Review: The Clouds Roll Away, by Sibella Giorello

...and a Kindle give-away!

To be honest, I'm usually a bit nervous when I sign up to review a book as part of a blog tour, especially if I'm not familiar with the author. What if it's a chore to read the book--what if I just really don't find it interesting?

That's why it was a delight to find that I really enjoyed reading Sibella Giorello's The Clouds Roll Away. Not only was it not a chore to read the book, I will definitely be reading any future offerings from Sibella Giorello.

The fact that this is the third in a series didn't put me at a disadvantage; the book stands quite well on its own.

From the back cover:

Closing her assignment with the FBI's Seattle office, forensic geologist Raleigh Harmon returns to her hometown of Richmond, Virginia, expecting a warm welcome. Instead she finds herself investigating an ugly cross burning at a celebrity's mansion and standing in the crosshairs of her boss at the Bureau. And the deeper Raleigh digs into the case, the murkier the water becomes...until she's left wondering who the real victims might be.

Raleigh Harmon is an engaging protagonist, and each character--from her eccentric mother Nadine to the rap artist whose home is being threatened--is fully realized and dimensional.

The one aspect of the book that didn't ring quite as true, for me, was Raleigh's romance with DeMott. Maybe this is one area where having read the first two books would have helped, but without knowing the history of the relationship, it seemed almost like an aside to me.

One of the biggest pleasures of The Clouds Roll Away, though, was Sibella Giorello's writing. Sometimes FBI-based novels are more functional than lyrical--not this one. I marveled regularly at descriptive phrases like this: "Her eyes were a tremulous green-gray, like tropical fish caught in the netted skin of a devoted smoker."

Yes, this book has some chillingly suspenseful moments, and Giorello has obviously done her homework--every detail of Raleigh's FBI work bears the ring of authenticity.

But this is a beautifully written book with real depth, courage to touch on some serious issues, and a faith that is organic to the main character's life. And most of all, it makes you care about the characters and what happens to them.

I look forward to spending some more time with Raleigh Harmon, and it looks like I'm in luck--The Mountains Bow Down is coming in the spring of 2011.

Kindle Give-away!

Sibella’s celebrating the release of The Clouds Roll Away by giving away a KINDLE prize pack worth over $150.00!

One Grand Prize winner will receive:

• Latest Generation KINDLE with Wi-Fi
  
• $25 gift certificate to Amazon.com
  
  To enter simply click on one of the icons below! Then tell your friends! Winner will be announced January 3, 2011 on Sibella's blog: http://sibellagiorello.blogspot.com/.
  

NOTE: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

For info about Sibella Giorello, check out her website