Venus, Vanishing cover art

Venus, Vanishing

a gripping story of resistance and forbidden passion in 1930s Berlin

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Venus, Vanishing

By: Rebecca Birrell
Narrated by: Lydia Wilson
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About this listen

Venus, Vanishing is a blisteringly passionate and page-turning debut novel of desire, art, and the stories lost to the darkness of history – for readers of Sarah Waters, Yael van der Wouden, and Alice Winn.

'Gripping, gorgeously written . . . I couldn't put it down' - Joanna Quinn, author of The Whalebone Theatre



Berlin, 1928. Hannah is new to the pleasures and freedoms of the city. An artist, a runaway, she is building a new life, loving without boundaries and sketching with a cutting edge.

But soon the party is coming to an end. A consuming affair with her patron, Elke - the imperious wife of a powerful man - is reckless, yet life changing, and threatens to do more than ruin both of their reputations.

Her work appears around the city, tampered with, and under another's name. People are disappearing. The shadows of something unspeakable are growing darker. Her art could be the thing that secures her survival – or will deny her any chance of escape.

'A radiant vision of art against evil . . . a bold, moving novel' - Megan Hunter, author of Days of Light

'Wonderful. Alive with a deep, resonant tenderness' - Elizabeth O'Connor, author of Whale Fall

'Extraordinary. I didn't want it to end' - Doireann Ní Ghríofa, author of A Ghost in the Throat

20th Century Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Literature & Fiction Romance

Critic reviews

'A gripping, gorgeously written debut that I couldn't put down' (Joanna Quinn, author of The Whalebone Theatre)
'A rare and precious combination of emotional warmth and cleverness' (Sarah Moss, author of Ripeness)
'This book offers us a radiant vision of art against evil, of the endurance of love, ambition and vitality amidst the worst of atrocities and betrayal. A bold, moving novel' (Megan Hunter, author of Days of Light)
'Extraordinary. Venus, Vanishing moved me deeply; I didn't want it to end. The rare sort of book that brings the past back to trembling life' (Doireann Ní Ghríofa, author of Said the Dead and A Ghost in the Throat)
Wonderful. Sharp and deft, yet alive with a deep, resonant tenderness. I absolutely LOVED Venus, Vanishing (Elizabeth O'Connor, author of Whale Fall)
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