Rachel Beanland, author of the award-winning THE HOUSE IS ON FIRE (released by Simon & Schuster in April 2023) will join you and nine of your favorite bibliophiles for an exclusive in-person book club event.

• Ask Rachel about her writing process, the novel's characters, and the true historical event that inspired THE HOUSE IS ON FIRE.
• Enjoy a private tour of Monumental Church with a representative of Historic Richmond, 10 signed copies of the novel courtesy of Shelf Life Books and a delicious lunch on the portico compliments of Manchester's Table.
• More About the Book: "The Richmond Theatre fire of 1811 was, at the time, the deadliest disaster in U.S. history, killing seventy-two. This historical novel examines the event and its aftermath through four figures: the stagehand who accidentally starts the fire; a well-to-do widow in a box seat; an enslaved young woman, attending with her mistress but confined to the colored gallery; and a blacksmith, also enslaved, who rushes to the scene and rescues patrons jumping from windows. The bad behavior of the powerful becomes a theme: the theatre company attempts to pin blame on a fabricated slave revolt, and men in the audience trample their wives in making their escape."-The New Yorker
• About the Author: Rachel Beanland is the author of the novels FLORENCE ADLER SWIMS FOREVER and THE HOUSE IS ON FIRE. She is a graduate of the University of South Carolina and earned her MFA in creative writing from Virginia Commonwealth University. She has taught creative writing at the College of William & Mary and Virginia Commonwealth University and is the 2023-2024 Writer in Residence at the University of Richmond.

Restrictions: The book club event must be scheduled at least four weeks in advance for a mutually-agreeable date and time (Monday through Thursday between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. only) at Monumental Church. Blackout dates may apply. Lunch and signed books will be provided for 10 people; however, you are welcome to include more guests. Additional books and lunches would be at the purchaser's added expense. The package must be redeemed before November 4, 2024.