Red Rain (Paradise Crime Mysteries Book 11)

This book picks up right where we left off book 10. Stevens has been captured in the remote jungles of Central America struggling to survive and get back to his family. Toby does an exceptional job as we hear from Michael Stevens and his inner turmoil as he fights his demons. Lei is beside herself with worry and fear for Stevens but manages to stay put and be the rock for their son Kiet. Which for our lovely heroine is a very difficult thing to do so it just goes to show how much she’s grown over the course of the series. She’s built relationships and friendships which has allowed her to trust and love people. She’s grown into her role as a mother and cast aside the fears of failure she clung to. The twist at the end was completely unexpected but well done. The characters have become beloved friends whom you wish only the best for. I hope Lei and Michael continue to whisper inspiration as I’d hate to see them go. This book was thrilling, action packed, and suspenseful.

I'm a Lei Crime Series fan and couldn't wait to read this after my download from BookBub. What a switch-a-roo! Michael is in first person! I've read most all of this series and love the spicy flavor of the islands, the education into the island patois, traditions, flora and fauna. Each story can be stand alone, but Lei has really grown and progressed, thanks to Ms Neal; made real. Love all the characters from her partner, Pono, to her captain, Omura. This one splits the plot following two story lines. Easy to follow, no prob, but works to building a twist you won't see coming. Too special to spoil the fun, you'll just have to read it yourself to get the real skinny of what happens to Mike. And Lei--can she ever do a case that starts simple (including a cold case) without discovering a major work in progress that requires the special passion and dedication she brings to her detective job in the police force of Maui. Fast and furious and over way too soon. This has to be the best one yet! Bring on #12 Ms. Neal--we're waiting! (And DON'T tell me it's the last in the series!)

Maybe because I am a displaced local girl, I have devoured each book in this series. The eleventh novel kept me up late and almost made me late to work. I, too, married a mainland haole. He was in the military, and later did contract work, teaching tactics to National Police in a middle eastern country. So I could really relate to Lei in this story, especially her worries about Michael's safety, and frustration with the responsibility of holding down the fort in his absence, sometimes not even knowing where he was. It was all very gripping and believable.

I’ve really enjoyed every book in this series. This is one of the best ones. It is both a mystery and a thriller, a hard combination to pull off in one book, and both stories had me on the edge of my seat from the start.While Lei investigates the origin of a child’s skull found on a beach, Stevens struggles to survive in a Central American jungle after escaping from kidnappers.This book is written from both Lei’s and Stevens’s POV, but Steven’s is in first person, making the reader (this reader, at least) feel much closer to him.As in earlier books, Neal has a good balance between the characters’ private and police lives, making them seem even more real. She’s done a great job evolving Lei from the distrustful, isolated loner she was in the first books to the loving, caring wife and mother she is here.Neal leaves one plotline only semi-resolved at the end. Perhaps she’ll resolve it in the next book.Yes, there is another book coming in this series and, as I hoped when I finished the earlier ones, it isn’t the last one.

Wow . . . bring it on Toby Neal. You gat a big five star rating for this novel. Fresh and unpredictable, a page turner. At first I found it hard to follow due to both characters were involved with a jungle. I was lessening to the storytelling. But, once I reverted to looking at the page everything fell into place in which character was being chased and running for there lives. A little crazy in the final characters trying to figure out, with some of the characters coming alive. But, this is what makes this novel a wow factor.

Red Rain is a pure delight to read, even with the high suspense. Once you start you can hardly put it down. I had to put the book down late at night, once, as it had my senses so heightened I would never have gotten to sleep. Toby Neal has out done herself with Red Rain, the sequel to Bone Hook. Whew !! Jumping from Lei's head to Steven's head was a full on conscious effort at times. Both Lei and Stevens are in predicaments that are life threatening and harrowing. The tension of each different situation and the tension between them both (their relationship) adds to a suspenseful experience in reading. It continues to be refreshing to read about Lei and Stevens in the Lei Crime Series. It is like reading about old friends and a catching up on their lives. Stevens clearly has a major shift in perceptions in Red Rain. Toby Neal continues to put out sustained and engaging experiences in her winning Lei Crime Series. Red Rain is full of Surprises and breath holding moments.

What an exciting story, I think this was the best book of the series! I bought this book and "Bone Hook", at the same time, knowing that Bone Hook was a cliff hanger and I'm soooo glad I did! I don't know what it is about Toby Neal's writing but every time I sit down to read one, it turns into a book binge and this one was no exception! I just kept thinking, "One more page!", but alas, I read it all before I went to sleep! So much excitement and action and the ending.....oh my...NOT what you would expect. With Lei and Stephens marriage in trouble, Stephens sets out on a dangerous mission to try to cure alcoholism and PTSD, leaving Lei behind to take care of their son and do her own stressful job. The question becomes...will Stephens make it back alive or is this the end of life as they know it?