FROM AMAZON: Shilling Grange Orphanage, England, 1949. She would do anything to protect the innocent children in her care. But soon they could be sent into danger…

When Clara Newton’s fiancé died during World War Two, she thought her life was over. But now she looks after orphans who, like her, lost everything during the war. Children like sweet little Peg who won’t speak, and Joyce whose body was scarred by polio. Clara loves them all dearly, even though life as a housemother can be lonely – especially now that Ivor, a D-Day war hero with dark brown eyes who once helped with the children, has disappeared…

But then Clara receives some terrible news. The orphanage is going to be sold and the children sent far away. Joyce and Peg will be taken to a notorious home for disabled children. The others will be sent to Australia, where Clara fears they will be mistreated by unknown families. Any day now, the children could lose everything she worked so hard to provide…

With wealthy buyers lined up to purchase Shilling Grange and a ship already docked waiting to carry the children away, Clara is desperate. She must find loving new homes for them quickly, but time is running out… Can she save the orphans before they lose everything all over again? And even if Ivor returns when she needs him the most, will it be too late? ( )

I am loving these books, they are so filled with historical events, characters to love and hate, and once I start, I can't be stop. Highly recommended.

FROM AMAZON: Shilling Grange Orphanage, England, 1949. She would do anything to protect the innocent children in her care. But soon they could be sent into danger…

When Clara Newton’s fiancé died during World War Two, she thought her life was over. But now she looks after orphans who, like her, lost everything during the war. Children like sweet little Peg who won’t speak, and Joyce whose body was scarred by polio. Clara loves them all dearly, even though life as a housemother can be lonely – especially now that Ivor, a D-Day war hero with dark brown eyes who once helped with the children, has disappeared…

But then Clara receives some terrible news. The orphanage is going to be sold and the children sent far away. Joyce and Peg will be taken to a notorious home for disabled children. The others will be sent to Australia, where Clara fears they will be mistreated by unknown families. Any day now, the children could lose everything she worked so hard to provide…

With wealthy buyers lined up to purchase Shilling Grange and a ship already docked waiting to carry the children away, Clara is desperate. She must find loving new homes for them quickly, but time is running out… Can she save the orphans before they lose everything all over again? And even if Ivor returns when she needs him the most, will it be too late? ( )

I was so excited to read A Place to Call Home, it is the second book in the Shilling Grange Children’s Home series and it did not disappoint me at all.
After the troubles that Clara had in the first book this one carries on from there. Clara is the housemother of Shilling Grange, I really like her character, she was more than a housemother, she was like a mother to all the children. She wants the best for the children and that might not always be what the county council thinks is best.
When the children’s home is put up for sale Clara is in for another fight, she has been misled by the council in many ways, now, not only is she fighting to save the children’s home but to keep the remaining children in her home together and safe, not shipped abroad or sent to a home for the disabled.
I loved this book, it is so nice to read of place names I know like Lavenham and Dedham which are not very far from where I live.
It wasn’t just the place names that made me love it though, the whole vibe in the book was one of family, even though they were not blood-related, Clara was their mother in every way that a mother would be.
Each child had such different characteristics, and it was nice that two more children arrived at the home, it was nice getting to know them too.
Overall, this was a fantastic book that was written beautifully and I would recommend it to all my friends and family.
( )

Hurrah for Miss Newton!

Clara Newton is the housemother of Shilling Grange Children's Home. She had rather a shaky start in the position in book one of this series, The Orphanage, but in this second instalment she's more sure of herself and what the children in her care need from her. However, bad news is on the horizon and when she learns that the home is to be sold and the children scattered far and wide (Australia no less!) she must try to find them the homes they have been looking for before it's too late.

She's also dealing with matters of the heart. The man she fell for in book one has done a disappearing act. Can anyone else live up to him?

A Place to Call Home is another lovely read with writing that just kept pulling me along and characters that were calling out to me to give them my attention. Clara is brilliant. She's a bit wobbly at times but always manages to save the day one way or another. The children themselves have had their characters built up incredibly well by Lizzie Page, each of them unique and special, and I was rooting for them and Clara to find a solution to the situation they found themselves in.

I do adore Lizzie Page's writing. I think it's the inimitable mixture of dry humour, heartbreaking sorrow and stories that seem relatable yet distinctive that makes me love them so much. I'm now really keen to read book three, An Orphan's Song, and see what's next for Clara and her brood. A Place to Call Home proved that there's plenty of life left in the tales of the Shilling Grange gang. ( )

What a warm hearted read, making you root for the underdog, and the things you make your mind up that you don’t want become your hearts desire.
This is the second book in this series, and the author does a great job of bringing you up to date!
The setting is post WWII England, and Clara Newton is the housemother of displaced children, or gifts she is given to help and raise. We walk with these orphans as they go about life, and see how they come together in crisis. Each child has their own story, and we soon care about each of them. Keep the tissues handy!
Now I’m looking forward to the third book in this series!

I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Bookoutour, and was not required to give a positive review. ( )