In a writing career that covered the first 50 years of the 20th century, Rose Macaulay produced 23 novels, six books of criticism, four books of travel and history and two collections of poetry, as well as a huge correspondence with her friends - figures such as Elizabeth Bowen, Virginia Woolf, E.M. Forster and T.S. Eliot. She gave the impression of being sexually uninterested in men (she looked like a eunuch, said Virginia Woolf who did not take kindly to the fact that Rose's books were more popular than hers), while for a quarter of a century she was madly, passionately and sinfully in love with a married man. The relationship ended only with his death in 1942. A great comic writer who excelled at satire, she was also an innovator and experimenter, and a sharp and invigorating commentator on matters of popular and public interest. This biography explores her life and work.

Sarah LeFanu is a writer and broadcaster. Her study of feminism and science fiction is published by The Women's Press and she has edited several collections of short stories, most recently for Serpent's Tail. She presents Radio 4's 'A Good Read'.