Winner of the 2005 Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize
Shortlisted for the 2004 Scotiabank Giller Prize
Nominated for the 2004 Commonwealth Writers' Prize
Nominated for the 2005 City of Victoria Butler Book Prize
The art world of mid-16th century Italy comes to life through the eyes of a piebald slave stolen from her home and family in Africa.

Chiara, as she is eventually named, is sold to Paolo Pallavicino, an artist in service of Giuliano de Medici. When several unfortunate incidents occur, the artist's wife believes her to be a curse and demands that she be sent away. From this starting point, Chiara works her way from painter to painter, observing the games the artists play on each other and the rivalries that fuel their artistic creations.