Renegade Girls: A Queer Tale of Romance and Rabble-Rousing

by Nora Neus, Julie Robine (Illustrator)

A swoonworthy queer romance set against a riveting story of social change in the 1880s, this historical graphic novel reimagines the life of America’s first stunt girl—a young undercover reporter—and her whirlwind summer of romance and fighting injustice. 

Seventeen-year-old Helena “Nell” Cusack came to New York this summer looking for a story—a real story. She dreams of one day writing hard-hitting articles for the New York Chronicle, but so far she's only managed to land a job as a lowly society reporter. That is, until Alice Austen strolls into her life, an audacious street photographer who encourages Nell to shake up polite society…and maybe also take a chance on love.
 
When her best friend, Lucia, is injured while working in a garment factory, Nell is determined to crack the story wide open. Posing as a seamstress, she reports on the conditions from the inside, making a name for herself as the Chronicle’s first ever stunt girl. But as Nell’s reporting gains momentum, so do the objections of those who oppose her. Will Nell continue to seek justice—even if it hurts her in the end?
 
Based on real-life stunt girl Nell Nelson and photographer Alice Austen, this tenderly drawn narrative is about bringing buried stories to light and the bravery of first love.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Historical Fiction, Young Adult, LGBT, Romance, Historical, Queer

304 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2025

Reviews

[suonnahbooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Renegade Girls by Nora Neus and Julie Robin
-this graphic novel was everything it was empowering , beautiful , it shows the power of chasing your dreams, fighting for justice, the power of community and so much more. The graphics are to die for 😍 and the story was amazing wow I couldn’t put it down.
rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Rod Brown · Rating 2 out of 5]

A privileged young woman whose mother is pushing her into a high society marriage instead aspires to the independent life of an investigative journalist like Nellie Bly, going undercover as a common laborer in a garment factory to reveal the dire working conditions of the lower classes, including immigrants and children, in New York City in 1888.

I wanted to like this, but the adventure plot felt overly long -- stretched out with a lot of side characters who contribute little -- with a predictable twist and a very pat ending. The romance also fizzled, being so straightforward and easy as to make me begrudge the many pages it consumed.

Meh.

[Jade · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rabbles roused

[Jay Wagemans · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't connect with the characters as much as I'd have liked and the ending was predictable, but it's a nice and hopeful read. I enjoyed it.

[Brandi McPherson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a sweet story about a young woman, Nell, who goes undercover to expose the treatment of factory workers at the encouragement of her new friend, Alice. Loosely based on real historical figures, Nell and Alice fall in love over their shared interest in telling stories through photographs and words.

Julie Robine beautifully illustrated this YA graphic novel. The story moved along at a good pace and the characters were well-developed. There was a time or two where parts felt repetitive, when Nell would experience something and then explain it in detail again to her friends. But overall, it was solid storytelling. It would be a great addition to a middle school curriculum studying the 18th century.

I received this ARC from @netgalley and publisher @littlebrownyoungreaders. The opinions are my own.

Renegade Girls will be released on April 1, 2025.

[Zee · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to Little Brown for the ARC

I really loved the characters in this book, the art, and the idea of color coordinating dresses so I don’t have to think too hard about who’s who. I really loved this book, up until I read the author’s note. Nell Nelson didn’t even know Alice Austen, and they didn’t even live in the same city. Nelson lived in Chicago and did everything in this book there. Also, there was no evidence that Nell Nelson was Queer. I understand the author’s idea of “straight authors do this thing all the time”, but it felt more like false representation than anything else. It would have been significantly improved if the characters were just made up entirely, as everything else in this book was.

[Jaimes_Mystical_Library · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent historical fiction graphic novel. I loved following Nell as she followed her dream of being a stunt girl/undercover reporter. I loved the characters in this book and the overall storyline. This was a really cute read with great artwork that really captured the story. If you are looking for a queer historical romance, you should check out this graphic novel when it comes out on April 1st.

Thank you to @thenovl for the gifted arc.

[Hailey · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can appreciate the moral of doing what’s right and soft artstyle was pleasing to look at. However, I didn’t realise until the end that Nell Nelson was not only an actual person, but not queer at all??? Also, that she and Alice Austen had no affiliation with each other. Alice Austen even had a woman lover, so to pair her up with someone else seems strange.

Learning that kinda disregarded the story for me, but besides that, it was a sweet story with an uplifting lesson.

[Juli Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a well-plotted, pseudo-biographical graphic novel with a delicious little romance thrown into the mix. My only major complaint with this was that the illustrative characterizations of the few main characters were too close. It was easy enough to tell them apart based on their signature clothing colors, but I would have liked a little more contrast just to keep things interesting.

[Basia · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5*

[lyraand]

"Andrea Colvin at Little, Brown has acquired world rights to historical fiction YA graphic novel Stunt Girl by Nora Neus (l.), in which real-life historical figure Nell Nelson—one of the early undercover female journalists called stunt girls—investigates working conditions in the garment factories of New York City in the summer of 1888, while also falling in love with real-life historical figure and queer icon Alice Austen, the first female street photographer."

[Sarah Bennett · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really liked the art and queer representation. The fight to be heard while also exposing poor conditions is important. However, I wish this was a story about fictional queer women at the time or real queer women, not real women who did not know each other and who are not necessarily known to be queer. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

[Betts · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is set in 1888 and it shows some heartbreaking social issues of the time but I loved how the MC and her partners took intiative and tried to create changes through journalism amd photography, to benefit everyone, not just the privileged.
It's weird (in a bad way) how issues from the past still echoes in the present.

I also loved the found family aspect that made the book feel cozy and hopeful even when showing awful social issues.
And the illustrations are so beautiful!

[Sirah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Based on a true story, this graphic novel follows two girls in Victorian New York as they navigate societal expectations and the horrors of the garment industry. When Helena grows dissatisfied with her job as a society reporter, she begs her employer to let her be a stunt girl who sneaks into dangerous places to find top-selling stories, and with the help of a few friends, uncovers a trail of abuse that is more widespread than she ever imagined.

I honestly wasn't a fan of the title or the art style, but I appreciate the message of this book and the historical accuracy.

[Frida · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 ⭐️

[Taylin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super sweet historical romance!! I love how even though the stakes are pretty high it never feels intense and things never go horribly wrong; it's just a cosy yet meaningful story.

[Tara Koup · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really liked this one!

[Lacey · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Barb reads......it ALL! · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful!

[Debby Tiner · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was cute and inspiring, and somehow fit right into everything I have been reading for my Women's Literature classes recently.

I did feel like everything was a little too pat, but the author seems to have done some great research and can back up their work, even if it may feel anachronistic at times. I wish I had known before I started reading it that it was inspired by real people.

The art was nice, and the characters were fun. I think the timeline was too hasty, as I did not really have time to get very invested before things were already ending.

Favorite character: Probably Lucia. She seemed the most realistic to me, and I liked that she tempered the personalities of Nell and Alice.

If you liked this book, I would recommend:
North and South
Confessions of the Fox
The Prince and the Dressmaker

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Renegade Girls features gorgeous illustrations that bring the story to life as the reader progresses through this fast-paced story. I enjoyed this queer reimagining of real people that have been fictionalized for the purposes of the book. The author's note is simply not to be missed. I also learned about stunt girls in newspapers which was super cool.

[Ellis · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was a solid 3 stars, but then I arrived at the author’s note, and what was written therein completely shifted my entire view of this book. And lo, a rare one-star review for a book I have finished.

Tl;dr: Neus chooses an ahistorical approach to telling a tale of queer love and humanitarian daring, an approach that removes a real historical figure entirely from her context and also acts like this is closer to the truth than it really is. Let me be clear: this is a heavily fictionalized book bordering on fantasy. And, particularly as a YA graphic novel, this is incredibly misleading, particularly to younger readers.

I do, however, want to acknowledge upfront that this book has beautiful art. Robine’s style is visually appealing and full of details, and each of the main characters has their own color palette. That’s fun.

And the overall idea of the book is also fun: a young Alice Austen falls in love with a daring journalist who is working to expose the dark underbelly of clothing factories.

Except, aside from the existence of Alice Austen (who loved women) and Helen “Nell” Cusack (a journalist in Chicago), everything else is entirely fabricated while being handled as if it’s historical fiction, emphasis on historical. Now, I don’t have a problem with an author envisioning how a conversation around historical events may have played out—Rebecca Hall does this in Wake: The Hidden History of Women-Led Slave Revolts, which not only is for adults but is also more clear that this is her imagination of how things could have reasonably happened. I also don’t care if you want to transplant a real historical figure, such as Abraham Lincoln, into a very obviously fantasy world, like the land of Ooo.

No, I take umbrage with Nell Cusack’s portrayal—her entire inclusion—in this book. Rather than create a fictional character inspired by journalist Cusack, Neus decides to remove Cusack from Chicago, where she actually lived, and place her in NYC. Neus also outright states that little is known about Cusack’s life—and then says that while “[t]here’s no evidence that she was queer,” it’s fine to make her queer because straight romances get invented for (queer) people, and anyway “the real Nell, with her values of pursuing the truth, upholding human dignity, and walking in another’s shoes, wouldn’t have minded.”

Uh-huh. Now listen, I’m queer myself, but I’m also a writer, historian, and library student, and very starkly not a journalist. I care about accuracy and truth and context. And I think that when we knowingly fictionalize a real person’s life, we need to be upfront about that, especially when writing for a younger audience. Imagine a cute girlfriend for a young Alice Austen, sure. But the entire basis of this book is made-up and handled like it isn’t. Cusack could not have known Austen in real life. Even if she had, she may not have loved Austen. Austen also did not take photos of factory workers for the front pages of newspapers, which is something Neus states in the author’s note; she took intimate and realistic portraits of people, yes, of women embracing and children selling newspapers. But she was not among the muckrakers. This book is thus a disingenuous history of both her and of Cusack.

Just make a fictional character inspired by Cusack, and make this book the part of Austen’s life when she decides to start taking intimate photos of women.

This is why I dislike journalists, this kind of fabrication that they don’t see as a problem. So many assumptions are made about what historical figures—real people who once lived and breathed and had full lives—would be okay with: Cusack wouldn’t mind being a lesbian in NYC, Austen would have loved exposing abusive labor practices (then why didn’t the real Austen do so???).

Journalistic integrity indeed. But let’s overlook all of that stuff that made my blood boil and my heart sink. How is the rest of the book?

Dismal. Disregard all of the above, and it still isn’t even well written. For some reason we have side characters out the wazoo (Austen’s three friends could very easily have just been one person since we hardly see the friends and they add very little to the story). The newspaper owner’s goodwill and desire for truth is entirely unrealistic; rather, he should be a capitalist who jumps at an opportunity to sell a lot of newspapers through sensationalized journalism (but I did already establish that we’re not pursuing historical accuracy or truth here).

The ending was also really frustrating to me. It is implied that Cusack gave, or else very heavily inspired, New York its laws preventing children from working during school hours, but also…eight-hour workdays are due to Cusack’s reporting? Neus states that real-Cusack’s “reporting was directly responsible for changing Illinois worker-protection laws,” and while yes, maybe, I found this book to be sorely, painfully lacking in any mention of workers’ unions—you know, collective action, the thing that gave us countless worker protection rights including eight-hour workdays. And, because there is no bibliography, works cited, or suggested further reading list, it’s difficult to even confirm this claim about real-Cusack’s impact on Illinois. Because damnit, Jim, what about the unions??

Another ending gripe: Lucia becoming a journalist was entirely out of left field, and there was no leadup to it at all. Lucia is an entirely fictional character, and so we know it’s possible for Neus to create those…so once again I circle back to “Why was Helen Cusack in this book?”

Aaand lastly, because I’m hella grumpy from having read this book, we read in the author’s note (that damned author’s note) that Austen’s family servants “provided invaluable support”—does this mean for Austen’s camera work and photography, or for the snacks and drinks they provide twice in the book before fading away again? If the servants “provided invaluable support,” I would have wanted to see that in this book. Book-Austen also states that the servants are some of her favorite people, but they exist here only as servants delivering drinks, not as valuable supports, not as people with their own lives and interests. Why are they some of Austen’s favorite people? What ways do they provide her support? I mean not belittle the serving of drinks and snacks, either; rather, I’m calling into question their named inclusion when they do so little for the book. Does Neus think this book is an appropriate way to honor these people who go “unnoticed and unrecorded”?

As a queer person, I believe we need good queer art—not queer art that is lazy and provides some kind of bare-minimum, poorly written representation. It’s the same issue that I saw in christian circles—it’s christian art, so it must be good! Wrong. Some things need refinement, feedback, rounds of edits, consideration of whether what we’re doing and making is actually good and meaningful and truthful and dare I say beautiful. And trust me, I also want historical representations of queerness and variance in who is loved, and how, and the ways people experience their gender. But this? This isn’t it. This isn’t historical. This isn’t respectful. This isn’t even well-written. I wonder if it was even researched beyond a quick google or two.

But hey, the slang was a fun inclusion, and at least we didn’t get an anti-corset scene (Bernadette Banner and Karolina Zebrowska, rejoice!).
---
original review:
This book was fine, but the author’s note blew me out of the water. I have now crash-landed on the rocky beach, sand in my hair and little pebbles sticking to my skin. I think I bruised a rib or two, and my head is pounding.

More thoughts to come later.

[tillie hellman · Rating 3 out of 5]

overall rlly liked this but it had a few problems. but the art!!!! omg so gorgeous, just dreamy drawings. and the relationships were quite sweet + i liked the overall plot/concept. i get a wee bit annoyed when ppl race blind rich ppl in historical fiction (very bridgerton vibes) and i kid you not, these sexiest men said “hip hip hooray!” for the mc in the end. but overall, good book!

[Sesana · Rating 2 out of 5]

Extremely straightforward historical fiction graphic novel. Nell dreams of being a girl stunt reporter, and finds her chance by infiltrating a garment factory and reporting on the conditions there. Along the way, she meets and falls in love with Alice, an aspiring photographer. The plot here is fine, just enormously straightforward. There's extremely little in the way of obstacles presented, which drains the narrative of a lot of tension. At no point does it feel like Nell is in danger of being detected, either as an undercover reporter or as a young lesbian. And it is awfully convenient that Nell has as her best friend a girl who is both a servant and a factory worker, never mind that they only see each other a few months out of the year.

But what killed this book for me is that both Nell and Alice are real people, and this story has next to nothing to do with them. There's no reason to suppose that Nell and Alice ever actually met each other. Nell did indeed do investigative reporting, but it was in Chicago, not New York City. There's no reason to suppose that Nell was anything but straight. She married a man and had two children with him. Alice was indeed queer, but she had a decades long relationship with an entirely different woman. So every aspect of Nell's personal story is entirely made up. Essentially, Neus made up an entirely original story and assigned the names of real people to it... why? Just make up names and use your author's note to talk about the people who (very loosely) inspired them.

[Patricia Q · Rating 4 out of 5]

The audiobook was a great addition to the ebook.

[Pine Reads Review · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The hard choice is almost always the right one.”

Helena “Nell” Cusack’s summers are spent in New York where she can spend time away from Chicago and the pressure of finding a husband. This summer, Nell finds herself working as a society reporter for the New York Chronicle and is unsatisfied with how all of her pieces criticizing society are altered beyond recognition. Making a deal with her boss that allows her to become more honest about society, Nell seeks a story worthy of a stunt girl, girls who go undercover for reporting assignments. When Nell’s best friend, Lucia, is injured while working in a factory, Nell is determined to uncover the horrors of the factory as her first stunt girl assignment along with the help of photographer Alice Austen. As their reporting gains popularity, Nell’s relationship with Alice grows deeper, leading to a summer full of romance and justice.

I was pleasantly surprised to find out that all the characters in this book are inspired by real people. I honestly love stories with concepts like this that are rooted in the truth but take some creative liberties. Nell is a wonderful character, and it was fun to see which details Neus included were real and which were embellished. Lucia is such a sweet and supportive character, and I absolutely loved seeing Alice’s friend group and how they were so different from the other women in society seen earlier in the story. Despite this, there’s little doubt in my mind that my favorite character was Mr. Dixon, who was in charge of the paper. It was refreshing to see a male character that seemed to side with women, especially considering the time period this story takes place in. In terms of illustration, the art was beautifully done and stunning to look at. My main complaint was that it was occasionally hard to tell the difference between the two leading ladies, Nell and Alice. However, the way color was used throughout the story was so powerful and helped combat this issue. Nell is almost always wearing pink, while Alice is seen most often in orange. This was also so nice to see because pink and orange are the main colors of the lesbian pride flag, and I can only imagine choosing these colors for their wardrobes was intentional. I enjoyed Renegade Girls, and highly recommend it to anyone looking for a feminist, queer romance.

Pine Reads Review would like to thank NetGalley and Hachette Book Group for sending us an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Any quotes are taken from an advanced copy and may be subject to change before final publication.

Follow us on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, and Facebook @pinereadsreview, and check out our website at www.pinereadsreview.com for reviews, author interviews, blogs, podcast episodes, and more!

[Sarah Jensen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book Review: Renegade Girls – A Queer Graphic Novel of Rebellion and Romance

Renegade Girls by Nora Neus, illustrated by Julie Robine, is a vibrant and subversive graphic novel that reimagines historical narratives through a queer feminist lens. Set in the 1880s, the story follows Helena “Nell” Cusack, a renegade young woman who defies societal norms, blending romance, activism, and the fight for social change. Neus’s narrative, paired with Robine’s evocative illustrations, crafts a compelling tale that challenges traditional gender roles and celebrates marginalized voices.

Thematic Exploration: Queer Rebellion and Historical Reclamation
The novel’s strength lies in its intersection of queer identity and historical fiction, offering a fresh perspective on America’s Gilded Age. Nell’s journey—as a semi-fictionalized version of one of the country’s first female renegades—interrogates themes of autonomy, resistance, and love. The romance subplot is not merely decorative but serves as a vehicle for exploring how queer relationships thrived (or were suppressed) in restrictive eras. The book’s title, Renegade Girls, underscores its central thesis: women who break rules are often erased, but their stories demand retelling.

Artistic Synergy: Narrative and Visual Storytelling
Robine’s illustrations are more than complementary; they are integral to the storytelling. Her use of dynamic panels and expressive character designs amplifies Nell’s defiance, particularly in scenes where body language conveys rebellion where dialogue cannot. The art style balances historical aesthetics with modern sensibilities, making the past feel immediate and relatable. The cover design—discussed in Neus’s interview with Robine—symbolizes this fusion, blending period details with bold, contemporary energy.

Feminist Critique: Agency and Representation
From a woman’s perspective, the novel excels in portraying female characters who are neither passive nor monolithic. Nell’s rabble-rousing is framed as necessary resistance, not mere impulsivity. The supporting cast, including other women navigating societal constraints, adds depth to the exploration of solidarity and difference. However, the book occasionally risks romanticizing rebellion without fully grappling with the era’s harsher realities—though this may be a deliberate choice to prioritize hope over trauma.

Academic Relevance: Recovering Lost Histories
While not a scholarly text, Renegade Girls contributes to academic conversations about historical fiction as a tool for reclaiming marginalized narratives. Its creative liberties invite discussions about how gaps in the historical record can be filled with empathy and imagination. The novel’s afterword or supplementary materials (if included) could have further contextualized its inspirations, but its value lies in sparking curiosity about real-life “renegade girls” erased from mainstream history.

Verdict: 4/5
A triumph of queer feminist storytelling, Renegade Girls is both entertaining and intellectually provocative. Neus and Robine deliver a narrative that resonates with modern struggles for equality while honoring the rebellious spirit of the past. Ideal for readers interested in graphic novels, women’s history, and LGBTQ+ representation, this book is a testament to the power of art to rewrite—and re-right—history.

Key Themes:

Queer Visibility: Love and identity in oppressive contexts.
Art as Activism: How visual storytelling reclaims history.
Feminist Solidarity: Women supporting women across differences.
Historical Fiction’s Role: Balancing fact with necessary fiction.

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

(3.75/5) Renegade Girls is a historical fiction graphic novel set in 1880s New York, and based on real life women. It follows Nell as a stunt girl - a reporter going undercover - as well as her friend Lucia who becomes her research and reporting partner, and her love interest Alice, who does photography for Nell's articles. I was so excited to read this book to learn about the real life women these characters were inspired by, especially considering I'd not heard of stunt girls before!

I feel like the story is developed well and at a good pace. Nell and Lucia's friendship develops alongside Nell and Alice's romantic relationship, and neither is left behind by the other. I loved getting to see Nell exploring her rebellious side by meeting Alice's friends, who break numerous societal expectations and even partake in crossdressing. Without spoiling too much, I'll say that I love how the author included some plot regarding class and how higher classes often profit off of the labour of lower classes to continue getting richer.

The one part that felt lacking to this story is the inclusion of people of colour. There are characters in Renegade Girls who wealthy and Black, and there is some discussion of immigrant workers in factories, however I find it odd that this was not really a big part of the plot or of Nell's reporting. Instead, there was just a focus on the exploitation of child labor, without exploring the intersection of race, class, and other factors.

Overall, this is a great book to add to school libraries for the historical element, and a good read in general if you enjoy women's history, queer romance, and graphic novels.

Thank you to Netgalley and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for the eARC!

[YSBR · Rating 4 out of 5]

Renegade Girls is loosely based on the journalism of Helena (Nell) Cusack and Alice Austen in their efforts to shed light on working conditions during the Industrial Revolution. This graphic novel reads like the queer lovechild of Liberty’s Kids and the American Girl franchise. Nell is supposed to spend her time with her aunt and uncle finding a husband among New York’s social elite, but she wants to make her mark in journalism as a stunt girl like Nellie Bly. Nell is not like other New York socialites, her best friend is Lucia, an Italian immigrant who works in the house kitchen, and Nell can’t seem to stop staring at the beautiful girls at balls. At a social tea, Nell falls head over heels for Alice, whose rebellious streak inspires her to investigate the factory where Lucia works during the week. Nell exposes the factory’s horrible working conditions with Alice’s photography as proof, and as the stakes grow higher, their affection for each other starts to bloom. Neus captures the guilt characters face as they confront how they benefit from systemic oppression as well as the difficult choices they must make between living peacefully in their privilege or using it to make a difference. The back matter offers biographical details about the inspirations for Nell, Alice, and Lucia. The real-life figures behind the characters were not known to be queer and did not know one another. All main characters are white. Robine draws a racially diverse cast of supporting characters and takes refreshing historical liberties by including Black women in upper-class settings. Link to complete review: https://ysbookreviews.wordpress.com/2...

[Abigail K. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks must go to Netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for this review!

This quick read was powerful, informative, and downright ADORABLE .

First of all, I love historical fiction based on real courageous women-- one of whom is a lesbian icon I've never heard of! While not entirely historically accurate, the story still does an excellent job at highlighting one of my favorite aspects of one of my favorite eras of history: the fight for worker's rights at the beginning of the Progressive Era.

Neus expertly handles the intersections of gender, class, and freedom both by including a working-class Italian-American character, and forcing Nell to come face-to-face with the ways her family have benefited from the maltreatment of others. While Alice inspires rebellion in Nell, her best friend Lucia is there to humble her, reminding her of her relative privileges. Together, the three of them made a powerful team!

The only intersection not discussed was that of race. People of all races were equally represented in all echelons of society, and while that would have been nice, it was an odd illusion to throw into an otherwise historical work. Perhaps the author felt they had already taken liberties with the blending of lives and bending of history, so they felt a more diverse cast would be permissible. But what nuance could have been added by a discussion of how the main character's race contributed to their privilege? This is just a kid's book, with limited space, but I'm curious about the artistic choice to bend history a bit.

Anyways, I'm so looking forward to going to Alice Austin's home in Staten Island when I return to NYC !