Rose Gold was raised by her mother, Patty, and she was seriously ill her whole life. Doctors could never figure out what was wrong with her, and Rose Gold eventually discovered that her mother was behind her illnesses. Patty went to prison, but it's time for her release. She doesn't have anywhere to go, and Rose Gold agrees to take her in. They say they forgive one another, but both have twisted plans.

Rose Gold was always weak due to her illnesses and missed out on experiences due to her controlling mother. Patty appeared to be a pillar of the community, and seemed a doting mother. Turns out, she secretly abused Rose Gold her entire life. Rose Gold was 18 years old when she testified against Patty in court. It's a surprise when Rose Gold picks Patty up from prison when she is released 5 years later, and even more surprising that she lets Patty move in with her. Rose Gold is now a single mother herself, and doesn't quite trust Patty with her two-month-old son.

Told with the alternating points of view of Rose Gold and Patty. Both are unreliable narrators, and make for unlikable characters. In fact, even the secondary characters are unlikable. It makes for an entertaining read, and one that kept me turning the pages late into the night.

A psychological thriller about a twisted mother-daughter relationship. Clever, dark, and gripping.

I received a free digital copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

A plucked from the headlines gripping read!

The story opens as Patty Watts aka “Poisonous Patty” is being released from prison after serving five years for aggravated child abuse. Patty has always maintained that she is innocent. She doesn’t blame Rose Gold even though her daughter testified against her. Instead, she blames the prosecutor, the jury, and the reporters who just wanted their story. If she did all of those terrible things to her daughter why would Rose Gold offer to pick her up today?

Patty waits outside the prison for Rose Gold who is late picking her up. Eventually, Patty sees her old maroon van headed towards her. She is excited to see her now twenty-three-year-old daughter. She is also excited about seeing the other passenger in the van.

Patty needs to find someplace to live and also needs to find a job. She hopes that Rose Gold will offer to let her stay with her. Rose Gold tells Patty that she’s recently bought a house and that her mother is welcome to stay. Patty is surprised and has trouble hiding her shock when she sees where they'll be living.

Patty wants things to return to the way they used to be, but Rose Gold has other ideas.

Have they really forgiven each other? Who is telling the truth now?


I was so excited to read this novel! I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it.

Although the story has some similarities to a true-life story, it is still very different. Even though I knew the story it was partially based on, I still really enjoyed this novel.

The story is told from both Patty and Rose Gold’s point of view alternating back and forth between past and present. We learn what happened in the years they lived together prior to Patty going to jail, what happened during the years they were apart, Patty’s past and childhood, and their time together once Patty is released.

I thought this was an entertaining and easy read although it does deal with some very disturbing topics. Some parts of the novel may be unbelievable but many things about the true story were hard to believe as well.

I flew through this novel taking very few breaks. I really didn’t like having to put it down. It may not be for everyone, but I thought it was a great read!!

I look forward to reading more from Stephanie Wrobel.



I'd like to thank the publisher for providing me with a copy of this novel. All opinions are my own.

Ever wondered what thoughts float around in a crazy persons head?
If you read this one you can stop wondering.
It's super messed up and extremely well written!
Much love to NetGalley & Berkley Publishing Group for my DRC.

Wow. What an incredible debut. Rose Gold Watts has spent her entire life in a wheelchair, unable to digest foods or have any kind of life. She is devastated (and furious) to find out that her mom had been lying about her various illnesses throughout her life and she had even been poisoning her.

It's hard to give TOO many details about this plot without giving away any spoilers. The chapters bounce between Rose Gold's time right after her mom's arrest and the surrounding aftermath and her mother's (Patty's) perspective right after getting out of prison. These two women were so different and yet alike in many ways. I really felt for Rose Gold because she had been so isolated throughout her life and finding out the one person in her life who had always been there for her was actually someone who was hurting her really messed her up. She was needy with the few people she had contact with, she was angry with her mother, and yet she still had her mom's voice in her head. And when we get Patty's perspective, I honestly wasn't sure what to think. The author did such a great job with the intense and very complicated mother daughter relationship that these two women had. Patty alternated between talking about her innocence and talking about the anger she felt towards her daughter for turning on her. Her thoughts were so twisted, that's for sure.

I wouldn't say this book was jaw dropping and shocking because I did kind of predict some of the things that happened and yet there were still a few surprises. This book was compelling and engaging and so fast paced and I just could not put it down. Highly recommend!

I enjoyed this book. It was a quick read and kept you guessing the whole time with two unreliable narrators.

What a wonderfully twisted little tale this was! Münchausen syndrome by proxy, lies, betrayals, and double-crossing, all within a claustrophobic, isolated, and codependent mother-and-daughter relationship. I was totally hooked on this fast read and couldn’t wait to find out who was the better strategist and who was tricking who. Aaaaaah!

NetGalley and Berkley provided me with an advance reader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was an ok thriller about a young woman whose mother goes to prison for abusing her. When her mother is released, Rose Gold must decide whether or not to let her back into her life. There was a twist at the end that was pretty great, but at other times during the book the writing just fell flat to me and I didn't find myself connecting in any way with any of the characters.

One of the most compelling books I've read this year. I couldn't put it down! I loved how I didn't know in which direction the story would go... and then it spun off on a really crazy path! Thanks, Netgalley, for this arc.

Many thanks to NetGalley. Berkley, and Stephanie Wrobel for the opportunity to read her debut novel - 5 stars for a book I could not turn away from!

Patty is the single mom of Rose Gold, who has believed she was seriously ill from the time she was born. She spent 18 years of her life at the mercy of her mom, who seemed to thrive by Rose Gold's illnesses and hospitalizations. But Patty finds herself in jail after Rose Gold testified against her. They have tried to forge a new relationship and as Patty's release date nears, Rose Gold offers to bring her home. The community is shocked but is the reconciliation as happy as it seems?

Told in alternating chapters of Patty's present life with Rose Gold's past, this is a sad but gripping tale. If you watched Hulu's The Act and couldn't turn away, you'll love this book. What a stunning debut novel - can't wait to read more from this author!

WOW!! Stephanie Wrobel, author of "Darling Rose Gold" has written a compelling, enthralling, engaging, captivating, intense and thought-provoking novel. The Genres for this novel are Psychological Thriller, Suspense, and Fiction. This novel reminds me of a game of chess and a gamble, with the stakes being dangerously high. Who is going to say "Checkmate"?  I appreciate the way the author draws the audience in, and vividly describes the characters, events, and actions.  The story takes place in the present and goes back to the past when it pertains to the characters and events. The author describes her characters as complicated, complex, dysfunctional and determined.

Rose Gold Watts has spent the first 18 years of her life on a feeding tube, in a wheel-chair, and dependent on her Mom, Patty Watts. The doctors, nurses, no one could find out what was wrong with Rose Gold Watts. It seems that Patty has been in jail for the last 5 years accused of doing many things so that Rose Gold was put in that situation. As a matter of fact, it was Rose Gold's testimony, that sealed Patty's fate. Now Patty is going to be released, and can you guess who will take her in?

The whole neighborhood is very surprised that Rose Gold would take her mother in. It seems Patty feels entitled to come and live with Rose Gold.  Can you believe that sweet and fragile Rose Gold could be so forgiving to take the mother that caused her so much pain to live with her?

It is quite true that Rose Gold has been waiting for Patty to get out and come live with her. Actually, even well planned out. Perhaps Rose Gold isn't the sweet and naive little girl anymore.  I suggest that you sit back if you can, and watch as the action plays out. I would highly recommend this edgy, riveting and thought-provoking novel!!!

Wowza!! This title first caught my attention because of my own love for the pink lustre of rose gold - but the Munchausen By Proxy storyline cemented my interest. While this disorder is not new to fiction, this book takes a completely fresh spin on it. The book opens up five years after the titular Rose Gold's mother has been put into an Illinois prison for aggravated child abuse. Now an adult, Rose Gold is isolated and dealing with the ramifications of a lifetime of abuse. Her mother, Patty, provides the other half of the novel and its second perspective. While at first this book seems clear cut, the storyline soon reveals itself to be anything by as the book clips along at a fast and riveting pace across the two voices and two timelines. I love a book where I genuinely don't know where it's going and Wrobel's debut novel certainly provides that!

It's a dark debut, but wonderfully so. And though clearly inspired by true tales that have captured national attention (like the story of Gypsy Rose), this book feels like it provides an epilogue of sorts to those stories of what should come after - and also a behind-the-scenes look into both perspectives. It's a captivating story, an amazing debut and entrancing cover - quite the triple threat! And the Illinois setting feels quite authentic - there are even some bars (like the Hangge Uppe) that I am sure many Chicagoans are aware of. I just loved this and can't wait to see what she writes next!

Blegh. I feel dirty after reading this.

The writing was amazing and the author did a phenomenal job telling the story, but I just cannot shake the feeling I have now having finished this and the feeling I had while reading it. Yuck! This was full of twists and intrigue, but it was not for me. I won't go into too much detail about what I didn't like because I don't want to ruin it for others who could get more from it than I did.

This was loosely based on Gypsy Rose and her mom Dee Dee. I knew that going into it, but this was definitely different in the fact that Rose Gold's mom, Patty was incarcerated for 5 years and is released only to move in with the daughter she abused for her whole life. Both of these women are absolutely insane. THAT is what I couldn't get past. What the mother does to the child is unimaginable, but is Rose Gold any better, ultimately? You read this and determine that for yourself...

I did not like this because of the feelings that it induced. I completed this book in obligation alone. I absolutely wanted to dnf this book. The fact that I requested this book AND the great writing from the author were the two deciding factors in me finishing this book. In the end, I AM glad I pushed through and read until the end.

The premise of this book was incredibly interesting but unfortunately for me the writing itself fell flat and I couldn't empathize with the characters at all. I don't have much else to say about this book other than that.

This is a very well-written book. More of a "now-what" than a "who done it", with Wrobel dishing out clues for the "now-what"with an expert touch. Told in a shifting timeline, we find out how Rose Gold was abused by her mother, while we hold our breath as we learn of what will happen now that her other has been released from prison into the forgiving arms of Rose Gold. Is Rose truly at the forgive and forget stage, or is there a master plan being set-up? And who is setting up who?
This is a very thrilling book by an author to keep your eyes on. The ending is very well-done and comes as a bit of a surprise. Not only did I enjoy the book, but I will be looking for the next publication from Wrobel.

I know many of us have been on a search for the next five star thriller as of late and hallelujah you guys DRG is it! This one was dark, twisted and disturbing which is just how I like my thrillers and I could not get enough of this one.

You hear from Patty in the present as she’s being released from prison and Rose Gold in the past and I was equally hooked on both timelines. Munchausen by proxy is something that has always simultaneously fascinated and sickened me and that’s basically how I felt reading this book but I mean that in the best possible way. These two are both seriously psychologically damaged people and the author developed their characters in a manner that blew me away. It’s a seriously impressive debut and a highly compulsive read that I highly recommend if you like your thrillers super dark

What a hoot! You might recognize these characters- Rose Gold and Patty- but you will be surprised by the twists! This is mostly Rose's story after her mother is sent to prison for poisoning her throughout her youth. She claws her way into a real life, meets her father, and then, when Patty is released, takes her home to the house she's just bought = Patty's childhood home. What Wrobel does so well is slowly ratchet up your sense of unease about Rose as she begins to spin. While you might guess what she has planned for Patty, you won't guess the real thing. Wow. Great storytelling and characters who pull you in made this an excellent read. It's a delight that this was an MFA thesis- popular rather than literary fiction complete with a plot! Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. This is a page turner!

The psychological (and sometimes physical) warfare between this toxic mother and daughter duo was really captivating. It felt like reading what may have happened if Dee Dee Blanchard had not been murdered, and how her and Gypsy Rose could’ve interacted as adults. 3.5 stars!

Thanks to Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group for an advanced copy of this book.

Rose Gold growing up was always sick going from doctor to doctor and never figuring out what was wrong with her. Come to find out her mother Patty was poisoning her. Patty ends up going to prison to serve her time for abusing her daughter and after five years she gets out. She goes to live with her daughter again.

This book was a direct true crime story of Gypsy Rose. I think if the author said in the synopsis that is was "inspired by a true story" then I wouldn't of been so put off from the book. I just felt like the author basically retold Gypsy Roses story I mean don't get me wrong there were some differences but it was very very similar. I really wanted to love this one but however I felt like it was nothing new or exciting!

I received this book as an ARC from Net Galley and this is my unbiased review. I almost gave up on this book a few times because I was having a hard time with the sequencing and timelines. I realize now that was due to reading it on a Kindle. The book has an interesting premise. I thought it was about redemption and forgiveness, boy was I wrong. I guess you never know what lurks in people's inner thoughts and how the truth can be manipulated. The ending is a bit unbelievable and I wonder if other reader will have the same response. It kind of reminded me of Gone Girl in the darkness of the ending. Still worth a shot but not something I would rave about.

Wrobel was born in the USA but has lived in the UK for the last three years. This is a debut novel and seems to have been inspired by the real American case of Gypsy Rose Blanchard. In the novel Rose Gold has been told she was seriously ill for the first 18 years of her life. She spent a lot of time in a wheelchair, lost hair and underwent numerous medical tests. At 18 she learns that her mom had been poisoning her and with the help of her testimony her mom spends 5 years in prison. Once she is released, much to the surprise of the small town they lived in, Rose Gold welcomes her mom into her home. Rose Gold is in fact wary of her mother and worries about her seeking revenge, but Rose Gold is no longer the weak child she once was. This creepy domestic thriller is a great recommendation for fans of the genre.