A book set in 1800's with the lead female called Rory, looking to find book

[Suzanne]

Hi there, me again asking if anyone has read this book so I can go and find it again to read, again a needle in a haystack as I don't know the title or the author. This was way back before I kept a reading log of books, and I have read at east 52 books a year for the last ????? years.

 

Here goes....

 

Set in 1800's England, houses set around courtyards. Girl called Rory lives with drunk mother and her and her many siblings often go hungry, Rory's mother often sells rags at the market and sometimes sends Rory to sell, which Rory hates to do. She has a good friend in her court whose mother often feeds her.

Rory has a brother who is sold to the chimmey sweep (he comes back near the end of the book to find Rory, he crawls in to the court on his hands and knees as he is so weak he can not walk and has escape from the chimmeny sweep.

 

This bit is hazy,, but somehow Rory gets to sell better clothes, sets up a shop and raises above and earns lots of money and really betters herself.

 

There is a sequal which has the title something like Mothers and Daughter, 2 ladies on front and the book I had had a blue cover, tells the story of Rory and her daughter when they are rich and her daughter doesn't really have any idea how Rory used to live.

 

Anyone read these books?

 

Thank you for reading and hope you all have a good Bank Holiday weekend