Historia Magazine

The magazine of the Historical Writers Association

  • Features
  • Interviews
  • Reviews
    • New Books
    • TV, Film and Theatre
    • One From The Vaults
  • Latest Releases
  • Columns
    • Doctor Darwin’s Writing Tips
    • Watching History
    • Desert Island Books
  • Awards
  • Events
  • Contact
  • Historia in your inbox

The Year Without Summer by Guinevere Glasfurd

18 February 2021 By Editor

Buy The Year Without Summer by Guinevere Glasfurd

1815, Sumbawa Island, Indonesia. Mount Tambora explodes in a cataclysmic eruption, killing thousands. Sent to investigate, ship surgeon Henry Hogg can barely believe his eyes. Once a paradise, the island is now solid ash, the surrounding sea turned to stone. But worse is yet to come: as the ash cloud rises and covers the sun, the seasons will fail.

1816. In Switzerland, Mary Shelley finds dark inspiration. Confined inside by the unseasonable weather, thousands of famine refugees stream past her door. In Vermont, preacher Charles Whitlock begs his followers to keep faith as drought dries their wells and their livestock starve.

In Suffolk, the ambitious and lovesick painter John Constable struggles to reconcile the idyllic England he paints with the misery that surrounds him. In the Fens, farm labourer Sarah Hobbs has had enough of going hungry while the farmers flaunt their wealth. And Hope Peter, returned from the Napoleonic wars, finds his family home demolished and a fence gone up in its place. He flees to London, where he falls in with a group of revolutionaries who speak of a better life, whatever the cost. As desperation sets in, Britain becomes beset by riots. Rebellion is in the air.

The Year Without Summer is the story of the books written, the art made; of the journeys taken, of the love longed for and the lives lost during that fateful year. Six separate lives, connected only by an event many thousands of miles away. Few had heard of Tambora; but none could escape its effects.

The Year Without Summer by Guinevere Glasfurd is published in paperback on 18 February, 2021.

It was shortlisted for the 2020 HWA Gold Crown Award, and Guinevere’s feature looking at the history behind her novel will appear in Historia soon.

Share this article:Share on Facebook
Facebook
Tweet about this on Twitter
Twitter
Email this to someone
email

Filed Under: Latest Releases Tagged With: 19th century, Guinevere Glasfurd, historical fiction, HWA Gold Crown Award, new release, paperback, The Year without Summer

Search

Latest Releases

The Steel Beneath the Silk by Patricia Bracewell

2 March 2021

The Deadly Mystery of the Missing Diamonds by TE Kinsey

1 March 2021

The Prophet by Martine Bailey

26 February 2021

See more new releases

Let’s stay in touch

Sign up for our monthly email newsletter:

Or follow us on social media:

Follow us on Twitter Follow us on Facebook

Editor’s Picks

The slave ship Zong by Turner

A respectable trade in brutality: Blood & Sugar

18 February 2019

Fortune-telling cards

Did time run slower in the old days? My year living by almanack time

7 January 2019

Lady Constance Lytton: The Suffering Suffragette

5 February 2018

Popular Topics

16th century 17th century 18th century 19th century 20th century 2020 Ancient Rome Andrew Taylor Anglo-Saxons author interview biography book review Catherine Hokin Competition Debut Crown Elizabeth Fremantle Emma Darwin Giveaway historical fiction history HWA HWA Crown Awards HWA Non-Fiction Crown Imogen Robertson interview Katherine Clements Matthew Harffy medieval new release paperback research review Second World War Shortlist short stories the writing life Tudors TV drama TV review Vikings World War II writing writing advice writing tips WWII

The Historical Writers’ Association

Historia Magazine is published by the Historical Writers’ Association. We are authors, publishers and agents of historical writing, both fiction and non-fiction. For information about membership and profiles of our member authors, please visit our website.

Read more about Historia or find out about advertising and promotional opportunities.

ISSN 2515-2254

Recent Additions

  • The Steel Beneath the Silk by Patricia Bracewell
  • The Deadly Mystery of the Missing Diamonds by TE Kinsey
  • The Race by Alice Fowler

Search Historia

Contact us

If you would like to contact the editor of Historia, please email editor@historiamag.com.

Copyright © 2014–2021 The Historical Writers Association