It's also mentioned that another of Kate's boyfriends was violent and she and Destiny had to run away from him. Barbara's father in Deep Blue uses his daughter to vicariously live out his own dreams of Olympic stardom, completely disregarding her wish to lead a normal teenage life. Will is adopted, but Violet didn't know this for most of her life, and still sees him as a big brother.

While Pearl got picked on a lot at school, she mentions that when Jodie was still in the juniors, no one would dare pick on her in the playground.

Sarah doesn't understand that this isn't supposed to happen, and even Prue (who is otherwise selfish and aggressive) can't be angry with her. Broken Bird: Ho boy, the majority of protagonists in Wilson's books are young girls going through some absolutely horrific things that no child should ever have to go through, but unfortunately many do in the UK and worldwide.

Alice's mother in Best Friends is incredibly insensitive towards how much the move is distressing her Alice and Gemma, who have been best friends since birth. He then stabs and seriously wounds her stepfather, forcing Lolly to go on the run with Greg, who suggests she become a prostitute to bring in money.After Megs dies in Clover Moon, the priest at her funeral exclusively refers to her by her full name of Margaret Anne Moon. Subverted when Greg tries to help her re-live a day trip she took with her father, causing her to remember that he wasn't so perfect after all. In Girls in Tears, Anna's career is a source of friction between her and Ellie's father; and it's mentioned that Ellie's mother gave up a promising career to raise her daughter. Foregone Conclusion - in Vicky Angel, Vicky is still alive in the first chapter or two - but from the title alone, what do you think is going to happen to her?

An early novel that Wilson based on this theme was Amber, in which the title character struggles to lead a normal life in spite of her mother's irresponsible hippy/"groupie" lifestyle. Jayni's mother in Lola Rose leaves her two young children alone while she works a bar job late at night, eventually leaving them for several days when she goes into hospital for an operation (although they are able to trace their estranged aunt, and get help. Cloud Cuckoolander - Lampshaded in Opal Plumstead when Cassie daydreams about being the wife of a man twice her age that she's been out with, and Opal tells her that she is living in "cloud-cuckoo-land". Sylvie in Kiss believes she's in love with her friend Carl and that they will get married when they grow up.

Insinuating Tracy's mum doesn't love her or isn't as cool as Tracy says she is tends to send her into a tantrum, though by the end of The Dare Game Tracy admits her mother isn't really the maternal type and chooses to go back to live with Cam.

Tracy Beaker, and Elsie in Queenie, end up being taken into children's homes because they had been left at home alone by their mothers (although in Elsie's case, she's able to go and live with her grandmother. As well as winning many awards for her books, including the Children's Book of the Year, Jacqueline is a former Children's Laureate, and in 2008 she was appointed a Dame.In "The Suitcase Kid", Andy reflects that her stepfather Bill treats ten-year-old Katie like an angel and acts like she can do no wrong when she's actually incredbly mean (Andy is the only one who gets in trouble when she and Katie fight). Charlie in The Lottie Project takes this stance and even has a girls' club about how girls are better than boys. Sue in The Diamond Girls has four daughters all fathered by different men and all of them let her down, one was "too young to be a Dad", one abused her, one died of a drug overdose and one of them cheated on his wife with her. Martha in The Longest Whale Song repeatedly taunts Ella that her mother will be in a coma indefinitely but after seeing how her mother and stepfather treat her, Ella realises that she's being horrible because she's unhappy. Gemma and Alice in Best Friends, although they're around 10 years old and thus would be a very mild version of the trope.