Nicole Johnstons highly realistic novel shows us the rough as well as the tender side of Australian politics, an arena where the blood of fallen reputations and abandoned politics stains the sand.

Ambitious young Labour MP Rob Connor has dreams of taking the top job. Successive Cabinet portfolios bring him nearer his prize, and soon hes Deputy PM under Paul Keating. But an ill-timed election puts him on the Opposition back benches in a state of despair.

His career becalmed, Rob addresses immigration and minority issues, while his lovely wife, Maggie, successfully writes childrens books....