Orphan Train

The Orphan Train series follows the Neumann sisters and the reformers who work among impoverished immigrants and displaced children in 1850s New York and the Midwest. Beginning with the prequel novella An Awakened Heart, the books trace the Children’s Aid Society’s placing-out work and the opportunities and dangers created when children and young women were sent west by rail.

The novels combine romance with a critical view of poverty, inadequate supervision and the unequal choices available to women. Christian service, forgiveness and the meaning of family are central, but the series also recognises that benevolent systems could expose vulnerable children to neglect, exploitation and separation.