Title: The Golden Child by Wendy James
Publisher: Skyhorse Publishing
Genre: Contemporary, Women’s Fiction
Length: 352 pages
Book Rating: B
Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through Edelweiss
Summary:
Beth Mahony is a stay-at-home mother of two daughters, Lucy and Charlotte. She’s also a blogger, whose alter ego, Lizzie, paints a picture of a busy, happy life. Originally from Australia, Beth and her family have lived in New Jersey for ten years. When an opportunity to relocate to Australia arises, the Mahonys decide to return to their native country. The move comes at the perfect time: Charlotte, the youngest daughter, has been accused of being the ringleader of a clique of girls whose dangerous initiation rites leave a child in hospital.
In Newcastle, Lucy and Charlotte attend a prestigious all-girls school, and Beth and her husband gradually settle into their new life. The almost immediately popular Charlotte is thrust back into the spotlight when she is blamed for bullying a classmate to the point of suicide. With Charlotte refusing to take the blame, the bullied child’s parents seeking retribution, and her husband and mother-in-law doubting Charlotte’s innocence, Beth is forced to examine her children’s actions critically―at a heartbreaking cost.
The Golden Child tells the story of two families’ heartbreaking realization that there are no guarantees when it comes to parenting. The novel grapples with modern-day specters of selfies, selfishness, and cyber bullying to expose the complex anxieties of the female psyche.
Review:
The Golden Child by Wendy James is a compelling novel with a socially relevant storyline.
Beth Mahony is an Australian ex-pat living in New Jersey with her husband Dan and their two daughters, fourteen year old Lucy and twelve year old Charlotte “Charlie”. Beth is a very involved stay-at-home mom who also blogs about her experiences with her family and living far from “home”. Beth is shocked when Dan informs her a job opportunity means they are moving back to Australia. The timing turns out to be rather fortuitous since Charlie has landed in a bit of trouble at school after an “initiation” rite with her group of friends goes wrong. She is the ringleader of the group and all fingers point to Charlie as being the instigator of the prank that landed a classmate in the hospital. As the Mahony family uneasily settles in their new life, Charlotte is once again at the center of a serious incident in which musically gifted but socially awkward Sophie Pennington attempts to take her own life after she is the victim of bullying at school and on line.
Beth is surprised at the difficulty she is having settling in after their move. She remains out of sync as she tries to organize renovations on their house along with mothering duties. She is delighted by her burgeoning friendship with Sophie’s mum, Andi, but Beth remains strangely dissatisfied with her new life. Until their move back to Australia, Beth has been content to not work outside the home, but that quickly changes after their move. At her mother’s urging, she contacts a childhood friend’s brother who is in the early stages of running for political office. Happy with her part-time job, Beth is dismayed at the growing distance between herself and her daughters as they spend more time in their rooms than with the family.
After struggling with infertility for ten years, Andi and her husband Steve are new parents for the second time. Unlike her experiences with Sophie, young Gus is an easy baby and she is enjoying bonding with the little guy. With the demands of new baby, Andi does not have as much time for her daughter but she does make a concerted effort to help Sophie become friends with Charlotte. It is not until Sophie’s desperate act that Andi becomes aware of the horrible bullying at the hands of Charlotte and her classmates.
Charlotte and Lucy are as different as night and day. Lucy is content to fly under the radar and she has a small, but close-knit circle of friends. She is quiet, unassuming and never gives Beth any reason to worry about her. Charlotte, on the other hand, is eager to be in the limelight and she wants to be friends with most popular girls in their new school. Quickly realizing that spending time with Sophie will socially destroy her, Charlotte ignores her at school yet still remains her friend in private.
Despite being a bit slow-paced, The Golden Child is an engrossing peek into the world of mean girls and bullying. Shifting view points, blog posts, an anonymous website and social media offer an insightful view into the various characters’ lives as the bullying attacks on Sophie intensify. The storyline is topical and extends beyond the bullying as both Beth and Andi wrestle with parental guilt once the bullying is exposed. Wendy James brings this character-driven novel to an unexpected and twist-filled conclusion.
