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. 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 characters are splendid. Icy Alexandra and strong, able Bess, with her ne’er-do-well brother, Ned, and kind, reserved father, Abe. Bess never stopped thinking of her daughter, and when she finally scraped together two Pounds with the intent to retrieve her daughter six years later, she was in for an unwelcome surprise. I won't divulge more, although the publisher's blurb might have already done so. Suffice it to say that a mystery and fraud were perpetrated, and the author caused me some serious heart palpitations and nail biting before the novel ending. 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.

I think readers who enjoy novels such as The Silent Companions or The Thirteenth Tale might enjoy The foundling as well. The Foundling” is written by Sunday Times bestselling author Stacey Halls and is her second novel, after the success of “The Familiars” last year. 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.

lucycrichton

As the novel progressed, it lost steam. I enjoyed the story, but that strong connection I felt at the start faded (which is always disappointing). After Part 1, I felt as though as I was emotionally removed from the characters and simply reading an entertaining story. One of the main characters introduced in Part 2 distracted me from connecting with the storyline. I found it endlessly surprising how history would repeat itself, despite a person doing everything in their power to make it otherwise. This story is narrated by two women: (1) Bess Bright, a young, lower-class boiled shrimp vendor living in the slums with her father Abe and useless brother Ned, and (2) Alexandra Callard, a youngish rich widow living a pampered but extremely limited life. Stacey Halls has done it again! I was so mesmerised by The Foundling that I read it in one sitting. If you enjoyed the writing style of The Familiars and the mix of fiction and history, then you will ADORE this one as well.

The majority of the reading group said they enjoyed this book. Several people commented that they found it very readable, with a nice writing style and a good pace. They liked the historical detail and felt that they learned something about life in London in the later eighteenth century, the Foundling Hospital and the way it worked, and the kindly Thomas Coram. Some readers found the characters interesting, particularly Alexandra, whose problems were unfolded gradually, with hints of agarophobia or Aspergers, and eventually revealed as PTSD from a childhood trauma.

Hard times forced unwed mother, Bess Blight to leave her newborn baby, Clara, at London’s Foundling Hospital. Six years of saving and she finally has enough to claim her daughter. However, when she arrives she is stunned to learn she has already been claimed by Bess herself.