A rural-crime novel about finding out how to survive and surviving what you find. In a small country town, an act of revenge causes five lives to collide. Early one Christmas morning, Graeme Sweetapple, a man down on his luck, is heading home with a truck full of stolen steers when he comes across an upended ute that has hit a tree. He is about to get involved with Luke, an environmental protestor who isn’t what he seems; a washed-up local politician, Caroline Statham, who is searching for a sense of purpose, but whose businessman husband seems to be sliding into corruption; and Carson, who is wild, bound to no one, and determined to escape her circumstances. Into their midst comes Retribution, a legendary horse worth a fortune. Her disappearance triggers a cycle of violence and retaliation that threatens the whole community. As tensions build, they must answer one question: is true retribution ever possible — or even desirable? Small cities -- Australia -- Fiction. | Traffic accidents -- Australia -- Fiction. | Retribution -- Fiction. | Cattle stealing -- Australia -- Fiction. | Interpersonal conflict -- Australia -- Fiction. | Interpersonal relations -- Australia -- Fiction. | Revenge -- Fiction. | Country life -- Australia -- Fiction. | Australia -- Rural conditions -- Fiction. | Australian