A Black Country Novel
5 primary works
Book 1
Cara Flowers' mother disappeared when she was too young to realise, and when her grandmother dies she leaves not only an enormous fortune, but also a huge responsibility – she wants Cara to find their estranged family.
Her quest leads her to the doors of the looming Bilston workhouse where children are torn away from their families to toil for others. Shocked by the appalling conditions, Cara vows to find a way to shut down the building and rescue its residents. And then she discovers a link between the workhouse and her missing mother...
Can Cara overcome her past and save these children from their fate?
Book 2
Even in the hardest lives, some light must shine.
Violet Clancy can take no more of her brutal stepfather's attentions, so when he meets a tragic end she feels justice has been done. Looking around the bleak and pitiless Black Country town of Wednesbury, she realises that there are many other wrongs that she could help to put right.
Joining a coterie of women who call themselves the Wednesbury Wives, Violet and her friends are determined to win justice for the abused. Their mission is to bring a little light into the hardest lives.
Before long the wives find laughter and romance in their close-knit town. But will their friendships survive when some of their good deeds are brought into doubt, and some of their methods are called into question? And is justice always worth it, no matter what the price?
Book 3
Hortense Buchanan wasn't made to be a mother. Bullied herself when she was a child, she continues the tradition with her own children. When her daughter, Orpha, runs away from home, Hortense celebrates, never once worrying for her safety.
Circumstances bring Orpha and Peg together, and soon they're as close as family, making their way in the bustle of a booming Birmingham and the smoke-filled Black Country. But before long, Hortense realises that her daughter stands in the way of the one thing she really cares about, and the bitter legacy of the Buchanans looks set to destroy them all...
Book 4
Taken into service, orphan Lily Rae has heard all the stories about what entitled masters think their pretty maid's duties include. But when the very worst happens to her, she knows scrubbing the scullery floors of Ryder House no longer provide refuge from the sadistic Sebastian Ryder... Cold and alone, Lily makes for the town of Wednesbury, knowing she has only herself to rely on...
Tilley Green has nothing to her name except a fine figure her worn, patched-up clothes can't disguise, and the voice of an angel. Destined to be a chorus-hall star Tilley must first escape the clutches of her opportunistic and violent manager, a certain Seb Ryder...
Life has been a long tough struggle for both Lily and for Tilley, but the town of Wednesbury just could be where they can find their own glimmer of happiness...
Book 5
As she grows older, Rosie realises she has 'second sight' and is able to read people's palms and see into their futures. Needing to make a living of her own, she befriends the canal folk, known as the 'cut-rats' traversing the Black Country waterways with their cargo, and so offers readings to anyone who can pay.
Pursued by Jake Harding, a Romany bandolier who wants her for his wife, Rosie instead finds herself falling in love with a married man. And despite growing ominous signs that her future may be cursed, Rosie can't quite break away from the dream of a happily ever after...
Lindsey Hutchinson is a master storyteller, and her Black Country sagas are heart-breaking, uplifting and truly addictive.