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Where the Rain Gets In
A young woman disappears. Her partner Gregory, under suspicion from the police of having done her harm, is left to care for her son Tomas from a previous relationship. The race is on for Gregory to find the woman he loves before the authorities take Tomas away.
How far would you go to protect the ones you love?
How far would you go to protect the ones you love?
203 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2004
About the author
Adrian White
4 books130 followersAdrian White is an English writer who has lived in Ireland for over twenty-five years. His first novel, An Accident Waiting to Happen, was published in print by Penguin Books - as was his second novel, Where the Rain Gets In. Both are now available in print and digital.
Dancing to the End of Love is published by Black & White Publishing of Edinburgh.
Dancing to the End of Love is published by Black & White Publishing of Edinburgh.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
March 14, 2012
Realizing I don’t have an infinite amount of time ahead of me, I no longer feel compelled to finish every book I start. I did finish Where the Rain Gets In, but came away puzzled about what the writer wanted me to get out of it.
On one level it’s an account of how the repercussions of a single act ripple through different lives. That’s what attracted me in the first place. The act is an audacious (if slightly implausible) scheme to get money out of a Las Vegas casino by counting the cards at blackjack. No, I can’t tell you how it’s done. But it is possible. The enterprising cardsharp is a Belfast boy, Mike Maguire, who is studying law at Manchester University It’s the start of the ‘80s, and Margaret Thatcher has just come to power. Mike has a boyish charm: he attracts people and manipulates them. Among his flock is Katie McGuire, native Mancunian and survivor of some ghastly but unspecified abuse which has left her with the unshakable habit of slashing her inner thighs with a razor blade. An interesting pair of characters to throw together, and the book’s main strength is the delicacy and skill with which they are depicted.
Where the Rain Gets In starts with Mike calling Katie twenty years after the Vegas stunt, which went even better than planned when he recycled his blackjack winnings on the roulette wheel. They’re rich, -ish. But afterward, escaping across the desert with Bruno, the third member of the gang, Katie kills him when he makes a sexual advance. It’s a vivid scene, this killing in the night with the saguaro cacti and the distant lights of Phoenix glimmering across the desert.
Unfortunately, after this long flashback, the pot goes off the boil. There’s not much more action to speak of, just a lot of narration and dialog. “Show, don’t tell” is the first rule of fiction writing, and when it is flouted you see immediately why it’s so important.
I thought at first I was reading a tragedy, gifted young man fails to achieve potential because of … what? That, it seems to me, is the book’s main structural weakness. There’s a protagonist—two if you include Katie, three if you count Mike’s frustrated wife Margaret. But there is no antagonist. The nearest thing to a villain is the shadowy figure of Margaret Thatcher, looming in the wings. So rather than some climactic struggle in which good triumphs over evil, or vice versa, things just fizzle out. Is Katie haunted by guilt because she killed Bruno? No. Has new information come to light which links her to the murder? No. Is she finally going to have sex with Mike? No. Is Margaret, after a bungled attempt to seduce Mike’s business partner, going to kick him out? No. Are the facts that Katie’s name is McGuire and Mike’s wife’s name is Margaret relevant? Presumably, yes. But I don’t know why.
I finished Where the Rain Gets In with more questions than answers, and the feeling that I had missed the point. But it did interest me enough to read through to the end, and think the time well spent.
On one level it’s an account of how the repercussions of a single act ripple through different lives. That’s what attracted me in the first place. The act is an audacious (if slightly implausible) scheme to get money out of a Las Vegas casino by counting the cards at blackjack. No, I can’t tell you how it’s done. But it is possible. The enterprising cardsharp is a Belfast boy, Mike Maguire, who is studying law at Manchester University It’s the start of the ‘80s, and Margaret Thatcher has just come to power. Mike has a boyish charm: he attracts people and manipulates them. Among his flock is Katie McGuire, native Mancunian and survivor of some ghastly but unspecified abuse which has left her with the unshakable habit of slashing her inner thighs with a razor blade. An interesting pair of characters to throw together, and the book’s main strength is the delicacy and skill with which they are depicted.
Where the Rain Gets In starts with Mike calling Katie twenty years after the Vegas stunt, which went even better than planned when he recycled his blackjack winnings on the roulette wheel. They’re rich, -ish. But afterward, escaping across the desert with Bruno, the third member of the gang, Katie kills him when he makes a sexual advance. It’s a vivid scene, this killing in the night with the saguaro cacti and the distant lights of Phoenix glimmering across the desert.
Unfortunately, after this long flashback, the pot goes off the boil. There’s not much more action to speak of, just a lot of narration and dialog. “Show, don’t tell” is the first rule of fiction writing, and when it is flouted you see immediately why it’s so important.
I thought at first I was reading a tragedy, gifted young man fails to achieve potential because of … what? That, it seems to me, is the book’s main structural weakness. There’s a protagonist—two if you include Katie, three if you count Mike’s frustrated wife Margaret. But there is no antagonist. The nearest thing to a villain is the shadowy figure of Margaret Thatcher, looming in the wings. So rather than some climactic struggle in which good triumphs over evil, or vice versa, things just fizzle out. Is Katie haunted by guilt because she killed Bruno? No. Has new information come to light which links her to the murder? No. Is she finally going to have sex with Mike? No. Is Margaret, after a bungled attempt to seduce Mike’s business partner, going to kick him out? No. Are the facts that Katie’s name is McGuire and Mike’s wife’s name is Margaret relevant? Presumably, yes. But I don’t know why.
I finished Where the Rain Gets In with more questions than answers, and the feeling that I had missed the point. But it did interest me enough to read through to the end, and think the time well spent.
August 10, 2021
I enjoyed the book but felt it was unfinished, is there a sequel
July 1, 2016
I finished reading it in 3 days. The book will give you an emotional ride! Mixed feelings throughout the read!
(I’m sorry to spoil this) but from my opinion, I truly do not feel satisfied for the ending of the book. I hate being left with questions. The last part of the book was about Katie meeting Katherine and Katie decided to leave Manchester (again!) but… what happened after that? I know Katie decides to move on, but as mentioned on the book; both still have feelings for each other… but are they still in contact with each other after that? What happened to Mike’s marriage then? Did Katie manage to save Katherine? And What about Bruno?????
(I’m sorry to spoil this) but from my opinion, I truly do not feel satisfied for the ending of the book. I hate being left with questions. The last part of the book was about Katie meeting Katherine and Katie decided to leave Manchester (again!) but… what happened after that? I know Katie decides to move on, but as mentioned on the book; both still have feelings for each other… but are they still in contact with each other after that? What happened to Mike’s marriage then? Did Katie manage to save Katherine? And What about Bruno?????
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 17, 2016
I'm not sure if the book description is accurate or if i might have miss something important on the plot because, to me, it didn't make much sense. I think was an ok story, not much intriguing, going from past to present to explain a situation that the reader gets to know until the last pages. Those last pages saved the book for me, i think it was the only momento on the book tha i was realy interested on knowing what might happen. I dont think is a bad book, but it didn't get much of my attention.
January 2, 2014
Katie and Mike meet after twenty years - this novel tells the story of what their relationship was then; a story of remarkable people, as Mike calls them, struggling to cope with life.
February 8, 2013
It took me only a day to finish this book but didn't leave a great impact on me.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews