gave an interview stating that Batten and Walter were not engaged. This was contrary to Batten's own earlier comments on the matter but she never contradicted her mother. By the end of her New Zealand visit in September 1934, Batten had created an image of herself as a skilled and courageous aviator. She was now firmly established as an international hero and a source of pride for New Zealand. However, she downplayed her flying accidents and the financial support she had received earlier in her career and the difference between her public and private personas was noted; the Castrol representative accompanying her on her tour of New Zealand found her to be arrogant and immodest. She made a significant sum of money from the tour, around £2,500, equivalent to about £100,000 in 2014, but did not pay back Truman or Dorée. In fact, she later wrote that the flight "had not been a great financial success". Returning to Australia, Batten was a radio commentator at the MacRobertson Air Race, for aircraft flying from England to Melbourne in honour of the city's centenary. She had hoped to enter the race itself, which had a first prize of £10,000, but was unable to get to England in time for the start on 20 October. Afterwards, she returned to Sydney, where she had temporarily based herself, intending in due course to go onto England and marry Walter. She was now also a published author; her account of her record-breaking flight was published by Jackson & O'Sullivan Limited in Sydney as Solo Flight. The book did not sell well, with one reviewer describing it as "not a brilliant book" and another considered the transcript of the log of her flight to be the most interesting part of the book. While in Sydney, she met Beverly Shepherd, a 23-year-old who was training to become a commercial pilot and a relationship promptly developed. According to Batten, this was much to the displeasure of Ellen, who regarded her daughter as being committed to Walter, even though she had previously publicly denied the existence of the couple's engagement. By March 1935, the engagement was off. Batten had written to Walter to end the relationship but it was reported in the media prior to him receiving her letter. This left him bitter at the news. She later wrote that on arriving in Australia to complete her record flight, she