Beatrice Hitchman
Writer
Photograph: Sarah Lee
Books
Books
Beatrice Hitchman was born in London in 1980. She lives in Oxford.
Current publication:
ALL OF YOU, EVERY SINGLE ONE - Serpent's Tail (UK) and Abrams (USA) - August 2021 / February 2022
Longlisted for the HWA Gold Grown Award 2022
Longlisted for the Polari Book Prize 2022
From an acclaimed and powerful talent in historical fiction, a literary historical novel set in a bohemian enclave of Vienna, about love, freedom, and what constitutes a family
Set in Vienna from 1910 to 1946, All of You Every Single One is an atmospheric, original, and deeply moving novel about family, freedom, and how true love might survive impossible odds. Julia Lindqvist, a woman unhappily married to a famous Swedish playwright, leaves her husband to begin a passionate affair with a female tailor named Eve. The pair run away together and settle in the more liberal haven of Vienna, where they fall in love, navigate the challenges of their newfound independence, and find community in the city's Jewish quarter. But Julia's yearning for a child throws their fragile happiness into chaos and threatens to destroy her life and the lives of those closest to her. Ada Bauer's wealthy industrialist family have sent her to Dr. Freud in the hope that he can cure her mutism--and do so without a scandal. But help will soon come for Ada from an unexpected place, changing many lives irrevocably.
Through the lives of her queer characters, and against the changing backdrop of one of the greatest cities of the age, Hitchman asks what it's like to live through oppression, how personal decisions become political, and how far one will go to protect the ones they love. Moving across Europe and through decades, Hitchman's sophomore novel is an intensely poignant portrait of life and love on the fringes of history.
Praise:
‘A gorgeous trip across time and identity, through war and fascism, to show how people make new families and find ways to love each other.’ - Kate Pullinger
‘For all its big themes, this novel never stops being tender. Hitchman has beautifully captured the ebb and flow of long-term relationships, from first lust, to the pathos of familiarity ... gorgeously written on every single page.’ - Katie Ward, author of Girl Reading
‘The story flows with epic majesty... a rich and dynamic narrative expertly told; authentic characters skilfully shaped with genuine empathy; and beautifully crafted historical descriptions written with superb grace.’ - Laura Carlin, author of Requiem for a Knave
'With the delicacy and beauty of Flaubert, Hitchman tells the exquisite story of two women trying to make a life together in wartime Austria, and all the love, friendship and danger that implies.’ -Sophie Ward
‘Vienna is described in richly atmospheric, beautifully evocative language ... Hitchman's characters are engaging, despite their many flaws, and her storytelling engrossing.’ -A Life in Books
“With a masterful eye for historical detail, Beatrice Hitchman’s ambitious new novel plunges us headfirst into the bohemian world of Vienna’s early 20th century golden age, as a sprawling cast of queer characters found themselves drawn into the liberal orbit of the city’s Jewish quarter in the search for romance, companionship, or simply independence in an otherwise unforgiving world....All of You Every Single One shines as a beautiful, poignant, and deeply felt tale of holding on to the love of the chosen families we create, even in the most adverse of historical circumstances.”
―Vogue.com
“Hitchman excels at capturing both the liberating permissiveness of turn-of-the-century Vienna and the city’s paralyzing fear after Hitler’s 1938 annexation of Austria... Her main characters are sympathetically drawn...engrossing."
―Kirkus Reviews
“As Hitchman moves us across decades, we see Vienna, politics, and the lives of queer people, change for each of these characters... It's a novel about found family, the consequences of decisions, and how far we'll go for love — especially in an age of oppression.”―Buzzfeed, The Best Books to Read in January
"This liberating novel about queer chosen family is beautifully detailed and filled with heart."―Brit + Co
“The tale of queer love, family, and freedom in one of the greatest cities of the early 20th century is eloquently depicted in All of You Every Single One by Beatrice Hitchman...Populated with rich and vibrant characters, All of You Every Single One is a stellar work that blends the best of history and fiction.”
―Historical Novels Review
“Beatrice Hitchman’s latest novel takes readers on a journey of love, freedom, and what defines family in 20th century Vienna...A touching and atmospheric ode to queer characters and their struggles during such a poignant time in history, we can guarantee you won’t put this one down until it's finished.”―Women.com
“Beatrice Hitchman’s writing is beautiful from the start... The little community that built up around them caught me by the heart at once, and I found I didn’t know how to escape it. I also found I didn’t particularly want to.”―Manhattan Book Review
“A gorgeous and deeply moving novel...Hitchman takes readers on an atmospheric and unforgettable journey.”―Daily Hive
Praise for PETITE MORT (2013):
Longlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize
Llonglisted for the Author's Club Best First Novel Award
Shortlisted for the Polari Prize
Shortlisted for the HWA Debut Dagger
Adapted as a ten-part Women's Hour drama starring Honor Blackman.
'This clever debut indicates a bright future for its author.' - the Independent
' Read and enjoy' - the Sydney Morning Herald
‘An astonishingly assured debut novel ... an expertly crafted story.’ - The Irish Times
‘There's a touch of Angela Carter about Beatrice Hitchman's beguiling debut - a sly, erotic thriller concerned with doubleness and duplicity.’ - Guardian
‘An impressive and enjoyable debut: nimble, deft and wrapped luxuriously in the velveteen glamour of the movies.’ -Financial Times
'Sumptuously set, elegantly written, evocative and quietly subversive' - Stella Duffy
Fiction
| Publication Details | Notes |
|---|---|
2013 Serpent's Tail | Mesdames et Messieurs, presenting La Petite Mort, or, A Little Death ... A silent film, destroyed in a fire in 1914 at the Pathé studio, before it was seen even by its director. A lowly seamstress, who makes the costumes she should be wearing, but believes her talent - and the secret she keeps too - will soon get her a dressing room of her own. A famous - and dashing - creator of spectacular cinematic illusions, husband to a beautiful, volatile actress, the most adored icon of the Parisian studios. All fit together, like scenes in a movie. And as you will see, this plot has a twist we beg you not to disclose ... |