Beatrice De Soprontu’s novel VICES/VIRTUES is kinky yet insightful and sure to surprise you with it’s originality and depth. It’s both exciting and philosophical, designed to share the message that all humans are unique and different. Everyone leads a different life, has different personalities and secrets, and you’ll find that not everything is as it seems. In this interview, we learn more about Beatrice’s message and her story.
What is the PRIMARY benefit, above all others, that your potential reader will gain from reading this book?
We see in stereotypes, which is unfortunate since dichotomies such as good/bad, brave/cowardly, 
foolish/smart don’t exist. That’s the point of VICES/VIRTUES. The main character Cristela has this dual life, office worker by day and professional dominatrix by night. When she begins moonlighting at the dungeon, she has a lot of preconceptions about the people she’ll find there, but she soon discovers these are all wrong. Glimpses of her clients and co-workers’ lives reveal them to be human beings with a relatable mixture of longing and sadness. Daisy seems like a stereotypical drug addict until we see the astonishing fortitude she’s displayed by becoming the protector of her younger siblings. Justine rejected her parents’ pretentious lifestyle by making her career choice an act of conscious rebellion. Virginia deals with grief by becoming the caretaker of those around her. Like Cristela, the reader benefits from the realization that all people are captivatingly complex and far beyond stereotypical labels.
If you had to compare this book to any other book out there, which book would it be?
It makes sense that a novel opposing stereotypes does not fit neatly into one genre. Sex is in the book, but it’s too thoughtful a story to be merely erotica. Societal issues like race and class are present but a good dose of humor lightens the mood. The closest comparisons I can think of are two books never grouped together: Santaland Diaries by David Sedaris and Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison.
VICES/VIRTUES and Santaland are both set in the behind-the-scenes of unusual work environments. Santaland explores the dark side of being a Macy’s elf, while VICES/VIRTUES shows the compassion found in a dungeon. Invisible Man is about an unnamed character who no one can see because he doesn’t fall within stereotypes. He, like Cristela, is searching for identity in a world where truth is often elusive. If I were to think of a movie that is similar to VICES/VIRTUES it would be Do the Right Thing by Spike Lee. Brutally honest, yet full of edgy humor, this movie dealt with serious issues and featured the most diverse cast of any movie to date. Most importantly, there weren’t any heroes or villains, like VICES/VIRTUES there were just people who try not to falter as they follow their paths.
Hundreds of thousands of books come out every year. Why should someone buy THIS book?
VICES/VIRTUES has been described as “thoroughly original” and it is! This is not the 50 shades of boring stuff that you see in most books about dominatrixes–this is The Office if they all worked in a BDSM dungeon and had philosophical discussions about race, religion and class. If you want a lot of action, car chases, a climatic resolution, etc. then move on. However, if you want to explore an unusual profession and really delve into how a person’s past influences their choices then read this book.
Who is your target audience?
Gender, age, geographic area doesn’t matter (they’re just labels after all)–but interests do! If you want to read a novel that illustrates “the qualities, inborn and developed, that make us who we are and lead us down the paths from our childhoods to our futures,” then you should read this book!
Did your environment or upbringing play a major role in your writing and did you use it to your advantage?
Definitely, my background is similar to Cristela’s. I too was raised in Queens, NY by a poor immigrant mom and was propelled into an Ivy League college as a scholarship kid. The resulting tension I felt between being poor and privileged is a part of Cristela’s character as well. Class issues in the United States are almost completely ignored, so I felt I needed to represent this in my novel. Speaking of representation, my pet peeve is when ethnic diversity is displayed like a billboard. There’s a lot of that in media and it seems so fake, especially since you can’t always pinpoint a person’s background just by looking at them or hearing their name. Growing up I had friends who were East-Asian looking Brazilians, white-looking Muslim Middle-Easterners, black-looking Jews, and so on. Such diversity is (in Queens at least) more of the norm, not the exception. Hence, in the book the characters backgrounds are sometimes highlighted, however, often times they are not. For example, if you get that Aruzhan is a Kazakh name, great. But if not, it’s ok because it is just one of many layers to the character.
Tell us your most rewarding experience since publishing your work?
Simply engaging with people who have read my novel. I know it sounds strange but stories are like children. You may plan your children, raise them and yet despite all your cultivation they form into something different than you expected. They surprise you, and if you’re lucky, in a way that makes you proud.
How would you describe your writing style?
Conversational, thoughtful and slightly amusing at times.
Are your characters pure fiction, or did you draw from people you know?
Here is a dreaded question, especially since this is a book about a nice girl with a scandalous secret, so naturally people will give me the side-eye wondering how much of this is fact versus fiction. I’ll just note that all memoir includes an element of fiction and all fiction an element of reality. Did I base characters on real people? Yes, but the secret is who were my inspirations and how accurate were my descriptions.
Are you more of a character artist or a plot-driven writer?
Thus far I’m very much a character artist, but who knows what the future will hold.
What do you hope to accomplish with your book other than selling it?
Let’s all stop with the flat lining people into neat little labels. People are complex–that’s the joy of life!
How can our readers get in touch with you?
Two great options for reaching out to me are on social media: IG, FB, Twitter, TikTok
or on my website www.beatricedesoprontu.com which has lots of addition articles and information about VICES/VIRTUES.
Where can our readers purchase your book?
Both ebooks and paperbacks are available at
