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Wendy James Wendy James i(A6135 works by)
Born: Established: 1966 ;
Gender: Female
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BiographyHistory

Wendy James received a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Sydney and studied for an MA in writing at the University of Technology, Sydney. She has undertaken PhD studies at Deakin University, Victoria. In 2018, she was working as an editor at the Australian Institute of Health Innovation.

James won the University of Sydney Union/AAP short story competition in 1994 and 1995. Her 2005 debut novel Out of the Silence won the Ned Kelly Award for a Best First novel, and was shortlisted for a Dobbie Award. Her subsequent novels have regularly appeared on the longlists and shortlists for Australia's major crime-fiction awards, the Ned Kelly Awards and the Davitt Awards.

James, one of three sisters, is the sister of Rebecca James.

Most Referenced Works

Personal Awards

Awards for Works

y separately published work icon A Little Bird Seattle : Lake Union Publishing , 2021 23162022 2021 single work novel crime thriller

'A homecoming snares a young woman in a dangerous tangle of lies, secrets, and bad blood in this gripping novel by the bestselling author of An Accusation.

'Running from a bad relationship, journalist Jo Sharpe heads home to Arthurville, the drought-stricken town she turned her back on years earlier. While some things have changed―her relationship with her ailing, crotchety father, her new job at the community newspaper―Jo finds that her return has rekindled the grief and uncertainty she experienced during her childhood following the inexplicable disappearance of her mother and baby sister.

'Returning to Arthurville has its unexpected pleasures, though, as Jo happily reconnects with old friends and makes a few new ones. But she can’t let go of her search for answers to that long-ago mystery. And as she keeps investigating, the splash she’s making begins to ripple outward―far beyond the disappearance of her mother and sister.

'Jo is determined to dig as deep as it takes to get answers. But it’s not long before she realises that someone among the familiar faces doesn’t want her picking through the debris of the past. And they’ll go to any lengths to silence the little bird before she sings the truth.'

Source : publisher's blurb

2022 longlisted Davitt Award Best Adult Crime Novel
y separately published work icon The Accusation Sydney South : HarperCollins Australia , 2019 15439442 2019 single work novel thriller

'A bizarre abduction. A body of damning evidence. A world of betrayal.

'Eighteen-year-old Ellie Canning is found shivering and barely conscious on a country road, clad only in ill-fitting pyjamas. Her story of kidnap and escape quickly enthrals the nation: a middle-aged woman with a crazy old mother has held Ellie in a basement, chained her to a bed and given her drinks from an old baby's sippy cup. But who was this woman and what did she want with Ellie? And what other secrets might she hide?

'When the accusation is levelled at local teacher Suzannah Wells, no one seems more bewildered than Suzannah herself ... to start with. The preposterous charge becomes manifestly more real as she loses her job and her friends. And the evidence is strong: a dementia-affected mother, a house with a basement, a sippy cup that belonged to her long-dead daughter. And Ellie Canning's DNA everywhere. As stories about Susannah's past emerge, even those closest to her begin to doubt she's innocent.

'And Ellie? The media can't get enough of her. She's a girl-power icon, a social-media star. But is she telling the truth?

'A powerful exploration of the fragility of trust, and the power of suggestion, from the author of The Golden Child and The Mistake.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

2020 longlisted Davitt Award Best Adult Crime Novel
y separately published work icon The Golden Child Sydney : HarperCollins Australia , 2017 10320731 2017 single work novel

'Can bad children happen to good mothers? A totally absorbing novel, for readers of Liane Moriarty, Jodi Picoult, Lionel Shriver and Christos Tsiolkas.

'Blogger Lizzy's life is buzzing, happy, normal. Two gorgeous children, a handsome husband, destiny under control. For real-life Beth, things are unravelling. Recently returned to Australia from America, tensions are simmering with her husband, mother-in-law, and even her own mother. Her teenage daughters, once objects of her existence, have moved beyond her grasp and one of them has shown signs of, well, thoughtlessness ...

Beth hopes things will improve once they are settled in their new home and the girls start school. Reluctant to leave, her daughters seem to adapt to their new circumstances, and the younger, Charlie, shines in her unaccountable but customary way. Then a classmate of Charlie's is callously bullied and the finger of blame is pointed at Beth's clever, beautiful child. Shattered, shamed and frightened, two families must negotiate worlds of cruelty they are totally unprepared 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 the refuge it provides, and it asks the question: just how well do you know your child?' (Publication summary)

2018 longlisted Davitt Award Best Adult Crime Novel
2017 shortlisted Ned Kelly Awards for Crime Writing Best Novel
Last amended 17 Apr 2018 10:02:12
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