Rachel Beanland

Rachel Beanland turns archival research into closely observed historical fiction. The House Is on Fire reconstructs the Richmond Theatre fire of 1811 through four viewpoints, including a stagehand, a widow, an enslaved woman, and an enslaved blacksmith. Simon & Schuster brought the novel out in 2023, and Beanland's author's note distinguishes documented people and events from invention. Her earlier novel, Florence Adler Swims Forever, received the National Jewish Book Award for Debut Fiction. A Richmond resident with an MFA from Virginia Commonwealth University, she has taught at several Virginia institutions. Her second novel deepens that regional connection while examining how catastrophe, social power, and competing accounts determine whose courage enters the historical record.