From the winner of the Victorian Premier's Literary Awards Grollo Ruzzene Foundation Prize. There had been only a small girl, who knew nothing of grief's protocol and had received no guidance, trying as hard as she could to make contact with a mother who was not there. Raised in Peterborough by her sculptor father, Iris has always been surrounded by art, but the shadow of her mother has left an indelible mark on her life. In the absence of memories, all Iris has is a grave and a diary written in Italian containing four postcards of Renaissance paintings. When a translation of the diary reveals her mother's voice for the first time, Iris is torn between maintaining the comfortable life with her father and her longing to understand her mother. The cobbled streets of Italy call, promising answers in the history of the Renaissance. Marcus, an enigmatic Englishman with a deep appreciation of art, unsettles Iris, urging her to look beyond the diary's surface. Secrets and stories as labyrinthine as the calli of Venice unravel and shadows take form. Iris must confront whether a lie, once discovered, can hold her family together or tear it apart.