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Claire Lynch’s Debut Wins Nero Gold, Spotlighting LGBTQ Custody Fight

4/23/2026

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Summary

Story summary

Claire Lynch’s debut novel won the Nero Gold prize for fiction, depicts a family split caused by anti-LGBTQ+ court rulings, and notes that attitudes have opened parenting possibilities for LGBTQ+ couples.
The book draws on true stories of lesbian mothers separated from their children in the 1980s.
It alternates between 2022, when Heron faces terminal cancer, and 1982, when his ex-partner Dawn loses custody of Maggie, narrated by Miranda Raison.

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Story summary

Claire Lynch’s debut novel won the Nero Gold prize for fiction, depicts a family split caused by anti-LGBTQ+ court rulings, and notes that attitudes have opened parenting possibilities for LGBTQ+ couples.
The book draws on true stories of lesbian mothers separated from their children in the 1980s.
It alternates between 2022, when Heron faces terminal cancer, and 1982, when his ex-partner Dawn loses custody of Maggie, narrated by Miranda Raison.