Epic Fail Alert!!!I admit it. The only reason I purchased a copy of this book was to see how well a black lead character would fare in V.C. Andrews-land. I'll also admit that I'll be reading the next two as well. Yes, I'm a glutton for punishment.I should have known better than to expect anything than trite stereotypes. Rain Arnold, hardworking black girl from the ghetto (Point of Fail #1: Why are all black people assumed to be from the ghetto? Didn't anyone ever watch The Cosby Show?) with a long-suffering mother, a wild sister, a strong brother and a father for an alcoholic. Where have we heard this all before? I thought it was from one of Oprah's books.I know that a V.C. Andrews novel is the literary equivalent of a Twinkie--bad for you but, oh so very good--but my sweet tooth went sour after finishing this book. And finish it I did, hoping against hope that Rain Arnold would become a character I could have a modicum of sympathy for. Seriously folks, it's got to get way tiresome to use the same old plot devices that were used in Flowers in the Attic (the only decent V.C. Andrews novel written...maybe that's due to the fact that SHE actually wrote it!).Point of Fail #2: Rain finds out that she's half-black because her real mother, Megan Hudson Randolph, is filthy rich and white. Rain finds out that her real mother couldn't keep her because a half-black child conceived out of wedlock would have been an embarrassment to her upper-crust family. Uh, what year was this taking place in? Were any of the characters related to the late Strom Thurmond who hid his love child away for decades? Point of Fail #3: Rain's "brother" Roy suddenly finds himself attracted to his sister/not blood sister. Point of Fail #4: Rain finds herself living with her real family, the Hudsons, who are fabulously wealthy and absolutely dysfunctional. The grandmother, Victoria, is a stern matriarch who comes to like Rain a little.Point of Fail #5: Rain attends a snobby girls' school and ends up the belle of the school play. Point of Fail #6: Rain's "real" brother, Brody, seems to like his new "sister" a whole lot...SERIOUS Point of Fail #7: Rain gets drunk and foolishly loses her virginity to the first sweet-talking playboy she meets. Not, a great role-model for teenage girls. And, in this age of sexually-transmitted diseases, where's any mention of safe sex?Point of Fail #8: She finds out that the woman who has been her mother thus far has conveniently died of cancer. And now she's on her way to London to further screw up her already messed-up life.Rain is that proverbial train wreck that you don't want to look at, but for some reason the carnage just draws you in.
Rain has never really felt like she’s had a home. The book ‘Rain’ by V.C. Andrews tells the reader about one teenage girl’s life and her problems she faces throughout the novel. I think the theme of this book is that money or being rich can’t give love or a place to call ‘home’. The reason why I felt this was the theme is because she was sent to a newer and safer home, but she didn’t want all that. Instead she would rather live in her old home in the ghettos where she grew up and was loved by people who weren’t even her real family. Her ‘mother’ says ‘You’re returning to your blood. You’re going back to a safer world. I’m going to see to it,” she asserted. I was sure my heart stopped and started again. I shook my head (163)’. Rain would rather feel loved than being rich.tThe setting in this book was mainly taken place in Rain’s grandmother’s mansion. The first couple of chapters were taken place in Rain’s old home in the ghetto to tell what kind of life she was living in before she was sent to her grandmother’s. The two settings are totally opposite from each other. One setting was a very unhappy and gloomy with closed buildings, and rarely any people walking around. Sirens went off during the day, hearing of a killing next door was normal. I thought it was a horrible place to be in. The first school that Rain attended was very violent. People were expelled and beaten everyday, which was normal to everyone. The second setting was described as a beautiful mansion with two stories and four columns in the front of the house and stone steps leading to the door. I think the author wrote the first setting to be a very horrible place to make the second setting seem to be ten times better, so that the reader would be in awe. I was surprised myself with how the author described the settings. I could visualize everything.
What do You think about Rain (2000)?
After the decently-written Logan series, Andrew Neiderman wrote two mini-series (which were not awful, but not VCA-ish) and I was glad when he went back to writing a regular series. But I was disappointed. This was lacking in the same dark feel and mystery of the real VCA books as well as the three full series Mr. Neiderman wrote. (Granted, the Melody series was a bit different, but it was considerably better than the Rain series)The problem wasn't that Rain was biracial or anything like that. The problem was the way everyone was portrayed, and the fact that it became obvious that Mr. Neiderman just wasn't trying as much anymore. The characters are more two-dimensional, and the plot, after Rain is reunited with her real mother, just becomes boring. The rest of the Hudson series is just as mildly amusing but ultimately disappointing, but the Willow/DeBeers series was even worse, and it was all a downward spiral after that.
—Delicious Strawberry
this is the first book in the hudson series. it's about how rain finds out the truth about her family. she is quickly moved from the poorest of neighborhoods to the richest. i am a fan of v.c. andrews, but not of this book. i find that the book doesn't prepare you for the rest of the series. there is alot of unneeded jibberish. like beni. what really is her point? she doesn't really have a need in the book. roy is pointless, but not as pointless as beni. i've decided not to read the rest of the series at the moment for fear of falling asleep.
—Stephanie Tuell
This is my first V.C. Andrews book I have ever read. I will say I will definitely be reading more of her books. I went to high school with a bunch of girls that read her books, and I have owned some for awhile, I just never got into reading one til yesterday, and yes I read it in one day. It was a quick read, and for me it engaged me right from the start. The conflict and turmoil starts right at the beginning and continues throughout the book. I kept being left wondering, "What will happen next?" hence part of the reason I read it in one day; I just didn't want to put the book down. I don't want to give anything away, but just know the book holds secrets about the characters all the way through and if you are anything like me, you will keep getting surprised.
—Nikki
