I've read all of Celia Imrie's fiction books and this one is very different to its more lighthearted predecessors and, in my view, better for it.

The book tells the story of Marcella, her marriage and, ultimately, their connection to the Titanic. I thought the first half of the book could have been slightly compressed and told in a more focussed way, but it set the scene for the dramatic events of the second half of the book. It was an enjoyable read nonetheless and one based largely on true events, which made it all the more interesting.

I also thought Celia Imrie's book really brought out the lives of those who were onboard the Titanic and made me consider things related to that ill-fated voyage in a different way. I thought the explanation at the end of the book of the research and various inspiration for the story was also really interesting and showed the amount of work that went into telling this fascinating tale.

Of Celia Imrie's novels, I think this was the best and was a well-told tale of love and loss.

I am a great fan of Celia Imrie and the way she uses unusual real life situations to form a story around. In this case it is children found alive after the titanic disaster. However you do not realise this as you start the book. I found the beginning somewhat stilted and thought I wasn't going to enjoy the read as it was unclear where the story might be going. However the pace increased and became clearer leading to the tragic voyage of which we are all aware. What most of us don't know about is who survived the ship wreck and here we find just one of those stories unfolded.
Overall I enjoyed this book and the research (and notes about it) was thorough, however it was somewhat disjointed at times and none of the characters were particularly likeable.

Orphans Of The Storm by Celia Imrie is a thrilling and powerful historical novel based on fact.
It is set around the early 1900’s in France, London, on board the ill-fated Titanic and in New York City. As the storm physically rages around, it is mirrored by mental anguish and a stormy relationship. The fall-out is the young boys.
The novel is a compelling read. The leading lady is well drawn, capturing the reader’s heart as her marriage falls apart. Her strength of character shines through as she seeks a divorce, virtually unheard of at the beginning of the twentieth century.
As the action moves to onboard the Titanic, the reader reads with dread and intrepidation as we know what is coming.
The after effects of the sinking are a mixture of guilt, grief and relief.
Until I read the after words, I did not realise that the tale was in fact true and based on real life people and experiences. It was good to find out what happened afterwards to all the characters.
Orphans Of The Storm is a marvellous read that will educate, inform and keep the reader glued.
I received a free copy via Net Galley. A favourable review was not required. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an e-copy of this book for review.

I'm afraid I didn't enjoy this as much as I expected. I felt the story was rather slow, especially the first half of the book which was quite plodding. There was some tension in the second half, but I didn't find any of the characters particularly likeable so I wasn't really bothered about finding out what happened to them.

Just not for me.

A good story, well written. I am not usually a fan of historical fiction but have enjoyed Celia Imrie's previous books so thought I'd give it a go. While I found it a bit slow to start I was soon engrossed. I thought the characters were well developed and a lot of the described scenes very atmospheric, particularly the south of France and the fate of the Titanic, I didn't realise until the end of the book exactly how much research was done and how factual the story was. A very good read. I feel it deserves a re-read, something I rarely do

A really enjoyable read. The story is set onboard a ship and you can feel the writers enthusiasm for this time period.

I have read Imrie's books before and found them light hearted fun and easy to read with pleasant and sometimes interesting characters. But despite the link with the Titanic this was far from a good read. It took over half the book to get to the ship crossing and although there were serious undercurrents to build up the controlling relationship of Marcella and Michael and then the trauma of the divorce the whole part of the plot was too overdrawn and the dialogue not well set.
I liked the setting in Nice (which Imrie obviously knows well) and the descriptive background of sewing and tailoring businesses - links with Paris and London fashion houses etc.
The main characters were not particularly likeable despite the underlining domestic violence issue.
Not her best.

'Orphans of the Storm' is an enjoyable piece of historical fiction, in which Imrie utilises a writing style that is easy and quick to read, which made it difficult to put down.
Although I originally picked this up due to a personal interest in Titanic, for me the Titanic sections themselves felt slightly rushed, and the use of multiple perspectives meant there were some characters I liked a lot more than others, and found some more difficult to get through.
The first half of the novel also felt slightly too drawn out, though I did enjoy the non-Titanic elements and sections much more than I expected myself to, and found myself really sympathising and bonding with Marcella as a character, which made it an almost unputdownable read.

(Thank you to NetGalley and Bloomsbury for providing me with this eARC!)

Orphans of the Storm sees Marcella stuck in a very unhappy marriage to Michael Navrotil. As she begins divorce proceedings, she sets in place a chain of events that brings New Yorker Margaret Hays plus the RMS Titanic and its fateful voyage into their lives.

I was drawn to this book due to a personal fascination with the Titanic. The section of the book that covers the voyage was well researched, and portrayed the emotions of the survivors beautifully.

However I did feel that the beginning of the book was too long - the scene setting of the marriage Marcella found herself in was drawn out, and didn't need to be half of the book. It then made the second half, where there was lots of action that could have been detailed, feel very rushed.

I really liked the final section, explaining the research that was undertaken - it was lovely to read about the people the story was based on.

"Orphans of the Storm"is very different from Celia Imrie's previous novels. It is not funny and it is based on fact, but what it does have in common is that it is mostly set in Nice. Obviously we all know what happened to RMS Titanic on her maiden voyage. This is the story of a small group of passengers and how they got to be on board. It is a proper epic family story with characters of various different nationalities. A great read.

Thanks to Net Galley and the publishers for the opportunity to review this book.

I'm going to be honest, this was very hit or miss for me. I didn't like any of the main characters, I found them boring and irritating. The plot took a while to get started (almost half of the book), but once it did I was interested. I just wish there was more to love, the writing was easy to read and understand and the ending was sweet. It was an amalgamation of good writing but bad characters, unfortunately.

Orphans of the Storm.
What a rollercoaster coaster of a ride in the book !
I've never read a book by Celia Indie before, and omg I've missed out.
Poignant, hearbreaking , exciting, tense - need I go on ? Oh and throw in an excellently researched to a well known history of the maiden voyage of the Titanic.
Read the book , you will not be disappointed.
Thank you to Bloomsbury and NetGalley for the ARC.

This is a great mix of fact and fiction told by an author who really enjoys and is interested in her subject matter, set on board a ship and gets the reader involved in the story. A great intriguing murder mystery with wonderful characters.

3+
In this historical novel we follow the lives of three main characters. First of all, there’s Marcella Caretto, a young mother of two little boys who in 1911 is seeking a divorce from Michael Navratil whom she alleges is abusive. The second is Michael himself, a Hungarian born dressmaker who evades the authorities in several ways. The third is New York born Margaret Bechstein Hays who is on a European tour with her friend Olive Potter and Olive’s mother Lilian. They decide to cut short their tour and head home, embarking on the maiden voyage of The Titanic where her life coincides with that of Marcella and Michael in the most dramatic and heartbreaking of ways.

First of all, this is an exceptionally well researched novel based on true events and characters, it’s very evident at the end of the book the research for it has been exhaustive and kudos and absolute respect for that. Marcella’s youth is captured well with all her conflicting emotions, she’s hardly gown into an adult herself and is trying to be a wife and mother in increasingly difficult circumstances. It’s like she’s living with a weather system, sometimes Michael is benign and at others he’s a raging storm. I really like the character of Margaret, she’s lively with a great sense of humour and her resilience when meeting so much resistance post Titanic demonstrates her indomitable spirit. I can’t make entire sense of Michael, he’s a nasty piece of work that’s for sure but apart from his actions I can’t quite get to grips with him. The sections on The Titanic and afterwards are done very well and this part of the book is really good.

However, the pace for the first 60% is incredibly slow with events occasionally perking things up a bit. Some dialogue I’m sorry to say I find dreadful and some peripheral characters don’t feel authentic. The repetition of the song La Petite Tonkinoise gets on my nerves after a while!

Overall, it is worth reading especially since it’s factually based and so well researched but you do have to stick with it to get to the best bits!

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Bloomsbury Publishing PLC for the arc in return for an honest review.

I was blown away by this book! The historical detail was forensic in it's attention to detail. The orphans of the title have been snatched by their father from their mother in France just before their divorce hearing. Stealing his erstwhile partner's passport he books tickets for passage to America in the ill fated Titanic . The descriptive passages detailing the voyage, culminating in its tragic sinking, were very different to other accounts I have read . The awful aftermath and loss of life is laid bear and the almost impossible task of identifying the bodies is especial poignant. In the case of the little brothers in our story , this task was compounded by the fact that their father perished ,with his real identity unknown. Taken under the protection of a young American, fellow survivor, they accompany her to her home and then begins their mother's nightmarish journey through beurocratic hoops before she can reclaim her babies. I loved this book as a work of fiction but then I read all the historical notes detailing the real lives behind the characters portrayed and was totally floored! The research that went into this book was phenomenal and the passion for her characters was probably fed by the knowledge Celia Imrie actually had familial links to the titanic. Can't recommend this wonderful book highly enough.

A deeply poignant and heart wrenching tale based, not only on real life events but real people, too—albeit fictional versions. Set both in Nice, France and on board the doomed maiden voyage of the Titanic.

Set in 1911, after three years of marriage Marcella Carretto has decided to divorce her cruel and controlling husband, Michael. But while awaiting the judges’ decision on the custody of their two children, Michael receives news that changes everything.

Meanwhile, fun loving New York socialite, Margaret Hays has grown bored of her Grand Tour Of Europe and decides to head home on the most famous steamer ever built—RMS Titanic.

As the ship sets sail for America, carrying two children bearing false names, the lives of Marcella, Michael and Margaret cross—and nothing will ever be the same again.

I really enjoyed this one, it was undeniably gripping and had me emotionally invested in the fates of Imrie’s characters, particularly Marcella and her young sons.

The level of historical detail was absolutely incredible, it was easy to tell that Celia Imrie had done extensive research on the topic. The characters were also written incredibly well and imbued with the humanity (and flaws) that I found brought realism to their narrative.

It’s told from three separate POVs- Marcella, Michael and Margaret. The first half of the book starts with Marcella’s POV and chronicles the start and eventual deterioration of Marcella and Michael’s marriage—I found it quite slow at first but the pace does pickup in the second half.

Overall a pretty solid read!

Though Celine Dion wasn’t singing during the Titanic scenes (or the aftermath), nor was there a Jack or a Rose—I couldn’t help but cry several times whilst reading this, so—if emotionally charged historical fiction is your thing, then I thoroughly recommend you check this out.

Also, a Massive thank you to Bloomsbury and NetGalley for the ARC.

I’m on a historical fiction spree at the moment so this one, featuring the titanic - really appealed! Something different and exciting!

We follow Marcella, a young woman who filed for divorce from her abusive and quite frankly narcissistic husband, triggering a series events which leave her fighting for, and eventually searching for, her children.

The character were extremely believable, the relationships between them had depth and overall they were written in a way that made them relatable.

The main events don’t start until about 60% into the book. Up until that point we’re talking slow (VERY SLOW) burn. Then we get to the titanic element of the story and it all seems to be over so very quickly. To me, the main ‘meat’ of the book was all wrong. There was only so many times we needed to see Michael treat Marcella like dirt to understand he was a nasty man.

This isn’t a book or a story about the titanic, but the titanic does feature in it. As an aside, the title seems rather amiss - what storm? There was no storm, the ‘orphans’ became so due to an iceberg, not a storm. It seems a very odd choice of title, unless it refers to the ‘storm’ that brews between their parents.

The writing style, especially descriptive elements, to me, especially felt like someone trying to design a film set or TV series. It was Imrie was trying to tell someone what it should look like - which felt a little disingenuous to me at times. Perhaps that’s the actor in her coming through.

It’s worth the read. It’s captivating at times, engaging and it is really quite easy to connect with the characters. If you’re into character driven historical fiction, a slow burn and long build up to ‘the main events’ - this one is probably for you!

An interesting narrative based on real events. Clearly very thoroughly researched and it’s obvious that the author and researcher both care deeply about the subject matter and the people involved. I felt the first half of the book was unnecessarily long and slow, but the book redeemed itself in the second half, which was paced well.