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A review by jacki_f
Golden Boys by Sonya Hartnett
4.0
The setting is a small Australian town and my sense is that it's the 1950s. The Jensons are new to town. Rex is a dentist and his two boys - Colt and Bastian - seem an exotic breed to the local kids, surrounded by toys and altogether shinier and more golden. Freya is from a large, working class family and she and her brothers are smitten with the Jensons. However underneath the golden exterior there is a sense that something isn't quite right, much as there are deep cracks in Freya's own family life.
This is a book told from the point of view of the children and it takes quite a while for much to happen. It's full of descriptions and atmosphere and the characters are all real, fleshed out people. Nevertheless I found it slow going for the first half, until the plot really takes shape and it's evident where the hints are leading. The ending is confronting and shocking and sticks with you. I wouldn't say I loved this when I was reading it but it will definitely stay with me.
This is a book told from the point of view of the children and it takes quite a while for much to happen. It's full of descriptions and atmosphere and the characters are all real, fleshed out people. Nevertheless I found it slow going for the first half, until the plot really takes shape and it's evident where the hints are leading. The ending is confronting and shocking and sticks with you. I wouldn't say I loved this when I was reading it but it will definitely stay with me.