What the critics say

''An absolute belter of a page-turner'' HEAT

''Kept me reading late into the night'' DAILY MAIL

''Clever and compelling. I loved it'' JANE SHEMILT

''A fantastic book club choice... compelling'' PRIMA

''A gripping read... for fans of Apple Tree Yard'' COSMOPOLITAN

''Fast-paced and addictively compelling'' RACHEL JOYCE

''An absolute "up-all-night" compulsive read'' KATE HAMER

''A gripping exploration of femininity and motherhood'' BEST

*Previously published under the title Surrogate in hardback.*

Ruth's story

Ruth's going to risk everything to have her daughter's baby...

Ruth Furnival has built the life she always dreamed of: a stellar career in television, a lovely home, a lawyer husband and two grown-up daughters. But at 54, with an empty nest and the menopause behind her, she feels restless and dissatisfied.

After multiple rounds of failed IVF, her elder daughter Lauren is told that the only way she and her husband can have a child of their own is through surrogacy. So when Ruth discovers that, with the right dose of hormones, she could carry their baby, they agree out of desperation.

At first Ruth is buoyed by a new sense of purpose, but as her pregnancy progresses, long-buried events from the past resurface. Meanwhile Lauren can't contain her corrosive envy. Isolated and alone, Ruth starts to unravel and what began as an act of altruism turns into one of atonement - for which she's willing to risk everything.