Clara Bertelli is at the top of her game—at only twenty-six years old, she's one of the most successful undercover officers in the Washington D.C. major crime unit, and she's just been handed a case that could catapult her career and expose one of the west coast's most notorious car theft rings. But, in order to do it, she'll need to go deep undercover as Rain Martines. Her target? The twenty-four-year old nephew of a key player who appears ready to follow in his uncle's footsteps.
As Clara drifts deeper into the luxurious lifestyle of Rain, and further into the arms of her very attractive and charming target, the lines between right and wrong start to blur, making her wonder if she'll be able to leave it all behind. Or if she'll even want to. (Via Goodreads.com)
Pages: 368
Release Date: March 3rd, 2015
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Review:
There is no doubt in my mind that K.A. Tucker is quickly making her way up my list of favorite authors. I absolutely fell in love with her writing and story telling after reading her first book in this companion series, Burying Water. If you have yet to read my review for Burying Water, which is linked above, then you do not know how much I loved Burying Water. The story was so unique and the characters were my precious babies who deserved none of the harm that came their way.
Due to my love for Burying Water, I had extremely high expectations for Becoming Rain. While I obviously enjoyed Becoming Rain from my high rating of 4 stars out of 5, it was difficult for me to separate Burying Water and Becoming Rain. While the plots of both stories deal with the Russian mob, both stories take place under different circumstances. It was not so much the fact that I was confusing the plot lines, I just had a hard time not thinking about the characters of Burying Water. It is so hard to describe my feelings for this book without spoiling it. Like I recommended with Burying Water, try not to read the plot synopsis for Becoming Rain either. If you are curious what character Becoming Rain follows, I will tell you: it follows Luke Boone's story.
If you have yet to pick up the first book, Burying Water, I highly recommend you make a trip to your local bookstore or online bookstore just for it. You will not regret it. If you have yet to pick up the next book in the companion series, Becoming Rain, I recommend doing so. Becoming Rain follows a character that is walking the line between morals and greed and it has you rooting for and booing him at the exact same time.
While reading Burying Water, I was concerned about Luke. He worried me because I knew that he was trying to get in with his Uncle and the rest of the mob. However, after he helped save Alex, I figured his involvement would fizzle out. I thought Alex's brutal attack would make him realize how unpredictable and unstable these men are, whether or not his Uncle trusts them. As Luke got more involved in the ring and Clara was starting to cover up the evidence against him, I was so pissed. I wanted Clara to help the FBI build a case against Luke, his Uncle, and everyone else involved. I know Clara wanted to protect him because he was not thinking straight, but she was putting the lives of others at risk. She allowed the ring to continue its operation, allowing countless people, like the man who died in the beginning, to be put at risk. I also wanted her to build the case because Luke deserved to be punished for his actions. Although I knew that even if she did end up building a case against him, the FBI would have only seen him as another Miller. They wanted Luke's confession and details so they could get to those in higher places. Luke was just a stepping stone in order to reach those above him in the food-chain. I never believed he was in danger of facing jail time; however, I really wanted him to go to jail.
Do not get me wrong, Luke grew up in a good family, but his Uncle's influences were the death of him. I understand he wanted to impress his Uncle and try to repay him for everything that Rust gave him, but Rust would have been okay with him not following in his footsteps. Luke was not forced into that position, he pushed himself into it. If Rust truly cared for Luke, which he did, he would not have wanted his nephew, who was the son he never had, to be put into danger because of his illegal business. While Alex and Jesse deserved their happily ever after in Burying Water, I argue that Luke did not necessarily deserve his. While I am glad that Luke gave money to the family that lost their father over his red truck, but what about all the other families that lost their vehicles? While other families did not loose a family member, they lost their cars that could have been sold to pay for their kids college fund or debt they owed. Luke was devastated when his expensive car, that his Uncle gave him, got jacked, but what about the families who lost their cars that they spent their hard-earned money on them? What about the families who do not have friends or family that can give them a car to borrow or easily replace their stolen car? The innocent little man should not be hurt because of someone else's greed. While Luke began to understand how wrong the business was, it does not excuse his ignorance.
While I did have some negative comments directed towards Luke, I did love the book and his character. While I preferred Jesse and Alex's story in Burying Water over Luke and Clara's, Becoming Rain was still enjoyable. I believe Chasing River, the next book, follows Jesse's sister, Amber, who is in Ireland after saving all her money to tour Europe. I am very excited that the series' pace and direction is changing. It will be a slight shock since up to this point, the series has revolved around the Russian mob.
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