Kate Gosselin faces potential revelations in estranged son Collin's upcoming memoir

Collin Gosselin, the eldest of the former "Jon & Kate Plus 8" sextuplets, is set to release a memoir titled "In the Shadow of Eight: Surviving the Reality of My Childhood" later this fall. The book, whose cover shows a vintage photograph of Kate Gosselin covering Collin's mouth, promises to recount his account of being institutionalized as a child and alleges abuse, confinement and forced medication.

According to a source familiar with the family, Kate Gosselin, 51, was unaware that the memoir was being prepared and has expressed concern about its contents. The source said the mother believes the accusations lack factual basis, while Collin maintains he possesses evidence to support his claims.

"Kate can’t stop this book from coming out but I have no doubt she wishes she could," the source added.

The publisher’s statement describes the work as a "reckoning with the dark side of fame" and says readers will hear a "never-before-told story of how [Collin] escaped and found his way back from the dark." Collin alleges he was zip-tied, locked in a basement cell and institutionalized against his will, and that he endured a "cocktail of powerful antipsychotics" at age 11.

Collin’s siblings – the remaining sextuplets Aaden, Joel, Alexis, Hannah and Leah, as well as twins Cara and Madelyn – have not been briefed on the memoir’s details, according to the source. The family’s former reality-show fame began in 2007, and after Kate and Jon Gosselin’s 2009 divorce, Jon was granted sole custody of Collin in 2018.

Kate Gosselin’s representatives were contacted for comment but did not respond. The memoir is expected to be released in the autumn of 2024.