4.5-STAR REVIEW: A SHAPE ON THE AIR by Julia Ibbotson

Book Reviews Historical Fiction Time Travel

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The Description

Publication Date: October 9, 2021

an echoes of the past threaten the present? They are 1500 years apart, but can they reach out to each other across the centuries? One woman faces a traumatic truth in the present day. The other is forced to marry the man she hates as the ‘dark ages’ unfold.

How can Dr Viv DuLac, medievalist and academic, unlock the secrets of the past? Traumatised by betrayal, she slips into 499 AD and into the body of Lady Vivianne, who is also battling treachery. Viv must uncover the mystery of the key that she unwittingly brings back with her to the present day, as echoes of the past resonate through time. But little does Viv realise just how much both their lives across the centuries will become so intertwined. And in the end, how can they help each other across the ages without changing the course of history?

The Review

Dr. Viv DuLac finds herself experiencing unexpected time slips, propelling her 1500 years into the past. Given that her boyfriend has walked out with her best friend and is forcing the sale of her beloved home, an escape is just what she needs.

However, the people she encounters in the past are eerily familiar. Torn between past and present, Viv struggles to make sense of her situation. Author Julia Ibbotson crafts a medieval storyline rich with historical detail in A Shape on the Air.

Described as the Dark Ages, this time period proves to be much less primitive than portrayed in history books. The author explores the idea that the early British civilization still retained culture and beliefs introduced by the Romans.

While in the past, Viv takes on the persona of Lady Vivianne, where she is poised to marry a terrible man who reminds her of her present-day cheating ex-boyfriend. Her ally, Sir Roland, suddenly appears in her modern-day world as Rev. Rory Netherbridge. Together, they explore Viv’s past and make some unusual discoveries.

A Shape on the Air uses tendrils from the past to form an interesting story combining history, legend, and fantasy. Buy Links

About The Author

Acclaimed, award-winning author Julia Ibbotson is fascinated by the medieval world and the concept of resonances across time. She read English at Keele University, England (after a turbulent but exciting gap year in Ghana, West Africa) specialising in medieval language, literature and history, and has a PhD in socio-linguistics. She wrote her first novel at 10 years of age, but became a school teacher, then an academic as a senior university lecturer and researcher.

She has published a number of books, including memoir, children’s medieval fantasy, a trilogy set in Ghana, and medieval time-slip, as well as academic works. Apart from insatiable reading, she loves travelling the world, singing in choirs, swimming, yoga and walking in the countryside in England and Madeira where she and her husband divide their time.