Title: The Recovery of Rose Gold
Author: Stephanie Wrobel
Publisher: Michael Joseph
[Synopsis]
Rose Gold Watts believed she was sick for eighteen years.
She thought she needed the feeding tube, the surgeries, the wheelchair . . .
Turns out her mother is a really good liar.
After five years in prison, Patty Watts is finally free. All she wants is to put old grievances behind her, reconcile with the daughter who testified against her – and care for her new infant grandson.
When Rose Gold agrees to have Patty move in, it seems their relationship is truly on the mend. And she has waited such a long time for her mother to come home.
But is she still the pliable young girl she once was? And is Patty still as keen on settling an old score?
Because if mothers never forget then daughters never forgive.
[My Review]
The Recovery of Rose Gold makes for addictive reading, presenting an irrestistable blend of depravity, unreliable narrators, and a truly fascinating subject matter: Munchausen syndrome by Proxy.
In this book, from the very start, we are privy to perspectives from both Rose Gold and her mum Patty, who has been imprisoned for poisoning her daughter for many years. We soon realise she has Munchausen syndrome by Proxy, and is definitely a messed up character. The timeline jumps between present day, when Patty has just been realised from prison and aims to reconnect with Rose Gold, to the past when we see the events which led up to Patty’s arrest.
I loved the wickedness in these pages – there are some seriously odd and twisted people, not least Patty herself. As we continue reading we feel a constantly conflict between believing what Rose Gold says and starting to think that perhaps Patty is telling the truth about some elements… is Rose Gold as innocent as she seems? I swung from feeling sorry for certain characters to feeling a sense of dread at what they were planning to do next… This creates a satisfyingly bewildering story, where you never quite know who to trust, which I loved!
There are some surprises and twists in the plot, which I really enjoyed, and some parts that left me feeling very tense and on edge!
Stephanie Wrobel has created some truly wicked but engaging characters who I couldn’t get enough of. What an absorbing, addictive read – I couldn’t put this book down!
[Rating: 5/5]
Many thanks to the publisher, Michael Joseph, for providing a copy of this book on which I chose to write an honest and unbiased review.