Tales of dysfunction, infighting and secrecy within the office of former prime minister Tony Abbott have been chronicled in a book released today.

Key points: Niki Savva's book tracks fall of Abbott government

Niki Savva's book tracks fall of Abbott government Peta Credlin has labelled book 'scurrilous'

Peta Credlin has labelled book 'scurrilous' Savva says people were abused for years during Abbott administration

The account, written by political commentator Niki Savva, tracks Mr Abbott's rise to power and his demise. It argues his chief of staff Peta Credlin shoulders a significant amount of blame for what went wrong.

Savva, herself a former staffer to successful Liberal treasurer Peter Costello, has spoken to a range of current and former politicians, staff and friends about their experiences.

While some excerpts were published over the weekend, the full book is not out until today.

It is already under fire from Ms Credlin herself, who told News Corp papers over the weekend that the book was "scurrilous" and that Savva had not contacted her nor Mr Abbott for comment.

Savva defended her approach.

"What I decided was that Tony Abbott and Peta Credlin any day, any night, can get out there and give their version of events, and their version of events often differs very widely from everybody else's," Savva told ABC's Insiders yesterday.

"There are people who had been abused for years during that administration, who suffered in silence, and I thought they should be given the chance to tell their story.

"And that's what I tried to do and they have very bravely gone on the record, so many of them, to explain what happened."

Savva is also a columnist for The Australian newspaper and the book includes an account of Ms Credlin's push to have her sacked because of her weekly accounts of turmoil within government ranks.

Savva's husband Vince Woolcock works in logistics as part of the Malcolm Turnbull prime ministerial team.

In the book she notes some "unhinged white male conservative commentators" have accused her of agitating for Mr Abbott's downfall to secure her husband a job.

Credlin accused of being mired in minutiae

The book paints a picture of a highly centralised office, run by Ms Credlin, whose micro-management drove a wedge internally and cut other MPs and senators out of the loop with political and policy decisions.

According to the book her attention to detail even included close consideration of interior decoration of The Lodge.

Ministers recall being informed of policy decisions within their portfolios by reading about them in the paper.

Staffers in the prime minister's office would sometimes find out about political developments and government decisions when they received inquiries from reporters.

According to the book, deputy Liberal leader Julie Bishop and the prime minister's wife Margie were both sidelined at various times.

Ms Credlin's temper was also considered a factor. The book recounts one anecdote involving former senior staffer James Boyce.

She is accused of yelling at him and labelling him incompetent after he failed to provide an answer to a question she had asked.

There are also numerous accounts of backbench discontent and alienation.

The book also contains direct quotes from a former staffer who worked with Ms Credlin previously, in the office of Helen Coonan.

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She describes Ms Credlin's behaviour towards her as "bullying" and says it has taken her years to get over it.

The book closely scrutinises the working relationship between Mr Abbott and Ms Credlin, and his apparent deference to her.

One insider told Savva that during a meeting of cabinet ministers, an off-colour joke about submarines prompted Ms Credlin to walk out.

According to the book Mr Abbott left too and returned with her, requesting the assembled cabinet members deliver an apology.

Among the many anecdotes is the decision by Liberal senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells to raise the closeness of the relationship between Mr Abbott and Ms Credlin.

The senator has confirmed she went to both of them separately and asked if they were having an affair. They both denied it.

Bronwyn Bishop chopper apology claims disputed

Senior sources within Mr Abbott's office have already disputed a section of the book dealing with the former speaker Bronwyn Bishop.

According to the book, Savva's sources maintain Ms Bishop was instructed by a member of Mr Abbott's senior staff not to say sorry in the initial aftermath of the scandal over the use of travel entitlements for a helicopter ride to a party function.

That has been rejected by a number of insiders, and one told the ABC the staffer named in the book was never contacted for her side of the story.