In this delightful novel, Parmar re-imagines the brilliant, fragile writer and her turn-of-the-century bohemian friends. “Being related to Virginia Woolf can’t have been easy. “Fiction and history merge seamlessly in this dazzling novel.” - Entertainment Weekly

The work of exciting young newcomer Priya Parmar, Vanessa and Her Sister exquisitely captures the champagne-heady days of prewar London and the extraordinary lives of sisters Vanessa Bell and Virginia Woolf. As tragedy and betrayal threaten to destroy the family, Vanessa must decide if it is finally time to protect her own happiness above all else. Without it, she careens toward self-destruction and madness. Eerily possessive, charismatic, manipulative, and brilliant, Virginia has always lived in the shelter of Vanessa’s constant attention and encouragement.

Together, this sparkling coterie of artists and intellectuals throw away convention and embrace the wild freedom of being young, single bohemians in London.īut the landscape shifts when Vanessa unexpectedly falls in love and her sister feels dangerously abandoned. Leonard Woolf is still a civil servant in Ceylon, and John Maynard Keynes is looking for a job. Forster has finished his first novel but does not like the title. Lytton Strachey has not published anything. Virginia Woolf’s book review has just been turned down by The Times. And at the center of this charmed circle are the devoted, gifted sisters: Vanessa, the painter, and Virginia, the writer.Įach member of the group will go on to earn fame and success, but so far Vanessa Bell has never sold a painting.

There they bring together a glittering circle of bright, outrageous artistic friends who will grow into legend and come to be known as the Bloomsbury Group. Vanessa, Virginia, Thoby, and Adrian are leaving behind their childhood home and taking a house in the leafy heart of avant-garde Bloomsbury. London, 1905: The city is alight with change, and the Stephen siblings are at the forefront. Hailed by The New York Times Book Review as “an uncanny success” and based on meticulous research, this stunning novel illuminates a little-known episode in the celebrated sisters’ glittering bohemian youth among the legendary Bloomsbury Group.įind your next book club pick, read special features, and more. What if Virginia Woolf’s sister had kept a diary? For fans of The Paris Wife and Loving Frank comes a spellbinding new story of the inseparable bond between Virginia and her sister, the gifted painter Vanessa Bell, and the real-life betrayal that threatened to destroy their family.

“Quite simply astonishing.”-Sarah Blake.

“Prepare to be dazzled.”-Paula McLain.

An Entertainment Weekly “Must List” Pick.

Exit the Actress by Priya Parmar