Sister to the Rain (Paperback)

~ Melisa Michaels (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

After her tragic mishandling of the Cold Iron case, private investigator Rosie Lavine is putting her life back together and questioning her love affair with ex-Cold Iron member Killer. To distract her from her personal life, she agrees to uncover the identity of a mischief-maker in a small artists' community. But this case only increases Rosie's anxiety as one of the artists is her former lover, whose father she was forced to kill in self defense. As she wrestles with her conflicting emotions, the trouble within the community turns deadly, and suddenly Rosie has a murderer to catch.

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Roc; 1st THUS edition (October 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451457307
• ISBN-13: 978-0451457301
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,008,207 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Humorous, riveting in the tradition of Sayers and Paretsky, April 24, 1999

By	Clay Dowling ([e-mail]) (Flint, Michigan) - See all my reviews

I've been reading Melisa Michaels' books for years, and have always found the sense of humor she brings to the subject wonderful. When she combines this with a well-told mixture of hard-boiled detective and modern fantasy, the result is excellent.

Readers who have enjoyed Sarah Paretsky or Dorothy Sayers in the past may see some pleasing similarities in a few of the characters. The client, for example, is a dead ringer for Lord Peter Wimsey, seen from the outside world's point of view.

If you're looking for fantasy written for someone past adolescence, pick this book up, and be sure to share it with a friend. You won't be sorry.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Second time's the charm., February 22, 2002

By	V. A McCoy "Have book. Will travel." (Nashville, TN United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I must say that I enjoyed this book much more than the first in the series, Cold Iron. Ms. Michael's concept of elves as charming sociopaths is fascinating, but it made the elf rock stars in Cold Iron hard to take and even harder to care about. That concept is ameliorated somewhat in Sister to the Rain. The elves are still incredibly self-involved and lacking in human morality, but they're a lot more likable and a lot less randomly destructive. Plus, Rosie herself is funnier and less self-destructive in this book, and who wouldn't like her beautiful, but occasionally hapless partner, Shannon? All in all, a very enjoyable read. I understand that Ms. Michaels doesn't plan another sequel, which is a shame, because I'd love to read one.

5 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This rocks, August 23, 1998

By A Customer

San Francisco private investigators Rosie Lavine and Shannon Arthur do not want to have elves as clients ever again after their previous case almost left themr for dead (see COLD IRON). Who would want as their client a sociopath, which is what an elf actually is. So who else would walk into their office seeking to obtain their services than one of those frail looking, too pretty beings. Rosie and Shannon were recommended to Lord Finandiel, a FOOF if there ever was one. He wants the sleuths to investigate a manifestation that is frightening all the children (wee ones are held in honor by elves) in his community of truebloods, mortal, and halflings.

Since the fee is good and the case seems easy enough, Rosie and Shannon agree to look into the eerie noises that are frightening everyone. However, the simple case takes a bizarre turn when a mortal is murdered. Now, the two Bay area detectives must ferret out a killer before things turn bloody between the races struggling to share a community in the California mountains.

SISTER TO THE RAIN, the second book in the Lavine fantasy mysteries, is a astounding who-done-it that makes supernatural creatures seem absolutely real. The story line is fun, but the characters steal the show. From the acerbically sarcastic Rosie to the prejudicial Finandiel, readers feel like elves are genuine and living in California. Though similar to Laurell Hamilton's Blake mysteries, Melissa Michaels makes her own distinct magic that fans of fantasy who-done-its and the fantasy genre as a whole will want to read. P.S. To learn what a FOOF is, read the book.

Harriet Klausner