Montana setting and time period well, with the exception of a few slip-ups of modern day slang.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a simple cheesy story of three "undesirable" children taking the Orphan Train and make it to the end of the line (almost!!) in Montana. They are absorbed by a slightly dysfunctional ranch family and it takes off from there. I found the ending very abrupt.

[Janet · Rating 5 out of 5]

The second I heard that it was set in Montana, I wanted to read You Belong Here. This book stole my heart. It is an important piece of our history. If you loved The Forgotten Home Child by Genevieve Graham, then this book is for you.

[Jean · Rating 5 out of 5]

fate | fāt | noun1 the development of events beyond a person's control, regarded as determined by a supernatural power: fate decided his course for him | his injury is a cruel twist of fate. • the course of someone's life, or the outcome of a particular situation for someone or something, seen as beyond their control: he suffered the same fate as his companion.

In Dianna Rostad’s You Belong Here Now, which is set in 1925, three children of different ages and backgrounds are all brought together by fate. Through events over which they had little control, Charles, Patrick, and Opal find themselves on an orphan train bound from New York to Montana. By the time the train nears the final stop, only these three children remain. What if no one wants them? Will they be forced to return to New York? Charles, the oldest, decides to make a run for it, and teenage Patrick and eight-year-old Opal bravely follow. Like the Three Musketeers who stick together, they leap into unknown territory and wind up on a farm.

Unwelcome at first, these kids have to earn their way into this family. Mama is openhearted from the very start. She’s still grieving the loss of a daughter who died in a horrendous accident years earlier and still feels bitter toward the now-grown woman whom she blames for causing it. Papa is a man of few words, but he seems thankful to have extra help on the ranch. The toughest one to convince is Nara, the adult daughter who is her father’s right-hand woman in the cattle operation, along with Jim, the only ranch hand, who is Native American. Nara is so suspicious of Charles, whom she caught trying to steal a horse, that she works the boys as hard as she possibly can. Opal, who is small for her age, barely speaks, and Nara wonders if she, too, has something to hide.

Charles, it turns out, has a very quick temper, and this lands him in trouble more than once. In fact, not only is he is danger of being sent back to New York, but he puts Patrick and Opal in jeopardy as well. But he’s so smart and such a hard worker, plus he is extremely loyal and protective of his two “siblings.” Patrick proves to be something of a horse whisperer, which eventually earns him great respect. Opal is a sweet girl, a people pleaser. When trouble comes her way, one can’t help rooting for her. Was it fate that made them a family?

There’s nothing really unpredictable about the plot, and Nara’s change of heart seemed rather sudden, I thought. Nevertheless, after a bit of a shaky start, I found this book hard to put down. The storytelling is quite simple, but it suits the time and place. The lessons in this tale surpass time and place, however. Prejudice is still with us. Forgiveness is still necessary. Family is more paramount than ever. Acknowledging the ways in which we are similar as well as the ways in which we are unique are just as important.

4 stars

[Ruth Chatlien · Rating 5 out of 5]

Set in Montana in 1925, You Belong Here Now by Dianna Rostad is a beautiful story of relationships that bring healing. The "you" in the title refers to three young people who are sent from New York City on one of the orphan trains transporting children out west to be taken in by families and set to work on farms. Each of the three has been battered by life: Charles, a strapping young man who learned to get by on the violent streets after his father died in WWI and his mother took to the bottle; Patrick, an Irish immigrant orphaned by the Spanish flu epidemic; and Opal, a tiny, mostly silent, little girl taken from an abusive mother. In town after town, these three are picked over and rejected until they're the only ones left. On their way to the last town on the line, they take desperate action and jump off the train rather than be sent back to New York.

Fate leads them to the Stewarts, a ranch family that is in many ways as scarred as they are. Nara, the unmarried daughter in her 30s, is a capable ranch hand and wants nothing so much as to be Papa's righthand helper and heir—but he refuses to accept that the family's only son has left permanently for the life of an artist in New York. And Mama, caretaker of everyone else, still nurses a deep wound inflicted by the death of her oldest daughter as a small child. Although the Stewarts desperately need help around the place, Nara doesn't trust the children because of rumors about crimes committed by other train riders. Mama takes Opal under her wing, but Nara works the boys hard so they will be too tired to get into mischief. But trouble finds them anyway in the form of prejudice by the community, Children's Aid Society officials looking for the runaways, and dangerous ghosts from the children's past lives.

Rostad delivers the setting masterly, evoking the language, scenery, and customs of rural Montana with a deft touch. The story is heartwarming without being saccharine. None of the difficulties are glossed over, and each character's growth is hard won. I recommend this debut novel highly.

[Marilyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought a lot about how I felt as I read through this book. Almost gave up once. The subject of ‘the orphan train’ has had many fictional books written on this sad topic, this one was a bit different though with a western theme set in Montana. The threesome, all different ages, temperaments and backgrounds found a way to melt the hearts of all those that became their ‘family’.
Loved this quote: “But all creatures on this earth, man or beast, do ugly things to survive.”

[Claire Fullerton · Rating 5 out of 5]

This review first appeared in the New York Journal of Books

A sweeping, atmospheric story set in cattle country, Bull Mountain, Montana, You Belong Here Now is a heart-tugging, home on the range story told through a wide-view lens with panoramic perfection.

Author Dianna Rostad gives context for this enthralling story in her author’s note on page one: “From 1853 through the early 1900’s, The Children’s Aid Society in New York rescued over 120,000 orphans living on the city streets in the aftermath of war, Spanish Flu, and immigration. The orphan train carried them out to the rick soils of farms and ranches.”

From the onset, the reader is invested. It is April 1925, on a train from Grand Central Terminal headed west, when the fates of three orphans collide under the common weight of untenable circumstances. Charles, big and menacing; Patrick, good natured and Irish; and blond and tiny Opal are a homeless, unlikely trio, until they simultaneously jump from the train, and land as runaways in big sky country together. Out here it is survival of the fittest, and Charles, adept at navigating New York’s mean streets, takes the initiative by creeping to the Stewart family’s barn with the intention of stealing a horse for their travels, but he is caught out.

The Stewart family is the stuff made of Montana’s salt of the earth. Mama, Papa, and their thirty-something daughter, Nara, center their lives on the wide-open land as cattle ranchers, with the aid of Jim, who comes from the nearby Indian reservation. The family is now two less: the eldest, John, having moved to the big city to be an artist, and their daughter, Mabel, taken 20 years prior, having been stampeded by a herd of cattle to death.

Nara, who has traded all feminine attributes in favor of running the ranch, has no mercy for a horse thief, but when warm-hearted Mama meets the guilty Charles, she takes him into the house to feed him, and Papa decides to have the young lad work off his crime. When the family learns there are two more with Charles, the orphans are rounded and given room and board until Charles’s wrong is righted.

Nara, resentful of her parents’ charity, is put in charge of Charles’ and Patrick’s labor. “She had every intention of making sure that horse thief learned a hard lesson. He’d gotten off easy, and easy didn’t belong out here.” As time goes by, Nara doesn’t know what to make of the orphans

and is wary. “Since those three had arrived, she had packed her rifle every day, made sure the door was latched every night, and slept with her gun.”

Neighbor Ella Connelly is the enemy of the Stewart family. She is held in contempt for instigating what resulted in the death of Mabel, and grudges die hard in rustic Montana. Nara and Ella are staunch nemeses to the point that, had the Children’s Aid Society appointed anyone in the region other than Ella as its adoption coordinator, Nara might turn the orphans in. When Ella appears at the Stewarts’ ranch to inquire about three runaway orphans, Nara’s heart begins to change, when she decides on the spot, “she’d keep it to herself and think on things.”

It is uneven terrain on the way to the orphans proving themselves to the Stewarts, and author Dianna Rostad fluidly links one cliffhanging episode after another with amazing balance. There are high stakes for every clearly defined character in the story: Mama’s heart longs to help fill the void left by Mabel; the fair-minded Papa sees a chance to give the unfortunates a break while gaining help on the land; and Nara struggles with her identity, once her brother John, defeated, returns to the ranch from the city, with the threat of usurping her hard-won place.

The Stewart ranch is run on a tight schedule, and, in time, each orphan grows to show signs of where they fit in with the family, even as the lives they’ve left behind rumble to the surface in need of redress. There are challenging peaks and valleys as Charles learns to control his temper, Opal confronts her negligent mother, and Patrick’s natural way with wild horses dictates his path ahead.

In lively, descriptive language, Dianna Rostad has penned a heart-warming, epic story built on the premise of a search for belonging that reads as an odyssey in all that it takes to find the heart of one's family.

[Kristina Civille · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel takes place in Montana (1925), where an orphan train is coming from New York carrying three brave children, Charles, Patrick, and Opal. Before reaching their final stop, Charles convinces Patrick and Opal to jump off the train which leads them to a ranch. At this ranch, they meet a unique family which turns into just the beginning of their journey.

In this incredible story, the author introduces wonderful characters that look out for one another. This novel truly drives home the point that non-blood relatives can be your family. The relationship between Charles, Patrick, and Opal is a bond so strong that they feel for each other throughout the book. Then, you put them in a household that adapts to these same principles of looking out for one another, and you are left with a full heart. If you enjoy historical fiction about family and strong bonds, you will enjoy this book!

I was gifted this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Cynthia · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m reviewing this to save someone else from wasting their time. Sorry Ms. Rostad, this is not personal, although I’m sure it is to you.
This story is filled with cliché, trite and hackneyed dialogue. The characters are equally disappointing and uninteresting. I’d quit reading but the only book I quit was The Four Winds, also horrible. I’m going to finish it just to know that I did.
The editor and publisher should really rethink putting out a book like this.

[Susan P · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I found You Belong Here Now a good read, I thought many of the characters were unlikeable--particularly a woman who would 25 years later still blame a girl who caused an accident at the age of 8. So much of what was touted as "heartwarming" didn't feel heartwarming to me at all.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyed. It is NOT exactly Orphan Train!

[Sarah · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am not sure why I finished this book when life is short and there are so many great books out there. Poorly written, full of clichés, overwrought, predictable.

[Brandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was exactly what I needed right now. I have read a lot of romance and thrillers lately, and my last read was pretty intense, so I needed something completely different.

I fell in love with the three orphans, all so different yet bonded by tragic circumstances. I also really enjoyed watching their relationships develop with the Stewart family, starting as strangers, growing into an integral part of the farm staff, to becoming family. Why is this three stars instead of four? The pace at times was slow, and it was also predictable.

Choose this if you are looking for a sweet, heartwarming read.

Thank you @uplitreads for my #gifted copy.

[Suzanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lovely story and although it’s not labeled “YA”, that’s what I think of it as…

[Julie Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

I couldn't put the book down - I read it in one sitting (and stayed up far too late to do it!). You root for these characters from the start and their individual growth was so gratifying to see. I also loved that the setting (both time and place) was so different from what we're seeing in historical fiction lately. Big-hearted and accessible, this is a great summer read!

[Margaret · Rating 1 out of 5]

It was my book club’s selection. Otherwise, I would not have finished it.

It seemed to be written by a high school student.