''As a reader and as a human being I want to know that good prevails in the end,'' she says with a laugh. ''Life is challenging enough.''

Looking at Walton's life now, it would seem that she is living her happy ending.

The 36-year-old is married to one of Australia's most famous - and respected - television personalities, Rove McManus, has an acting career spanning television and film and has just released her first novel, Heartless, to positive reviews.

So it comes as no surprise that when I ask her how her own heart is at the moment, she answers coyly with a giggle, ''It is in a great place, thank you.''

The heart, and the importance of listening to one's heart, is a common theme throughout the novel and Walton's life.

Heartless tracks the life of a little girl who can see and hear her own heart, as well as those of others.

Writing in what Walton describes as ''magic realism'', hearts in her story take emotional, physical and spiritual forms.

It is told in seven-year increments - a reference to the Jesuit belief that ''give me the child at seven and I will give you the man''.

It begins when the little girl is seven years old and her father leaves her and her mother to start a life with his new family.

For more, pick up a copy of today's Canberra Times