RELEASE DAY BLITZ: REVIEW AND EXCERPT: Playing in the Rain by Jane Harvey-Berrick

Ava Lawton can’t believe her run of bad luck. It’s supposed to be an exciting time in her life: fresh out of college, living in a new state, with a new job, and away from her family at last.

But when she’s forced to quit her job, everything falls apart quickly. Suddenly, she’s alone in a crowd, with no one to turn to.

At her lowest point, a stranger gives her a message that brings her hope.

Now is the time to live life her own way.

Now is the time to choose to be happy.

And maybe it’s time to let a beautiful stranger be part of her life.

Remember playing in the rain as a child? The carefree, amazing feeling you felt when you were splashing in the puddles and laughing as the rain pelted your face. Where does that feeling go when you get older? Maybe the better question is why does it go away? Why does it become more about dodging the rain, going around the puddles? Why is it all about being practical and playing it safe?

If Cody and Ava have taught me anything in Jane Harvey-Berrick’s Playing in the Rain, it’s that life is for the living…for making the most out of what you have…for experiencing every possible emotion you can, never regretting any action or any choice. Your life is your own and to hell with anyone who doesn’t see it that way. You are responsible for your own happiness, so you alone should decide the path your life should take. I know what you’re thinking…it’s easier said than done, right? Life is messy, and it can be cruel and unbearable at times. The silver lining isn’t always easy to find, but Cody would tell you that you need to practice finding it nonetheless.

Cody offers Ava an “endless summer of gratification,” and she takes him up on his proposal, and it changes her life. As they complete their wish list of activities, what they learn from those experiences is far greater than the actual act, and lucky for us, the writer takes us along for the ride.

I’ve read several stories by Jane Harvey-Berrick, and I’ve enjoyed every single one of them. As a reader, I can tell that she takes pride in and has a passion for writing because both of those feelings are clearly expressed in her texts. Her storylines flow effortlessly and her characters are so well developed that readers get lost in them and feel a connection to her fictional worlds and the people who are in them. Playing in the Rain is a testament to how life is supposed to be lived, and it’s a reminder to make the most of it.

A complimentary copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.

5+ poison apples

And there we saw the sunset.

My mouth dropped open as a blaze of red and orange burned the sky, setting the mesa alight in an astonishing display of nature or God or some deity more powerful, older, more mesmerizing than anything I had seen.

I think I gasped, and clutched Cody’s arm, our silence more meaningful than any words could have been. A deep stillness filled me as I watched the cycle of day to night, as the earth turned. And I was part of it; together we were part of it. My problems seemed small and ridiculous and I promised myself that this was where my life started again: this day, this moment, with this man at my side—if he’d have me.