"I resolve to do everything I can to help my family."

This is the promise that twelve-year-old Sarah Lee makes. In the spring of 1816, Sarah's family is uprooted from their home in the English countryside and thrown into a workhouse in newly industrial London. Six months later, a factory injury leaves Sarah's father out of work and her family desperate for money. Against the wishes of her older brother Thomas, Sarah disguises herself and enters a dangerous new job.

Sarah soon learns that life in London is not as simple–or as easy–as it seems. She meets Jamie, a sullen, aggressive boy who helps her to adjust to the new conditions. But Jamie has dark secrets of his own, and his reluctance to trust people clashes with Sarah's desire to know his history. As the city creeps towards winter, Sarah's life becomes laced with lies and secrets that threaten to put her in grave danger. And when tragedy strikes Sarah's family, the staggering changes in her life may be enough to break her.

"What a remarkable feat and a wonderfully complex, atmospheric, mature and heartfelt story." - an anonymous reader

COMPLETE; 38 chapters

Content Warning: physical violence, child abuse, suicide mentions, foul language. Sensitive topics will be labeled at the start of chapters, and with the more serious ones I will summarize the chapter at the beginning of the next one so that it can be skipped if necessary. If I have overlooked a topic or chapter that should be labeled with a warning, please point it out.

This is still undergoing editing, so please feel free to point out any mistakes or give me constructive feedback! Thank you for reading!

Cover created using Canva.com. All characters and writing belong to me, @amandatheauthor1024.