Rainbirds Audiobook By Clarissa Goenawan cover art

Rainbirds

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Rainbirds

By: Clarissa Goenawan
Narrated by: David Shih
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Ren Ishida is nearly finished with graduate school when he receives news of his sister Keiko's sudden death. She was viciously stabbed one rainy night on her way home, and there are no leads. Ren heads to Akakawa to conclude his sister's affairs, still failing to understand why she chose to abandon the family and Tokyo for this desolate town years ago.

But Ren soon finds himself picking up where Keiko left off, accepting both her teaching position at a local cram school and the bizarre arrangement of free lodging at a wealthy politician's mansion in exchange for reading to the man's catatonic wife. As he comes to know the figures in Akakawa, from the enigmatic politician to his fellow teachers and a rebellious, alluring student named Rio, Ren delves into his shared childhood with Keiko and what followed, trying to piece together what happened the night of her death.

Haunted in his dreams by a young girl who is desperately trying to tell him something, Ren struggles to find solace in the void his sister has left behind.

©2018 Clarissa Goenawan (P)2018 HighBridge Company Crime Fiction Fantasy Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Magical Realism Psychological Small Town & Rural Suspense Thriller & Suspense Magic Mystery
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Goenawan spins an inextricable web of Ben 's grief and resolution to discover/solve his sister's death.

Captivating Journey of mystery and grief

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Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

This book captures the importance of Family in the Chinese culture.

What did you like best about this story?

Strong family presence.

Have you listened to any of David Shih’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

How them anonymous items were pieced together even when he didn't know who delivered the anonymous items or how they related.

Any additional comments?

I wanted to add a bit of diversity to my TBR pile. This went straight to the top when it was delivered. so glad this is on my self.

Family Legacy, Family Secrets, Family

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Not really a typical mystery, although the set-up for the narrative is a murder, which is "solved" (sort of) by the end of the book. This is really a story about rather diverse characters who come in contact with the main character, Ren, as he tries to accept the loss of his sister. The writing is lovely, simple and fluid, but for a story set around a murder, it's strangely detached. This would be a good choice for something different, but not if you are looking for a typical mystery. There's really no suspense.

Unusual

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I didn’t like the monotone speaking voices of all the women, I didn’t like the way the main character was pushed around by all these women and didn’t have a sense of self. I didn’t like a single character in the book. I chose this book because I liked the narrator on another book but I didn’t like him on this one.

The main character is such a wuss

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