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The Barometer Sequence #1
Fair Weather
An alternate cover for this ASIN can be found here.
Molly just wants to sleep at night, but the dreams won’t leave her alone.
The light goes out, while distant echoes of thunder diminish into the night. Molly has dreamed of it before, but this time her eyes are open and she’s wide awake.
The man is bending over her but she can only see his shadow.
Then everything changes. It is a world of buzzing chatter, markets, the calls of birds, bright sunshine and the cobbled alleys of old London.
But when Molly turns and blinks, everything dissolves into shadows once more. And she hears the siren of police cars, and they are coming closer.
An identical murder in the distant past of her dreams joins the two worlds in equal danger. Molly travels time but is followed by some horror which kills and mutilates at will.
And the man, his voice the rustle of dead leaves, is always there. Yet Molly discovers far more than fear and misery. She discovers a whole new life, and a love she could never have imagined. she no longer wants to return – but she must.
Molly just wants to sleep at night, but the dreams won’t leave her alone.
The light goes out, while distant echoes of thunder diminish into the night. Molly has dreamed of it before, but this time her eyes are open and she’s wide awake.
The man is bending over her but she can only see his shadow.
Then everything changes. It is a world of buzzing chatter, markets, the calls of birds, bright sunshine and the cobbled alleys of old London.
But when Molly turns and blinks, everything dissolves into shadows once more. And she hears the siren of police cars, and they are coming closer.
An identical murder in the distant past of her dreams joins the two worlds in equal danger. Molly travels time but is followed by some horror which kills and mutilates at will.
And the man, his voice the rustle of dead leaves, is always there. Yet Molly discovers far more than fear and misery. She discovers a whole new life, and a love she could never have imagined. she no longer wants to return – but she must.
495 pages, ebook
Published May 30, 2016
98 people are currently reading
139 people want to read
About the author
Barbara Gaskell Denvil
43 books63 followersI was born approximately two hundred years ago (It sometimes feels that way) in Gloucestershire, England, right in the heart of the Cotswolds. After a few years, I moved to London and fell in love with the history which oozes through the old stones, and the medieval atmosphere leaks from the beautiful old buildings. For many years, I walked the old cobbled lanes and researched the 15th century from original sources, and the books in the British Museum. I worked there in the Department of Ancient Documents, a place which I adored, full of scrolls illuminated by medieval monks, and hordes of informative parchments.
My father was an academic and playwright, my mother was a retired teacher, and my sister was an author of fantasy. I had no other passion except the arts, and books
Already a passionate reader half-crazed by the avid consumption of literature, I had grown out of Enid Blyton when I was about six. Next came a passion for Georgette Heyer, although far too young to understand romance. Once again it was the historical details I loved and I moved quickly onto Shakespeare, Dorothy Dunnett, Tolkien, C.S. Lewis and a host of others.
I started writing. Nonsense naturally! But I kept it up and eventually write articles and short stories for current magazines and newspapers. I was also a tutor for scriptwriting, and a reviewer for Books and Bookmen. That kept me busy until I married. A husband and three little girls (including identical twins) were a full-time job, and for most of the time I also worked at secretarial jobs, keeping the threat of starvation at bay and paying for the baked beans.
After leaving my husband, I started writing again but this time I was distracted by something different, as I had a wonderful 18-year romance with a man who lived on his yacht in the Mediterranean, sailing during spring, summer, and autumn, and exploring Europe by car in winter.
My partner died, and I was bereft, deciding to come to Australia for a change instead of sitting around in stagnant tears. Writing again, and seriously this time, I wrote full length books in all my favourite genres. I was accepted by one of the big top 5 publishers, and two of my historical crime/mysteries were published in the traditional manner. However, although I was reasonably well paid and sold reasonably well, I also found myself disliking the control system. I had to write as commanded, insert bucket loads more romance, accept covers I hated, and generally do as I was told.
Now, happy and free, I self-publish, and enjoy every minute of my writing. I live in Australia, adore the weather, the birds and the wildlife, and live a placid life during the day and a wonderfully exciting one in my dreams at night.
I have written fantasy and historical fiction. Very different genres, but all are crime mysteries in one way or another. I have almost finished my children’s series (Bannister’s Muster series, for middle-grade children), no crime here, but a vibrant mixture of history and fantasy. After this is complete I am moving onto a series of modern crime mysteries, and I’m looking forward to that.
Writing is and always has been my passion, now that I am able to do this full time, I am in my element and life couldn’t be better (a little more sunshine might help though).
My father was an academic and playwright, my mother was a retired teacher, and my sister was an author of fantasy. I had no other passion except the arts, and books
Already a passionate reader half-crazed by the avid consumption of literature, I had grown out of Enid Blyton when I was about six. Next came a passion for Georgette Heyer, although far too young to understand romance. Once again it was the historical details I loved and I moved quickly onto Shakespeare, Dorothy Dunnett, Tolkien, C.S. Lewis and a host of others.
I started writing. Nonsense naturally! But I kept it up and eventually write articles and short stories for current magazines and newspapers. I was also a tutor for scriptwriting, and a reviewer for Books and Bookmen. That kept me busy until I married. A husband and three little girls (including identical twins) were a full-time job, and for most of the time I also worked at secretarial jobs, keeping the threat of starvation at bay and paying for the baked beans.
After leaving my husband, I started writing again but this time I was distracted by something different, as I had a wonderful 18-year romance with a man who lived on his yacht in the Mediterranean, sailing during spring, summer, and autumn, and exploring Europe by car in winter.
My partner died, and I was bereft, deciding to come to Australia for a change instead of sitting around in stagnant tears. Writing again, and seriously this time, I wrote full length books in all my favourite genres. I was accepted by one of the big top 5 publishers, and two of my historical crime/mysteries were published in the traditional manner. However, although I was reasonably well paid and sold reasonably well, I also found myself disliking the control system. I had to write as commanded, insert bucket loads more romance, accept covers I hated, and generally do as I was told.
Now, happy and free, I self-publish, and enjoy every minute of my writing. I live in Australia, adore the weather, the birds and the wildlife, and live a placid life during the day and a wonderfully exciting one in my dreams at night.
I have written fantasy and historical fiction. Very different genres, but all are crime mysteries in one way or another. I have almost finished my children’s series (Bannister’s Muster series, for middle-grade children), no crime here, but a vibrant mixture of history and fantasy. After this is complete I am moving onto a series of modern crime mysteries, and I’m looking forward to that.
Writing is and always has been my passion, now that I am able to do this full time, I am in my element and life couldn’t be better (a little more sunshine might help though).
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
December 29, 2013
I might as well come clean immediately; I loved this book – all the way from the first page to the last, I was totally engrossed, finding it difficult to break off for such mundane things as going to work, or eating. Actually, the only thing I don’t like about this book is the title, as it comes nowhere close to insinuating the tantalizing contents within its covers, no matter that Fairweather is the alias of one of the main characters.
Ms Gaskell Denvil has in Fair Weather written a skillful and complex time-slip, alternating between Molly’s real life in the here and now, and her dream life, when she is sucked backwards in time. Molly is a writer, and as she begins working on a novel set in medieval London, the dreams she’s had since childhood become even more intense, and even if she tries to ignore them – she even abandons her book – it is far too late, and Molly can no more stop herself from being sucked into Tilda, a young woman living in King John’s London, than she can stop herself from breathing.
Tilda has had a rough life. Born a serf, she leaves the manor when her mother dies and makes for London. Once there, she is taken under the protective wing of Vespasian, at first glance medieval version of Mr Fagin – except that he is somewhat kinder to the children under his care. Tilda is in love with her benefactor. Vespasian considers her a child.
Vespasian is the sun round which the life of his ragged band revolves. When he is gone – and he often is, on one mysterious adventure or the other – Tilda and her friends mope. He comes back, and they all shine up, eager to please him as well as they can. Ms Gaskell Denvil does a fantastic job of portraying this enigmatic man. The reader – and Molly, through Tilda’s eyes – soon figures out there is far more to Vespasian than his midnight eyes and odd name.
Interspersed with Tilda’s and Vespasian’s life in King John’s England, are passages from Molly’s modern life, featuring not only Molly but also her ex-husband Bertie. As her dreams intensify, Molly is dragged into a non-existence, hanging precariously between reality and her dream world. Her ex-husband considers her obsessed. Molly agrees, but is also convinced that the people she dreams of are as real as she is – but from the 13th century.
I must admit to initially hurrying through the passages set in modern time, so anxious was I to get back to excellently depicted medieval London. Ms Gaskell Denvil presents us with a seething metropolis, complete with throngs of people, paupers, beggars, stinks and smells. So well does she paint the ancient streets of London that I begin to wonder if maybe she’s been dreaming of it too.
Molly’s modern life is rocked by a brutal murder. A woman, Wattle, who is presently dating her ex-husband, is found hanging upside down from a tree. Strangely enough, the thick snow carpeting the ground only shows up the woman’s footprints, so who was her attacker? Molly is devastated by all this. When next she is dragged into Tilda’s head, she comes across the body of a young woman named Isabel, also one of Vespasian’s charges, who has been horribly mutilated. It quickly becomes obvious Isabel’s murder was intended as a message to Vespasian, further confirming Molly’s – and the reader’s – suspicion that Vespasian is far more than he seems.
As Molly is successively dragged more and more often into the 13th century, strange things – awful things – begin to happen in the present. Yet another woman is killed, and this time she has been mutilated in the same way as Isabel. It is as if Molly has unwittingly breached the veils of time, inviting the past into the present – or is it the other way around?
Molly has concerns that she may be going crazy – the life of the 13th century is becoming increasingly more real, and she worries she might be developing multiple personalities. After all, her mother has spent the last few decades in a mental asylum, and insanity can be hereditary.
Things take a turn for the worse. Without revealing too much of the plot, suffice it to say that more people are murdered in the present, just as many die in the past. Poor Tilda/Molly is subjected to torture and pain, at the hands of an ancient sect dedicated to Lilith, a most repulsive and evil deity with a propensity for taking on the shape of a giant toad. (And here was I believing Lilith was a beautiful temptress)
Fair Weather becomes a fascinating story of good against evil, of men who sell their souls for power, of magic and ancient rituals. And in all this mess, Molly is to play a pivotal role, destined since birth to stand on the side of the good against the advancing hordes of Lilith’s sycophants.
Given the book’s central theme of good and evil, it is somewhat apt that the final confrontation takes place at Samhain. After reading Ms Gaskell Denvil’s depiction of just what can be found walking the night on Hallow’s Eve, I think I will ensure to stay inside all my future Halloweens – just in case.
From a stylistic point of view, Ms Gaskell Denvil makes excellent use of the first and third person narrative. Molly is always in first person, Tilda is in first person the first time we meet her, but as Molly invades her head, Ms Gaskell Denvil uses first person for Molly – even when she is in Tilda’s head – and third person for anything Tilda might say or do of her own accord. This allows the writer to have Molly directing herself directly to Vespasian via Tilda (who, we must assume, must at times feel quite possessed) while on other occasions it is Tilda herself who speaks to Vespasian. This also allows Molly to comment on everything that she finds strange in the 13th century, while Tilda would never consider such things as fleas and rats, outside privies and mouldy bread, to even be worth mentioning.
I was particularly impressed by how the author described Molly’s confusion as she travelled back and forth through time. One day she wakes on a pallet covered with straw, the next day she’s back in her own bed, and as her time travelling increases, it becomes more and more difficult for Molly to handle the transition, to the point that she feels somewhat intimidated by the accoutrements of her modern life. There is an excellent scene involving Molly, a pack of tarot cards (of course there are tarot cards in a story involving magic and good and evil!) and Vespasian, where they are both in some sort of in-between space.
Further to this, Ms Gaskell Denvil has a poet’s ear for language. Her descriptions are evocative, her dialogue is pitch-perfect, and the prose flows like molten chocolate (said by a chocolate fan). For those of you familiar with Ms Gaskell Denvil’s writing, it comes as no surprise when I add that as always the historical setting, including clothes, interiors and food, is presented in detail and elegantly woven into the narrative.
And then there are the characters as such; Molly with all her insecurities, now and then quite convinced she’s as insane as her mother, but capable of enormous courage when it is required of her; Tilda, an uneducated young girl with an engaging innocence, but, just like Molly, brave when she has to be; Vespasian, broody and dark, a man living by his own rules, a man who has conquered the secrets of time.
Fair Weather is something of an emotional roller-coaster, this due to the most enigmatic Vespasian. We love him, we hate him, we love him again, and we never truly understand him, this man who is at once capable of such cruelty – albeit for a greater good – but also of fierce, possessive love. The story as such is just as entrancing, and as the bodies pile up and the police stand befuddled, I experience moments of heartache and fear, of hope and despair.
To those that have as yet to experience Ms Gaskell Denvil’s excellent writing skills, I can but say “Congratulations”. Ms Gaskell Denvil has published three books, and sadly I have already read all three. However, as I hear it, Ms Gaskell Denvil is considering a sequel to Fair Weather, and I for one am already waiting for it – longing for it – as Molly and Vespasian have taken up permanent residence in my heart.
Ms Gaskell Denvil has in Fair Weather written a skillful and complex time-slip, alternating between Molly’s real life in the here and now, and her dream life, when she is sucked backwards in time. Molly is a writer, and as she begins working on a novel set in medieval London, the dreams she’s had since childhood become even more intense, and even if she tries to ignore them – she even abandons her book – it is far too late, and Molly can no more stop herself from being sucked into Tilda, a young woman living in King John’s London, than she can stop herself from breathing.
Tilda has had a rough life. Born a serf, she leaves the manor when her mother dies and makes for London. Once there, she is taken under the protective wing of Vespasian, at first glance medieval version of Mr Fagin – except that he is somewhat kinder to the children under his care. Tilda is in love with her benefactor. Vespasian considers her a child.
Vespasian is the sun round which the life of his ragged band revolves. When he is gone – and he often is, on one mysterious adventure or the other – Tilda and her friends mope. He comes back, and they all shine up, eager to please him as well as they can. Ms Gaskell Denvil does a fantastic job of portraying this enigmatic man. The reader – and Molly, through Tilda’s eyes – soon figures out there is far more to Vespasian than his midnight eyes and odd name.
Interspersed with Tilda’s and Vespasian’s life in King John’s England, are passages from Molly’s modern life, featuring not only Molly but also her ex-husband Bertie. As her dreams intensify, Molly is dragged into a non-existence, hanging precariously between reality and her dream world. Her ex-husband considers her obsessed. Molly agrees, but is also convinced that the people she dreams of are as real as she is – but from the 13th century.
I must admit to initially hurrying through the passages set in modern time, so anxious was I to get back to excellently depicted medieval London. Ms Gaskell Denvil presents us with a seething metropolis, complete with throngs of people, paupers, beggars, stinks and smells. So well does she paint the ancient streets of London that I begin to wonder if maybe she’s been dreaming of it too.
Molly’s modern life is rocked by a brutal murder. A woman, Wattle, who is presently dating her ex-husband, is found hanging upside down from a tree. Strangely enough, the thick snow carpeting the ground only shows up the woman’s footprints, so who was her attacker? Molly is devastated by all this. When next she is dragged into Tilda’s head, she comes across the body of a young woman named Isabel, also one of Vespasian’s charges, who has been horribly mutilated. It quickly becomes obvious Isabel’s murder was intended as a message to Vespasian, further confirming Molly’s – and the reader’s – suspicion that Vespasian is far more than he seems.
As Molly is successively dragged more and more often into the 13th century, strange things – awful things – begin to happen in the present. Yet another woman is killed, and this time she has been mutilated in the same way as Isabel. It is as if Molly has unwittingly breached the veils of time, inviting the past into the present – or is it the other way around?
Molly has concerns that she may be going crazy – the life of the 13th century is becoming increasingly more real, and she worries she might be developing multiple personalities. After all, her mother has spent the last few decades in a mental asylum, and insanity can be hereditary.
Things take a turn for the worse. Without revealing too much of the plot, suffice it to say that more people are murdered in the present, just as many die in the past. Poor Tilda/Molly is subjected to torture and pain, at the hands of an ancient sect dedicated to Lilith, a most repulsive and evil deity with a propensity for taking on the shape of a giant toad. (And here was I believing Lilith was a beautiful temptress)
Fair Weather becomes a fascinating story of good against evil, of men who sell their souls for power, of magic and ancient rituals. And in all this mess, Molly is to play a pivotal role, destined since birth to stand on the side of the good against the advancing hordes of Lilith’s sycophants.
Given the book’s central theme of good and evil, it is somewhat apt that the final confrontation takes place at Samhain. After reading Ms Gaskell Denvil’s depiction of just what can be found walking the night on Hallow’s Eve, I think I will ensure to stay inside all my future Halloweens – just in case.
From a stylistic point of view, Ms Gaskell Denvil makes excellent use of the first and third person narrative. Molly is always in first person, Tilda is in first person the first time we meet her, but as Molly invades her head, Ms Gaskell Denvil uses first person for Molly – even when she is in Tilda’s head – and third person for anything Tilda might say or do of her own accord. This allows the writer to have Molly directing herself directly to Vespasian via Tilda (who, we must assume, must at times feel quite possessed) while on other occasions it is Tilda herself who speaks to Vespasian. This also allows Molly to comment on everything that she finds strange in the 13th century, while Tilda would never consider such things as fleas and rats, outside privies and mouldy bread, to even be worth mentioning.
I was particularly impressed by how the author described Molly’s confusion as she travelled back and forth through time. One day she wakes on a pallet covered with straw, the next day she’s back in her own bed, and as her time travelling increases, it becomes more and more difficult for Molly to handle the transition, to the point that she feels somewhat intimidated by the accoutrements of her modern life. There is an excellent scene involving Molly, a pack of tarot cards (of course there are tarot cards in a story involving magic and good and evil!) and Vespasian, where they are both in some sort of in-between space.
Further to this, Ms Gaskell Denvil has a poet’s ear for language. Her descriptions are evocative, her dialogue is pitch-perfect, and the prose flows like molten chocolate (said by a chocolate fan). For those of you familiar with Ms Gaskell Denvil’s writing, it comes as no surprise when I add that as always the historical setting, including clothes, interiors and food, is presented in detail and elegantly woven into the narrative.
And then there are the characters as such; Molly with all her insecurities, now and then quite convinced she’s as insane as her mother, but capable of enormous courage when it is required of her; Tilda, an uneducated young girl with an engaging innocence, but, just like Molly, brave when she has to be; Vespasian, broody and dark, a man living by his own rules, a man who has conquered the secrets of time.
Fair Weather is something of an emotional roller-coaster, this due to the most enigmatic Vespasian. We love him, we hate him, we love him again, and we never truly understand him, this man who is at once capable of such cruelty – albeit for a greater good – but also of fierce, possessive love. The story as such is just as entrancing, and as the bodies pile up and the police stand befuddled, I experience moments of heartache and fear, of hope and despair.
To those that have as yet to experience Ms Gaskell Denvil’s excellent writing skills, I can but say “Congratulations”. Ms Gaskell Denvil has published three books, and sadly I have already read all three. However, as I hear it, Ms Gaskell Denvil is considering a sequel to Fair Weather, and I for one am already waiting for it – longing for it – as Molly and Vespasian have taken up permanent residence in my heart.
September 24, 2018
Writing Herself Into Her Book📑
Adult Murder Mysteries, Past and Present...
The fictional book author, Molly💃, dreams herself into the body of Matilda👗, a 6 year old street urchin in the medieval London slums. The year is 1206.
As time goes by, the rail thin, half starved girl matures io a fourteen year old, then sixteen years old. All this time Matilda👗 lives with a group of street thieves controlled by an adult, a tall man called Vespasian Fairweather🐺🍆🌋🔪.
Starvation in the whole of Europe is rampant..many days the group has nothing to eat.
Molly💃 goes back and forth into and out of her medieval world. Her life in The present stinks, too. She divorces her husband, Bertie, for endless affairs, then let's him move back in within days of The divorce finalization.
Molly💃 thinks she is going crazy, when one of Bertie's latest girlfriends is found hanging in the woods after being brutally tortured.
Molly goes back into the past as Matilda, but her body in the present is in a coma like state. Then there is another murder, similar to the first! Then another! Each Is more gruesome than the last!
Is some kind of black magic involved?
Why is such a mild mannered woman involved in two such brutal 🌎worlds?
ARC Received by Hidden 💎Gems
I also got the book with KU.
This is a well researched and written book. The sights, sounds, and smells of medieval London are almost tangible. The brutish life of the poor is horrendous. The book has violent episodes. What is going on?! I was mesmerized!
Adult Murder Mysteries, Past and Present...
The fictional book author, Molly💃, dreams herself into the body of Matilda👗, a 6 year old street urchin in the medieval London slums. The year is 1206.
As time goes by, the rail thin, half starved girl matures io a fourteen year old, then sixteen years old. All this time Matilda👗 lives with a group of street thieves controlled by an adult, a tall man called Vespasian Fairweather🐺🍆🌋🔪.
Starvation in the whole of Europe is rampant..many days the group has nothing to eat.
Molly💃 goes back and forth into and out of her medieval world. Her life in The present stinks, too. She divorces her husband, Bertie, for endless affairs, then let's him move back in within days of The divorce finalization.
Molly💃 thinks she is going crazy, when one of Bertie's latest girlfriends is found hanging in the woods after being brutally tortured.
Molly goes back into the past as Matilda, but her body in the present is in a coma like state. Then there is another murder, similar to the first! Then another! Each Is more gruesome than the last!
Is some kind of black magic involved?
Why is such a mild mannered woman involved in two such brutal 🌎worlds?
ARC Received by Hidden 💎Gems
I also got the book with KU.
This is a well researched and written book. The sights, sounds, and smells of medieval London are almost tangible. The brutish life of the poor is horrendous. The book has violent episodes. What is going on?! I was mesmerized!
April 12, 2017
Fair Weather by Barbara Gaskell Denvil had been awarded a Chill with a Book Readers' Award
www.chillwithabook.com
www.chillwithabook.com
May 28, 2018
While the premise of the book was interesting, even fascinating, I found the writing to be confusing. When I first read a description of the book, I was led to believe it was somewhat of a sci-fi thriller. I was not warned about the graphic rape and murder described toward the beginning of the book. At that point, I was no longer able to continue reading.
***I received a free copy of this ebook in exchange for my honest review.***
***I received a free copy of this ebook in exchange for my honest review.***
August 12, 2014
Between Molly, Tilda and Vespasian they travel between worlds to find the murderer, and battle the evil that has been unleashed in both worlds.
Read full review in the 2012 July/August issue of InD’tale Magazine.
Read full review in the 2012 July/August issue of InD’tale Magazine.
June 11, 2017
This book has received a Discovering Diamonds Review:
' The novel is very cleverly conceived and pursues its fantastical conceits in a convincing and exciting way, building to a dramatic centrepiece that had me gripped. '
Helen Hollick
founder #DDRevs
' The novel is very cleverly conceived and pursues its fantastical conceits in a convincing and exciting way, building to a dramatic centrepiece that had me gripped. '
Helen Hollick
founder #DDRevs
September 29, 2018
What a book. I have never read anything like this. It took several hours to read this. It is a long story. But, so worth the time. I was not disappointed. The pace is moderate and the overall story is excellent. The lead characters are outstanding, fully developed, complete with engaging personalities. The supporting characters are just as engaging. The story would not have been the same without them. The book is detailed and very descriptive. It described the mood, the facial characteristics, the type of clothing, the physical surroundings and the elemental environment. I love the story line of two timelines. One timeline in the present and one timeline one thousand years in the past. Two lives that mingled in one body past and present. Molly is a writer who lives in the present and Tilda/Matilda who lived in the past, is an orphan stealing to live on the streets of London. Their lives magically intertwine with each other. The story covers their lives in their respective time and covers their experiences. Tilda and Molly help each other live and experience life in the others stead. Both Molly and Tilda have fallen in love with Vespasian. Vespasian lived in the past and was a mystic/alchemist. He had different beliefs of time and space, life and death. He taught Tilda/Molly what he knew they could absorb and nothing more. He was a mysterious man who had many secrets. However, everything he did had a distinct purpose. He had taken in a ragtag group of orphans, four boys and two girls. He taught them how to survive and he protected them. Vespasian found Tilda when she was ten years old alone on the streets. Tilda never knew her father. He died the day she was born. Then her mother died ten years later. She was grateful to Vespasian and hero worshipped him. All the other kids did also. Molly had a more difficult childhood. When she was a child she was always plagued with nightmares or that was what she thought they were. Her father left Molly and her mother when Molly's mother became emotionally unstable and was a danger to Molly. Molly was just a young girl when her mother was put into the asylum. She grew up in the country with her foster family. As an adult, she is still plagued with these nightmares. But Molly is beginning to think there is more to it that what she first believed. Thus, Molly and Tilda's journey begins. This suspenseful, murder mystery is exciting to read. Be prepared to be mystified, horrified, impressed, amazed and blown away. The ending was so unexpected you will not believe it. This is a must read. I highly recommend it. I received an Advanced Readers Copy of this book via Hidden Gems and am voluntarily leaving a review.
April 21, 2020
Wow just wow. I had no idea that when I received this book I would be gaining a new favourite author. Fair Weather was beyond expectations. It started off with a an almost lyrical formality and managed to morph reflectively with the context of the story; characters embedded in prose before realising it had happened in the narrative. I loved the characters, the mystery and supernatural enchantments. I was enchanted. Amazing book and have recommended this author to my mum (often confer over authors). Definitely reading more from this author. Wow
I received a complimentary copy of the book from Voracious Readers Only
I received a complimentary copy of the book from Voracious Readers Only
July 27, 2018
For me, this book was way too "wordy", I think the story could have been told just as well in half the pages. The book is 483 pages long....the story could have been told in a lot fewer pages than that.
The story is ok, but not really my cup of tea.
The story is ok, but not really my cup of tea.
March 10, 2019
I really enjoyed this book. Interesting and believable characters in a fantasy setting. I even downloaded Dinner with Vespasian and enjoyed that too. Thank you for an entertaining book. I hope there is a second one with the 21st century trials and troubles. And was it a boy or a girl?
January 27, 2020
I was enjoying this book until about three-quarters of the way in. I actually considered quitting. I will say by the end all was good and I gave it four stars. I do like the author's style of writing very much and have now read five of her books in a row.
April 23, 2020
Fair Weather is a well-written time travel story. This is the first book that I have read by this author and I will be looking for more. Great characters and a story that drew me in.
I received a copy of this book via Voracious Readers Only.
I received a copy of this book via Voracious Readers Only.
May 31, 2020
SIX stars if it was possible ...
Amazing Amazing Amazing Brilliant Brilliant Brilliant ... I've struggled to find a book to enjoy as much as Robin Hobb The Fool series ... this equals that ... THANK YOU SO MUCH to Barbara G-H for sharing your wonderful talent x
Amazing Amazing Amazing Brilliant Brilliant Brilliant ... I've struggled to find a book to enjoy as much as Robin Hobb The Fool series ... this equals that ... THANK YOU SO MUCH to Barbara G-H for sharing your wonderful talent x
February 5, 2022
This is a complex and intriguing tale of time travel, shared souls and undying love. While I was put off a bit by the graphic, brutal physical and sexual violence, the story drew me in and kept me engrossed until the end. It is a work unlike any other I have read.
June 28, 2018
Delightful historical novel
This book is a mix of history, magic, and love. One woman with two identities. One lives in current time and one lives 800 years before.
This book is a mix of history, magic, and love. One woman with two identities. One lives in current time and one lives 800 years before.
February 28, 2019
UGH. Review later. Maybe.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 3, 2019
Definitely worth the read
What can interestingly complex book. I am still left with questions as to exactly how some of the things happened.
What can interestingly complex book. I am still left with questions as to exactly how some of the things happened.
May 21, 2019
I could not finish this book. To be fair I was in a reading hang over from finishing the Throne of Glass series so...there's that.
March 27, 2020
Highly recommended
Great book beautifully written not the type of ending you expect but the just the ending you would need after reading this book
Great book beautifully written not the type of ending you expect but the just the ending you would need after reading this book
July 6, 2020
Voracious Readers review...well written, interesting and I was intrigued from the first chapter.
May 6, 2021
Fairly enjoyable but sometimes confusion spoiled it. I did however love the ending.
July 21, 2021
A fun read…
The characters and historical setting made for a light, fun read. A bit of violence—for those too sensitive, but overall very entertaining.
The characters and historical setting made for a light, fun read. A bit of violence—for those too sensitive, but overall very entertaining.
March 13, 2013
[See full review on my blog: http://diamondlovestoread.blogspot.com]
I really enjoyed this story. It’s a story you should really concentrate and take your time to read. It doesn’t rush you into learning the characters. As a reader, I didn’t know who to trust because Molly/Tilda didn’t know who to trust. So, for example, if someone betrayed her, I felt the betrayal. It was harsh and unpleasant. When I, as a reader can feel emotions that mimic the character/protagonist; it is the mark of an excellent novel. What stood out to me was the beautiful symbolism—a main theme in the story. There was also great imagery in this book. I felt the bleak world of England in the middle ages, yet I saw how the sun shined brighter and the air tasted sweeter than the future times. I could sense the appeal and understood why molly stayed in the past, despite the pangs of hunger. My favorite character was Molly/Tilda (in that order, tied but slightly more with Molly). I felt like I could relate more to Molly. Her reactions to the middle Ages and what was happening with Tilda mirrored mine. Her skepticism and judgment matched mine as a modern woman. The horrifying murders scared me, the alchemy intrigued me.
As the story unfolded, we learned as much as the protagonist. We learned with her, which made it unravel slower, perhaps, but more organically. Although the story took its time being told, every part was vital and it’s not the type of book you can read quickly or skim through some parts. (I am guilty of this as I do this with many books, it was refreshing to have to slowly read and absorb all the information in this book!)
Like Molly, you will leave your consciousness. You will enter into the Realm of Fairweather (which I thought was ironically named, until the ending when I understood it was the only name).
The story sucks you in; you become the "third presence" in Molly and Tilda’s shared consciousness.
I enjoyed the unique relationships in the story. For example, Molly’s husband, Bertie continued living with her after they divorced due to his infidelity. Most books try to simplify things like portraying one person as being clearly villainous, which I expected at first Bertie to be—yet it isn’t that way. In that way it’s closer to real life. There is something so HONEST about this story. It's a modern story, set in both middle aged England and modern age—but I think it will remain timeless.
I cried towards the end, the amount of emotion this book made me feel is overwhelming. I felt curiosity, sadness, grief, frustration, anger, rage, emptiness, loneliness, wonder. And finally; you feel the most brilliant of emotions -- love. This is truly a story of love. Not a "love story" but a story OF love.
Not cookie cutter love that we all know can occur between two unlikely characters; but real, messy, painful, sometimes deceitful love. It’s the kind of love that goes in circles and loves what perhaps it shouldn't, yet persists despite it all. Real love isn't explained in 100 pages. It took almost the entire book to the very end to fully comprehend the love, not only between these two characters, but among all the characters. The reader mistrusts Vespasian as Molly does in the beginning and throughout the novel; but also loves Vespasian. If an author can get the reader to feel what the character feels when the character 0feels it—it’s a home run. Denvil does this incredibly well. She does this so well I find myself swooning for Vespasian and wishing I had a dark man such as him to love. Sigh.
Such intense physical and emotional pain was endured by Tilda and Molly, this made the ending that much sweeter, yet nothing was assured. It’s a novel that takes you on a crazy imaginative journey. I honestly did NOT know what to expect! But it wasn't a "surprise ending;” rather, the entire book was a surprise. I felt I was being led on a path that had many turns; I would sometimes recognize a yew tree or silver pool, but I just trusted the narrator-- Molly/Tilda-- who takes us on this winding journey to another place and time. It's amazing. I ask you to read this book. You won’t regret it, I promise you. Denvil is on my “favorite authors” list now. The ideas and themes are so varied and imaginative, I sat in awe at how one mind can think of all these different nuances and background, which tie together beautifully in a braid. And a first time author too! It’s almost unbelievable. I can’t believe this is her first book. I will hungrily read all her other books and future books, and if there’s a sequel? *squeals* I’d just die!
Barbara Gaskell Denvil
I really enjoyed this story. It’s a story you should really concentrate and take your time to read. It doesn’t rush you into learning the characters. As a reader, I didn’t know who to trust because Molly/Tilda didn’t know who to trust. So, for example, if someone betrayed her, I felt the betrayal. It was harsh and unpleasant. When I, as a reader can feel emotions that mimic the character/protagonist; it is the mark of an excellent novel. What stood out to me was the beautiful symbolism—a main theme in the story. There was also great imagery in this book. I felt the bleak world of England in the middle ages, yet I saw how the sun shined brighter and the air tasted sweeter than the future times. I could sense the appeal and understood why molly stayed in the past, despite the pangs of hunger. My favorite character was Molly/Tilda (in that order, tied but slightly more with Molly). I felt like I could relate more to Molly. Her reactions to the middle Ages and what was happening with Tilda mirrored mine. Her skepticism and judgment matched mine as a modern woman. The horrifying murders scared me, the alchemy intrigued me.
As the story unfolded, we learned as much as the protagonist. We learned with her, which made it unravel slower, perhaps, but more organically. Although the story took its time being told, every part was vital and it’s not the type of book you can read quickly or skim through some parts. (I am guilty of this as I do this with many books, it was refreshing to have to slowly read and absorb all the information in this book!)
Like Molly, you will leave your consciousness. You will enter into the Realm of Fairweather (which I thought was ironically named, until the ending when I understood it was the only name).
The story sucks you in; you become the "third presence" in Molly and Tilda’s shared consciousness.
I enjoyed the unique relationships in the story. For example, Molly’s husband, Bertie continued living with her after they divorced due to his infidelity. Most books try to simplify things like portraying one person as being clearly villainous, which I expected at first Bertie to be—yet it isn’t that way. In that way it’s closer to real life. There is something so HONEST about this story. It's a modern story, set in both middle aged England and modern age—but I think it will remain timeless.
I cried towards the end, the amount of emotion this book made me feel is overwhelming. I felt curiosity, sadness, grief, frustration, anger, rage, emptiness, loneliness, wonder. And finally; you feel the most brilliant of emotions -- love. This is truly a story of love. Not a "love story" but a story OF love.
Not cookie cutter love that we all know can occur between two unlikely characters; but real, messy, painful, sometimes deceitful love. It’s the kind of love that goes in circles and loves what perhaps it shouldn't, yet persists despite it all. Real love isn't explained in 100 pages. It took almost the entire book to the very end to fully comprehend the love, not only between these two characters, but among all the characters. The reader mistrusts Vespasian as Molly does in the beginning and throughout the novel; but also loves Vespasian. If an author can get the reader to feel what the character feels when the character 0feels it—it’s a home run. Denvil does this incredibly well. She does this so well I find myself swooning for Vespasian and wishing I had a dark man such as him to love. Sigh.
Such intense physical and emotional pain was endured by Tilda and Molly, this made the ending that much sweeter, yet nothing was assured. It’s a novel that takes you on a crazy imaginative journey. I honestly did NOT know what to expect! But it wasn't a "surprise ending;” rather, the entire book was a surprise. I felt I was being led on a path that had many turns; I would sometimes recognize a yew tree or silver pool, but I just trusted the narrator-- Molly/Tilda-- who takes us on this winding journey to another place and time. It's amazing. I ask you to read this book. You won’t regret it, I promise you. Denvil is on my “favorite authors” list now. The ideas and themes are so varied and imaginative, I sat in awe at how one mind can think of all these different nuances and background, which tie together beautifully in a braid. And a first time author too! It’s almost unbelievable. I can’t believe this is her first book. I will hungrily read all her other books and future books, and if there’s a sequel? *squeals* I’d just die!
Barbara Gaskell Denvil
August 9, 2012
It was wonderfully written and pulled emotions out of me that were vividly felt. I admit to having felt disturbed by some things that happened but as I continued to read they came more easily for me to soak in. This story of Molly/Tilda and Vespasian has stuck with me even though I've finished and I'm going to have to take some time to decompress before I can start another book. I say that in the best of compliments. I became so involved with these characters that near the end, I was sobbing for the loss that came. Never once during reading this did I ever fail to believe in Vespasian. This is a story of good and evil, fear and strength, and ultimately, hope. What a ride Barbara Gaskell Denvil took me on!
May 21, 2018
I cannot recommend this book enough, I have read 3 of Miss Gaskells books now, and thoroughly enjoyed them all. But this one stands out amongst them, the depth of character and story is amazing. She leads you through the filthy streets of Medieval London as you the reader, become the heroine. You feel her pain and wonder as the story unfolds. The anticipation as Vespasian reveals his intentions, I read with baited breath until the very last page.
No matter your taste, this book will grip you from start to finish.
No matter your taste, this book will grip you from start to finish.
Read
July 13, 2012For a full review please see www.indtale.com July issue.
http://www.indtale.com/reviews/fair-w...
http://www.indtale.com/reviews/fair-w...
January 15, 2013
Dark Fantasy/Time travel.
Absolutely engrossing.
1 star deducted be because it was a touch too long and could have been edited "tighter".
Absolutely engrossing.
1 star deducted be because it was a touch too long and could have been edited "tighter".
Read
March 1, 2019This book was recommended to me by a book reviewer I follow. I have been reading fiction with witch themes lately, so this book's description fell right into that with its black magic. The story weaves back and forth between worlds, and between bodies--Molly sharing Tilda's consciousness. Other reviews here give full synopsis details, so I won't go into the storyline (which I found refreshing from other time travel book I've read). The characters do face some brutal torture, but we do not witness it as a reader; the author has chosen to just have the characters talk about it. The brutality of the events and the murderous twists in the plot were not too jarring. Overall, I enjoyed the story and will definitely check out more of Barbara Gaskell Denvil's mysteries.
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