Reviews with content warning for Racism - Wild Rain

Wild Rain by Beverly Jenkins is a solid, enjoyable Black historical romance between a tall handsome cinnamon roll reporter/ lawyer/ carpenter from DC and a biracial Black and Shoshone woman rancher from Wyoming who refuses to conform to social norms to make him or anyone else comfortable. Spring Lee is a survivor of sexual abuse, loss, and abandonment who has made her own way in the world, earning the money for land of her own and taking orders--or intimacy--from no one. But the quietly, calmly inquisitive Garrett McCray, a former slave and Union sailor, as well as a trained lawyer and practicing reporter and carpenter, wins her heart with his patience and gentleness and respect and acceptance of her for who she is. This wasn't a super exciting story for me, despite the shooting, the attempted murder, and the attempted financial swindles. Instead, it felt more like Garrett himself--stable and supportive and encouraging and hopeful, full of interesting snippets of Black history and depictions of strong, successful Black men and women building relationships and community together.

Despite Wild Rain being the second in the Women Who Dare series by Jenkins, it is definitely also a follow up to Jenkin's Tempest, from her Old West trilogy. I do think you'll understand this story better if you've read Tempest before, although I honestly prefered this story more. I thought Spring was a much more nuanced and realistic character than the t00-perfect Regan from Tempest, who makes an excellent supporting character this time around, along with her husband Colton Lee and their children and their extended town and family.

The diversity, as I would expect from Jenkins, is good. There are strong independent female characters as well as a primarily Black cast of characters, with some Native representation as well. No LGBTQ+ representation, and most if not all characters are able-bodied, but there's definitely some #MeToo type themes of sexual abuse and violence in Spring's past. The snippets of history that Jenkins includes throughout the book enrich our understanding of underrepresented history, from the role of Black sailors in Union naval efforts during the American Civil War to the public perception and outright bias against Natives from white and Black Americans, especially back on the East Coast, to women in Wyoming having the vote so much earlier than in the rest of the United States. There's even mentions of Black newspapers and Black authors of the time, due to Garrett's career, but also to his bookworm tendencies. I cheered a little when he mentioned reading Frederick Douglass's third autobiography, a book that still resonated powerfully today. Jenkins strikes the delicate balance of acknowledging issues of race and bigotry and violence without weighing this gentle love story down too.

So if you want a historical Western romance that avoids white supremacist tropes and acknowledges at least some issues of colonization, and if you want a sweet romance between two unconventional Black leads, this is the book for you. While there is violence, both past and present, within the plot, the focus is more on human relationships, between the two romantic leads, but also with the community around them.

Jenkins has said that she doesn't know what character the third book in the Women Who Dare trilogy will feature. I'm personally rooting for Garrett's friendly, confident sister. Either way, I look forward to reading what Ms Beverly writes next. Thank you to #NetGalley and Avon/ Harper for sharing a digital #advancedcopy of #WildRain with me in exchange for an honest review.

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bookiecharm's review against another edition

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hopeful fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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lutheranjulia's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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porshea's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional informative reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

It could be my love of historical fiction, but nowhere is Beverly Jenkins’ writing more potent than in her historical romances. Wild Rain delivers on this high praise with its vivid setting, compelling character arcs, and masterful entwining of Black history into an original narrative.

Wild Rain is book two in the Women Who Dare series yet it’s heroine, Spring Rain Lee, is actually the sister-in-law of Regan Carmichael Lee, heroine of Tempest in another series by the author. Set in Reconstruction-era Wyoming territory, we follow Spring and her beau, Garrett McCrary, as he comes into her smalltown of Paradise to interview her brother, a doctor educated at Howard Medical School, from Washington, D.C. Any initial attraction is deterred by the poor state that Spring finds Garrett under, as he is injured by being thrown off his horse while making his way to town during a snowstorm. Never one to waste time with niceties and decorum, Spring hastens to save him by taking him and his horse back to the home where she lives alone and patching him up. As he starts to recover under her care, the two get to know what makes the other tick — his chivalry and penchant for asking loads of questions and her reservedness — and the differences between his city and her rustic lifestyles. Over the few days — scandalous in this time period — that Garrett spends at Spring’s house, the two fall into a rhythm where he supports her self-sufficiency and she comes to appreciate his care.

Once the snow melts, they go into town where we meet more of the colorful townsfolk who make up the hard yet communal populace of Paradise, Wyoming, including Spring’s aforementioned sister-in-law Regan Carmichael Lee. Regan picks up on Spring’s conflicting feelings of being happy as a Black woman living alone on her own terms yet also having a strong attraction to the care that Garrett offers. I loved that even this early on in the book we gain insight into what is really going on under Spring’s aloof demeanor by the gentle probing and general thoughtfulness of Regan. In fact, most of the people that Spring regularly interacts with show her a deal of respect and seem to have maintained good relationships with her as her whole life has unfolded in Paradise — her father being freeborn and raised there. It is through these interactions that we come to understand that the societal snubbing and outright violence that Spring faces from the primary villains of the novel are particular cruelties by awful people. Matt Keachem and his father abused Spring when she was turned out of her home at eighteen by her still living and judgemental grandfather, Ben. Throughout the greater romance of this story, the interactions with these antagonists and their schemes hint towards what Jim Crow justice looked like in the ‘Old West’ and supply Spring and Garrett with real obstacles to work through together instead of relying on tired romantic tropes that would take one open conversation to overcome.

I genuinely appreciate the levels to this story. It takes an author dedicated to their craft and the shape of the history they want to integrate into their story to bring the urgency and intimacy of history to life successfully in present-day releases. Jenkins’ longevity not only in writing or romance, but in bringing history to the page compellingly makes Wild Rain a story to treasure. I look forward to adding a physical version of it and more of Jenkins’ historical romances to my collection!

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adoras's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful medium-paced

Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

My first Beverly Jenkins book! I received an advance copy from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed Spring and Garrett as individual characters, and the contrast they made as a couple: Garrett steady and open and instantly enamored with Spring, while she is independent and hard and unwilling to ever get married. What I didn't love was how quickly their romance seemed to develop. It felt like he was instantly in love, which seemed abrupt even if it made sense with the time period. And Spring, who is independent at her core, seemed to soften to him very quickly, and fall in love over a short period of time as well. I would have preferred a longer, slower burn.

However, I loved the setting. This felt well-researched and lived in, like I understood exactly how the town worked and how life in general was during that time period. There were a couple of elements that felt a little clunky, like they were there to provide exposition to the reader without feeling completely natural in the mouths of the characters. But I will still definitely check out more Beverly Jenkins in the future.

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