Inspired by the Life of Rosa Marie Twitchett

London, 1866.

Rosa Marie Twitchett is born into the smoke, noise, and poverty of Victorian Shoreditch, where survival depends on hard work, good fortune, and the strength to endure another day.

As London grows into the greatest city in the world, Rosa watches it change around her. Horse-drawn omnibuses give way to electric trams. The newspapers scream of Jack the Ripper, distant wars, and the glory of Empire. But for women like Rosa, history is measured differently—in rent due on Monday, bread on the table, and children who must somehow be kept alive.

Inspired by the documented life of a real East London woman, When I Grow Rich, Say the Bells at Shoreditch follows Rosa through love, loss, and impossible choices. Widowed in all but name and abandoned by circumstance, she struggles to raise her young family alone until poverty leaves her with only one heartbreaking option.

In January 1904, Rosa places her three sons into the care of Dr. Barnardo’s Homes, joining thousands of mothers whose children would become part of the British Home Children migration to Canada. It is a decision that will save their lives—and break her heart.

Richly researched and grounded in historical records, this novel brings Victorian London’s working class vividly to life through the eyes of a woman history almost forgot. It is a story of resilience, sacrifice, and the extraordinary courage found in ordinary lives.

Because history remembers the children who sailed away.

This is the story of the mother who stayed behind.