Saving Rain by Karen-Anne StewartMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Saving Rain is such a great story. Raina was abused as a child and now as a young adult, despite careful choices and the determination not to be a victim ever again, has fallen into the same pattern with the same type of guy as her father. Through one of her college classes, Raina has the opportunity to work with the FBI, where she meets Kas, the first guy in her life who does not try to hurt her. Kas will do anything to help Raina, but he quickly realizes he is way out of his league. He does his best, but it is not always enough.
I think one of the things I loved most about this book was Raina and Kas' relationship. They felt an instant attraction to one another, but there was no insta-love (I actually hate that term, but I see it used a lot). Their relationship was given time to simmer and develop slowly. Raina does not fall immediately in love with Kas and trust him with everything she has. If it had happened that way, the story would have been ruined. Raina was abused and, as such, she has a hard time trusting anyone, including herself. She is not weak or a victim, though she has been made to see herself in that way, and it is going to take more than one man, no matter how patient and caring he is, to change that.
While there are dark issues in the story, it is well written and the violent scenes/topics are handled carefully. The issues of abuse, rape, and human trafficking are very real, and the author does not pretty them up, nor does she give explicit descriptions that would be a turn off to many people. I have read many books where the characters were abused, and I believe (in my humble opinion) that this is one of my favorites, just because of the way the characters dealt with their issues. Rather than turning to drugs, alcohol, or aimless sex, Raina tried to make herself a better person, someone worthy of love.
My only issue with this book was that there were many times in Saving Rain where the thoughts would switch from one person to another without any transition or warning, and it was very confusing. I found myself re-reading sentences or paragraphs after realizing the POV had changed suddenly. Overall, though, I really enjoyed the story and am looking forward to reading the next book in the series. Thank you to the author for providing me with a copy of her book.
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