by Sibella Giorello. This book is the third installment in Giorello's Raleigh Harmon series, and while it is not a stand-alone book, I had no trouble reading it without having read the first two installments. I also believe that I will still be able to go back and read the first two books, The Stones Cry Out
and The Rivers Run Dry
, without knowing too much.From the author's website:
Forensic geologist Raleigh Harmon returns to her hometown of Richmond, Virginia and discovers nothing is quite what it seems in this former Capital of the Confederacy...
Although her exemplary service in Seattle lifted her disciplinary transfer, Raleigh lands a hometown civil rights case riddled with problems that could get her sent away again. When she helps out a fellow cop, her life goes on the line, forcing her undercover in a sting operation. As Raleigh realizes the lines are crossing and double-crossing, her domestic life starts to unravel. Her mother's mental health cracks like ice, her closest friend grows cold, and her old boyfriend DeMott comes a-calling, hoping for more than chestnuts by an open fire.
While the city glows with Christmas lights and carols, Raleigh is forced to rely on her sharpest skills to stay alive, hoping for that one clear moment when everything makes sense and the clouds roll away.
My review:
While I consider myself to be a Christian, I tend to avoid Christian novels due to many of them being overly preachy. I was pleasantly surprised to find The Clouds Roll Away
, was not down-your-throat preachy at all. Raleigh Harmon is an everyday Christian who is trying to live her life while maintaining her morals and following her beliefs. In the book, you see this through mentions of God and prayers that she offers. However, the novel still offers plenty of grit that one would expect to find in a crime/detective novel as well, just without being gruesome, no foul language, and no sex, though there is a bit of romance.I received this book during a tremendously busy period in my life. My husband was finishing up finals at school, the holidays were quickly approaching, and the 4 year old daughter of a friend was in her final stages of life. Yet with all that was going on, I found this book to be a good distraction. The descriptive words used by the author allowed to be truly feel like I was in Richmond, riding along beside Raleigh. The story line was captivating and kept me turning pages just to see where the clues would lead me. As busy as I was, I could not stop reading the book once I picked it up.
I recommend this book to those who like crime novels, yet desire a good, clean one to read. It is extremely well written and will keep you wanting more. I know that I am going to go back now and read the first two books in this series, The Stones Cry Out
and The Rivers Run Dry, as well as anxiously await the release of book #4, The Mountains Bow Down
.About the author:
Sibella Giorello grew up in Alaska and majored in geology at Mount Holyoke College. After riding a motorcycle across the country, she worked as a features sibella-in-bluewriter for the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Her stories have won state and national awards, including two nominations for the Pulitzer Prize. She now lives in Washington state with her husband and sons. Find out more about Sibella and her other books at her website. www.sibellagiorello.com
Sibella’s celebrating the release of The Clouds Roll Away by giving away a KINDLE prize pack worth over $150.00!
One Grand Prize winner will receive:
- Latest Generation KINDLE with Wi-Fi
- $25 gift certificate to Amazon.com
To enter simply click on one of the icons below! Then tell your friends! Winner will be announced January 3, 2011 on Sibella's blog: http://sibellagiorello.blogspot.com/.
***Disclaimer***
I received a free copy of the book The Clouds Roll Away
for participating in the Litfuse blog tour. My opinion is my own and was not influenced by any outside source.
