Customer Reviews

Prayers For Rain

5 star:		(97)
4 star:		(29)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This was my first venture w/this series by the author and I might have benefitted from reading the four previous novels involving Patrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro as some of the interplay between them alluded to previous matters. My first Lehane experience was Mystic River which, in my opinion, is a stand alone classic. This is a different breed of cat, but an interesting one, nonetheless.

Kenzie has helped a young woman who claimed that a man from her gym was stalking her and that he had in fact trashed her car. This matter is easily set right by Kenzie and his side-kick and protector, Bubba Rogowski. A few months later the young lady jumps naked from the 24th story of the Custom House Tower in Boston. Kenzie feels some moral responsibility to look in to the matter as he had neglected to return a call from the woman before heading of to Bermuda with a tempoary romantic interest and when he got back he had forgotten to call.

His looking into the matter sets him on a chilling course of events which are better read than described here. Kenzie/Gennaro/Rodowski make a formidable and somewhat entertaining team, although some of the diologue and situations strain credulity a bit. All in all, a read that you will enjoy and be reluctant to put down until the rather twisted ending is revealed.

The only thing I can say about Dennis Lehane is: "When's the next one going to print?" For myself, I thought 'Prayers' dialogue was a bit snappier, more colorful, than the others but that's me. One of the many things I enjoy about Lehane's writing is that he puts as much effort into the last ten pages as he did the first ten. In detective and mystery stories, that's rare indeed.

It was startling to read this book because Dennis Lehane's writing style is so distinctly unique and engrossing. I was drawn into the story from the start because the narrative was funny, smart and original. I particularly enjoyed the descriptions of the characters which made them come alive on the page which is a real accomplishment for any writer.

The plot was intriguing and compelling and I somehow ended up reading the whole book in the space of one day (and most of the night!). I had never read a Kenzie / Gennaro / Rogowski crime novel before and so I was new to the characters, but they all seemed to me to be very well developed and interesting. I even liked the fact that Bubba was more like a superhero than a real life human being. However, I was shocked by some of the things that the lead characters did, for example, arranging for criminals to be beaten up severely and other shady dealings which made me a bit uncomfortable.

Overall Prayers For Rain was a great introduction for me into this series. The excellent humour was a real surprise and definitely made me read on and there was a satisfying twist at the end. The twists and turns of the plot were entertaining and the action scenes were described really well. I'll certainly be checking out other Lehane books in the future. Highly Recommended.

JoAnne

'Prayers for Rain' is by far the best in the series.All of them are excellent reads of the highest order. This book has wonderfully rounded characters that even if you are not famililar with Angie and Patrick you'll still instantly feel like you know them.The story is excellent, the characters are excellent and as always Dennis Lehane has written another wonderful book.Hopefully he'll write another edition in the series but for now I'd recommend picking up Shutter Island or Mystic River.

Things haven't been going well for Patrick Kenzie, so when Karen Nichols hires him to get a stalker off her back, he doesn't give it his best effort. Then when Karen commits suicide he's consumed by guilt. With Angie and Bubba with him on the case, Patrick learns that there was more than a stalker in Karen's life and now all three of them are in danger.

This book is best read after the others in the series, but it is a stand alone novel. And like his other books, Lehane takes us on a ride to the dark side of human behavior, but he's such an excellent story teller that we're there before we know it happened. There is a lot violence here and it seems all too real, so real it's scary. Lehane paints his people with the brush of truth, his descriptions with the brush of fact. A five star book if ever there was one.

Review submitted by Captain Katie Osborne

I just finished the last of the Kenzie/Gennaro series and have to say it was the best of the bunch -- which, considering my high opinion of the preceding books, is saying something. I'm not a big fan of violence, but it always seems counteracted by the scenes when Patrick, Ange and Bubba get together and start their "three stooges" routine. Besides, once I start a Lehane book, the writing just sucks me in and I've gotta stick to the end.

'Prayers for Rain' is my first Dennis Lehane book. I now think I'll read the rest. Why? Unlike many of the popular crime/mystery writers of today Lehane can *really write* as opposed to just tell a good story. 'Prayers for Rain' should be considered literature by any standard.

In this book we have a couple of private investigators following upon the odd suicide of a young woman. The more they dig into it the more strange things become. Before long it all becomes a bit unbelievable yet the author is so deft at spinning this story that each little twist comes as an exciting surprise (as opposed to a groan of disbelief). I should also add that much of the story is very violent, with some very cruel/sadistic moments.

But back to Lehane's writing ability. The prose is uniformly excellent, and the characters are very well-developed. Compared to the likes of Robert Crais and George Pelecanos, two authors I admire, Lehane is clearly the superior writer. It was a complete pleasure reading 'Prayers for Rain'.

Bottom line: slightly over-cooked story aside, 'Prayers for Rain' and Dennis Lehane are definite winners. Strongly recommended.

I recently read "Mystic River", my first Lehane book, and loved it, so I thought I would give one of the Kenzie-Gennaro books a try. I'm so glad I did because "Prayers for Rain" is one of the best books I've read in a long time. It's got a fast-moving, nail-biting plot and an antagonist so sinister that you'll find you can't turn the pages fast enough. The dialogue is pitch perfect and the characters are so well written that you'll feel like you know them only a few pages into the book. I can't wait to read the other books in the series.

This guy (Lehene) is good. What a teriffic plot, and I find myself laughing out loud with the banter between Angie, Patrick, Bubba (is this guy a piece of work or what?). This is great reading. If you can get the unabridged book on tape, it is worth the extra $$$. The readers "Basten" accent adds a dimension to the story that cannot come thru in written form.

The Best story in the series. I love the surprise at the end.