Before the Rain Falls: A Novel

Before the Rain Falls is set in Puerto Pesar, Texas, in 2013. The premise of the story is from the words of Lucretius: ‘the drops of rain make a hole in the stone, not by violence, but by oft falling.’

Della Lee Trujillo is released from prison, after serving 70 years for the murder of her sister Eula Lee in 1943. Tomas, her husband of two weeks, said he would wait for her. Now in her 90s, she returns home to the border town of Puerto Pesar – ‘The Port of Regret’ – in the heat of Texas. For transport, she hires a young female driver, Mercedes Vega, newly licensed and trying to earn a few dollars. Della’s first visit is to the graves of Eula and Tomas.

Della Lee is ready to tell the truth about her sister’s death, and journalist Mick Anders is ready to listen. What a scoop, the story of the century, he thinks. ‘But some things were never meant to be told outside of the people they happened to.’ What is it like to meet the murderer of the Songbird Eula, known throughout the county for her mesmerizing voice? The story takes readers back to 1943 and the truth, and present day 2013 as nonagenarian Della Lee tries to make sense of her remaining years.

The writing grates with every uneducated word and every badly constructed sentence, but fortunately the story itself, in parts, is interesting, which should keep readers perservering until the end. Perhaps.

Very detailed novel loved it! Really kept my interest. And an ending
that I didn't expect! I've read this author's first book The Memory
Of Us then Before The Rain Falls so looking forward to more books!

I read this while on holiday and enjoyed it without feeling shocked or blown away by any of the revelations in the story. Possibly it was telegraphed early on in the story that all was not what it seemed. It was an okay read without being anything spectacular. I have struggled to write a review and I'm not sure why that is. Did I have a problem getting through the book? No. Would I recommend it to a friend? Probably not. Why? There just seemed to be a lot of cliches.

From abandonment to sacrificial love, this novel reveals the best and the worst of human nature wrapped in a compelling storyline that invites the reader to take stock of ones own life and its values.