Smother by Eve Thomson

Winning isn't everything. It's more.

Set in a high-performing Melbourne private school, Smother begins with a devastating injury on the girls’ football field and follows the fallout through the eyes of those caught up in it. Eve Thomson brings sharp insight to the pressures surrounding elite school sport, from parental expectation and institutional self-protection to the blurred line between discipline and harm.

At the centre is lawyer Romola Cross, whose investigation into the case opens up larger questions about responsibility, ambition and what adults ask young people to carry in pursuit of success. Taut, thoughtful and emotionally grounded, this is a compelling read for readers drawn to contemporary Australian fiction with moral complexity.

For fans of
Charlotte Wood, Jock Serong, legal and moral dramas, contemporary Australian fiction, stories about sport, power and accountability.