“She's not worth more than tuppence that child!” Those are the words that haunt Sadie Linthorpe. She is the talk of Ryhope when she arrives there aged 17 alone seeking work and a home in the pit village. But Sadie is keeping a secret - she is searching for her baby girl who was taken from her at birth to be sold by the child's wicked grandmother when Sadie was just 15 years old. All that Sadie knows is that the family who took her daughter lived in Ryhope and when the baby was born she had a birthmark on one shoulder that resembled a tiny ladybird. But as Sadie's quest begins a visitor from her past appears…