In 1901, Manchester, England, is a place of utter despair, where hunger, filth, and disease are inescapable, and the line between subsistence and outright poverty frighteningly thin. After the death of her beloved husband, Thomas, Sarah and her five children fight to survive in this heartless and unforgiving world. But survival comes at a cost. The emotional walls that Sarah builds around her are as thick as the smoke that chokes the dark Manchester sky. Even those that love her most cannot get in. A tragedy forces Sarah to rethink her circumstance, and she makes a decision that will alter the course of her life forever. Sarah and her family leave the grit and grime of Manchester behind and set out on a new path. And while Sarah moves on, she soon realizes that leaving isn't always letting go. Sarah's journey is filled with fear and doubt, sorrow and regret, but it leads to a life that is better than Sarah could have ever imagined. The Porter's Wife is the first in a series of two novels by Lisa Brown that follow the lives of Sarah Berry and her family. It is a poignant tale of sacrifice and the clash between love and blinding pride. It is a celebration of self-discovery and the resiliency of the human spirit. Keywords: Historical, Fiction, Romance, England, Immigrant, Canada, Romance, Edwardian, Austen, Period