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Original poster

I’d like to read a book set on a stormy night...

30 replies

TheShriekingCrow · 04/07/2021 17:27

I love books where the weather is very atmospheric. So, anything to do with storms, blizzards and heavy rain. I’ve read a few (the last couple seem to have the word ‘guest’ in the title) and am looking for some more to enjoy. Please recommend me something.

OP posts:
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SkepticalCat · 24/07/2021 22:46

Have just seen this thread. If you're still looking for recommendations - slightly different to others mentioned on this thread, but Three Hours by Rosamond Lupton is set during a blizzard.

cariadlet · 09/07/2021 06:19

The Tenderness of Wolves by Stef Penney. 1860s Canada, winter and a woman heads into the wilderness to clear her son's name when he disappears following a brutal murder. Plenty of atmospheric description and a great mystery.

Lots of Jack London's books have good descriptions of harsh weather. I like Call of the Wild and White Fang but there are also his short stories. There are brilliant descriptions of naive city dwellers getting caught up in the excitement of the gold rush and not being able to cope with the conditions.

If you like thrillers, most of Martin Cruz Smith's books are set in Russia so a lot of them have descriptions of wintry weather.

garlictwist · 09/07/2021 05:54

Not a storm as such but the Grapes of Wrath is set in the dust bowl and very atmospheric.

AuntLucy · 09/07/2021 04:58

The Dark is Rising is set around winter solstice and the extreme cold and storms are a big part of the narrative and very well done

ShaunaTheSheep · 07/07/2021 22:08

Was is The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman? I enjoyed it.

Duvetdweller · 07/07/2021 22:05

I can’t think of the title of a book I read about a mother going to live on an island with a lighthouse on it or near it (definitely twins or a second child same age involved). She was kind of forced into it by the husband or in-laws. It was very atmospheric

ShaunaTheSheep · 07/07/2021 22:00

Mystery in White: A Christmas Crime Story by J Jefferson Farjeon

1222 by Anne Holt

switswoo81 · 07/07/2021 21:50

Sanotorium is set in a blizzard.

Tiddlywinkly · 07/07/2021 21:48

Yeah, another vote for Wuthering Heights.

Tiddlywinkly · 07/07/2021 21:47

Saucery - I loved your phrase, 'marvellous weather'. I agree, I enjoyed The Lamplighters.

Um...nothing else springing to mind. Will have a think.

Standrewsschool · 05/07/2021 18:26

Lightning Strike books

Three books trilogy set around storms by Barbara Freethy.

Gladiolys · 05/07/2021 17:22

Definitely the Belle Sauvage and Wuthering Heights!

Also suggest the night circus - not stormy, but lots of nice atmospheric autumnal weather.

Saucery · 05/07/2021 17:16

@TheShriekingCrow

Thanks for the recs. If there’s anything more than the weather that I love for atmosphere, then it’s lighthouses! I don’t know why, but I find them eerie yet appealing. For this reason, I’m going to read The Lamplighters first. Love everything else on the list too so thank you to all who responded.
Oh, you’ll love it, I hope! The story unfolds so gradually and with a creeping sense of dread.
witheringrowan · 05/07/2021 11:40

All of Jane Harper's books are very linked to extreme weather & the eerie atmosphere it creates, although more drought than storms as they are all set in the Australian outback! The Dry is her best one, but The Survivors has the storm you mentioned!

And I just thought of Summerwater by Sarah Moss! Pages and pages of endless rain in the Highlands with a sense of foreboding that something awful is going to happen.

GalacticDragonfly · 05/07/2021 09:19

Storm Keeper’s Island by Catherine Doyle is a great read.

Rosebean101 · 05/07/2021 09:14

And then there were none by Agatha Christie - people stuck on an island due to a storm :)

WithLoveFromMyselfToYourself · 04/07/2021 23:01

Miss Smilla’s Feeling For Snow

Original poster
TheShriekingCrow · 04/07/2021 22:47

Thanks for the recs.
If there’s anything more than the weather that I love for atmosphere, then it’s lighthouses! I don’t know why, but I find them eerie yet appealing. For this reason, I’m going to read The Lamplighters first.
Love everything else on the list too so thank you to all who responded.

OP posts:
Mountaingoatling · 04/07/2021 18:46

Excellent thread and recommendations.

JustMeG · 04/07/2021 18:45

An unwanted guest by Shari Lapena

dementedma · 04/07/2021 18:40

The Shipping News
Snow falling on Cedars

Balaur · 04/07/2021 18:33

Jamaica Inn by Daphne Du Maurier

MareMare · 04/07/2021 18:32

Wuthering Heights, clearly!

Saucery · 04/07/2021 17:51

The Lamplighters by Emma Stonex has some marvellous weather in it.

HettySunshine · 04/07/2021 17:44

La Belle Sauvage by Phillip Pullman
Jamaica Inn by Daphne du Maurier