Synopsis
'A gripping, gorgeously written debut that I couldn't put down' - Joanna Quinn, author of The Whalebone Theatre
Venus, Vanishing is the blisteringly passionate and page-turning debut novel from Rebecca Birrell, of desire, art, and the stories lost to the darkness of history – for readers of Sarah Waters, Yael van der Wouden, and Alice Winn.
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.
'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. This is a bold, moving novel' - Megan Hunter, author of Days of Light
Details
09 July 2026
9781035085767Reviews
'A gripping, gorgeously written debut that I couldn't put down'
'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'
I loved this. Burning with art and with desire, this is an exceptionally vivid novel on coming of age in dark times as a woman and as an artist. What a writer
