What do you think?
Rate this book
Storm Clouds Gathering
Storm clouds are gathering, silently and slowly, too far away to worry about. Or so it seems. But ignoring what is brewing will have dire consequences for the people caught up in the maelstrom.
Shirley Burton is too busy cheating on her husband, having a laugh and looking for fun to alleviate the boredom of her childless marriage. Kathleen Mitchell is too wrapped up in running around after her beautiful family to worry about her health. Anne Simpson has two things on her mind: her forthcoming marriage to Paul Betham, who seems to want to control her, and her career, which she does not want to give up.
Can Shirley really expect to deceive her husband and get away with it? Can Kathleen hold it all together, and is Anne able to have the best of everything?
Storm Clouds Gathering is a story of human emotion, passion and heart-rending grief. Set against the backdrop of the mid-sixties, these three families will be tested to the limit as betrayal, loss and love threaten to change their lives forever.
Shirley Burton is too busy cheating on her husband, having a laugh and looking for fun to alleviate the boredom of her childless marriage. Kathleen Mitchell is too wrapped up in running around after her beautiful family to worry about her health. Anne Simpson has two things on her mind: her forthcoming marriage to Paul Betham, who seems to want to control her, and her career, which she does not want to give up.
Can Shirley really expect to deceive her husband and get away with it? Can Kathleen hold it all together, and is Anne able to have the best of everything?
Storm Clouds Gathering is a story of human emotion, passion and heart-rending grief. Set against the backdrop of the mid-sixties, these three families will be tested to the limit as betrayal, loss and love threaten to change their lives forever.
368 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 11, 2013
3 people are currently reading
43 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
August 5, 2013
I've read all of Pauline's books and this, in my opinion, is her best yet. Great characters and I love the sixties setting. I was a child in the sixties and it was wonderful to relive a time that, in some ways, was much simpler. The perfect summer read!
October 27, 2017
Book 56 of my Reading Challenge
A wonderful story of human emotions, passion and grief. Based in the 1960s around a wool mill in Yorkshire (my home county). It is the varying tales of a group of women working in the mill and its local community.
Very highly recommended.
A wonderful story of human emotions, passion and grief. Based in the 1960s around a wool mill in Yorkshire (my home county). It is the varying tales of a group of women working in the mill and its local community.
Very highly recommended.
June 11, 2013
This is Pauline's latest and best book. It is written in a slightly different style from her other books and reminded me of Catherine Cookson. Set in the sixties (my childhood) it brought many memories back for me of how simple life used to be before mobile phones and computers.Having to go to a phone box or using a neighbour's phone and leaving money for the call,all things alien to young people of today.
One of the characters, Anne Simpson was particularly special for me as that was my name before I married and it was so strange seeing it in print,thank goodness I liked her.
This story has laughter, tragedy, adultery and hardship, all you need for a good read.
It is the story of three women,two who are connected and a third who will be. One who won't listen to friendly advice and suffers the consequences and another who doesn't really know the man she wants to spend the rest of her life with. The third woman puts her family before herself and what happens could be a warning to us all.
I liked the three women in the story, I cared what happened to them and that is what I look for in a book,something that makes me want to pick it up and read as much as I can before household chores beckon. Women were definitely the strongest sex in Pauline's story with the men coming second. As well as liking characters Pauline did change my mind during the book as a few I disliked I ended up actually liking or at least realising what made them the way they were.
A cracking good read and as the storm clouds gathered again for a least one of the women at the end of the story I'm left wondering if Pauline maybe has a sequel planned,but then I always want more of a good story.
Storm Clouds Gathering is a five star read.
One of the characters, Anne Simpson was particularly special for me as that was my name before I married and it was so strange seeing it in print,thank goodness I liked her.
This story has laughter, tragedy, adultery and hardship, all you need for a good read.
It is the story of three women,two who are connected and a third who will be. One who won't listen to friendly advice and suffers the consequences and another who doesn't really know the man she wants to spend the rest of her life with. The third woman puts her family before herself and what happens could be a warning to us all.
I liked the three women in the story, I cared what happened to them and that is what I look for in a book,something that makes me want to pick it up and read as much as I can before household chores beckon. Women were definitely the strongest sex in Pauline's story with the men coming second. As well as liking characters Pauline did change my mind during the book as a few I disliked I ended up actually liking or at least realising what made them the way they were.
A cracking good read and as the storm clouds gathered again for a least one of the women at the end of the story I'm left wondering if Pauline maybe has a sequel planned,but then I always want more of a good story.
Storm Clouds Gathering is a five star read.
July 2, 2013
Three women, three relationships, each with their own story to tell.
Shirley is a bubbly mill worker, married to Jimmy. They are childless. Shirley craves excitement and turns to Billy for that excitement, until a turn of events brings her some major decisions to make.
Shirley's best friend, Kathleen is married to Joe and has two children. Their lives are about to turn upside down in a heartbeat.
Anne, a primary school teacher is engaged to Paul. Their views of their future together are very different. They will have to make compromises or jepordise their future.
Set in the 1960's this novel was reminiscent of the 70's when I was growing up. I picked up on the author's attention to detail when describing every day language, events and objects that are now obsolete in today's society, such as ashtrays on buses and clocking in machines.
These three women, it seems, were born in the wrong era. Their forward thinking and actions would not have such an impact on their lives had they been born in modern times.
A wonderfully written novel that will have you reaching for the tissues.
I loved it!
Shirley is a bubbly mill worker, married to Jimmy. They are childless. Shirley craves excitement and turns to Billy for that excitement, until a turn of events brings her some major decisions to make.
Shirley's best friend, Kathleen is married to Joe and has two children. Their lives are about to turn upside down in a heartbeat.
Anne, a primary school teacher is engaged to Paul. Their views of their future together are very different. They will have to make compromises or jepordise their future.
Set in the 1960's this novel was reminiscent of the 70's when I was growing up. I picked up on the author's attention to detail when describing every day language, events and objects that are now obsolete in today's society, such as ashtrays on buses and clocking in machines.
These three women, it seems, were born in the wrong era. Their forward thinking and actions would not have such an impact on their lives had they been born in modern times.
A wonderfully written novel that will have you reaching for the tissues.
I loved it!
April 26, 2018
I expected Storm Clouds Gathering to be about the build-up to the war, but it’s not. It’s set in the 1960s, and features three couples: Anne and Paul, teachers engaged to be married; Kathleen and Joe, a devoted couple with two children at Anne’s school; Shirley and Jimmy, a childless pair who have found that the spark has gone from their marriage. Around them are several lesser characters who add their own dimensions and tensions. Janet is an older colleague of Anne, a teacher of the old school whose traditional methods are at loggerheads with those of the younger (and more popular) woman. Billy is a local lothario who sets his sights on Shirley. Mary is the bitter mother who doesn’t think her son-in-law is good enough for her daughter. There are others.
The story is told mostly through the eyes of the three main female characters, and clearly this means it appeals to women (in fact I think I’m the first man to post a review on Goodreads or Amazon). However, it would be a shame if male readers missed it. Just as the women are sensitively drawn and captivating, so the men are engrossing and convincing. Jimmy is finding it hard to come to terms with his infertility, Paul is driven by ambition and exercises over Anne a coercive control which he himself can’t see, and Joe - well, he has his problems too, but I won’t spoil it by revealing here the blow he suffers. Gradually the narrative builds to a climax, in which the characters show that they have learnt and have developed, but at a cost for each of them.
The plot evolves slowly, but that’s a good thing. It gives Pauline Barclay the space to do what she does so well, that is exploring motivation, action and emotion through the layering on of detail. It means that the reader’s knowledge and understanding of the characters builds, and one becomes involved in and with them. The detail contributes to the fascination of this book in other ways too. For example, there is the almost casual but very effective observation - Shirley’s cigarette sizzles as she drops it into the sink, her cardigan scrapes the edge of her plate as she leans forward over the table, fluff floats in the air in the spinning shed – all enhanced by the minutiae of the period setting – Formica, tea cosies, public phones with buttons A and B. It’s a bit like an artist constructing a complicated portrait, little by little, until the viewer can step back and see the whole picture. The effect is cinematic, and in fact Storm Clouds Gathering would lend itself beautifully to a film, or even better to a TV series. For anyone who can remember the 1960s it’s fascinating. And for anyone who can’t it will give a good idea of what they missed.
I found it hard to put this book down because I was captivated and needed to know how everything resolved. It’s the first of Pauline Barclay’s that I’ve read but it won’t be the last.
The story is told mostly through the eyes of the three main female characters, and clearly this means it appeals to women (in fact I think I’m the first man to post a review on Goodreads or Amazon). However, it would be a shame if male readers missed it. Just as the women are sensitively drawn and captivating, so the men are engrossing and convincing. Jimmy is finding it hard to come to terms with his infertility, Paul is driven by ambition and exercises over Anne a coercive control which he himself can’t see, and Joe - well, he has his problems too, but I won’t spoil it by revealing here the blow he suffers. Gradually the narrative builds to a climax, in which the characters show that they have learnt and have developed, but at a cost for each of them.
The plot evolves slowly, but that’s a good thing. It gives Pauline Barclay the space to do what she does so well, that is exploring motivation, action and emotion through the layering on of detail. It means that the reader’s knowledge and understanding of the characters builds, and one becomes involved in and with them. The detail contributes to the fascination of this book in other ways too. For example, there is the almost casual but very effective observation - Shirley’s cigarette sizzles as she drops it into the sink, her cardigan scrapes the edge of her plate as she leans forward over the table, fluff floats in the air in the spinning shed – all enhanced by the minutiae of the period setting – Formica, tea cosies, public phones with buttons A and B. It’s a bit like an artist constructing a complicated portrait, little by little, until the viewer can step back and see the whole picture. The effect is cinematic, and in fact Storm Clouds Gathering would lend itself beautifully to a film, or even better to a TV series. For anyone who can remember the 1960s it’s fascinating. And for anyone who can’t it will give a good idea of what they missed.
I found it hard to put this book down because I was captivated and needed to know how everything resolved. It’s the first of Pauline Barclay’s that I’ve read but it won’t be the last.
June 21, 2018
Don’t read this book in a public location because your strangers around you won’t appreciate your explosive expletives nor heavy sighs and grumbles. You will want to shout at Jimmy, slap Shirley, punch Paul and scream at Anne, and as for Joe, tissues will be required.
An excellent plot, great scenes of social history, how far we have come and yet have not changed st all.
An excellent plot, great scenes of social history, how far we have come and yet have not changed st all.
December 31, 2017
Book 56 of my Goodreads Challenge 2017
This is a wonderful read a story of human emotions, passion and grief. Set in the 1960's the book follows the antics of a group of women who work together in a Yorkshire Wool Mill.
This is a wonderful read a story of human emotions, passion and grief. Set in the 1960's the book follows the antics of a group of women who work together in a Yorkshire Wool Mill.
July 24, 2013
When real storm clouds gather in our lives, we often feel it to the core. There’s a physical reaction: we feel cold, the hair rises on our arms, we shiver. There’s an emotional reaction, too: we worry. What is going to happen? What doom might befall us or our loved ones? The reason we have such an intense reaction, of course, is because we care about our own safety and that of our loved ones.
Pauline Barclay captures this emotional intensity well in her most recent novel, Storm Clouds Gathering. The metaphor of an approaching storm is quite apt for this wonderful novel. The storm clouds approach and hover over three families whose lives are intertwined in both direct and subtle ways. Three different families struggle with three very different issues and hardships. Three families face unique storms, and they each weather them differently.
The beauty of Barclay’s novel of course involves the story itself. The storms that gather over the characters absolutely hold readers’ interest. The storms are real and they are intense and any given storm could definitely happen to anyone in the real world. They all have, actually, in some way or another. Despite the fact that I have not experienced a storm identical to one in Barclay’s novel, I could see myself in each of those characters, and I could directly relate to various elements of their storms. That I have not directly experienced the very realistic problems faced by the characters yet found myself understanding them and relating to them in a very real way is an indication of Pauline Barclay’s talent and beautiful writing.
Yes, the story is deeply compelling. It takes more than a compelling storyline, though, to make a great novel. For me, the characters and the extent to which I connect with them are what really make or break a story. In real life, we have an emotional reaction to gathering storm clouds because we care about the people affected by the brewing storm. In Barclay’s Storm Clouds Gathering, I absolutely had emotional reactions because I cared deeply for the characters. Barclay has created realistic, vulnerable characters, characters who, like real people, have strengths and weaknesses. Her characters, each with a distinct personality, are human. Barclay brings them to life in a very powerful way, and as I read I felt very connected to each of them in different ways.
Find shelter, hunker down, and brace yourself for Storm Clouds Gathering.
Pauline Barclay captures this emotional intensity well in her most recent novel, Storm Clouds Gathering. The metaphor of an approaching storm is quite apt for this wonderful novel. The storm clouds approach and hover over three families whose lives are intertwined in both direct and subtle ways. Three different families struggle with three very different issues and hardships. Three families face unique storms, and they each weather them differently.
The beauty of Barclay’s novel of course involves the story itself. The storms that gather over the characters absolutely hold readers’ interest. The storms are real and they are intense and any given storm could definitely happen to anyone in the real world. They all have, actually, in some way or another. Despite the fact that I have not experienced a storm identical to one in Barclay’s novel, I could see myself in each of those characters, and I could directly relate to various elements of their storms. That I have not directly experienced the very realistic problems faced by the characters yet found myself understanding them and relating to them in a very real way is an indication of Pauline Barclay’s talent and beautiful writing.
Yes, the story is deeply compelling. It takes more than a compelling storyline, though, to make a great novel. For me, the characters and the extent to which I connect with them are what really make or break a story. In real life, we have an emotional reaction to gathering storm clouds because we care about the people affected by the brewing storm. In Barclay’s Storm Clouds Gathering, I absolutely had emotional reactions because I cared deeply for the characters. Barclay has created realistic, vulnerable characters, characters who, like real people, have strengths and weaknesses. Her characters, each with a distinct personality, are human. Barclay brings them to life in a very powerful way, and as I read I felt very connected to each of them in different ways.
Find shelter, hunker down, and brace yourself for Storm Clouds Gathering.
November 10, 2013
Set in the north of England during the 1960’s. Storm Clouds Gathering tells the remarkable tale of three different characters.
Shirley Burton works at the local mill but finds herself in trouble when her marriage to Jimmy goes through a rough patch and she is drawn to bad boy Billy.
Kathleen Mitchell is happily married to Joe, and they have a young family, she is good friends with Shirley, they work together at the mill, and they enjoy nights out together at the Bingo. Kathleen is lucky to have a win at the Bingo. But is her luck about to change?
Anne Simpson is a caring and good teacher who goes out of her way to help her young pupils. Engaged to school master Paul Betham her future seems to be all planned out for her. But will it be a happy ever after?
I have nothing but praise for author Pauline Barclay, who knows how to write wonderful and moving emotional stories. The story really draws you in for the start, and the excellent way each chapter is written makes this a real page turner. This is a book you just cannot put down, and you will not be able to resist reading on to see what will happen.
Shirley Burton works at the local mill but finds herself in trouble when her marriage to Jimmy goes through a rough patch and she is drawn to bad boy Billy.
Kathleen Mitchell is happily married to Joe, and they have a young family, she is good friends with Shirley, they work together at the mill, and they enjoy nights out together at the Bingo. Kathleen is lucky to have a win at the Bingo. But is her luck about to change?
Anne Simpson is a caring and good teacher who goes out of her way to help her young pupils. Engaged to school master Paul Betham her future seems to be all planned out for her. But will it be a happy ever after?
I have nothing but praise for author Pauline Barclay, who knows how to write wonderful and moving emotional stories. The story really draws you in for the start, and the excellent way each chapter is written makes this a real page turner. This is a book you just cannot put down, and you will not be able to resist reading on to see what will happen.
July 26, 2013
Pauline Barclay has an amazingly easy style that just carries you along. The clouds gather gradually, almost imperceptibly at times; it is a clever title that held my faith that in time things would kick off and indeed they did! Her books at face value seem soft and romantic, full of emotion, and the empathy you feel for her characters keeps you with them; and yet, she does deal with the darker side of life, especially in Satchfield Hall.
Her people speak, and apparently listen, to each other at length, not always in a realistic way, but this does not annoy; rather it makes me think that this is how people should converse instead of constantly interrupting, hesitating or flinging insults. Not wishing to give away any spoilers, I love the stand the teacher, Anne, makes; it encapsulates the emerging independence of young women of the 1960s and the struggle it represented.
Her people speak, and apparently listen, to each other at length, not always in a realistic way, but this does not annoy; rather it makes me think that this is how people should converse instead of constantly interrupting, hesitating or flinging insults. Not wishing to give away any spoilers, I love the stand the teacher, Anne, makes; it encapsulates the emerging independence of young women of the 1960s and the struggle it represented.
April 13, 2014
This is the first book of Pauline Barclay’s that I have read and it won’t be the last. ‘Storm Clouds Gathering’ tells the story of three families during the sixties in the North of England. Being originally from Yorkshire myself the setting immediately appealed to me and Pauline’s evocation of the era is spot-on. I particularly enjoyed the way in which the three stories intertwined and Pauline Barclay is adept at sweeping the reader up as the story carries you along. I became quite engrossed in the highs and lows that the different characters shared, running the whole gamut of emotions – always the sign of a good writer. This is a book that will stay in your mind long after you have finished the last page.
June 5, 2014
I was stressed when this story came to an end, not wanting to close the book on Barclay's cast of characters in Storm Clouds Gathering. This novel is full of wonderful, wonderful characters, strong and broken relationships, hope and grief, love, happiness and despair. Success and failure and always...the tension from those storm clouds on the horizon. Well worth the read!
March 21, 2016
An emotional portrait of the deep friendships between three women, as they navigate their respective romantic relationships and family life. I was particularly impressed with Barclay's depiction of England in the 1960s, especially with her references to women's rights and the educational system.
January 14, 2017
Another fantastic book by Pauline Barclay. I loved this story which was both heartbreaking and heartwarming. Beautifully written and definitely a 'must read' book.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews