A notice in "The Times" addressed to 'Those who Appreciate Wistaria and Sunshine' advertises a 'small mediaeval Italian Castle on the shores of the Mediterranean to be let furnished for the month of April'. Four very different women take up the offer, escaping dreary London for the sunshine of Italy.

Cousin of Katherine Mansfield and lover of H.G. Wells, Elizabeth von Arnim was at the hub of the literary and political society of her time. She was born in Australia in 1866 but grew up in England, and began her career in 1898 with the semi-autobiographical Elizabeth and Her German Garden. She was married twice and died in 1941.

Salley Vickers was born in Liverpool and read English at Newnham College Cambridge. Her first novel, Miss Garnet's Angel (2000), became an international word-of-mouth bestseller. Her most recent novels include Mr Golightly's Holiday (2003) and Dancing Backwards (2009).