Twenty-seven short stories from renowned Australian fiction writer and poet Julie Thorndyke will take you on tantalising journeys in the company of artists and musicians, mothers and daughters, writers and lovers, as they make brave, desperate and audacious life choices.

Survival, desire, disaster; misadventure, murder and magic combine in this unique collection of tales set in locations including old rural Australia, present day cities and the distant mystical past.

Earthquake, flood, fire; stolen babies and lost children; homelessness and betrayal; ghosts, mystics and dreams— each story offers a chance to step into the shoes of closely imagined characters as they act out their unique answers to the question: “What if?”

Divertimento offers a chance to step briefly into the shoes of a protagonist and discover how it feels to steal, love, and murder . . . and live to tell the tale.