MY THOUGHTS AND BOOK REVIEW
This story kept me on the edge of the seat though I couldn't relate myself to any one of these women and while also provoking my thoughts nature of the characters, the consequences of the loss, and the extent to which people will go for love and survival. The reader gets to feel moved by the complicated nature of two women by a stolen child and the secrecy that define their lives. The conflict here is a stolen baby and two mothers caught in its aftermath and is incredibly strong where it taps fears and emotions.
The story centers on two mothers whose lives are irrevocably intertwined by a devastating act. Melissa Grout's world shatters when her newborn daughter is stolen from a hospital maternity ward. For sixteen years, she dedicates her life to a relentless search, fueled by unwavering hope. Meanwhile, hundreds of miles away, Cheryl Winslow is raising Piper, the very same child, in secret. Consumed by the grief of losing her own baby, Cheryl made a desperate choice that necessitates a lifetime of lies to protect her stolen daughter and the fragile life she's built. As Piper grows, Cheryl lives in constant fear of her secret being exposed, while Melissa continues her tireless quest for answers. The narrative explores the "unconscious duet" of these two mothers, bound by loss and love, and the sixteen years of deception that surround one daughter.
I would recommend this novel to those readers who need a change of reading a from a typical story or if you are looking for a different plot of a crime mystery.
BOOK DESCRIPTION
“One mother’s nightmare. One mother’s secret.”
In the maternity ward of Mercy Hospital, two women’s lives collide in an act that will haunt them both for years to come. For Melissa Grout, a fifteen-minute shower becomes an eternal nightmare when she emerges to find her newborn daughter’s bassinet empty. As police search futilely and her world crumbles under the weight of loss, she refuses to give up hope that somewhere, somehow, her baby is alive.
A few hundred miles away, Cheryl Winslow cradles the stolen infant, knowing each tender moment could be her last. Consumed by grief over her own baby’s death, she makes a desperate choice that will require a lifetime of lies to protect. As little Piper grows, so do the walls Cheryl builds to keep her safe—and her secret hidden.
For sixteen years, these mothers dance an unconscious duet of loss and love. While Melissa channels her grief into a relentless search, sacrificing everything to find her stolen child, Cheryl creates an elaborate façade of normalcy, knowing that one wrong move, one careless word, could bring her whole world crashing down.
Two mothers. One daughter. Sixteen years of lies.
Book Details:
Genre: Crime Fiction, Literary Fiction, Women’s Fiction
Published by: Indie
Publication Date: March 23, 2026
Number of Pages: 211
Series: A Stolen at Birth Novel | Each is a Stand-Alone Novel
Book Links: Amazon | Kindle | Goodreads
Author Bio:
Angie Stanton is the award winning, bestselling author of twelve novels including the critically acclaimed Don’t Call Me Greta: a stolen at birth novel, Waking in Time, an epic time-jumping romance, and If Ever, a Broadway love story.
Waking in Time won the Midwest Book Award and was a finalist in the National Readers’ Choice Awards.
If Ever is the recipient of the National Readers’ Choice Award, The Holt Medallion, and the Write Touch Reader’s Award.
A daydreamer at heart, Angie puts her talent to use writing contemporary fiction about life, love, and the adventures that follow. In her spare time, she loves to venture off to Broadway. She is a contributing writer for BroadwayWorld.com and is currently working on her next book.
Angie has a Journalism degree from the University of Wisconsin. Her books have been translated into German, French, Italian, Spanish, and Bulgarian.
Catch Up With Angie Stanton:
AngieStanton.com
Amazon Author Profile
Goodreads
BookBub – @AngieStanton
Instagram – @angiestanton_author
X – @angie_stanton
Facebook – @AngieStantonAuthor
Author Bio:
Tour Participants:
Thanks for reviewing! What a wonderful story this was! I loved reading it myself.
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