Jaelyn reviewed Nettleblack by Nat Reeve
Review of 'Nettleblack' on 'Storygraph'
5 stars
1893 in the rural English town of Dallyangle, the youngest of the Nettleblack sisters (heirs to the Nettleblack fortune) Henry Nettleblack decides to flee her eldest sister’s plans to marry her off to elevate the family to aristocracy. However, Henry is cornered by thieves and loses everything. Thankfully saved by the Dallyangle Division (detective agency come neighbourhood watch composed nearly entirely of women), Henry decides to enlist before promptly fainting.
Hiding as a new recruit in Division, she deals with a the spate of robberies, a missing head and her eldest sister’s instructions to track her down. And then there are strange and distracting feelings Henry seems to be developing for her superior Septimus. Thankfully, there are plenty of other locals who, through experience, find it easier at putting such queer things into words. Perhaps in the Division, Henry can find her true self in a way she never could …
1893 in the rural English town of Dallyangle, the youngest of the Nettleblack sisters (heirs to the Nettleblack fortune) Henry Nettleblack decides to flee her eldest sister’s plans to marry her off to elevate the family to aristocracy. However, Henry is cornered by thieves and loses everything. Thankfully saved by the Dallyangle Division (detective agency come neighbourhood watch composed nearly entirely of women), Henry decides to enlist before promptly fainting.
Hiding as a new recruit in Division, she deals with a the spate of robberies, a missing head and her eldest sister’s instructions to track her down. And then there are strange and distracting feelings Henry seems to be developing for her superior Septimus. Thankfully, there are plenty of other locals who, through experience, find it easier at putting such queer things into words. Perhaps in the Division, Henry can find her true self in a way she never could under her sister’s tutelage.
I absolutely adored this charming farcical comedy of scandal and sapphic love. I love the characters and their chafing against the little Victorian world the book creates. Pretty much everyone has a secret and is finding their own path to freedom or respect in a society that doesn’t wish to take them seriously; particularly split-skirt ladies fighting crime on bicycles. The style of the book is through journals and extracts with a very Dickensian vibe in parts (notably the old-style chapter headings) which I find quite charming.
Henry is an adorable cinnamon roll, stammering and swearing in fruits - pomegranates! - as she desperately tries to prove her worth to the world. Septimus (noted by someone else as "prone to poor judgement with short-haired androgynous types") is the hot-head tomboy fighting guilt over her past failures. Cassandra, the daughter of the Director of the division, feels underpressure from her mother’s perfectionism (and not helped by being women in charge of a “police” and the only black family in the area). Pip, the dandy genderless cravat designer, is intimidating in both style and speech (such goals!). Rosamond, the scandalous middle sister who refuses to give up her Welsh tongue, is the rebellious sibling who is easy to look up to. I could go on but I do love this cast of characters.