1968. After her father gambles away the family home, seven-year-old Kate and her mother, Nora Wallace, move to Chidley House, a quaint boarding house in Fremantle, where Nora is employed. Alice Chidley occasionally allows Kate to watch the newly acquired TV, presenting an illusory world to the young child. Ex-teacher Miss Tillman encourages her to be more than "Just Kate". Stan and Syd Blennerhasset fuel Kate's imagination with facts and made-up stories. With this background of fantasy, Kate warms to make-believe and hidden truths as a way out from her unwanted existence. When Chidley House is sold, Stan gives Kate a diary as a parting gift. After leaving school, Kate endures a job in a cafe and evening typing classes. Absorbing etiquette and subtle manipulation from her new wealthy friend, Fiona Noble, she waits for the opportunity to have a similar lifestyle, embellishing her family's situation and social standing with untruths. 1977. Securing a job at an upmarket boutique as Katisse Blanchard, Kate is worlds away from her past. Her subtle lies continue as she builds a life amongst society's elite, recording her exploits in a diary. But has Kate's attitude, shaped by comparison of others' lifestyles, created overtures for a life of illusion? Are her diaries full of lies or enriched truths? And will she regret any of it? AUTHOR: Perth-based Barbara Gurney is a fiction writer and poet. Her novels have diverse storylines, but they all connect to people and places, desires and self-growth. She tackles everyday characters who see beyond reality or, in her newest novel, Diary of Lies, a main character who creates her own reality. Having fifteen publications on her shelf and many awards on file, she's pleasantly gratified at the success of her writing. During the Western Australian heat, she becomes a writing and painting hermit, but she is generally open to coffee and cake on any given day! You can find out more about Barbara Gurney on her website: www.barbaragurney.com.
