How did I get it?:
I bought it!
Previously reviewed by the same author:
- Just What Kind Of Mother Are You?
- Keep Your Friends Close
- The Mistake I Made
Synopsis:
A doting mother or a pushy parent?
Karen Bloom expects perfection. Her son, Ewan, has been something of a disappointment and she won’t be making the same mistake again with her beloved, talented child, Bronte.
Bronte’s every waking hour will be spent at music lessons and dance classes, doing extra schoolwork and whatever it takes to excel.
But as Karen pushes Bronte to the brink, the rest of the family crumbles. Karen’s husband, Noel, is losing himself in work, and his teenage daughter from his first marriage, Verity, is becoming ever more volatile. The family is dangerously near breaking point.
Karen would know when to stop . . . wouldn’t she?
Thoughts:
I absolutely loved Paula Daly’s writing as you might tell from my reviews of her previous books. She’s definitely one of my auto-buy authors. I immediately purchase a copy of her books! I thoroughly enjoyed The Trophy Child.
It centres around a family with one hell of a pushy mother. Bronte is just ten and has a schedule of music lessons and extra curricular activities alongside extra homework set by her mother. Karen wants the best for her child, but she’s pushing Bronte far too hard. However, the relationship between Bronte and her mother isn’t the only relationship with cracks within the Bloom household. Noel Bloom is a successful doctor, but he’s drinking a lot and avoiding his home life with Karen. Noel had cheated on his first wife Jennifer when Karen became pregnant with Bronte. Jennifer is in a nursing home due to her MS. Their daughter, Verity, has to live with her Dad and Karen. Also in the Bloom household, is Ewan, a child from Karen’s previous relationship. He appears to be amounting to nothing, which results in Bronte being used as ‘the trophy child.’ Complex, you’d have to agree. The cracks are really starting to appear in the family and with an attack, disappearances and something much worse… the family really do fall to pieces, but who is to blame?
Paula Daly is a genius at creating characters. I can’t say that one was badly written within this story. I disliked Karen right from the start. I can’t stand pushy mothers and Karen really takes things to the extreme. I loved the characters of Verity and Bronte and enjoyed reading about their connection despite the difficulties that are going on in the household.
I adore when characters return from a previous book. It makes me feel entirely connected to the story. It feels like a community created by the author. I love that feeling of familiarity. Joanne Aspinall, a police officer from Just What Kind Of Mother Are You? appears in this story, determined to find out just what’s going on with the Bloom household. It was lovely to read more from her point of view.
Paula Daly is still one of my favourite writers. Her writing style is incredibly engaging. I couldn’t stop turning the pages. As I mentioned, she’s wonderful at creating such complex characters and her story lines are so well crafted. I highly recommend reading Paula Daly if you haven’t already.
Would I recommend it?:
Of course!
