Giving Up the Ghost: A Daughter's Memoir

She’s spent her career telling other people’s stories. Now she must confront the one that has haunted her own life.

As a New York Times bestselling ghostwriter, Samantha Rose has made a living giving voice to other people’s stories. But there is one story she has never been able to fully understand: her mother’s suicide.

Haunted by unanswered questions and the weight of a devastating loss, Samantha embarks on a deeply personal journey to unravel the mysteries of her mother’s life and death. What begins as an exploration of grief takes an extraordinary turn when her mother emerges from beyond, offering a chance to confront the past, revisit painful truths, and seek the understanding that eluded them in life.

With unflinching honesty, surprising humor, and profound compassion, Giving Up the Ghost explores the complexities of mental health, the enduring bond between mothers and daughters, and the ways love and loss shape who we become.

At once heartbreaking and hopeful, this is a powerful memoir about making peace with the past, letting go of the ghosts that hold us back, and finding the courage to write a new story for ourselves.

About the Author

Samantha Rose is an Emmy-award winning television writer and author of The Package My (not-so) Glamorous Transition from Single Gal to Instant Mom that premiered on the San Francisco Chronicle Bestseller List. Additionally, she’s a New York Times and internationally bestselling ghostwriter who collaborates with celebrities, experts, entrepreneurs and industry leaders who represent a wide category of titles, including some that have been selected as Reese’s Book Club Picks and excerpted in the WSJ, Time.com and Harper’s Bazaar. She is the principal of YellowSkyMedia, a boutique editorial agency in Petaluma, California, where she lives with her son.

Editorial Reviews

“Samantha Rose’s mastery of words is a gift—Giving Up the Ghost is an intimate, unfiltered, heart wrenching and, at times, hilarious account of a family story forever changed by suicide. In these confusing and increasingly lonely times for us all, Rose’s memoir is a must read for anyone coping with grief and surviving loss.” —Eve Rodsky, author of the New York Times bestseller and Reese’s Book Club pick, Fair Play “A beautifully written and piercing reflection on grief, the bonds between mothers and daughters and the importance of finding your own voice. Rose’s journey of resilience inspires us to dig deep for the answers that will set us free and that have the power to ripple outward and offer hope and healing to us all.” —Cathy Heller, podcast host and author of Abundant Ever After

“Heartbreaking, raw, honest, and inspiring… Samantha Rose may have just put herself out of business as a ghostwriter because she is anything but in this deeply personal and moving account of her firsthand experience with suicide. In her refreshing voice, she takes us on a compelling journey as she bravely navigates her way through grief’s darkness, moving from the depths of shadow and transcending into higher light. This book serves as a powerful reminder that love never dies and we are never truly alone.” —Rebecca Rosen, author of the national and international bestseller, Connect to the Guides Around You