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Through All Our Heavens: A Novel
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Expected 17 Mar 26Win a free kindle copy of this book!
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100 copies available
U.S. only
In this captivating journey through time, an art historian makes an extraordinary discovery from the past that may foretell our future—if she can keep her connection to the woman who started it all.
2053. Haverford College.
Nineteenth-century art expert Derryn Witt documents an impossible gorgeously detailed paintings depicting the modern world…from 1859. But when a massive solar flare forces a shutdown of all integrated technology, her discovery is jeopardized.
The threat intensifies when a group of rebels attack the college, their movement resting upon the rejection of technology. Derryn flees to New York with the help of a sympathetic Sovereign, under the guise of being one herself.
But those Civil War–era paintings continue to confound her. Helen Bywater was surely more than an artist—but what? How could she possibly know what the world would look like beyond her own lifetime?
As the ethereal tie binding them grows stronger, Derryn begins to see what perhaps Helen did too. That no matter the time, the space between us isn’t so vast. The struggles we face aren’t so different. And the connection we need to survive isn’t so out of reach.
2053. Haverford College.
Nineteenth-century art expert Derryn Witt documents an impossible gorgeously detailed paintings depicting the modern world…from 1859. But when a massive solar flare forces a shutdown of all integrated technology, her discovery is jeopardized.
The threat intensifies when a group of rebels attack the college, their movement resting upon the rejection of technology. Derryn flees to New York with the help of a sympathetic Sovereign, under the guise of being one herself.
But those Civil War–era paintings continue to confound her. Helen Bywater was surely more than an artist—but what? How could she possibly know what the world would look like beyond her own lifetime?
As the ethereal tie binding them grows stronger, Derryn begins to see what perhaps Helen did too. That no matter the time, the space between us isn’t so vast. The struggles we face aren’t so different. And the connection we need to survive isn’t so out of reach.
359 pages, Kindle Edition
Expected publication March 17, 2026
1093 people want to read
About the author
Olivia Hawker
9 books1,124 followersAlso publishes under Libbie Hawker, Libbie Grant, and L.M. Ironside
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
February 16, 2026
Thank you, NetGalley, for granting me a free copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.
Imagine a story whose message is “Big Brother is good, actually.” That’s what we’re dealing with here.
This book is basically just an excuse for the author to find new and poetic ways to express how much she hates half the country. If she had stuck to doing that via a Civil War analogy, then so be it. But unfortunately, we were also treated to a painfully dull, pretentious storyline set in a future where all the good people are made gooder by embracing technology and all the bad people are made badder by rejecting it. If that sounds rather childish, that’s because it is.
I’m planning on writing a longer, more detailed review once this book is released. But the truth is that while there’s a good Civil War story buried in here, whether or not you enjoy this book will probably come down to whether or not you share the author’s severe worldview. And even if you do, Through All Our Heavens might still leave you feeling tetchy.
Imagine a story whose message is “Big Brother is good, actually.” That’s what we’re dealing with here.
This book is basically just an excuse for the author to find new and poetic ways to express how much she hates half the country. If she had stuck to doing that via a Civil War analogy, then so be it. But unfortunately, we were also treated to a painfully dull, pretentious storyline set in a future where all the good people are made gooder by embracing technology and all the bad people are made badder by rejecting it. If that sounds rather childish, that’s because it is.
I’m planning on writing a longer, more detailed review once this book is released. But the truth is that while there’s a good Civil War story buried in here, whether or not you enjoy this book will probably come down to whether or not you share the author’s severe worldview. And even if you do, Through All Our Heavens might still leave you feeling tetchy.
November 23, 2025
I’m a big fan of Olivia Hawker and her latest book doesn’t’ disappoint! It’s a dual timeline with the earlier being just prior to and during the Civil War, set in Richmond, where I live, so it was fun to recognize places and streets; and the later timeline is set in the future, year 2053. The earlier is historical fiction, which is made even more interesting, by the author’s note at the end; and the latter is science-fiction, which is not my preferred genre, but still worked for me! They are connected by a real life celestial event, a common goal, and art. I enjoyed the characters and relationships! A unique read! Beautiful book cover as well. 9/10.
Thank you very much to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for the advanced reader’s copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
Thank you very much to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for the advanced reader’s copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
November 18, 2025
Through All Our Heavens is a mystical story about the transcendence of time and the eternal fight for freedom.
In this dual-timeline story, two women centuries apart witness the same strange lights in the sky and awaken their hearts to freedom. In 2053, Derryn lives in a divided transhumanist world, where sentient technology helps her to live her day to day life. The USA is divided, in the midst of a civil war where factions of those who support and reject technology are fighting for the soul of America. Derryn is an art historian who is tasked with studying some strange paintings from the nineteenth century that depict her world's technology. When a massive solar flare forces her world to shut down technology for 6 days, she must make the arduous journey to safety through the treacherous communities of rebels who have refused the technology. In the 1860s, Helen is a woman who witnesses strange lights in the sky and becomes inspired to join the abolitionist cause after her awareness of injustices shatters the illusory nature of her American life. Both women must navigate their changing worlds as they each encounter one another though the similar events, revolutionary spirits, and solar flares of their respective times.
Through All Our Heavens was a beautifully written story that perfectly articulated the feelings of awakening. Connecting two characters through time via a celestial event was an ingenious way to mirror the past and the future. Both women, Helen and Derryn each grappled with the American ideals of freedom, liberty, and individuality- through war and revolution. Helen clearly had a sort of spiritual awakening after witnessing the strange lights which inspired her to fight for freedom. On the other hand, Derryn also had an awakening, to the horrors of a world without technology and how restricting it can be. The author described the characters interior thoughts and feelings about the world with so much heart and wisdom that it could read as a visionary fiction piece. The story is metaphysical and mystical in nature.
Helen's storyline during the American Civil War felt timely, given all of the happenings in the USA. Derryn's storyline was the most real futuristic story I have read, as the concepts of transhumanism, AI, and sentient tech are already here. It was eerie just how similar the experiences of the characters were to the people of our world today. Is the story a foreshadowing of what's to come? Or is it a social commentary of current events? Or somewhere in between? My only critique is that I wish the time-slip element was included more in the story. I loved the concept of time-travel via a solar flare, but including a bit more of it would have tied everything together.
I really enjoyed this story. It was original and beautifully written, exploring freedom, liberty, individuality, and the challenges of navigating a changing world where these very values are more vulnerable than we think.
Aquarian and thought provoking.
Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a free arc via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed are my own.
In this dual-timeline story, two women centuries apart witness the same strange lights in the sky and awaken their hearts to freedom. In 2053, Derryn lives in a divided transhumanist world, where sentient technology helps her to live her day to day life. The USA is divided, in the midst of a civil war where factions of those who support and reject technology are fighting for the soul of America. Derryn is an art historian who is tasked with studying some strange paintings from the nineteenth century that depict her world's technology. When a massive solar flare forces her world to shut down technology for 6 days, she must make the arduous journey to safety through the treacherous communities of rebels who have refused the technology. In the 1860s, Helen is a woman who witnesses strange lights in the sky and becomes inspired to join the abolitionist cause after her awareness of injustices shatters the illusory nature of her American life. Both women must navigate their changing worlds as they each encounter one another though the similar events, revolutionary spirits, and solar flares of their respective times.
Through All Our Heavens was a beautifully written story that perfectly articulated the feelings of awakening. Connecting two characters through time via a celestial event was an ingenious way to mirror the past and the future. Both women, Helen and Derryn each grappled with the American ideals of freedom, liberty, and individuality- through war and revolution. Helen clearly had a sort of spiritual awakening after witnessing the strange lights which inspired her to fight for freedom. On the other hand, Derryn also had an awakening, to the horrors of a world without technology and how restricting it can be. The author described the characters interior thoughts and feelings about the world with so much heart and wisdom that it could read as a visionary fiction piece. The story is metaphysical and mystical in nature.
Helen's storyline during the American Civil War felt timely, given all of the happenings in the USA. Derryn's storyline was the most real futuristic story I have read, as the concepts of transhumanism, AI, and sentient tech are already here. It was eerie just how similar the experiences of the characters were to the people of our world today. Is the story a foreshadowing of what's to come? Or is it a social commentary of current events? Or somewhere in between? My only critique is that I wish the time-slip element was included more in the story. I loved the concept of time-travel via a solar flare, but including a bit more of it would have tied everything together.
I really enjoyed this story. It was original and beautifully written, exploring freedom, liberty, individuality, and the challenges of navigating a changing world where these very values are more vulnerable than we think.
Aquarian and thought provoking.
Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a free arc via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinions expressed are my own.
November 2, 2025
The writing is nice, and the premise is intriguing, but I was disappointed by the endless political commentary. Additionally, the two timelines, alternating narrators is getting tiresome. Just as you start getting interested in one storyline, it switches, breaking up the flow.
It also sets up this wonderful idea that a cosmic event allows Helen to see through time into the future but then never does anything with it. Yes, she paints what she sees and chooses to use what she saw as a way to believe that the world will change some day - but so what? A Civil War also means that the world will change so why bother with the sci-fi stuff?
Then we have Derryn's story which takes place in 2053. So we are supposed to believe that in 28 years we will have flying taxis and humans linked via a neural interface? And the reliance would be so total that people would be utterly stymied by doing anything on their own. But then there's another cosmic event that causes all electronics to fail for a week. At which point the 'veil' between timelines fails just enough that Derryn 'sees' Helen for a moment but again nothing meaningful comes of this.
I understand the author was intrigued by the fact that there was solar flare activity in 1859 that produced visible aurora borealis over the entire US that lasted for several days but she then didn't do enough with it. I kept waiting for Helen to do something amazing but the author was trapped into mirroring real life women who worked for the Union during the Civil War.
It just felt like a bunch of pieces that were configured to fit together with no reason to fit together. Like assembling a jigsaw puzzle cardboard side up, everything fits, but then turning them over and seeing that the image doesn't mean anything, it's just random.
It also sets up this wonderful idea that a cosmic event allows Helen to see through time into the future but then never does anything with it. Yes, she paints what she sees and chooses to use what she saw as a way to believe that the world will change some day - but so what? A Civil War also means that the world will change so why bother with the sci-fi stuff?
Then we have Derryn's story which takes place in 2053. So we are supposed to believe that in 28 years we will have flying taxis and humans linked via a neural interface? And the reliance would be so total that people would be utterly stymied by doing anything on their own. But then there's another cosmic event that causes all electronics to fail for a week. At which point the 'veil' between timelines fails just enough that Derryn 'sees' Helen for a moment but again nothing meaningful comes of this.
I understand the author was intrigued by the fact that there was solar flare activity in 1859 that produced visible aurora borealis over the entire US that lasted for several days but she then didn't do enough with it. I kept waiting for Helen to do something amazing but the author was trapped into mirroring real life women who worked for the Union during the Civil War.
It just felt like a bunch of pieces that were configured to fit together with no reason to fit together. Like assembling a jigsaw puzzle cardboard side up, everything fits, but then turning them over and seeing that the image doesn't mean anything, it's just random.
February 2, 2026
Olivia Hawker has done it again! She has crafted a fabulous dual timeline story that blends historical fiction and science fiction. Set in 2053, Derryn is an art expert from Stanford asked to come to Haverford College in Pennsylvania to interpret paintings from the mid-1800s done by Helen Bywater. In this time period, there is a lot of technology and a battle between those who use it and the Sovereigns, who do not. Helen's storyline is set just before the Civil War until a little after it in Richmond and Haverford. As a single woman who inherited a house and land in the South, Helen couldn't abide by slavery any more and freed her slaves. From there, she and her closest formerly enslaved girl, Mary Jane, went on to help Union prisoners and spied on the Confederate army. The two plot lines are connected by a solar flare event that really did occur in 1859 and the author created another massive solar flare event in 2053 that disrupts life as they knew it. Derryn and Helen have a couple of episodes where they are connected in dreams or events that feel like dreams.
This engaging story had me turning pages as often as I could a minute or thirty! I thoroughly enjoyed the sci-fi, technology aspects to Derryn's storyline contrasted by the Sovereign people who were fearful of and rejected all technology. Derryn's character has quite a few experiences where she has to reflect on her life and what she wants out of it. Per the Author's Note, Helen and Mary Jane were inspired by real-life women who did many of the things in this story and I always love those connections to real heroes. The connections of Derryn's story to real life events and happenings today was also poignant.
If you enjoy either genre, I think you will love this blended story of new and old.
#ThroughAllOurHeavens #NetGalley
Thank you Net Galley for a complimentary copy. All opinions expressed are my own.
This engaging story had me turning pages as often as I could a minute or thirty! I thoroughly enjoyed the sci-fi, technology aspects to Derryn's storyline contrasted by the Sovereign people who were fearful of and rejected all technology. Derryn's character has quite a few experiences where she has to reflect on her life and what she wants out of it. Per the Author's Note, Helen and Mary Jane were inspired by real-life women who did many of the things in this story and I always love those connections to real heroes. The connections of Derryn's story to real life events and happenings today was also poignant.
If you enjoy either genre, I think you will love this blended story of new and old.
#ThroughAllOurHeavens #NetGalley
Thank you Net Galley for a complimentary copy. All opinions expressed are my own.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
This is my fourth Netgalley ARC and it was another winner!
Through All Our Heavens by Olivia Hawker is a split narrative novel. One thread follows Helen Bywater throughout the American Civil War in the 1860s, as she struggles to keep her Southern estate running while also doing whatever she can to help the Northern cause. The other thread is set in 2053, after the US has split apart and is in the throes of another civil war. Derryn, an art historian is called behind the Blockade to study a cache of paintings that's been discovered - which seem to date back to the 1860s but depict scenes from the 2050s.
But it didn't proceed how I was expecting at all. The ways in which the two storylines connect are more thematic than actual, with both women taking parallel journeys within the turbulence of their respective times.
The themes themselves are explored and stated rather bluntly, with the author perhaps overexplaining her point throughout and both storylines felt a bit dragged out in the second half - but the writing is beautiful, both historical and futuristic settings are vivid and immersive (though the potential prescience of the events leading up to Derryn's not-too-distant world is chilling), I connected with and got invested in both protagonists, and the ending felt satisfying and deeply resonant.
Through All Our Heavens by Olivia Hawker is a split narrative novel. One thread follows Helen Bywater throughout the American Civil War in the 1860s, as she struggles to keep her Southern estate running while also doing whatever she can to help the Northern cause. The other thread is set in 2053, after the US has split apart and is in the throes of another civil war. Derryn, an art historian is called behind the Blockade to study a cache of paintings that's been discovered - which seem to date back to the 1860s but depict scenes from the 2050s.
But it didn't proceed how I was expecting at all. The ways in which the two storylines connect are more thematic than actual, with both women taking parallel journeys within the turbulence of their respective times.
The themes themselves are explored and stated rather bluntly, with the author perhaps overexplaining her point throughout and both storylines felt a bit dragged out in the second half - but the writing is beautiful, both historical and futuristic settings are vivid and immersive (though the potential prescience of the events leading up to Derryn's not-too-distant world is chilling), I connected with and got invested in both protagonists, and the ending felt satisfying and deeply resonant.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Read this one for a blurb and loved it! Using sublime worldbuilding and deep empathy, Olivia Hawker brilliantly weaves the moving tale of two strong women tied beyond time by art, war, and the heavens themselves. Utterly beautiful and highly recommended.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews