Year
2023
Language
English

About

Every family has rituals and routines holding them together. But sometimes they are the very things that tear them apart. The Family Code is a gritty family drama featuring the troubled life of Hannah Belenko, a young single mother dogged by the brutality of past traumas and a code of silence that she must crack in order to be free-or else lose everything.

Hannah was raised by this code and rules her own family by it. When she loses her daughter to the state and her boyfriend threatens her, she flees from Ottawa to Halifax with her remaining son, six-year-old Axel. While she bulldozes her way through everything and schemes to protect him, Axel flounders in the chaos. He begins to doubt his mother and her dream of a way out. With her life crashing down, Hannah is driven by desperation to survive yet hangs on to elusive hope.

With unvarnished and high-voltage prose, The Family Code unabashedly reveals the power and perils of parenting, but also the longing and vulnerability of children.

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Reviews

"The Family Code is a gritty and unflinching look at the devastating effects of intergenerational trauma. Wayne Ng has created vulnerable, damaged, and compelling characters that will resonate with me for a long time. Heartbreaking but also hopeful, this book put me through the wringer."
Bianca Marais, author of The Witches of Moonshyne Manor
"Intricate plotting and sizzling dialogue show an imaginative master at work, narrating in dual points of view with authentic voices, sharp wit and deep sympathy."
Josip Novakovich, author of Rubble of Rubles and Man Booker Finalist
"Hannah and Axel's story will break your heart. But it also stands as a timeless and stunningly textured testament to hope, redemption, and love. A must-read!"
Hollay Ghadery, author of Fuse

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