800 Words

George Turner's plan to kick-start his family back into life by shifting them all across the Tasman to the town of Weld, New Zealand, does not get off to an ideal start.

It is fight or flee time for the Turner family as faulty plumbing and poorly chosen words sees the town of Weld rise up against their new Australian imports.

When George goes on the offensive, tracking down the source of a scurrilous rumour about him, what he learns changes everything between him and the women of Weld.

Shay, now well aware of the women's interest in her dad, makes it clear he needs to watch out, prompting George to become hyper-vigilant when he is around any of the Women of Weld. But in trying to keep a low profile, George stumbles into a web of family secrets and conflict - and it all begins with a comment about poor grammar at the local museum.

The family's attempts to mark Laura's birthday are disrupted by the discovery that their new home's piles are on the verge of collapsing, forcing them to move temporarily into the local motel. Here, George runs into his teen surfing nemesis, one Dean "the Orca" Marshall, who, in George's memory at least, is one of the main reasons he is still such a terrible surfer.

George throws himself into solving the mystery of Sir Frederick Weld's missing head - when he should be solving a whole other mystery, one much closer to home.

George struggles with the realization that while he was looking the other way, his children have been navigating a world he feels unqualified to deal with. Under pressure, George writes an unusually personal column about his struggles as a solo dad.

George Turner brought his family to the town of Weld, New Zealand, in search of a new life. That life is now in ruins. So where to now, George?