In this Rain (Paperback)

by S.J. Rozan (Author)
Key Phrases: borough president, rst time, Walter Glybenhall, Charlie Barr, Mott Haven (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Edgar-winner Rozan (Absent Friends) draws on her experience as a professional architect in this complex thriller that focuses on New York City's construction and development business. Ann Montgomery, an officer in the New York Department of Investigation, shows up on former partner Joe Cole's doorstep with a file containing evidence pointing to a murder at a Mott Haven construction site. She needs Joe's help, but he's fresh off a two-and-a-half-year prison sentence connected to an earlier DOI investigation and wants nothing to do with the case. Meanwhile, the mayor of New York, Charlie Barr, is having problems with the press and political opponents who are questioning his dealings with big-time developer Walter Glybenhall, the mayor's pal and chief financial contributor. This is a New York story, steeped in political intrigue, ripe with descriptions of the city and its history. The payoff will be particularly rewarding for readers interested in big machines, both the kind that move earth and those behind political parties. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Booklist
Rozan (Absent Friends, 2004) is a highly decorated mystery writer--she's won the Shamus, Edgar, and McAvity, among other awards. But it is her experience as a New York architect that provides the expertise behind this compelling, if somewhat convoluted, stand-alone tale of corruption in Manhattan's construction industry. In the novel's early pages, Rozan spins a web of seemingly interconnected characters and events, then gradually (perhaps, too gradually) untangles them. There's freshly paroled Joe Cole, wrongfully imprisoned after a child's death near a construction site; his former partner, Ann Montgomery, fueled by a toxic combination of ambition and wrath; and a host of politicians and community leaders with prickly personalities and dubious pasts. When a series of accidents, one fatal, takes place on a building site in the Bronx, Joe temporarily abandons his new, quiet life (and the garden that has become his salvation) to help Ann right some age-old wrongs. From the mean streets of Harlem to the chilly corridors of City Hall, Rozan vividly evokes New York City in all its sound and fury. Allison Block
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Delta (December 26, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385339240
• ISBN-13: 978-0385339247
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #272,087 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Race and Politics in the Big Apple, January 23, 2007

By	Grace Chen (San Francisco, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: In this Rain (Hardcover)

When I finished the book, I had two reactions. One was, my head is spinning. The second was, I want to read it again! "In This Rain" was a fairly quick read, and I didn't want it to end. The plot is pretty intricate, and it keeps you guessing. There are several unpredictable twists and shockers that come in pretty close succession beginning in the middle of the novel, and they ended up making me devour the rest of the book, just to satiate my curiosty as to what the heck was going on. I admit at the end it took me a few minutes of flipping back in the book to see if every important plot line was figured out and tied up. They were.

I found the political intrigue fascinating, as well as the issues of urban communitites and big-city real estate. You don't need to have too much knowledge of those things; Rozan take you through it. The police-talk and jargon was fun to read too. I've read all of her books but one, and although this one is differnt in style from the Bill/Lydia mysteries, it was finely plotted and very entertaining. As long as Rozan continues to deliver novels that are smart, entertaining, and pleasures to read, then I will surely continue to be her fan.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A very good, one-sitting suspenseful read, May 6, 2007

By	L. J. Roberts (Oakland, CA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: In this Rain (Hardcover)

First Sentence: "It surprised him, how light she was."

Joe Cole, is newly paroled and just wants to lead a quiet life after having been wrongfully imprisoned for a child's death near a construction site. Joe's former partner in the New York Department of Investigation, Ann Montgomery, has been languishing in a backwater position but has now been moved front-and-center. A new construction site accident results in a death, a teenager falls off a rooftop and sabotage on sites make Ann suspicious. With a major who wants to be Governor, a community activity who wants the best for his people, and a borough president who wants to be major, there is a lot at stake for a development under construction and a piece of property everyone wants even at the price of murder.

Rozen knows how to take the reader on a curvy, suspenseful ride. As with Ann, every time you think you know where the story is going, the direction changes. Rozen also knows how to take two seemingly unconnected threads and twist them together into a suspenseful, intriguing story. I appreciate her ability to have a strong male and female protagonist, yet let the female take the lead without dimensioning the role of the male. Rozen makes the people and the city of New York come alive. This was a very good, one-sitting suspenseful read.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Better than Ever, February 16, 2007

By	P. Susman - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: In this Rain (Hardcover)

I so enjoyed all the Lydia & Bill books that I couldn't wait to get my hands on In This Rain. I was not disappointed. In fact, Rozan's writing has reached new heights. The characters are well-drawn and nteresting people and the details of the NYC back drop and real estate scene are engrossing. The book allows the thrill (and unexpected ending) of a detective book with lots of twists and turns and wonderful tales woven in. As one who does not live in NYC, it was a vacation trip all by itself. Don't miss it!