Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC. I didn't realize this was part of a trilogy and now I am interested in reading the whole series.

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this book. I didn't realize this was part of a trilogy. I will have to circle back to this one when I have read the other two.

I cant lie, I didn't realize this was the last of a trilogy and hadn't read books one and two, so I wasn't able to get into this at all.

This novel takes place in Montana, where an orphan train is coming from New York carrying three children hoping to be adopted into loving families. .Before reaching their final stop, Charles, the oldest, convinces Patrick and Opal to jump off the train and make their own way. While trying to steal a horse for their journey they become enmeshed with a loving family with problems of their own.

The orphans are exactly what this family needs. The relationship forged between the orphans and their new family is heartwarming. Its and easy read and if you enjoy historical fiction this book is for you.

This was a beautifuly written book about three children in 1925. When Orphanswhere put on a train and and went from town to town hoping to be adopted. I love books that are based on history. Not only do you get a story that is fiction, but it also teaches me something that occured in our history. This story was eye opening, I couldn't imagine what life was like for children and families at that time.

I loved this novel and the way the author tackled topics that were new to me. The setting in Montana and the year 1925 are neglected yet fascinating. The character development was terrific. I especially appreciated how the characters grew yet did not reach perfection. This book made me laugh and cry. I can’t wait to recommend it! This is an author I'll be following.

Debut book for Dianna Rostad - and I am hoping there will be many more books to follow! This gritty story of a family in Montana during the 1920's was fast paced and oh so heart breaking at times. I appreciated the rawness of emotions that it evoked as it told the story of the orphans who rode the train west to find a "better" life.

Western life always seems so romantic when we see it on TV but this book gave us insights into the difficult times that were endured by farmers and ranchers.

For me though the theme of community and family were powerful ones., The recognition that working together was the only way you were going to survive and thrive seems so simple but one that is great to have reinforced in this wonderful story.

Thank you to Net Galley and William Morrow for the opportunity to read! I look forward to reading many more from Dianna Rostad!

You belong here now is a wonderful, rewarding story. I loved the grit and bravery it portrayed and found myself quickly invested with the characters. A few plot strands were resolved a little too neatly for my taste but all in all this was a great debut and I’m looking forward to seeing what the author does next.

I really enjoyed this book...eventually. It was really hard to like Nara at the beginning. As these things do, she eventually came around and the book was much better for it.

You Belong Here Now is Dianna Rostad' s debut novel. Set in early twentieth century Montana, she brilliantly depicts the changing of the old west into the new west.

It is a heartwarming story of New York orphans finding their way to a new life, new family, and a sense of belonging. A redemptive and enjoyable book.

You Belong Here Now, Dianna Rostad’s debut historical novel, offers a complex and nuanced portrait of home life, community values, and persistent struggles facing a Montana ranching family in the 1920s. Their challenges multiply with the arrival of three fugitives from an orphan train traveling from New York City: teenager Charles, Irish immigrant Patrick, and scrawny Opal, all of whom have been rejected as adoptees in the course of their cross-country journey. Nara Stewart, the fiercely independent female protagonist, is dubious about keeping--much less adopting--the orphans, but the need of farm labor overcomes her reluctance. Charles, burdened by a violent and possibly criminal past, grows into a determined protector, not only of his fellow orphans, but the family who can't fully trust him but strive to redeem him.

The characters' varied internal and external conflicts are realistically portrayed, the period detail is skillfully blended, and the harsh land itself--its wild creatures and pervasive threats--are depicted with flair and faithfulness. Very highly recommended.

Margaret Porter, award-winning author of Beautiful Invention: A Novel of Hedy Lamarr

Diana Rostad comes roaring out of the gate with her beautiful debut novel YOU BELONG HERE NOW. I was immediately drawn into the characters’ hardscrabble world of Southeastern Montana during Prohibition, where even the wind and soil can take on a malevolence of their own. It’s a world where people fit into neat little boxes: men are cattle ranchers; women are supposed to wear dresses and keep cuss words out of their mouths; Indians—whose land was stolen by the government and parceled out to white settlers—are second-class citizens expected to “know their place”; and the unwanted minors shuttled west on the “orphan trains” from sinful cities back east are viewed by their potential new guardians as the dregs of humanity.

Rostad skillfully upends the status quo. Spinster Nara is the glue that holds together her family of ranchers (each member broken in their own quiet way) that has been feuding with a neighboring clan for decades over a fatal incident, a wound that is painfully re-opened when a trio of runaways appear on Nara’s property. The children have dark secrets of their own as well. Everyone in YOU BELONG HERE NOW, is a broken spirit in his or her own way, but (watch for Rostad’s beautifully set-up counterpoint thread of the wild horses) is ultimately restored by coming together on the land under the Big Sky; and the meaning of “family,” –not who you were born to—but who you choose to belong with.

Rostad is a true storyteller: a master at creating both character and atmosphere. Listening to her dialogue in certain scenes, I felt as though I was hearing music—a lone violin string, or a solo oboe note assigned to the speaker, as characters tried to harmonize under a night sky, their faces illuminated by the glow of a shared cigarette —yet just missing the connection they craved.

YOU BELONG HERE NOW is Rostad’s debut. She is already skilled at character, plot, tension, and atmosphere—all the ingredients necessary for a successful story. This reader eagerly awaits her future novels.

I have read several books on the orphan trains during WWI/WWII, this one starts out on the train but we quickly get to a ranch in Montana. The storytelling was good, the family that took these ragamuffins in had a heart as big as Yellowstone, especially Mama and Papa and Patrick had a true talent with horses. I came to love all three of them, even Charles.
I cannot imagine the heartbreak a child felt during this time when they were paraded on a stage, poked, prodded, criticized and overlooked. If the war was not traumatic enough, the loss of a parent, becoming a ward of social services and thrown into a home that most likely would treat you like a free hired hand would be something I cannot even fathom. This story is filled with a lot of love and heart.
I highly recommend if you enjoy a good yarn with wild mustangs, a lot of hard work and one dedicated woman who wants to run her family farm.
I want to thank William Morrow and Custom House along with NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to read an ARC. Coming in with 5*****

I received this from Netgalley.com.

"Montana: 1925. Three brave orphans from New York take the Orphan Train west, hoping for a place to belong."

A sweet story and an okay read, families are not always related because of their blood.

3.25☆

It is 1925, and a group of orphans are being sent westward from New York to be examined by families at each train stop who are looking for laborers more than children. The last stop is in Bull Mountain, Montana, and the three children who are left suspect no one will pick them at that stop, just as they were repeatedly passed over before. Charles is 18 (although trying to pass for 16), and has bruises, signaling potential trouble. Patrick is 14 and is Irish; there was a great deal of bigotry against the Irish at the time, with people assuming they were lazy, inter alia. And Opal is just a little girl, clearly unsuitable for much work. The three decide to stick together, and they jump off the train before the last stop to try to make their own way somehow.

They were discovered when Charles tries to steal a horse for them from the barn of the Stewart family, who operated a big ranch outside of Bull Mountain. The Stewarts were a complicated collection of people who had scarred-over characters from years of hard work and loss. They reluctantly agreed to take on the kids and work them hard in exchange for room and board.

As the story goes on, members of this now expanded small group had profound effects on one another, and they grew into a family that didn’t fit into any traditional category. But they also experienced more loss and serious adversity in this tough, tough environment.

Evaluation: This story held my interest, but there were some aspects of the plot still unexplained at the end, and I thought other aspects too neatly resolved. Nevertheless, the characters and their sheer grit and bravery grow on you, as does the story generally.

Fabulous book! 3 orphans jump from a train as they were not being adopted and didn't want to wait for the last stop. They find their way to a ranch and the story goes on from there. Reminiscent of the Orphan Train. The story is easy to read, the characters are well defined and one is able to picture the Montana ranch and countryside. Definitely an enjoyable read!

Three orphans on a train that nobody wanted, to adopt jumped off the train at its last stop in Montana. The year is 1925...the adventure begins. Aside from the foul language, the book was enjoyable. Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

From the moment the reader steps on the train with these orphaned children, her heart is invested in their journey. Equal parts pain and triumph, YOU BELONG HERE NOW shows how beauty can emerge from even the darkest places.

Wow, amazing, heart stopping, phenomenal novel.. This is a phenomenal story that grabs you at page one and doesn’t let you go. It is an up all night, can’t put it down novel.

This was an interesting story mostly about 3 orphans traveling on a train heading west, that nobody wanted to adopt. They jump from the train before the last stop and run away. The Montana scenery, realistic characters, wild mustangs and a good story line has the ingredients of a good book. You will find many things from lose of a child, struggles of ranch life, love, hate, lack of forgiveness and healing. Thank you for a free unedited copy.