What a brilliant piece of storytelling. I was so drawn into Della's life from the very first pages and I put this book down with great difficulty when I absolutely had to but thought about it non stop until I could pick it up again.

Each character added another layer to this story and I enjoyed each one of them so very much. Mick and his investigation of Eula's portrait, Paloma who comes home to care for her grandmother and sister, and then the way they all come together and lives are changed and bonds are strengthened. And even the town of Puerto Pesar becomes its own character in so many ways. The hot, parched town was the perfect setting for this story.

I got absolutely lost in the pages of this fabulous book and I will remember it for a long time, I'm certain. Della touched my heart and made me love her. Her story is an unforgettable one and I highly recommend this one!

She’s done it again. Camille Di Maio is an expert at grabbing your attention from the very beginning. Her second novel begins with a young woman being sentenced to prison for killing her sister in 1943. Present day finds a reporter banished to Puerto Pesar, Texas for scandal and a newly graduated doctor, home for a spell to care for her grandmother who has recently suffered a heart attack and the teenage sister who’s lost her way. What unfolds is a heartbreakingly marvelous tale of true sacrifice and the strength of a family bond. Di Maio captures you from the very beginning, holding you hostage until the very end. When you finish this book, you will sit back; close the book and your eyes- and simply whisper, “Wow...".

Camille Di Maio's debut novel The Memory of Us was one of my favorite books I read last year. I was excited to read her new novel Before the Rain Falls and it did not disappoint. Della Lee is in her 90's and she is returning to her home town of Puerto Pesar after serving 70 years in Prison for killing her sister Eula. Eula had a beautiful voice and was well known for singing in church. When she died they hung her portrait at the church. Mick is a journalist who is suspended from his job. He is sent to Puerto Persar to write a story on Eula's portrait which is said to look like it was crying. While researching the portrait he meets Della and finds an even bigger story than the crying portrait. Della is ready to tell the truth of what really happened the day Eula was killed. Mick also meets Dr. Paloma Vega who has returned for four weeks to take care of her ailing grandmother and reconnect with her troubled sister. Paloma also helps Mick with the history of the portrait. The story is told between Della's years in Prison and Paloma and Mick's present day. As Della's story is revealed all three of their lives are changed forever. A captivating story that will keep you turning pages until Della's full story is revealed. A must for your TBR list! Thank you to GTGR and Netgalley for an ARC of this book.

Having read and loved The Memory Of Us by Camille Di Maio I knew how much I would be swept up into a story so rich with characters that cling close to your heart and Before the Rain Falls did just that. Learning the shocking fact that Della was accused of killing her sister and was being released from prison after 70 years had me hooked and needing to know the story behind this fact. If that wasn't enough, her sister Eula was killed four hours after Della married Thomas when she found her sobbing after the ceremony. The story entwines with Mick a journalist who has been assigned to cover Della's story after her release from prison to find out why a portrait of Eula was hanging in a church and reported to be crying....and she was named Santa Bonita. Paloma is another character, a Dr. from New York, who came home to check on her grandmother Abuela who was just released from the hospital, and to see about her own teenage sister Mercedes who had become involved in some bad situations. There is romance, mystery, secrets that are kept till the very end that will have you not wanting this beautifully written story to end. Its bound to keep you entranced, I loved it!!!

1 like








Reading Progress






January 27, 2017 – Currently Reading



February 1, 2017 – Finished Reading


.




Post a comment »
Comments




No comments have been added yet.


Notify me when people commentLoading trans







Loading

comment
add book/author (some html is ok)


Loading (preview)Loading trans


Add to my Update Feed *


Notify me when people reply *



























































.






Blog This Review


Copy/paste the text below into your blog. <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30414127-before-the-rain-falls" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img border="0" alt="Before the Rain Falls" src="https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1483477356m/30414127.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30414127-before-the-rain-falls">Before the Rain Falls</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14594100.Camille_Di_Maio">Camille Di Maio</a><br/>
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1894303737">5 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
Having read and loved The Memory Of Us by Camille Di Maio I knew how much I would be swept up into a story so rich with characters that cling close to your heart and Before the Rain Falls did just that. Learning the shocking fact that Della was accused of killing her sister and was being released from prison after 70 years had me hooked and needing to know the story behind this fact. If that wasn't enough, her sister Eula was killed four hours after Della married Thomas when she found her sobbing after the ceremony. The story entwines with Mick a journalist who has been assigned to cover Della's story after her release from prison to find out why a portrait of Eula was hanging in a church and reported to be crying....and she was named Santa Bonita. Paloma is another character, a Dr. from New York, who came home to check on her grandmother Abuela who was just released from the hospital, and to see about her own teenage sister Mercedes who had become involved in some bad situations. There is romance, mystery, secrets that are kept till the very end that will have you not wanting this beautifully written story to end. Its bound to keep you entranced, I loved it!!!
<br/><br/>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/24894451-carol-boyer">View all my reviews</a>


.





Having read and loved The Memory Of Us by Camille Di Maio I knew how much I would be swept up into a story so rich with characters that cling close to your heart and Before the Rain Falls did just that. Learning the shocking fact that Della was accused of killing her sister and was being released from prison after 70 years had me hooked and needing to know the story behind this fact. If that wasn't enough, her sister Eula was killed four hours after Della married Thomas when she found her sobbing after the ceremony. The story entwines with Mick a journalist who has been assigned to cover Della's story after her release from prison to find out why a portrait of Eula was hanging in a church and reported to be crying....and she was named Santa Bonita. Paloma is another character, a Dr. from New York, who came home to check on her grandmother Abuela who was just released from the hospital, and to see about her own teenage sister Mercedes who had become involved in some bad situations. There is romance, mystery, secrets that are kept till the very end that will have you not wanting this beautifully written story to end. Its bound to keep you entranced, I loved it!!!

1 like








Reading Progress






January 27, 2017 – Currently Reading



February 1, 2017 – Finished Reading


.




Post a comment »
Comments




No comments have been added yet.


Notify me when people commentLoading trans







Loading

comment
add book/author (some html is ok)


Loading (preview)Loading trans


Add to my Update Feed *


Notify me when people reply *



























































.






Blog This Review


Copy/paste the text below into your blog. <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30414127-before-the-rain-falls" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img border="0" alt="Before the Rain Falls" src="https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1483477356m/30414127.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30414127-before-the-rain-falls">Before the Rain Falls</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14594100.Camille_Di_Maio">Camille Di Maio</a><br/>
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1894303737">5 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
Having read and loved The Memory Of Us by Camille Di Maio I knew how much I would be swept up into a story so rich with characters that cling close to your heart and Before the Rain Falls did just that. Learning the shocking fact that Della was accused of killing her sister and was being released from prison after 70 years had me hooked and needing to know the story behind this fact. If that wasn't enough, her sister Eula was killed four hours after Della married Thomas when she found her sobbing after the ceremony. The story entwines with Mick a journalist who has been assigned to cover Della's story after her release from prison to find out why a portrait of Eula was hanging in a church and reported to be crying....and she was named Santa Bonita. Paloma is another character, a Dr. from New York, who came home to check on her grandmother Abuela who was just released from the hospital, and to see about her own teenage sister Mercedes who had become involved in some bad situations. There is romance, mystery, secrets that are kept till the very end that will have you not wanting this beautifully written story to end. Its bound to keep you entranced, I loved it!!!
<br/><br/>
<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/24894451-carol-boyer">View all my reviews</a>


.
Having read and loved The Memory Of Us by Camille Di Maio I knew how much I would be swept up into a story so rich with characters that cling close to your heart and Before the Rain Falls did just that. Learning the shocking fact that Della was accused of killing her sister and was being released from prison after 70 years had me hooked and needing to know the story behind this fact. If that wasn't enough, her sister Eula was killed four hours after Della married Thomas when she found her sobbing after the ceremony. The story entwines with Mick a journalist who has been assigned to cover Della's story after her release from prison to find out why a portrait of Eula was hanging in a church and reported to be crying....and she was named Santa Bonita. Paloma is another character, a Dr. from New York, who came home to check on her grandmother Abuela who was just released from the hospital, and to see about her own teenage sister Mercedes who had become involved in some bad situations. There is romance, mystery, secrets that are kept till the very end that will have you not wanting this beautifully written story to end. Thanks to Net Galley for this opportunity to read this book. I am please to give this review. Its bound to keep you entranced, I loved it!!!

This novel takes place in a small Texas border town that most people can't wait to leave but not in the way that Della Lee left town. In the 40s she was found guilty of killing her sister and sentenced to life in prison. As the book begins, she is returning to her old home after 70 years in prison. Also in town at the same time are Mick Anders a journalist from Boston who is on suspension from his newspaper and is looking for a good story and Dr. Polama Vega who is back home from NYC for a two week vacation to take care of her grandmother and try to help her teenage sister before she gets into trouble. The book alternates between Della Lee telling the story from the 40s and the other characters telling their story from present day. Their lives become tied together as they try to answer the question of what really happened 70 years ago.

I loved the way the author told this story by intertwining all of the characters lives. Della Lee's story was so sad and her experiences in prison were terrible even though she tells it in a very calm way. Her crime and subsequent time in jail are the central story in the novel and her story keeps you rapidly turning pages to find out everything that happened to her. She is a character that I won't soon forget.

I strongly advise you to add this book to your TBR lists. It's the story of family and love and finding out what is really important to live a happy and fulfilled life.

Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book for review. All opinions are my own.

Before the Rain Falls is a compelling, heartfelt novel about the sacrifices we make to protect our loved ones. 7 decades have passed since Della was convicted and incarcerated for the murder of her sister, Eula. Now she's back home in Puerta Pesar, a dusty town in South Texas, and finally ready to tell her story, to reveal the secrets she's kept for so long. Mick is a journalist, looking for a story to redeem himself and resuscitate his career, when he stumbles upon Della's story. Paloma is a young doctor who lives in New York City, back in Puerta Pesar to help her ailing grandmother and reconnect with her sister. What unfolds between these three main characters is a stirring tale about families, regrets, and coming home. This poignant story is told partly through flashbacks, as Della recalls her time in prison, even recounting her stories as a member of the Goree All String Girl Band. Della's story reminds us all of the choices we make, and the consequences of those choices. While this book is full of heartache for Della and Tomas, and the two sets of sisters who were raised without a mother's love to guide them, the pages of this book are also filled with joyful moments. The author immerses us completely in the setting, the drought parching our skin, tasting the dust and grit of the roads into town. This is a story that will captivate readers.