Golden Child

When teenage cyberbullying ends in tragedy, who is to blame? Two families must grapple with the fallout. 'This is domestic noir at its most intelligent and sharp' Sydney Morning Herald/The Age Blogger Lizzy's life is buzzing, happy, normal. Two gorgeous children, a handsome husband, destiny under control. For her real-life alter-ego Beth, things are unravelling. Tensions are simmering with her husband, mother-in-law, even her own mother. Her teenage daughters, once the objects of her existence, have moved beyond her grasp and one of them has shown signs of, well, thoughtlessness ...Then a classmate of one daughter is callously bullied and the finger of blame is pointed at Beth's beautiful, clever child. Shattered, shamed and frightened, two families must negotiate worlds of cruelty they are totally ill-equipped for. This is a novel that grapples with modern-day spectres of selfies, selfishness and cyberbullying. It plays with our fears of parenting, social media and Queen Bees, and it asks the question: can bad children happen to good mothers?PRAISE FOR THE GOLDEN CHILD 'This is domestic noir at its most intelligent and sharp' Sydney Morning Herald 'It takes 48 hours to pulse through Wendy James' rollercoaster 21st century about parenting' Australian Women's Weekly 'an engaging and intimate read that will appeal to fans of Liane Moriarty and Jodi Picoult, with nods to Lionel Shriver and Christos Tsiolkas' The Slap ...4 Stars' Books & Publishing 'This book is utterly brilliant' Nicola Moriarty' 'Brilliant. Such a clever plot, and such real characters, and so very, very well written' Danielle HawkinsPRAISE FOR WENDY JAMES'S OTHER BOOKS 'A wonderful, unputdownable story by a great Australian author' Liane Moriarty, Australian Women's Weekly 'A penetrating picture of our life and times ...a knockout' Canberra Times 'Cunning psychological portraits and clean prose make for an absorbing domestic thriller' The Age