WIP

THE COST OF WEATHER

Simon Rendler is an expert at judging the distance from a lightning strike, but not so skilled at gauging the proximity of personal danger.  Emerging from a childhood marked by the sudden disappearance of his teenage sister, Rachel, and the impenetrable silence of German immigrant parents, Simon tracks storm systems, sets a course for a career in Meteorology and falls in love with the tempestuous Beth.

When the thrill of being with Beth costs more than he can afford and Simon prepares to leave Beth for a remote posting as research assistant, they discover that she is pregnant.

This trusting and hopeful father tangles in the cord that binds him to his young daughter, Sophia, as his attempts to maintain contact are sabotaged by Beth’s elaborate and puzzling tactics. By the time Sophia  is six years old, she has grown bitter and confused.

Through challenges presented by several women – including the revelations of the wry and wise Rachel; Marla, his straight-talking coworker; Katie, Simon’s sympathetic and provocative love interest; and ultimately, his damaged daughter, Sophia – Simon comes to understand both the punitive and redemptive natures of love.

The Cost of Weather is about the vagaries of the human heart and the choices it makes when the answers to its questions are tough.

 

The genesis of this story occurred in 2007 after a psychic predicted meeting a tall man with a sense of humour. Three days later I met him. I thought it might be about romance but it turned out to be about story.