This is a book about life, marriage, family, happiness, lies, infidelity and a little bit of God.

It was well written and held my interest.

It starts with a couple who are seperated. There is an accident, some memory loss and trying to rebuilt a marriage based on not all the facts. There are lots of minor characters who at times have a place in the story and at others not really.

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Dry as Rain is a story of forgiveness, redemption and family. Kyra has lost her memory and cannot remember the last few years with her husband, years that had not been so good. Eric is consumed by his work believing that he does it so his family can have the best, so that they can be happy. Eric has been unfaithful, and with the lost of Kyra’s memory he sees his chance to start over, to get Kyra to fall in love with him all over again. In his plans to make his marriage what he has once dreamed of he hides the truth from Kyra, not telling her the whole story and keeping the truth from her in hopes that her memory won’t return, or if it does all he has done will outweigh the past.

This book has many valuable lessons throughout it about honesty and forgiveness and redemption and reminds us about what in life will truly make us happy. Dry as Rain is told from the perspective of Eric, I was not a fan of Eric and the choices he was making and was a struggle to really connect with the characters. The deception and Eric’s unwillingness to listen to those around me, although true to life at times made me very frustrated. The book tended to be a bit predictable. It was still a decent read and very well written, it just wasn’t the type of book I would choose for myself to read again. ( )

NCLA Review: Gina Holmes has written DRY AS RAIN in the first person, from a man’s perspective, which was interesting. Eric and Kyra Yoshida’s twenty-year marriage has crumbled, with no hope to get back together because of Eric’s one-night stand with a young co-worker. But then Kyra is involved in a car accident and has lost her memory. Is this Eric’s chance to reconcile with the only woman he’s ever loved? What will happen when her memory comes back? The characters in the book are pretty well-developed: Eric is a workaholic at a car dealership, who has put his career, success and the almighty dollar ahead of his family; Kyra is a talented piano player, who let Eric dissuade her from working outside the home; Benji, their son, now nineteen, has just been discharged from the Navy because of an allergy, putting an end to his lifetime plan; Larry, Eric’s best friend and co-worker, has gone through a divorce; Marnie, Kyra’s sister, has OCD and works in the fashion industry; and Angelo, a young Hispanic street minister. This is a story of love’s betrayal, soul-searching for forgiveness and redemption, with just a touch of religion. It was a quick read and there are discussion questions at the end. Rating: 3 —VJ ( )

Dry as Rain is not only a great title, but an incredible story of redemption and discovering what is truly important in life. Money won't keep you warm at night or hold your hand when you are old. Just like in real life, the author doesn't make it easy on the characters when their lives unravel. I've read a number of great books this year on the subject of infidelity and found this one to be better than most for a number of reasons. First, I loved how the author wrote the entire story from the male point of view even though the author is a woman. I thought she did a great job with first person point of view. Eric's internal dialog rang true to me. For the duration of the novel, I felt like I was Eric.

I really empathized with Eric on a number of issues. He'd dug himself a pretty big hole with a few dumb decisions that cost him dearly, and he couldn't take the consequences back for a do-over. Who wouldn't want their wife to forget the bad stuff from their past when an opportunity to have their heart's desire--intimacy with the person who hate been hateful toward them--presented itself? The guilt he experienced was plenty of punishment, and typically the anguish a person can inflict on himself from guilt is often worse than what the spouse can dish out anyway.

While it's not an excuse, as is true in most affairs, one person strays because the other has grown cold toward them. It usually starts out with something as innocent as an e-mail. Most of the people I know who have had infidelity in their marriage said it started the same way. It's a sorry substitute to feel valued and attractive by someone other than your life-mate, which Eric soon discovered after he got a taste of what he thought he wanted. He learned the hard way that he'd sacrificed his family to earn more money, which caused his wife to resent him and grow distant. So many men do that when what their family really wants is not a bigger house, but a dad and husband who spends time with them.

I have never understood how women can become such witches when they have been cheated on, but I found the portrayal in this novel totally believable because I've known many women who acted just like Kyra did. Their anger and hurt just makes them look ugly and bitter, rather than attractive and someone desirable to the person who cheated. So in my opinion, Eric was a saint to be patient with her. I know he's the one who did wrong, but how many times does someone need to be yelled at and reminded of what they did wrong over and over again? He was truly sorry for what he did. He realized his mistake and had no desire to repeat it. Bitterness just hurts the person who is bitter about things, and Kyra was a great example of that. Sure she had the right to be angry, but she hurt herself more than she hurt Eric.

At any rate, I loved how the story played out and how Eric learned to be honest with himself and others over time. I loved how his priorities changed and how he decided to never give up regardless of what he faced every day. Most of all, I loved how God took an ugly situation and turned it around so it was used for the good. Great story with a convincing spiritual arc too. This is a powerful novel that is definitely making my top fiction list for 2011. ( )

DRY AS RAIN by Gina Holmes is an interesting inspirational fiction.See “Crossing Oceans” for her debut novel. This is a haunting tale of betrayal,forgiveness,healing,faith,second chances,fresh starts,misunderstandings,guilt,dishonesty,saving grace and determination.Eric and Kyra’s live is not always easy,with a failing marriage,betrayal,adultery on Eric’s part and a horrible car accident which takes Kyra’s memory they try to rebuild their marriage and their love. This is a through provoking story of family,faith and love. A haunting tale of hope,forgiveness and healing.A great story to all inspirational,contemporary,romance readers. It packs a powerful,emotional,and heart wrenching story of the drama in two people’s lives and it’s emotional toll. Received for review from the publisher. Details can be found at Tyndale and My Book Addiction Reviews. ( )