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Daughter of Mine: A Stolen at Birth Novel
Two mothers. One infant. An unforgivable crime.
Five minutes.
That’s all it took for Melissa Grout’s life to shatter.
One moment, her newborn daughter was sleeping beside her in the maternity ward. The next… the bassinet was empty.
Gone without a trace.
No answers. No suspects. No hope.
Except the kind a mother refuses to let die.
A few hundred miles away, Cheryl Winslow is holding a baby that isn’t hers.
Grief-stricken and desperate after a devastating loss, she makes an unthinkable choice—one that will bind two families together in a web of lies, secrets, and stolen love.
For sixteen years, two mothers live separate lives tied by one devastating secret.
One is searching.
One is hiding.
Both are bound to a daughter who can only belong to one of them.
But secrets don’t stay buried forever.
As the girl at the center of it all grows into a bright, thriving teenager, she has no reason to question her life… until the day everything is ripped away.
In a single, devastating moment, the truth surfaces.
Identities shatter.
Loyalties are tested.
And two mothers are forced to face the consequences of an act that can never be undone.
Some secrets don't just unravel — they detonate.
Daughter of Mine is a gripping domestic suspense novel and psychological thriller that explores kidnapping, stolen identity, family secrets, and the unbreakable bond between mothers and daughters.
Told in alternating POVs, this emotionally charged women’s fiction thriller delivers heart-stopping tension and unforgettable twists.
Perfect for fans of Jodi Picoult, Lisa Jewell, and Liane Moriarty, and readers of emotional thrillers, domestic dramas, and psychological suspense.
This page-turning, thought-provoking novel will keep you hooked until the final, unforgettable reveal.
Daughter of Mine is a prequel to the best selling novel, Don't Call Me Greta of the Stolen at Birth Series.
Five minutes.
That’s all it took for Melissa Grout’s life to shatter.
One moment, her newborn daughter was sleeping beside her in the maternity ward. The next… the bassinet was empty.
Gone without a trace.
No answers. No suspects. No hope.
Except the kind a mother refuses to let die.
A few hundred miles away, Cheryl Winslow is holding a baby that isn’t hers.
Grief-stricken and desperate after a devastating loss, she makes an unthinkable choice—one that will bind two families together in a web of lies, secrets, and stolen love.
For sixteen years, two mothers live separate lives tied by one devastating secret.
One is searching.
One is hiding.
Both are bound to a daughter who can only belong to one of them.
But secrets don’t stay buried forever.
As the girl at the center of it all grows into a bright, thriving teenager, she has no reason to question her life… until the day everything is ripped away.
In a single, devastating moment, the truth surfaces.
Identities shatter.
Loyalties are tested.
And two mothers are forced to face the consequences of an act that can never be undone.
Some secrets don't just unravel — they detonate.
Daughter of Mine is a gripping domestic suspense novel and psychological thriller that explores kidnapping, stolen identity, family secrets, and the unbreakable bond between mothers and daughters.
Told in alternating POVs, this emotionally charged women’s fiction thriller delivers heart-stopping tension and unforgettable twists.
Perfect for fans of Jodi Picoult, Lisa Jewell, and Liane Moriarty, and readers of emotional thrillers, domestic dramas, and psychological suspense.
This page-turning, thought-provoking novel will keep you hooked until the final, unforgettable reveal.
Daughter of Mine is a prequel to the best selling novel, Don't Call Me Greta of the Stolen at Birth Series.
- GenresContemporary
342 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 11, 2026
About the author
Angie Stanton
26 books964 followersAngie Stanton is a life-long daydreamer who grew up with her hands on a book and her head in the clouds. As an adult, she’s put her talent to good use writing award winning contemporary fiction about life, love, and the adventures that follow.
Angie has a Journalism degree from the University of Wisconsin and is the best selling author of Waking in Time, If Ever, Rock and a Hard Place, Snapshot, Royally Lost, Under the Spotlight, Snowed Over, and Love ‘em or Leave ‘em.
Angie is a proud winner of a Midwest Book Award for Waking in Time.
Waking in Time is also a finalist in the National Readers Choice Awards as is her book If Ever and Love 'em or Leave 'em.
In her spare time, Angie sneaks off to New York City to enjoy the best entertainment experience on earth, Broadway. She is currently working on a series of Broadway-themed books, and is a contributing writer to BroadwayWorld.com.
Angie’s latest release is If Ever, a sexy, playful love story spanning from LA to New York and London.
For more information on Angie and her books, please visit:
www.angiestanton.com
Facebook.com/AngieStantonAuthor
Twitter: @angie_stanton
Instagram angiestanton_author.
Angie has a Journalism degree from the University of Wisconsin and is the best selling author of Waking in Time, If Ever, Rock and a Hard Place, Snapshot, Royally Lost, Under the Spotlight, Snowed Over, and Love ‘em or Leave ‘em.
Angie is a proud winner of a Midwest Book Award for Waking in Time.
Waking in Time is also a finalist in the National Readers Choice Awards as is her book If Ever and Love 'em or Leave 'em.
In her spare time, Angie sneaks off to New York City to enjoy the best entertainment experience on earth, Broadway. She is currently working on a series of Broadway-themed books, and is a contributing writer to BroadwayWorld.com.
Angie’s latest release is If Ever, a sexy, playful love story spanning from LA to New York and London.
For more information on Angie and her books, please visit:
www.angiestanton.com
Facebook.com/AngieStantonAuthor
Twitter: @angie_stanton
Instagram angiestanton_author.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
April 14, 2026
I received an advance review copy of this book.
I’ll be honest, I picked this up expecting a fairly straightforward thriller and got something a lot messier and more interesting than that.
The premise hooks you from the first chapter and Stanton doesn’t let you off the hook by making the obvious character the obvious villain. The moral complexity is the whole point, and it works.
Dual POV across both sides of the central event, the perspectives are well balanced and both women are flawed in ways that feel real rather than convenient. One of them in particular is much harder to root for than you’d expect given her situation.
That’s a good thing.
Emotionally it lands. Some scenes are genuinely difficult to read in the best way, the kind where you completely understand a character doing something awful and feel bad about understanding it.
Paced well for the most part, though the middle loses a bit of momentum. Not enough to derail it.
Worth reading. I do enjoy Angie’s work.
I’ll be honest, I picked this up expecting a fairly straightforward thriller and got something a lot messier and more interesting than that.
The premise hooks you from the first chapter and Stanton doesn’t let you off the hook by making the obvious character the obvious villain. The moral complexity is the whole point, and it works.
Dual POV across both sides of the central event, the perspectives are well balanced and both women are flawed in ways that feel real rather than convenient. One of them in particular is much harder to root for than you’d expect given her situation.
That’s a good thing.
Emotionally it lands. Some scenes are genuinely difficult to read in the best way, the kind where you completely understand a character doing something awful and feel bad about understanding it.
Paced well for the most part, though the middle loses a bit of momentum. Not enough to derail it.
Worth reading. I do enjoy Angie’s work.
April 27, 2026
Daughter of Mine is one of the most morally complex and emotionally affecting books I have read in this genre and I did not see it coming.
This is not a mystery. The setup is clear from the very beginning. A newborn is stolen from a maternity ward and we follow both families across sixteen years, the one searching and the one hiding, in alternating points of view. Angie Stanton is not asking us to solve a puzzle. She is asking us to live inside two completely different experiences of the same devastating event and feel the full weight of both.
The characters are flawed and broken, making terrible decisions always rooted in what they believed were good intentions. I felt equally connected to both families which made it genuinely impossible to root for anyone cleanly. Both families had done things that were hard to forgive. Both families were hurting and healing and had no idea how to do those things simultaneously.
I went in expecting clear moral lines. The family deserves their child back. The kidnapper deserves consequences. Those lines did not survive this book. The more I understood Cheryl's story the more my heart broke and the more my certainty dissolved into something that felt uncomfortably like empathy.
The writing is immersive and emotionally honest and the alternating POVs are handled with real skill. This book is about how loss breaks people, about the ripple effect of unthinkable choices, and about two mothers who both love the same child completely. It will sit with you.
This is also a prequel to Don't Call Me Greta so there is more of this world to fall into if you need it.
This is not a mystery. The setup is clear from the very beginning. A newborn is stolen from a maternity ward and we follow both families across sixteen years, the one searching and the one hiding, in alternating points of view. Angie Stanton is not asking us to solve a puzzle. She is asking us to live inside two completely different experiences of the same devastating event and feel the full weight of both.
The characters are flawed and broken, making terrible decisions always rooted in what they believed were good intentions. I felt equally connected to both families which made it genuinely impossible to root for anyone cleanly. Both families had done things that were hard to forgive. Both families were hurting and healing and had no idea how to do those things simultaneously.
I went in expecting clear moral lines. The family deserves their child back. The kidnapper deserves consequences. Those lines did not survive this book. The more I understood Cheryl's story the more my heart broke and the more my certainty dissolved into something that felt uncomfortably like empathy.
The writing is immersive and emotionally honest and the alternating POVs are handled with real skill. This book is about how loss breaks people, about the ripple effect of unthinkable choices, and about two mothers who both love the same child completely. It will sit with you.
This is also a prequel to Don't Call Me Greta so there is more of this world to fall into if you need it.
April 25, 2026
Daughter of Mine grabbed me from page one and didn't let go until I'd finished it in one night-long reading session. Angie Stanton has crafted a thriller that's both propulsive and emotionally complex, centering on two mothers bound by one devastating secret: Melissa, whose newborn was stolen from the hospital, and Cheryl, who took that baby in a moment of grief-stricken desperation.
What makes this book exceptional is its refusal to offer easy answers. Both women are sympathetic. Both have valid claims to motherhood. The daughter caught between them has every right to her anger and confusion. Stanton doesn't shy away from the messy moral complexity of the situation, and that's what elevates this beyond a standard thriller.
The pacing is relentless. Every chapter ends on a hook that makes it impossible to stop reading. The dual narrative structure works beautifully, letting us understand both perspectives without excusing either woman's choices. The writing is clean and efficient, with no wasted scenes or meandering subplots.
I'm docking one star for that cliffhanger ending. I understand this is part of a series, but the abrupt cutoff at maximum tension felt almost cruel after such an emotionally invested read. That said, it's a testament to Stanton's skill that I immediately went searching for the next book's release date.
If you love morally complex thrillers about identity, motherhood, and impossible choices, this is absolutely worth your time. Just be prepared to need the sequel immediately.
What makes this book exceptional is its refusal to offer easy answers. Both women are sympathetic. Both have valid claims to motherhood. The daughter caught between them has every right to her anger and confusion. Stanton doesn't shy away from the messy moral complexity of the situation, and that's what elevates this beyond a standard thriller.
The pacing is relentless. Every chapter ends on a hook that makes it impossible to stop reading. The dual narrative structure works beautifully, letting us understand both perspectives without excusing either woman's choices. The writing is clean and efficient, with no wasted scenes or meandering subplots.
I'm docking one star for that cliffhanger ending. I understand this is part of a series, but the abrupt cutoff at maximum tension felt almost cruel after such an emotionally invested read. That said, it's a testament to Stanton's skill that I immediately went searching for the next book's release date.
If you love morally complex thrillers about identity, motherhood, and impossible choices, this is absolutely worth your time. Just be prepared to need the sequel immediately.
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April 13, 2026I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.
This is a prequel to Don't Call me Greta, published in 2021.
When baby Greta is stolen from her mother's hospital room shortly after her birth, her family is devastated. What is unusual about "Daughter of Mine" is that in addition to portraying the destruction that tears through Greta's birth family, it also dives deeply into the life of Greta/Piper's kidnapper and the trauma that led her to this unspeakable act as well as the love that she feels for the "daughter" she stole. The story follows both families over the next couple of decades. With multidimensional characters and strong prose, this is a must read for fans of hard-hitting family drama.
This is a prequel to Don't Call me Greta, published in 2021.
When baby Greta is stolen from her mother's hospital room shortly after her birth, her family is devastated. What is unusual about "Daughter of Mine" is that in addition to portraying the destruction that tears through Greta's birth family, it also dives deeply into the life of Greta/Piper's kidnapper and the trauma that led her to this unspeakable act as well as the love that she feels for the "daughter" she stole. The story follows both families over the next couple of decades. With multidimensional characters and strong prose, this is a must read for fans of hard-hitting family drama.
June 25, 2026
It was easy to get sucked into DAUGHTER OF MINE early on. A woman has just lost her baby at birth, and another woman has just given birth her own baby. Just imagine you’re filled with so much devastation, anguish and yearning that you give yourself permission to take something that doesn’t belong to you. Someone else’s child.
There really isn’t any rationalizing stealing a baby. If I was supposed to sympathize with Cheryl that didn’t happen. The baby’s birth family were a good family so it’s not as if she took a child that would’ve been going home to a bad home.
What you see in this book is the aftermath of a baby stolen. You have one family in bliss with their new child, and another devastated by the void that their stolen child has left. With Cheryl you don’t really see a lot of guilty or remorse. Her husband is blissfully unaware. With Mel and her family you are able to see how much their marriage, and Mel as an individual is affected by the abduction of her daughter. She quite literally falls apart. And she changes. Not for the better. Her morals go wack and she becomes rigid and cold. Her husband even though frustrated never gives up on her.
The alternating chapters are from the perspective of both moms and works well and was easy to follow. Through it all and over the years you watch as the children in both families grow up, most specifically Piper. Also known as stolen baby Greta.
This was a great story with great character development and if you love a mystery, lit fic, or any kind of missing person story, you can’t go wrong with this one!
There really isn’t any rationalizing stealing a baby. If I was supposed to sympathize with Cheryl that didn’t happen. The baby’s birth family were a good family so it’s not as if she took a child that would’ve been going home to a bad home.
What you see in this book is the aftermath of a baby stolen. You have one family in bliss with their new child, and another devastated by the void that their stolen child has left. With Cheryl you don’t really see a lot of guilty or remorse. Her husband is blissfully unaware. With Mel and her family you are able to see how much their marriage, and Mel as an individual is affected by the abduction of her daughter. She quite literally falls apart. And she changes. Not for the better. Her morals go wack and she becomes rigid and cold. Her husband even though frustrated never gives up on her.
The alternating chapters are from the perspective of both moms and works well and was easy to follow. Through it all and over the years you watch as the children in both families grow up, most specifically Piper. Also known as stolen baby Greta.
This was a great story with great character development and if you love a mystery, lit fic, or any kind of missing person story, you can’t go wrong with this one!
Review of advance copy received from Author
I received an ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review.
I literally finished this book in one night and immediately went back and reread "Dont Call me Greta" with an entirely new understanding and appreciation!
Daughter of mine is the story of "Dont Call Me Greta" from the POV of Greta/Pipers mothers. Cheryl, who stole her from the hospital after the death of her own newborn daughter, and Melissa, Greta's birth mom.
At first I was a little skeptical with the whole idea because I did not know what adding their POV would add to the story. Well I was wrong, it added a lot. It made the story more real.
It gave depth to Piper/Greta and made her less of a spoiled teenager and more of a young adult who was struggling to deal with a crappy situation that she had no control over.
I did not like either of the mothers in the first book. I thought they both were selfish and honestly wanted to slap them. But after seeing the story play out from their POV made me realize the trauma of loosing a baby that you carried for 9 months can make you do crazy things. It made me sympathize with both of them and made me hate them a little bit less. It also gave a little insight into the Greta/Piper's fathers and how they were truly innocent in the entire situation.
This is definitely a must read but I do recommend you read "Dont Call me Greta" first and then "Daughter of Mine"and then reread "Dont call me Greta" again for a new perspective!
I literally finished this book in one night and immediately went back and reread "Dont Call me Greta" with an entirely new understanding and appreciation!
Daughter of mine is the story of "Dont Call Me Greta" from the POV of Greta/Pipers mothers. Cheryl, who stole her from the hospital after the death of her own newborn daughter, and Melissa, Greta's birth mom.
At first I was a little skeptical with the whole idea because I did not know what adding their POV would add to the story. Well I was wrong, it added a lot. It made the story more real.
It gave depth to Piper/Greta and made her less of a spoiled teenager and more of a young adult who was struggling to deal with a crappy situation that she had no control over.
I did not like either of the mothers in the first book. I thought they both were selfish and honestly wanted to slap them. But after seeing the story play out from their POV made me realize the trauma of loosing a baby that you carried for 9 months can make you do crazy things. It made me sympathize with both of them and made me hate them a little bit less. It also gave a little insight into the Greta/Piper's fathers and how they were truly innocent in the entire situation.
This is definitely a must read but I do recommend you read "Dont Call me Greta" first and then "Daughter of Mine"and then reread "Dont call me Greta" again for a new perspective!
May 23, 2026
Holy gripping! I could not have put this down if my life depended on it and I’m still recovering from the emotional whiplash. The writing is a-freakin-mazing, the story is complex and intricate, and I have never loathed and loved two characters more than I do Melisa and Cheryl. If you read Don’t Call Me Greta this is the story of how they all got there and if you haven’t then go grab it after this one because you’re gonna need it.
This one broke me, like genuinely broke me, at least once a chapter and often in more ways than I imagined it would. Lines between right and wrong feel blurred, the years between lies make truths inflict unforgiveable damage, your heart breaks for the mother whose child was stolen, breaks for the woman who loved and raised her as her own, and shatters into pieces for the girl who has always lived a lie, the fathers who were blindsided by secrets, and the siblings who will always feel torn. There is no truly happy ending, you never feel fully satisfied, but you see, you relate, and you understand. You get how grief pushes you towards insane decisions, how the need to feel anything other than what you’re feeling now can lead to choices you can never take back, and how easily one event changes and scars dozens of lives.
Brilliant, brutal, and a total must read you’ll never regret, this is a novel penned with brilliance, precision, and a knack for writing multiple perspectives that’ll leave you feeling changed and is one hundred percent worth it.
This one broke me, like genuinely broke me, at least once a chapter and often in more ways than I imagined it would. Lines between right and wrong feel blurred, the years between lies make truths inflict unforgiveable damage, your heart breaks for the mother whose child was stolen, breaks for the woman who loved and raised her as her own, and shatters into pieces for the girl who has always lived a lie, the fathers who were blindsided by secrets, and the siblings who will always feel torn. There is no truly happy ending, you never feel fully satisfied, but you see, you relate, and you understand. You get how grief pushes you towards insane decisions, how the need to feel anything other than what you’re feeling now can lead to choices you can never take back, and how easily one event changes and scars dozens of lives.
Brilliant, brutal, and a total must read you’ll never regret, this is a novel penned with brilliance, precision, and a knack for writing multiple perspectives that’ll leave you feeling changed and is one hundred percent worth it.
May 13, 2026
MY THOUGHTS:
There is so much more going on in this book than a stolen baby. Secrets, but not only secrets… lies. And not just lies about a stolen baby! Losing a child, having your child stolen right after birth is beyond my wildest nightmares!
This story is not only about the stealing of a baby. This story is about everything that happens after. All the feelings, the guilt, the win, the loss, living with the decisions that have been made. This author not only has a way of making you feel for the mother who lost her child but also for the mother who stole one!
Who do you root for? It seems like the answer should be so simple, but this book makes it not quite that easy to decide. You fall in love with both women. So… you root for the child… you always root for the child! And this book makes that so easy.
This tragic story that was so wonderfully written had me hooked from page one. Almost immediately upon finishing this book I went and ordered the other book, Don’t Call Me Greta. I cannot wait to read that one sometime this summer.
This will definitely be on my list of favorites for the year, I highly recommend this one but… Be sure to have a tissue box handy.
I voluntarily posted this review after receiving an e-copy of this book from Partners in Crime Tours. Thank You!
There is so much more going on in this book than a stolen baby. Secrets, but not only secrets… lies. And not just lies about a stolen baby! Losing a child, having your child stolen right after birth is beyond my wildest nightmares!
This story is not only about the stealing of a baby. This story is about everything that happens after. All the feelings, the guilt, the win, the loss, living with the decisions that have been made. This author not only has a way of making you feel for the mother who lost her child but also for the mother who stole one!
Who do you root for? It seems like the answer should be so simple, but this book makes it not quite that easy to decide. You fall in love with both women. So… you root for the child… you always root for the child! And this book makes that so easy.
This tragic story that was so wonderfully written had me hooked from page one. Almost immediately upon finishing this book I went and ordered the other book, Don’t Call Me Greta. I cannot wait to read that one sometime this summer.
This will definitely be on my list of favorites for the year, I highly recommend this one but… Be sure to have a tissue box handy.
I voluntarily posted this review after receiving an e-copy of this book from Partners in Crime Tours. Thank You!
May 21, 2026
What if your entire life every birthday, every hug, every I love you was actually built on a devastating lie? 💔✨
Daughter of Mine by Angie Stanton is a haunting, dual-perspective look at every mother’s worst nightmare and one woman’s unforgivable choice.
The story starts with a literal heart-stop: Melissa Grout’s newborn daughter vanishes from her hospital bassinet in just five minutes. Meanwhile, a few hundred miles away, Cheryl Winslow, shattered by her own grief decides to claim that baby as her own.
Fast forward sixteen years. One mother has never stopped searching, while the other has spent nearly two decades looking over her shoulder. Reading this was such an internal tug-of-war for me. I felt Melissa’s agonizing hope, but I also found myself gripped by the slow-motion car crash of Cheryl’s secret finally starting to detonate. 💣
It’s a fast-paced, emotional thriller that really makes you wonder: Can stolen love ever be justified? It’s messy, it’s heartbreaking, and the ending? I won’t spoil it, but have the tissues ready.
✨️A huge thank you to Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours and Angie Stanton for sending me a copy of this gripping read! I’ll be thinking about these two mothers for a long time
Daughter of Mine by Angie Stanton is a haunting, dual-perspective look at every mother’s worst nightmare and one woman’s unforgivable choice.
The story starts with a literal heart-stop: Melissa Grout’s newborn daughter vanishes from her hospital bassinet in just five minutes. Meanwhile, a few hundred miles away, Cheryl Winslow, shattered by her own grief decides to claim that baby as her own.
Fast forward sixteen years. One mother has never stopped searching, while the other has spent nearly two decades looking over her shoulder. Reading this was such an internal tug-of-war for me. I felt Melissa’s agonizing hope, but I also found myself gripped by the slow-motion car crash of Cheryl’s secret finally starting to detonate. 💣
It’s a fast-paced, emotional thriller that really makes you wonder: Can stolen love ever be justified? It’s messy, it’s heartbreaking, and the ending? I won’t spoil it, but have the tissues ready.
✨️A huge thank you to Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours and Angie Stanton for sending me a copy of this gripping read! I’ll be thinking about these two mothers for a long time
May 8, 2026
Daughter of Mine by Angie Stanton is a book about two women in a maternity ward at the same time who had babies, one living and one dying. In the beginning of the book, there were two women in a maternity section of a hospital. One women lost a baby and another has a living baby. The women who lost her baby, Cheryl, takes a baby from another women and leaves the hospital kidnapping the baby and making the baby her own. This is a real fear that all new moms in hospitals have, we want to keep our babies safe right after they are born in a hospital. And we have no idea if everyone in a hospital is on the up and up and working for the hospital or not. Melissa, the other mom who had her baby stolen is beyond herself as she realizes her baby is stolen from the trusted hospital. The rest of the book is about the aftermath of the decisions that the characters make in the book. The characters are both relatable, even Cheryl our kidnapper, who you can see her side of the story. There are so many twists in each chapter of this book that you can not help but be hooked. I would be interested in reading the next book soon.
May 15, 2026
Daughter of Mine by Angie Stanton. It’s about a woman named Cheryl, heavily medicated, still recovering from the birth of her baby girl, whom she lost hours before. She posed as a nursing assistant, walked into the nursery ward, and took the newborn baby of Melissa Grout. She put her in a bag and walked out to start a new life with someone else’s baby to replace the one that she lost. At least in her mind, this is a rational decision. She introduced this stolen child to her husband as their daughter, as he was away missing the birth. His child wasn’t his child, this beautiful, vibrant little girl whose family had been looking for her for years…. She doesn’t belong to them as she gets older; this is being noticed by others but being dismissed as she looks like family members…. Anything to avoid the truth. Imagine how hard this was on this little angel’s family to live without her. This book was so good; just when I thought it was over & she was found, something else happened. Do read it; it’s very tragic yet enlightening. It reminds you how very unpredictable life can be. Received this as an ARC reader and am leaving my unbiased review
July 7, 2026
Two women make nearly unforgivable choices. They justify it by saying it is for the good of their respective families. It's really just for themselves. Instead of keeping their families together, it destroys them.
Cheryl goes into early labor on a business trip only to lose her baby. Her husband is deployed and she has a young son at home. She is alone and decides she can't let anyone know her daughter is dead, so she steals a baby from another hospital. Everyone believes it is her baby for years.
Melissa blames herself for her daughter's kidnapping. She withdraws from everyone, becomes an alcoholic and has an affair with her lawyer. After she discovers she is pregnant, she decides she has to pass the baby off as her husband's which adds to her guilt.
There is nothing nice about this story. It is like watching a train wreck. The tension throughout the book keeps you reading even knowing there is no way this can end well. The book changes from each women's point of view and all the mistakes that are made to cover other mistakes. Neither woman is portrayed as a villain or hero--only very human.
Cheryl goes into early labor on a business trip only to lose her baby. Her husband is deployed and she has a young son at home. She is alone and decides she can't let anyone know her daughter is dead, so she steals a baby from another hospital. Everyone believes it is her baby for years.
Melissa blames herself for her daughter's kidnapping. She withdraws from everyone, becomes an alcoholic and has an affair with her lawyer. After she discovers she is pregnant, she decides she has to pass the baby off as her husband's which adds to her guilt.
There is nothing nice about this story. It is like watching a train wreck. The tension throughout the book keeps you reading even knowing there is no way this can end well. The book changes from each women's point of view and all the mistakes that are made to cover other mistakes. Neither woman is portrayed as a villain or hero--only very human.
May 5, 2026
Tragic, shocking tale that made me question my emotions.
Daughter of Mine is a new women’s fiction tale by Angie Stanton that made me question my own emotions and perceptions. A woman who lost her newborn hours after her birth takes the healthy infant of another. The story is gut-wrenching and heartbreaking, but rather than straightforward emotions, the lines blurred between where my sympathies took hold.
The author’s writing style is compelling and drew me into the fearful story immediately; the pages melted away as I followed the unfolding lives of two mothers, Melissa and Cheryl, and baby Greta, who became known as Piper. I read this book in one absorbing sitting.I recommend DAUGHTER OF MINE to readers of women’s, crime, and literary fiction.
I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advance Review Copy from the author through Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours.
Review of advance copy received from Author
I received an ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review!
I enjoyed this book so much! It pulled me in and kept me captivated and having to turn the pages faster and faster to find out where the story was taking us next! I was on the edge of my seat in certain scenes. It's intense and emotional! The story flows well and keeps you hooked from beginning to end! The characters are believable and relatable. You can feel their emotions as if it was you that the situation was happening to. Your heart goes out to both female characters! It truly is an amazing story and I feel like the author left the ending wide open for maybe another book???!!!!
Incredible world building, vivid descriptions, strong characters that you can relate to, and a story that has everything a reader could want!!! I definitely recommend!!!
I enjoyed this book so much! It pulled me in and kept me captivated and having to turn the pages faster and faster to find out where the story was taking us next! I was on the edge of my seat in certain scenes. It's intense and emotional! The story flows well and keeps you hooked from beginning to end! The characters are believable and relatable. You can feel their emotions as if it was you that the situation was happening to. Your heart goes out to both female characters! It truly is an amazing story and I feel like the author left the ending wide open for maybe another book???!!!!
Incredible world building, vivid descriptions, strong characters that you can relate to, and a story that has everything a reader could want!!! I definitely recommend!!!
Review of advance copy received from Author
This is a gripping, emotionally charged suspense novel that’s impossible to put down. Told through alternating perspectives, the story deftly weaves together two women’s lives—one fractured by loss, the other living a lie—creating a slow-burning collision you feel building with every chapter.
Stanton’s pacing is relentless, pulling you forward with precision and urgency, while the emotional depth gives the story real weight. The twists land hard, but it’s the psychological nuance that lingers—every character is drawn with such complexity that you ache for them all—even the villain. Fans of Don't Call Me Greta will find this companion novel just as compelling, with the added satisfaction of seeing the story from a new angle.
A taut, emotionally resonant thriller where every secret cuts deep—and the fallout is unforgettable.
Stanton’s pacing is relentless, pulling you forward with precision and urgency, while the emotional depth gives the story real weight. The twists land hard, but it’s the psychological nuance that lingers—every character is drawn with such complexity that you ache for them all—even the villain. Fans of Don't Call Me Greta will find this companion novel just as compelling, with the added satisfaction of seeing the story from a new angle.
A taut, emotionally resonant thriller where every secret cuts deep—and the fallout is unforgettable.
June 18, 2026
This book completely overwhelmed me emotionally. As a mother of four, a stolen-at-birth story has always been one of my greatest fears. Even though this story takes place a little after my children were born, it brought back all those worries I had as a young mom.
What really stood out to me was how Angie Stanton showed both sides of the tragedy. Neither family was perfect, and both had messy, complicated, sometimes chaotic lives. The author did an incredible job making me feel for everyone involved, even when their choices weren’t always easy to understand.
This was an emotional, thought-provoking read that kept me invested from beginning to end. It reminded me that families are rarely simple, and that love, loss, and forgiveness can take many different forms. A powerful story that will stay with me for a long time. ⭐⭐⭐⭐½☆
June 29, 2026
I enjoyed reading the first book "Don't Call Me Greta" and thought I would like this one just as much. Didn't even come close. It makes me wonder if all the people who gave this book 5 stars actually read the first book? I would also describe this book as a Young Adult read.
This book does add a few more details - mainly the POV from the two mothers, but other than that it is pretty much a repeat from the first book. I might have given it 2 stars but the ending pretty much did me in. I kept trying to figure out if I was missing pages? Not sure if that's possible with a Kindle? It just sort of ended. And ended much sooner in the story than the first book did.
Plus .... the errors. Laurel had two cats, not one. Greta's middle name was different in book two. I just find these types of discrepancies annoying.
We'll see if a third book comes out.
This book does add a few more details - mainly the POV from the two mothers, but other than that it is pretty much a repeat from the first book. I might have given it 2 stars but the ending pretty much did me in. I kept trying to figure out if I was missing pages? Not sure if that's possible with a Kindle? It just sort of ended. And ended much sooner in the story than the first book did.
Plus .... the errors. Laurel had two cats, not one. Greta's middle name was different in book two. I just find these types of discrepancies annoying.
We'll see if a third book comes out.
April 28, 2026
Numb with grief after she goes into labor while traveling and her infant dies in childbirth, Cheryl stops in a random city and kidnaps a newborn baby girl. I almost closed the book remembering my fears of that exact thing happening when my own babies were born decades ago, before widespread hospital security measures were in place. But Stanton tells a gripping story about Melissa’s anguish through the years and the toll of baby Greta’s absence both on the family and her marriage. Meanwhile, Cheryl raises “Pepper” in a loving home but understands that what she did was appalling. But she adores Pepper and can’t imagine living without her. Daughter of Mine is a thought-provoking story about post-partum depression, complex relationships, and the power of a mother’s love.
May 12, 2026
Daughter of Mine is an emotionally driven suspense thriller that alternates between two perspectives, Melissa Grout and Cheryl Winslow - both are grieving mothers connected by one irreversible decision. This story becomes far more than a missing child thriller. It is an emotionally charged examination of motherhood, grief, identity, guilt, and desperation that refuses easy answers or simple villains. Stanton keeps the pacing sharp while allowing the emotional fallout to settle into every relationship and every choice these women make over the course of decades. The result is a fast moving yet deeply human novel that understands the most devastating wounds are often the ones carried quietly for years
April 14, 2026
LOVED this one so much! It is different than what I have been reading lately and I am glad that I did decide to read it. One of my favorite things about this is the way the Author wrote in alternating POVs. It was really interesting to get a picture of each main characters felt while going through such an awful thing such as this.
The way the story flowed held my attention where I did not even want to put it down.
Daughter of Mine: A Stolen at Birth Novel by Angie Stanton was a fabulous read and I absolutely recommend it!
The way the story flowed held my attention where I did not even want to put it down.
Daughter of Mine: A Stolen at Birth Novel by Angie Stanton was a fabulous read and I absolutely recommend it!
April 26, 2026
Ultimately gripping intensity and emotional stakes suspense that builds until you are holding on so tight your knuckles are sore. The emotional depth of this story is beyond my wildest imagination. Two women who are grieving and they feel realistic and you can imagine yourself in their position. I felt deeply sorry for everyone involved in the book and I couldn't stop eagerly turning the pages to find out how it would work out for them. It's a once you start you can't stop thought provoking novel.
Review of advance copy received from Author
Our book club read and loved Angie Stanton’s book, “Don’t Call Me Greta.” So we were delighted to find out the book "Daughter of Mine” had been written! As a reader, it was such a treat to get inside the minds of the two 'mom' characters Melissa and Cheryl. Their reactions and responses were so well written, believable and relatable. I honestly couldn't put it down! I absolutely loved this book, and our book club will definitely put this on our 'must read' list!
May 1, 2026
wow, answered some questions but now I’ve got more
Angie always gets you so immersed with the characters you feel like this is your family and just wow!
You can’t put this down, I want to just keep going with more story!!
Now we need a look into the future where are they now? Where are all the people and how are they doing??
Angie always gets you so immersed with the characters you feel like this is your family and just wow!
You can’t put this down, I want to just keep going with more story!!
Now we need a look into the future where are they now? Where are all the people and how are they doing??
April 14, 2026
After reading Don't Call Me Greta, I was excited to know that Angie Stanton was also writing Daughter of Mine. I loved getting the mothers' POV in this book. I was hooked from the beginning and it is a definite must read. And if you haven't read Don't Call Me Greta yet, then put it on your TBR.
April 18, 2026
what a mess
Cheryl, Melissa and Piper / Greta´s story is touching, gripping but also appalling since there are so many negative things going on, it was sometimes hard to bear reading about all the loss and grief and the price to pay for what you did.
Cheryl, Melissa and Piper / Greta´s story is touching, gripping but also appalling since there are so many negative things going on, it was sometimes hard to bear reading about all the loss and grief and the price to pay for what you did.
April 26, 2026
Just a remake of Don’t Call Me Greta
The author could have at least changed the names used for the kidnapped baby when she “wrote” this book. Yes, the details are a bit different, but not enough to charge people for a new book
The author could have at least changed the names used for the kidnapped baby when she “wrote” this book. Yes, the details are a bit different, but not enough to charge people for a new book
May 8, 2026
A story that definitely kept my interest wondering what would happen next! I just wish I’d have known that there was a follow up that won’t be out until next year! Also could have done without the few profanities in it.
May 12, 2026
Angie Stanton’s Daughter of Mine hooks you right away. The story dives straight into the painful twists of family crisis—loss, motherhood, and those secrets that don’t stay hidden. The emotional ties between the characters feel real, making every scene hit harder.
September 20, 2026
Melissa Grout's life shatters when her newborn is stolen from the hospital by a woman who lost her newborn. Piper has no idea of what is going on when police show up at her home and take her mother away in cuffs.
October 16, 2026
This was a preclude to “Don’t Call Me Greta”, but was written a few years after. It was good. Deception and lies, oh my. Here, there, everywhere. But can’t wait to read the next book about Piper’s life.
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