The heartbreaking tale of a foundling's desperate search to belong, from the hugely popular author

An abandoned baby. A damaged child. Can Rebecca escape her broken past?

Abandoned outside a hospital, baby Rebecca didn't have a good start. She's adopted, but her new father can't warm to her, and her mother can't succeed in turning the plain, unresponsive child into the little princess she longs for. When her adoptive mother dies, her greedy aunt takes her in, but hers is not a happy home, and soon Rebecca's life is worse than ever. She longs to escape to the circus that visits her town, with its carefree life and freedom from her past - but will she ever find happiness?

"Praise for Rosie's first novel, THE BAD APPLE: 'Rosie Goodwin is a born storyteller - she'll make you cry, she'll make you laugh, but most of all you'll care for her characters and lose yourself in her story. An author destined for the top" - Jeannie Johnson, author of THE REST OF OUR DAYS

"Rosie deserves all her success. She is a talented storyteller and will go all the way to the top" - Dee Williams

"The tearjerker of the season...[a] heart-rending tale" - Western Mail

"A promising and well-drawn debut" - Lancashire Evening Post

"A good tearjerker...compelling" - Reading Evening Post

"A gifted writer... Not only is Goodwin's characterisation and dialogue compelling, but her descriptive writing is a joy" - Nottingham Evening Post

"A heart-throbber of a story from Goodwin that puts many other so-called emotional blockbusters in the shade" - Northern Echo

"Goodwin is a fabulous writer...she reels the reader in surprisingly quickly and her style involves lots of twists and turns that are in no way predictable" - Worcester Evening News

"A touching and powerful new novel from a wonderful writer" - Bookseller