Robert Hichens

Born in Kent in 1864, Robert Smythe Hichens built a long and varied literary career as a novelist, journalist, critic, and playwright. He first drew wide attention in the 1890s with The Green Carnation, a clever society satire that became closely linked with the aesthetic world of Oscar Wilde.

Hichens went on to write many popular novels, including The Garden of Allah, The Call of the Blood, and Bella Donna. His fiction is often remembered for its rich atmosphere, dramatic emotion, and fascination with exotic landscapes, especially the Mediterranean and North Africa.

Although his fame faded after his lifetime, he was a remarkably versatile writer whose work ranged from drawing-room wit to eerie tales and spiritual drama. He died in 1950, leaving behind a large body of fiction that captures both the glamour and the anxieties of the late Victorian and Edwardian world.