Resignations, leaks, secret recordings and leaders gone rogue - in the five years since John Key resigned as prime minister, the National Party caucus has lived a rich and colourful experience.
Stuff senior journalist Andrea Vance has detailed the blood-letting, conniving, and eventual path to relative political stability in her new book, Blue Blood.
On Q+A on Sunday, Vance said that despite the comparative success of National's current leadership of Christopher Luxon and Nicola Willis, "tensions aren't far from the surface."
"I think the truce is fragile," she said.
"It all comes down to success. So far, the Willis-Luxon combination has been pretty successful."
However, she said that Luxon has made some missteps in recent public interviews and if he "continues to flounder", the tumult that has plagued the caucus over the past few years could resurface.
"None of the tensions that dogged the National Party have been resolved, whether it's the personal ambitions, whether it's the competition between the liberal and conservative."
Since Key stepped down as prime minister in 2016, the Nats have seen a number of "power plays" for the top job, resulting in internal instability, Vance said.
"When Key left, everyone saw their chance... every politician essentially wants to be prime minister or leader at some point."
Vance said Simon Bridges, Judith Collins and Todd Muller all had their moment, but according to a senior National Party figure, "they all blew it".
However, despite Key's best efforts to leave a succession plan in place, Vance said the party was undone by "alpha people".
"In politics, you can't underestimate events, and you can't underestimate the heights of people's ambitions and egos."
Blue Blood: The Inside Story of the National Party in Crisis, will be released on July 19.
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