The Forgotten Children by Isabella Muir
A woman’s search to find her son uncovers the shocking truth about one of Britain’s darkest periods
Struggling with the demons of her past, Emily is a children’s author with a dark secret, and a guilt that threatens to consume her. For twenty years she has lived in Brighton, England, trying to forget the day they took her baby from her, just hours after he was born. But now, in the summer of 1987, she decides to begin the search for her son.
Emily takes refuge in a small town on the Isle of Anglesey to plan the search, where she meets Walter, a gentle stranger, who helps her with his words of wisdom and kindness. But it is when she decides to return home to Hastings, that she really has to face her demons.
Estranged from her parents when she was just sixteen, Emily is shocked by what her mother has to tell her about events that occurred before Emily was even born.
Beside her, throughout her search, is Emily’s beautiful Irish friend, Geraldine, recovering from her own sad experiences. Together they uncover a truth that shocks them all.
The Forgotten Children draws the reader into lives affected by narrow-minded beliefs and blinkered thinking at the highest level. Children who weren’t allowed to be born, children who were abandoned, and children who were taken, forced to lead a life thousands of miles away from everyone and everything they knew – leaving scars that may never heal.
At its heart, The Forgotten Children is a story of survival, but the journey that Emily has to take is painful. Even more so because she knows it was allowed to happen by individuals, religions and governments, who should have known better.
Amazon UK Amazon US BN Goodreads
About the Author
Isabella Muir has been surrounded by books her whole life and – after working for twenty years as a technical editor and having successfully completed her MA in Professional Writing – she was inspired to focus on fiction writing.
As well as her newest title, The Forgotten Children, Isabella is the author of the Sussex Crime Mystery series. These Agatha Christie style stories are set in the sixties and seventies and feature a young librarian and amateur sleuth, Janie Juke, who has a passion for Agatha Christie. All that Janie has learned from her hero, Hercule Poirot, she is able to put into action as she sets off to solve a series of crimes and mysteries.
Aside from books, Isabella has a love of all things caravan-like. She has spent many winters caravanning in Europe and now, together with her husband, she runs a small caravan site in Sussex. They are ably assisted by their much-loved Scottie, Hamish.
My Review
5 Stars
When Emily was sixteen she got pregnant and had a child. Her strict mother forced her to give the child up for adoption. This dark time is something that she has tried to forget about. But she finds herself pregnant and having a miscarriage with her current boyfriend. She can’t handle the situation well and leave him to go on the hunt for her child.
What follows is Emily trying to breach the gap between her and her mother just to learn where her son went. At the same time we learn about Patrick, a man from Australia that is traveling from Australia to the UK to find his brother.
In the 1960’s and 1970’s in Britain many unwed and young mothers were forced to give up their babies. They were told that the children were going to be adopted when they were sent to Australia, Canada, or other places. Many were treated horribly and died. I admit that I’m from the US and didn’t really know anything about this time period. Sadly it doesn’t surprise me and left me broken hearted.
This story is based on this time period but is about Emily and her trying to heal from the loss of her first and present child. The story heart wrenching and I admit that she got on my nerves a couple times. But the story is well written with everything that Emily and the readers go through. I really loved Patrick’s story. When I read that he was trying to find his brother I was very curious at how he was going to fit into the story.
This is a wonderful story that has me curious about real life events. I think I’m going to have to learn more about this. Now I’m curious to see what happened in America for the same girls.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. I voluntarily chose to read and post an honest review.
Enter to win a signed copy of The Forgotten Children (UK Only)
https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js
*Terms and Conditions –UK entries welcome. Please enter using the Rafflecopter box below. The winner will be selected at random via Rafflecopter from all valid entries and will be notified by Twitter and/or email. If no response is received within 7 days then Rachel’s Random Resources reserves the right to select an alternative winner. Open to all entrants aged 18 or over. Any personal data given as part of the competition entry is used for this purpose only and will not be shared with third parties, with the exception of the winners’ information. This will passed to the giveaway organiser and used only for fulfilment of the prize, after which time Rachel’s Random Resources will delete the data. I am not responsible for despatch or delivery of the prize.
I would like to thank Rachel’s Random Resources for the opportunity to read and share this book.
jbronderbookreviews 
Leave a Reply