The Foundling: The gripping Sunday Times bestselling historical novel, from the winner of the Women's Prize Futures award

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The main reason was it felt a little bit one dimensional. Child taken at birth, mother goes in search of her daughter years later, but there were no other layers or twists to the story. Hence the 4 stars.

This was such an ominous book, at first and talk about characters...eighteenth-century London played a big role in this book and was a character in and of itself. I could smell the rot, feel the mist and see the darkness; its dark gritty streets played their own role. I can't say enough about this one except it deserves All. The. Stars. Engaging but disappointingly straightforward historical fiction novel of one child torn between two women. Although she’s sad to be asking for the chance to leave Clara in their care, Bess sets her mind to patiently saving the money needed to reclaim her. Like the other mothers, Bess also leaves a token by which Clara can be identified. Who has taken Clara? The second novel by Ms Halls tells a story of a very young woman who in 1754 gets pregnant and is forced to part with her daughter the day after she is born. Bess Bright knows she will have to collect money for several years to reunite with Clara, and this hope gives her the strength to work and be patient. Living less than a mile away from Bess, a young widow has not left her house in a decade. When her close friend - an ambitious young doctor at the Foundling Hospital - persuades her to hire a nursemaid for her daughter, she is hesitant to welcome someone new into her home and her life. But her past is threatening to catch up with her and tear her carefully constructed world apart.And the real excitement I got from this book? I’d heard of The Foundling Hospital and the museum that still stands today. It’s clear that the author wanted to research and explore this in fiction and she’s craft a really, interesting and emotional real. It felt personal, raw and very vivid and Bess’ search for her child was particularly eventful A young woman destitute, a society unforgiving and judgemental towards unmarried mothers, and a hospital accepting young babies in a scandalous game of lottery is what provides the basis of this remarkable story. A story inspired by real events, a hospital that existed, and a practice that was reprehensible for prying on the misfortunes of young vulnerable women. This story shows how the different classes viewed each other and how the poorer of those were judged so harshly. I especially loved the inner thoughts of our two female leads and how they judged each other. I found that they really only thought of themselves and not what was best for the child until they realized that it was only hurting their daughter. The point about motherhood and the bond of mother and child would have been better presented with all things being equal, IMO. A mother's love (or at least kindness) in both economic situations. As presented in this story, the result is skewed to a great extent. One other problem I had with this plot is the ending, which is too pat, too tidy, with a too-abrupt personality change for one of the main characters. Overall, an informative and interesting read that I would recommended to historical fiction fans who want a lighter, entertaining story, rather than a richly detailed intense plot.

Less than a mile from Bess’s lodgings in a quiet town house, a wealthy widow barely ventures outside. When her close friend—an ambitious doctor at the Foundling Hospital—persuades her to hire a nursemaid for her young daughter, she is hesitant to welcome someone new into her home and her life. But her past is threatening to catch up with her—and will soon tear her carefully constructed world apart. A token and a number is given in exchange for a baby, many of whom were near death and did not make it through their first year. The healthy ones often made it into the homes of the rich against the mothers wishes who were branded 'insane', when they dared come to collect the child and reverse the swap. The Foundling Hospital within the novel is based upon a real place that existed within that time, but this novel is driven more by its characters than by historical events. Stacey Halls knows her craft though, and she has such a talent at creating mood and atmosphere, at conveying emotion through gesture as well as words. She is certainly an author who has earned her place as an historical novelist of note. Just as I raved about The Familiars last year, I will quite happily rave about The Foundling this year. London is evoked in its dank and dangerous glory. It reeks of inequality and poverty. Contrast part one which is firmly set in the area of Ludgate Hill to part two, where we meet the Bloomsbury wealth and the mysterious widow who refuses to leave her home. She reluctantly employs a nursemaid and you just know there are secrets and pain in that house. They seep through the plush wallpaper slowly but surely and into the streets where the carriage smash them up on the cobbles with the permanents of Bess’ story. What a depiction of two women’s stories and the London of that time. Much of the book was realistic and believable, as were the actions taken by each of the characters.Bess Bright has discovered that she’s with child. Unmarried, and poor, the best option for girls in her predicament is the Foundling Hospital. Founded by Sir Thomas Coram in 1739 to look after babies whose parents were unable to care for them, admittance was by lottery, as demand exceeded available spaces. Women's fiction fans and those who enjoy learning of the life styles of the wealthy and their privileges as well as the poor at that time should enjoy this book. Secondary characters from Bess’s siblings to Doctor Mead added to the tale. We also have elements of romance but these are secondary to the central theme of Bess and her daughter. MY THOUGHTS: Don't expect this to be a deep and gritty read, because it's not. It is a light read, but it is also touching. This book was released in the U.K. in February of this year with the title THE FOUNDLING. I actually prefer that title to THE LOST ORPHAN, the one given this April 2020 U.S. release. I guess it was thought that we Yanks would not know what a foundling is, so the powers that be who name books were keeping it simple for us? Whatever the case and whatever its name, this sophomore effort by Stacey Halls (after her debut work THE FAMILIARS) is definitely worth the read.

My one qualm is that the ending felt too tidy... too easy. I do think I ultimately ended up liking it but I know some probably won't, likely for the same reasons that I waffled on it. I don't like this book as much as THE FAMILIARS but it was a good follow-up and I did enjoy it. I think readers who enjoy novels such as The Silent Companions or The Thirteenth Tale might enjoy The foundling as well. Although I didn’t quite get the 18th century feeling, more the 19th, I did find the setting very atmospheric. Billingsgate came alive with the shouts of merchants shouting their varied fish and seafood offerings. I could smell and visualise the muddy pathways that seemed prevalent in every turn of the area, with the traps, carriages and horses that travelled on them. The filth and danger of Ludgate Hill sits in stark contrast to well-heeled Bloomsbury across town and uptight widow, Alexandra Callard, whose fear of losing loved ones keeps her and her six-year-old child, Charlotte, confined inside a home that is to all intents a prison. Self-contained and still dealing with an upbringing that has left her emotionally stunted, Alexandra is persuaded by her husband’s great friend, a doctor at the Foundling Hospital, to hire a nursemaid. No prizes for guessing who gets the job and the explosive collision that ensues with both women having their own claim on Charlotte, with the man that brought them together, kind-hearted and honourable Doctor Elliot Mead, caught in the crossfire.I found it endlessly surprising how history would repeat itself, despite a person doing everything in their power to make it otherwise. There was a lot of coincidence that benefited the plot but this didn’t distract me from the enjoyment of the story and I thought the author covered mental health issues like agoraphobia, PTSD and paranoia along with grief exceedingly well. Just showing that these issues did exist many many years ago, even if they weren’t diagnosed correctly. THE FAMILIARS was probably one of my top 5 favorite historical fiction reads of 2019, so I was really excited to receive an ARC of THE LOST ORPHAN by the same author. THE FAMILIARS is a dark but unexpectedly feminist story that takes place during a time that was historically unkind to women but manages to have an empowering message that reads as being fairly accurate to the times as well as a sympathetic heroine. THE LOST ORPHAN is the same, but the vehicle through which it accomplishes this is an entirely different beast. Don't make the mistake that I did and assume that the books are going to be similar: they are not-- at all. Not in mode, not in pacing, not in character. I was surprised they were by the same person, tbh. But the main criticism of this book concerned the ending – everyone commented that the “happy ending” in which Alexandra voluntarily gives up the child and marries the doctor who understands her problems, and Bess marries Lyle and takes her daughter to a nice new home, was contrived, unlikely and “too neat”. Why would Alexandra, after years of suffering with PTSD, suddenly “snap out of it”? Would dividing the child’s time between two such different worlds, the privileged and the deprived, have been acceptable? And was the dilemma of a child with two mothers, her birth mother and the woman who brought her up, sufficiently explored? Love Stacey Halls, love the period setting, love the premise of the story but it didn’t stand out from other more powerful stories with a similar troupe. And I was hoping it would and was expecting it to be a favourite.

I loved the atmosphere of the novel and got totally lost in the story. Wonderful sense of time and place and a captivating plot. I really enjoy historical fiction and couldn’t wait to read more on the Foundling Hospital when I finished the novel. THE LOST ORPHAN has mystery, historical fiction, a main character with agoraphobic problems that stem from an incident in her childhood, secrets, and to what lengths a mother's love takes her. 5/5Other readers found the characters slightly less convincing and one thought they were too stereotyped: “odd lady with manic sister”, “hero”, “mystery man”, “alcoholic brother”. One commented that, although she appreciated the way the author put female perspectives centre stage and presented the women’s point of view, the narrative seemed to be giving modern day sensibilities to eighteenth century women, which seemed wrong. There were also several comments questioning whether a woman in Alexandra’s position would have sat down to meals with the nanny, and why she appeared to have control of her own finances rather than having been appointed a guardian after the deaths of her father and husband. We follow Bess and Alexandra as Bess serves in her household and is loved by Charlotte more than Charlotte loves Alexandra. Betrayal, love, hardship and the unwavering love of a mother are central themes. We have elements of mystery, suspense and a few unexpected twists as our tale unfolds. While there is nothing predictable about this beautifully written story, I found the rapid change in Alexandra's character towards the end of the book a little unbelievable. However, I enjoyed this enough to have earmarked Stacey Hall's previous book, The Familiars, to read.