“Did God really love them? If so, then why was He putting them through these painful trials?”
Laura McAllister is working as a ladies’ maid when she gets word that her mother has fallen ill and her siblings have been taken into the care of children’s homes. Their father had died just two years earlier from injuries sustained during a train accident. Without their mother or older sister’s supervision, Garth gets desperate and steals some bread to feed his twin sister, Katie, and younger sister, Grace. He is caught and the policeman takes them to a children’s home. Before Laura can get back to London to check on them, they are sent to Canada as part of the children emigration program – without the family’s permission.
No Ocean Too Wide was offered as a selection for members of the Multnomah & Waterbrook Launch team. I was given a free copy of the book in exchange for a fair review. The plot seemed intriguing and I usually enjoy historical fiction books.
In London during the early 1900s, many children were in the workhouses or living on the streets. As a solution to overflowing children’s homes, children were emigrated to Canada to be adopted by families or work as domestics with a contract until they were 18. While many children found their way into loving or fair homes, there were also children who were abused, starved or lived in servitude. In No Ocean Too Wide, Laura sets out on a journey to find her siblings and bring them back home to their mother, who has recovered from her illness. She meets two lawyers along the way who are investigating the emigration program and they are able to see the reality the children face with Laura’s help.
While the historical fiction part of No Ocean Too Wide is intriguing and I really wanted to find out what happened to the children, the Christian romance part of the book isn’t as interesting. Laura and one of the lawyers constantly debate in their heads whether they should have feelings for each other or not. Lovers of both Christian romance and historical fiction will really enjoy this book. I was glad to learn about a new part of history that I didn’t know before. It reminded me of the Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline.
