This was a gripping read with two sides: historic sapphic love story, and a gothic supernatural tale. You’d think the two things wouldn’t necessarily work together, but somehow they do.
The Naked Light by Bridget Collins publishes today!
The story follows Kit, an artist who is no longer able to paint portraits after seeing the horrors of WW1 upfront; Florence, an unmarried woman who lives with her widowed brother-in-law and her niece; and Phoebe, the precocious 14 year old niece herself. Kit moves to the village of Haltington, where the Haltington Face, a primitive series of lines resembling a face in chalk is carved into the hillside, and into Bone Cottage, whose previous residents tended to the Face before the war ended the line of men able to do this. Here, androgynous Kit meets Florence, who is thrown by her appearance and strange ways – a friendship slowly unfolds between them, and strange things happen around them and the Face.
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The beginning was slightly stilted as the characters and the backstories were introduced individually – I’d just started to get into one story before being thrown into the next one. Once they all came together, it made a lot more sense and gelled better. Each of the individuals was well written and I really enjoyed their characters, however unlikeable they sometimes appeared or whatever strange decisions they made.
I also enjoyed the push and pull of Florence and Kit’s relationship – it also seemed to be in a very precarious situation, which makes complete sense at that time as it would publicly be very frowned upon. But it wasn’t just the public perception, they also always seemed on rocky ground with each other, despite mostly being perfectly lovely – they often seem afraid of what the other was thinking or doing. It’s an interesting dynamic.
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The supernatural side of the story runs in the background throughout – the ominous face is always watching. Once the romantic side of the story has kicked off, the paranormal events also kick off too. I feel you’re held in suspense waiting for it to happen, then it all does and it’s a bit strange, but somehow fits well.
The exploration of women’s place in the world after the war was also interesting. There is a chapter from a teacher’s perspective at school which is such a strangely awkward scene but was one of my favourites in the book as it feels as though it’s written so true to life – you can smell the wool blazer steaming on a radiator in a schoolroom full of children, girls, who are on the edge of life. They query what the “secret” passages of Romeo and Juliet mean until the teacher explodes with an outburst about how only 1 in 10 of the girls will find a husband and will experience this kind of love, as all the men have sacrificed themselves to war – a generation of women who will live and die alone.
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It’s a story I won’t forget quickly, and characters I know I’ll continue to think about.
Thank you to Netgalley, the author and the publishers for a review copy of this book.
