A Language of Limbs

"The prose is textured, viscous almost, an ooze of sweet honey shot through with golden light . . . A Language of Limbs is a novel of (impeccable) vibes and mood, a gay hymnal written from inside the guts of the two protagonists."
—Yves Rees, Australian Book Review

A beautifully inventive, tender novel—the author's first to be published in the U.S.—following two lives as they almost intersect over three heartbreaking yet euphoric decades

A Language of Limbs is a breathtaking spin on a will-they-won’t-they love story; it is a tender epic that explores the weight of a choice, the love of community, and how joy is found in even the darkest corners.  
     Newcastle, Australia, 1972. On a sticky summer night, a choice must be made: to give in to queer desire or suppress it? To venture into the unknown or stay the course? In alternating chapters, poetically called Limb One and Limb Two, we trace the two versions of a life that follow.
     In Limb One, a teenage girl is caught kissing her neighbor and is kicked from her home; in continuing to run, she chooses a new life for herself. She lands at a queer communal home in Sydney called Uranian House, where she meets the people who will forever become her family. Meanwhile, in Limb Two, a teenage girl pushes down her lustful dreams of her best friend and eventually makes her way to a university in Sydney to study English literature.
     During pivotal moments, the physical space between Limb One and Limb Two closes and they almost intersect—like when they each meet the first great loves of their lives in 1977 at a protest, or when, almost a decade later, they are both rushed to the hospital with only a curtain between them. Through the AIDS crisis—and from classrooms to art galleries, beds to bars, and hospitals to homes—we witness these two lives shadow each other until, finally, they collide.Praise for A Language of Limbs:

“An epic tale of Sapphic pleasure, pain and activism.”
—The Big Issue (Australia)

"Dylin Hardcastle’s novel carried me away like a tidal current. Expansive across time, yet intimate in its focus, A Language of Limbs is that rare book that’s equally poetic and propulsive—with twin protagonists who are impossible to shake. Nothing short of an instant queer classic."
—Benjamin Law, author of Gaysia

"Poetic, fresh and mesmerising, Hardcastle’s work is like nothing I have ever read. A Language of Limbs is full of feeling; a love story about the family we make ourselves. Upon finishing this book I was overwhelmed by a sense of, more. I am desperate for more stories like this." 
—Jessie Stephens, author of Heartsick

"A life-affirming, deeply-felt novel of the decisions we make and the lives that unspool from them. To read A Language of Limbs is to be reminded of the power of queer joy and community. I loved it."
—Hannah Kent, author of Burial Rites

“Tender and steamy . . . [A] story of aching almost, deep grief and exuberant joy that will appeal to readers of Emily Danforth and Jeanette Winterson . . . Hardcastle writes with all sensual faculties and earnestly depicts the full-on force of female desires.”
—Books and Publishing (Australia)Dylin Hardcastle (they/them) is an award-winning author, artist, and screenwriter. They are the author of Below Deck (2020), Breathing Under Water (2016), and Running Like China (2015). Their work has been published to critical acclaim in ten territories and translated into eight languages. A Language of Limbs won the Kathleen Mitchell Award through the Australia Council for the Arts. The novel has been optioned by Curio (Sony Pictures) and is in development.