I'm into true crime, and fiction inspired by true crime but abuse stories are hard to bear so I tend to avoid them.

I made an exception for Darling Rose Gold because the blurb made it sound different and interesting enough with the abused child all grown up and possibility of revenge.

I'm glad I did so! It's a quick, enrapturing read. I didn't want to put it down. Every chapter started with a surprise and ended with a hook, landing every red herring perfectly and left me gasping until the very end.

The only thing is she got rotting teeth only partly right. The flinching and staring and reactions from people were all spot on. But not having pain, sensitivity, or problems eating? Bullshit. Bull. Fucking. Shit. Been there. Done that. And I WISH it was that easy.

Also, Rose Gold would've qualified for dental care through the state while she was a kid, so it should've been mostly moot. But even if that wasn't a possibility, she didn't have to wait for a bridge or implants or have it all at once. I've all my teeth pulled & full dentures at 25. I know what I'm talking about.

This doesn't seem like a big deal, but it's brought up like every damn chapter of Rose Gold's. And the last line that's supposed to mean something falls flat because of it. I'm seriously having phantom teeth pain from reading this & just thinking about a jawbreaker? *shudder*


Highlighted Quotes:
No eye contact, bowed head: I was starting to learn how to read body language. I wasn't the only liar in the room.

I'd have to space them out, maybe one text per day. I couldn't risk scaring him away.


"You deserve every rotten thing you got."

That's what separates the sane from the not: knowing madness is an option but declining to choose it.

It's hard to be a little girl when you're not little.

His drink could use more than a few drops from the small brown bottle with the white cap in my purse.

But nobody wants to hear the truth from a liar.

This one kept me guessing! Creepy in the best possible way, I am amazed that this is the author's debut.

Thank you Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group for an advanced copy of this book. All opinions stated below are my own.

A parent would do anything to protect and keep their child happy. There is an instinct deep within most adults to do anything and everything they can for the sake of their beloved offspring. Unfortunately, sometimes things go wrong in a person's mind. Having had an unhappy childhood herself, Patty is determined to have a child of her own, resulting in the birth of Rose Gold. All through Rose Gold's infancy, Patty is there hovering. She counts every breath, finds every fault, convinces herself of every diagnosis she can think of as a CNA. There is obviously something very wrong with Patty's mental health and poor Rose Gold is the victim of it. After being released from jail after serving her time for everything she put Rose Gold through for nearly two decades, she cannot wait to get back into her daughter's life and take care of her once more.
The perspective switches between Patty in the present and Rose Gold in the past. Their intertwining stories weave their tangled web of lies and deceit up to the present day of the novel. Both women are incredibly intelligent and strong willed. Will Rose Gold get her revenge for what her mother did? Will Patty ever feel regret for harming her own child? This is a gritty, dark, amusing ride of a thriller where not everyone is as innocent as you believe. This was a real page turner and a must read for those who enjoy seriously messed up characters.

Rose Gold Watts grew up believing she was sick, affected by Chronic Fatigue, and a chromosone disorder, and any number of ailments. A chance internet friendship she secretly strikes up leads at age 15 leads her to question all she knows - could her mother, her nursemaid and companion, be responsible for the issues? Told alternately by Rose Gold and her mother, Patty, we meet the two as Patty is released from prison after serving 5 years for Aggravated Child Abuse. Through flashbacks and current narration, the reader learns the history of hte little family, and how her childhood subjected to Munchausen by Proxy impacted Rose Gold, and wonders alternately who is the victim and who the agressor in the current day. Until the final few chapterss, we're not sure who is to be feared and who is to be ptiyed, or is a little of both with each woman?

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Gritty, terrifying, and brilliant. If you followed the story of Gypsy Blancharde, then you will love this story. This is in an incredible sick and twisted spin of it. This needs to be the book of the year.

Patty has been in prison for five years. She is now free. The daughter she poisoned and starved is picking her up from prison. Rose Gold is picking up her mother from prison. She has so many surprises for her.
Rose Gold testified at her mother's trial. She is the reason her mother is convicted.
Now mother and daughter meet again. Patty can't wait to get into her controlling ways again. Her daughter needs to apologize for her being imprisoned.
Rose Gold needs to hear her mother admit she starved and poisoned her. Her mother has never admitted that.
Two women pitted against each other. One the master, one the apprentice of lies and manipulation. Who will win?

Rose Gold's mother Patty was sent to prison for 5 years for child abuse - slowly poisoning her daughter to make her sick enough for lots of doctor and hospital visits, as well as sympathy from practically everyone in the town they live in. Now Patty is getting out of prison and it appears that Rose Gold wants to repair their relationship and offers Patty a place to stay with her. But does Rose Gold have ulterior motives? Hmmmm....

The story is told from Patty's POV in present day, and Rose Gold's POV starting 5 years prior when she testified against her mother, ultimately sending her to prison.

This story will give you the creeps. A psychological thriller that will keep you guessing, but by the end you probably won't have sympathy for either of them. Somewhat predictable with a few surprises.

A Munchausen-by-proxy take that alternates smoothly between the perspective of the mother and the daughter. The character development, particularly in the sections dealing with the aftermath is excellent. Great attention to socioeconomic class. The final twist is, perhaps, unnecessary.

This is a dark and twisted, yet highly entertaining read. Rose Gold's mother has literally tortured her daughter both physically and psychologically all her life via Munchausen by Proxy. Patty ends up in jail for a time after Rose Gold testifies against her and cuts her out of her life. So why does Rose Gold pick her up from the jail and invite her mom to live with her when the sentence is served? The psychological twists and turns begin as Patty and Rose Gold trust or don't trust each other, and who will come out on top in the power struggle between them. Very interesting read with some very good twists and turns.

I regularly watch “Dateline,” “48 Hours,” and “20/20,” so am pretty familiar with Munchausen by Proxy cases that have been in the media. One of the most recent that comes to mind is that of Gypsy Rose Blanchard and her mother, Dee Dee.
This brings me to reading the advanced copy of “Darling Rose Gold.” I can’t help but think that the main character’s name was intentional, in order to make the connection with a victim of Munchausen by proxy, at the hands of her mother, Patty. In this book, we get alternating voices. Rose Gold’s starts out while her mother was incarcerated, and Patty’s starts when she is released from prison. The book is mainly about the maintaining of an innocent plea, and revenge.
I had hoped we’d get a little bit more of how the Munchausen by proxy started, what treatment the victim was getting, etc. That wasn’t the case. We got some messed up people with lots of evil thoughts and ideas. I really like psychological thrillers, but this didn’t quite read like that. There wasn’t much suspense, it was a bit on the predictable side, and topped with a quick finish. It felt like watching a train wreck.
It was a quick, somewhat entertaining read, and definitely has commercial appeal. Thank you to Berkley Publish Group and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

I really liked this fast paced thriller. The characters are not likeable but their voices are very interesting and keep you engaged. The twist is fantastic. A very well written book. Definitely recommend.

I would like to thank NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for my honest review.

Rose Gold spent her childhood sick and from a mysterious illness that no doctor could figure out--until it turned out that her mother was causing the symptoms all along. When the mom gets out of prison, it seems odd that Rose Gold invites her to live with her and help care for her infant, but perhaps the mother daughter bond is too strong.

This was a fast, entertaining story that skipped around in time giving glimpses into Rose Gold's horrible childhood and the repercussions she suffers as an adult--with a few juicy twists to keep the reader guessing.

This was a great book dealing with a fictional story o a really difficult topi - Munchausen by Proxy, a mental health disorder where parents or caregivers harm their children or a person under their care, usually for the attention they get.

Rose Gold Watts thought she was very sick for the first 18 years of her life, turns out her mother suffers from this condition. Patty Watts was convicted and sent to prison for five years for child abuse. When she gets out everyone is shocked in their home town when Rose Gold not only speaks to her but takes her in. You see, Rose Gold’s testimony is what sent Patty to prison.

But Patty said she forgives her. Does she really? But is Rose Gold still the weak little girl Patty remembers?

This was a very good book, we see things from both Patty and Rose’s point of view with some flash backs to what was going on while Patty was in prison and what Rose’s life was really like. No spoilers but as you can imagine, with Rose’s childhood, she isn’t exactly the picture of perfect mental health.

As we see these two broken women and what happens to them you don’t really want to root for ether of them but you do want to keep reading. Because you will not expect what happens at the end.

This was a great debut book and I will look for more from this author. I thank Berkeley Publishing and Net Galley for an Ebook review copy.

This book immediately grabbed my attention and didn't let go. This was so wildly entertaining to read. This is perfect for anyone who is fascinated by munchausen by proxy. It's pretty similar to the DeeDee/Gypsy Rose case, but there are times that I gasped out loud. I genuinely enjoyed this.

This was a complete rip off of Gypsy Rose Blanacharde’s situation with her mom DeeDee. Nothing about this was original except for the terrible ending. I do not recommend this I’m surprised then author doesn’t get in trouble for the complete copy.

"I'm so sorry, "I said, wincing at the pathetic desperation in my voice, though I knew it was necessary. "I didn't mean to hurt you."

Darling Rose Gold begins with mother Patty being released from a five-year prison term. Her crime? Aggravated child abuse. The victim, Patty's daughter, Rose Gold, picks her up and shocks her neighbors when she offers Patty a place to stay.

Told in dual perspectives, we follow Patty's view in present day with some reflections on the past, and in Rose Gold's chapters, we find out more about what she had been up to over the last five years.

This disturbing domestic suspense kept me hooked through the end. I'm not sure how much I believed some of the unlikable characters or plot points, but I was able to suspend disbelief and let the story take me for a dark ride.

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for providing me with a free digital review copy.

Rose Gold Watts was ill throughout her entire childhood. She endured countless surgeries, doctors visits and tests. It wasn't until she grew older that she discovered she wasn't in fact ill, but her mother, Patty, was poisoning her. Now, after serving a five-year prison sentence for child abuse, Patty is about to be released from prison. Wanting to reconcile, and wanting her own son to know his grandmother, Rose Gold agrees to take her mother in. But does Rose Gold really want a reconciliation, or are her motives more sinister? There is no shortage of psychological suspense novels out today, but this complicated mother/daughter story with two unreliable narrators, stands out.

Rose Gold and Patty Watts seemed like the perfect mother-daughter pair. They had been dealt a bad hand; Rose Gold was constantly sick, and her doting mother constantly cared for her. With the help of many charities, as well as the charity of their neighbors, Rose Gold and Patty were able to stay afloat. There was only one problem: Rose Gold was never sick. A victim of Munchhausen by Proxy syndrome, Patty was making her daughter ill and taking the credit (and other benefits) of being the doting mother caring for her chronically ill daughter. When Rose Gold discloses the fact that she’s realized that she’s not actually sick to a friend who alerts the police, Patty is quickly and swiftly arrested and tried for child endangerment.

Due to Rose Gold’s testimony, Patty Watts has served five long years in prison and is ready to be released. She’s convinced Rose Gold to pick her up and let her live with her and her infant son, Adam. Rose Gold wants justice to be served to her mother, and Patty wants revenge taken out on Rose Gold for her scathing testimony against her and her hand in her conviction. Told from alternating points of view-Rose Gold’s after her mother’s arrest, and Patty’s after her release-Wrobel weaves and intricate and sinister plot with twists and turns around every corner. I was constantly wondering what would happen-and consistently being surprised by what did. A well-written thriller that will surprise readers at every turn.

Patty Watts is a wonderful mother, a pillar of the community and loved by everyone for the care she gives her only child, sickly Rose Gold. Patty is a healthcare provider and she knows what Rose Gold needs and if one doctor won't help her she finds one who will. Rose Gold needs a feeding tube because she keeps vomiting and her teeth are rotten because of it. She is so weak and malnourished she needs a wheelchair.The town rallies around the family holding fundraisers and providing food and emotional support for Patty. For eighteen years mother and daughter are completely dependent on each other and Rose Gold is convinced that she is sick and that her doting mother is helping her. It turns out that Patty has been poisoning her only child.

Patty has spent the last five years in prison for what she did but she is about to be released. She has nowhere to go and begs Rose Gold to take her in saying that all she has ever done is love her. The town is shocked when Rose Gold, with her infant son, picks her mother up at the prison and takes her home. However, she isn't taking her mother in out of the goodness of her heart. Rose Gold has her own plans because daughters never forget.

This debut novel is a taut, twisted, psychological thriller told from both Patty and Rose Gold's points of view. There are many twists and turns and as a reader I sometimes wasn't sure who to believe , who was more twisted or what was going to happen.

Darling Rose Gold has an unexpected ending that I didn't see coming. I am looking forward to the next book by this author.

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley/Penguin Random House for an Advanced Reading Copy in exchange for an honest review.

I'm curious to see if this will become an interesting contribution to the canon of sorts that includes BABY TEETH and WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT KEVIN because although the roles are reversed, I found myself reminded of these the full way through.
I didn't love this, but it was fascinatingly crafted and felt very realistic. The web drawn wasn't super surprising because all of the motivations were clear. Kept me entertained through a long layover!