Penhallow Amid Passing Things

by Iona Datt Sharma

Magic, in common with all things, is passing from this world. In a coastal village in eighteenth-century Cornwall, Penhallow -- an honourable smuggler par excellence -- has more pressing problems. One of her boys has just been hauled up before the magistrates. A mysterious King's messenger has arrived from London. Something nasty -- and possibly magical -- is afoot in the smugglers' caves beneath water. And then there's Trevelyan, the town's austere, beautiful Revenue officer... ~ "An author to Iona Datt Sharma's Penhallow Amid Passing Things skilfully builds a strange magical Cornwall with a lovely understated f/f Revenue/smuggler romance that I wanted a lot more of." -- K.J. Charles, author of A Charm of Magpies "What’s not to like about a genderbent tale about age-old rivalry between smugglers and Revenue inspectors, with magic thrown in for good measure?" -- Bookdaze "Lyrical and stunning" -- Candid Ceillie

Genres: Fantasy, Queer, Romance, Lesbian, LGBT, Fiction, Novella

31 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 31, 2018

About the author

I'm Iona, I write science fiction and fantasy and contemporary romance. My last romance, Blood Sweat Glitter, came out on 1 December 2024 and a new collection of SFF short stories, You Are Here, comes out on 1 January 2025.

My surname is "Datt Sharma", two words, but books listed on Goodreads under "Iona Sharma" are also me.

Reviews

[Skye Kilaen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really interesting and lovely historical paranormal novella set in Cornwall, about smugglers and magic, with an f/f subplot and perfect hints of big worldbuilding behind it. The first thing I read by Datt Sharma, and I liked it so much that I immediately went to look up their other work. That ended up being a good decision as well. An author to watch, for sure!

[wasteland baby · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Without the Revenue, Pen would not be a smuggler. For the first time, she understands the truth of this—that they hold the same equilibrium as the tides, she and Trevelyan. Each unable to be what she is, without the other."

OH WE ARE SO BACK, BABY!!!!

[X · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think I liked this in theory and in prose more than in execution. Very beautiful and very rich worldbuilding, but maybe not quite enough time to pull off the character/relationship development. Basically - yes but I would prefer more haha.

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quiet, lyrical story with a world and characters I want to know more about. Also, the writing is gorgeous and I reread every line twice.

[IsagelCharles · Rating 5 out of 5]

They are a smuggler and a Revenue officer! Hi, my favourite fictional romance dynamic! This is beautifully written, like all the author’s works, and entirely lovely in the world and emotions it evokes.

[Victoria (Eve's Alexandria) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A rich and chewy story about loss and smuggling and community, with a very strong sense of place and character. I was tantalised by the bigger story that unfolds off the page of this smaller one and would love to read that as well.

[anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

rep: wlw mcs

“I hear you take orders, Trevelyan,” Pen says. “Take off your coat.”
Trevelyan steps away from the diamond panes. The brushed, heavy wool lands on the bed.

[Fred Langridge · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely, poetic novella of smuggling, romance and the last traces of magic in Cornwall.
I've enjoyed Sharma's short stories for a long time, and this longer work has all the originality I admire. The characters and setting feel fully-formed, and the story is complete (though I'd love to read a whole novel).

[Claire · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this in Underwater Ballrooms first, but it's extremely delightful and I was happy to revisit it. (And would love to see more in this universe if it ever happens, too.)

[Cait · Rating 4 out of 5]

an underwater ballroom, pen's family have always called it, as though it were for the fairy folk to hold their solstice balls, or for the selkies to dance their unaccustomed reels. [...] pen waits and looks up at the sea's green underside, obscene in its way, as though one were peering at a great lady in her smalls.

every time my library adds a new (to them, not to the world) piece by datt sharma I pump my fist in victory. (much of their short fiction can also be found here.)

I mean, this isn't a hard decision, right? you want to read about queer cornish smugglers, don't you? "I hear you take orders[...] take off your coat" is going to HAUNT me for the next two months at least! still and all!

[emma · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very cute novella with an intriguing world that I would like to know more about

[A. L. Lester · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really delightful paranormal historical novella set in an alternative Cornwall. Smugglers, Revenue Officers, and a touch of political intrigue that was complex and felt like the tip of an enormous iceberg that left me wanting more--in a good way! The wlw love interest was part of a beautifully delicate dance between magic users and non-magic users and the Revenue and the Smugglers and the greater good and expediency. It was just wonderful. If you try one new thing this year, let it be this.

[victoria.p · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this but I wish it were longer.

[Rhode PVD · Rating 4 out of 5]

It has a slight melancholy I associate with British authors, the sense of grey skies mixed with long-faded glory. But I liked the lead characters a great deal. What a pleasure, and relief, to read women who are not too young, who bear responsibilities instead of babies.

[Merit · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in an alt-18th C England, Penhallow is a smuggler, avoiding the law, when one of her boys is caught. And the law? Is the austere and alluring Trevelyan. Enter a mysterious messenger from London and Penhallow may have greater things than a missing man to manage. This is a short story, but Datt Sharma packs in so much into this f/f romance and strange magical Cornwall. The prose is delightful and the hints of worldbuilding - fading magic, the sea, mysterious caves - was lovely to discover. I would love to see more in this universe!

[Cat M · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful, melancholy-yet-hopeful f/f story set in Cornwall about a smuggler, a revenue officer, and the death of magic in England.

As is the case with much of Sharma's short fiction, this is a quiet, understated story with an incredible depth of complex worldbuilding underpinning the narrative.

[Iona · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this adventurous fairytale-esque novella the plucky protagonist shares her name with the hamlet, Penhallow, where Sharma has set her tale. Penhallow is a smuggler of enchanted artefacts. When one of her employees, is caught by the troubled yet beautiful Inland Revenue agent, Trevelyan, Penhallow has the opportunity to save him from the noose, but at what cost?

This is a story with female protagonists, sapphic love and a quest to bring magic back to the shores of England.

I am in awe of Sharma’s writing. Her prose is a delight to read and carries the reader as naturally as the sea ebbs and flows. She demonstrates a bountiful knowledge of local Cornish and Welsh linguistics and her magical characterisation of 18th Century Cornwall is fresh and fascinating. I want more of these characters.

[Francesca Forrest · Rating 5 out of 5]

Elegiac, enchanting story of smuggling on the Cornish coast in a time when magic has ebbed almost entirely from England's shores (“Magic is leaving everywhere...everywhere bruised by the sea.”)
There is a smuggler, a revenue agent, a mysterious bundle.

The writing is simply gorgeous: the revenue agent is described as “patrolling night after night, through scorn and pitiless weather”; an antagonist is described as “wearing boots Pen can see her face in. He’s peering into a half-pint tankard as though it offends him.”

There is some cargo even a smuggler will not touch, some orders even a revenue agent will balk at following, but what can two small people do against the powers that be? The story shows this, beautifully. Highly recommended--a quick read, and just right for this chilly season.

[Erika · Rating 4 out of 5]

A strong voice but a shaky ending

I love stories where the location is a character itself, where the structure of the land and it’s people has as much of a voice as any individual. This story definitely succeeds in world building, enough that you can taste the salt water and hear the call of phantom peacocks.

Unfortunately, there isn’t much conclusion to the ending - more like a prologue than a complete piece. Maybe feeling there should be more is a side effect of a vast richly conceived setting but there are still so many untidy threads left dangling.

Overall an enjoyable read, and I will seek out more by this author to see if a longer format might suit better.

[Leife Shallcross · Rating 4 out of 5]

Understated and assured. The genderbent aspect of this alt-magical-history world is completely, satisfyingly convincing and utterly unselfconscious, and the magic sufficiently mysterious, inscrutable and fascinating. My only real criticism is there wasn't more of this book to stay immersed in. I wanted to spend quite a lot more time finding out quite a lot more about a bunch of stuff that was going on in this story. Feels like a solid framework for a much longer tale.

[Uudenkuun Emilia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this whole novella during a sleepless night and it helped me fall back asleep - in a good way! I was captivated by the world, and I really adore Iona Datt Sharma's use of language. A charming novella, and I would love to read more set in this world.

[Kimberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully written. Fantastic World. Interesting characters. Well rounded a finished story even with it being as short as it is.

Novellas just aren’t a great fit for me. Especially when it is done so well I want more.

[Lotta · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely short story about smugglers and magic in Cornwall.

[Kellum Jeffries · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was wistful and hopeful all at once, with lovely (and funny) magic and very practical smuggling. And the writing is simply gorgeous.

[ainsley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful. The language is astoundingly gorgeous, and it really transports you.

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just beautiful, lyrical, descriptive and deeply emotional

[Lara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short and incredibly well-done.

[Eleanor · Rating 4 out of 5]

[Read June 25-27 2021, but I'm not marking the dates read so it won't count towards my GR challenge bc I don't count novelettes and short stories.]

[Mariana · Rating 2 out of 5]

the premise is interesting but it doesn't work at all as a short story, a lot is lost.

[tillie hellman · Rating 4 out of 5]

short but cool world!