Why we’re excited
Ava and Bentley are siblings born eleven months apart: she is the high achiever, he is the family problem. When Ava hits a classmate after a party, Bentley tells her to leave and takes the blame himself.
Berry, a former clinical psychologist, writes domestic suspense about families with sick dynamics, including The Perfect Child. This standalone turns on which child parents protect when they cannot shield both, which should give book clubs plenty to argue over.
On our most-anticipated list since 22 October 2026. See all the most anticipated books →
What to know about The Golden Child
We have reviewed one of Lucinda Berry’s books so far: One in Four, which we gave 4 out of 5.
Readers have saved it often enough to put it at No. 2 on our list of January 2027’s most-anticipated releases. At 272 pages it is shorter than most thriller books out in January 2027, where the typical length is about 400 pages.
From the publisher
One lie to save her future. One decision to destroy his.
Ava and Bentley are Irish twins—eleven months apart, inseparable since birth. Ava is the golden girl: disciplined, driven, bound for success. Bentley is the screwup: reckless, restless, always one bad choice away from disaster.
Until the night Ava makes a mistake that can’t be undone.
After a wild party, Ava gets behind the wheel—and hits a classmate. Panicked and terrified that her future will implode before it begins, she calls the one person who has never failed her: Bentley.
He’s there in minutes. He sees the blood. The fear in his sister’s eyes. And he makes a split-second decision that will change all their lives.
He tells Ava to go home.
He takes the blame.
But secrets never stay buried. And when someone discovers the truth, their family must make an impossible choice: protect their brilliant, promising daughter… or save the son whose future has always teetered on the brink.
A gripping psychological suspense novel about favoritism, ambition, and the lethal cost of family loyalty, The Golden Child asks one haunting question:
If you had to choose, which child would you save?
Description supplied by the publisher.
We haven’t read The Golden Child yet. When our review goes up, it will replace this page.
