The Rivers Run Dry
Available Now"The Rivers Run Dry is a rare gem in the suspense genre, paying as much attention to character development as to plot twists. Even minor characters are created with Giorello's trademark attention to detail."
—C.J. Darlington, Titletrakk.com
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When Raleigh Harmon, geologist and special agent for the FBI, is suddenly transferred from the Richmond field office to Seattle, she finds herself in strange territory. The Pacific Northwest has a whole different pace than the South does, her new boss seems determined to prove she can't handle the work, and she's desperately trying to keep her mother's sanity from crumbling altogether. But a missing hiker, a ransom note, an underground card game, and a "friend" with deadly intentions all ensure that there's no time for an easy transition. Raleigh will need all her skills and a little help—to keep the missing girl and herself alive.
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Thomas Nelson, March 2009, ISBN-13: 9781595545336
Reviews
After writing a noteworthy debut, a sophomore novel can be an author's bane. The pressure of the follow-up can cause writers to try too hard, and that much anticipated second book sometimes ends up a flop. Or worse, the author freezes with fear, and as in the case of masters Harper Lee, Margaret Mitchell and Emily Bronte, never publishes again.
Sibella Giorello's first book The Stones Cry Out placed her on our radar. It won a Christy award for 1st novel and introduced us to an author whose storytelling ability and knack for description caused me to call the book "one of 2007's most compelling novels." Needless to say, Giorello had a lot to live up to in The Rivers Run Dry. Would Raleigh Harmon remain the interesting, three-dimensional character we'd come to love?
Instead of a sophomore slump for Sibella Giorello, The Rivers Run Dry stands head and shoulders above The Stones Cry Out. It's richer, deeper, funnier. Raleigh has just been transferred to the Violent Crimes unit of the Seattle field office, and she's brought her mother with her. They've both moved in with eccentric Aunt Charlotte whose attempts to help Raleigh with her cases provide many of the book's lighter moments.
Nineteen-year-old Courtney VanAlstyne is missing. Her very rich parents think she's been kidnapped and since the local police are skittish of lawsuits, they've called in the FBI for technical backup. Raleigh expects to do nothing more than collect soil from the wheel wells of Courtney's abandoned Land Rover, make prints of the tire treads, and file the paperwork. But she can't help but dig deeper. A compulsive gambler, a high-stakes poker game, and VanAlstyne secrets quickly confirm this case is much more complex than first meets the eye. Will they find Courtney before it's too late?
The Rivers Run Dry is a rare gem in the suspense genre, paying as much attention to character development as to plot twists. Even minor characters are created with Giorello's trademark attention to detail. Take her description of a park ranger from chapter one: "I turned to see a small woman walking toward us, looking like an elf purged from a fairy tale. Her long red hair leaped over her shoulders in ropes of lava and her enormous black boots scuffed across the loose gravel shards on the ground, creating the sound of belligerent applause."
Raleigh is a woman who's trained to keep her wits about her, but she's not strong to a fault like some female leads. She isn't afraid to call for backup when needed, and she finds herself in more than one scrape due to her react-first-ask-for-clearance-later tendencies.
If you enjoyed the insider angle of Richmond, VA in Stones, you'll agree Giorello's portrayal of Seattle and its surroundings in Rivers is up to par. Clearly she knows of what she writes. Pull up a Google map, and you'll discover all the locations are real.
One or two Deus ex Machina moments seemed a bit convenient, especially in light of Raleigh's mantra of "not believing in luck". But as Raleigh's father used to say, "there are two kinds of people in the world: those who believe in coincidence, and those who have the courage to recognize God." Perhaps the serendipity was Giorello's way of showing us providence in everyday life.
There are several other welcome spiritual insights in Rivers that add depth and meaning, setting this novel apart from its secular counterparts. One passage on God's adoptive love choked me up. And since Raleigh is a Christian, she sees the world through that lens.
From the inside of a hot FBI surveillance van to the craggy hiking trails of Cougar mountain, The Rivers Run Dry is character driven suspense at its finest. Layered with prowess, each revelation unfolds in perfect time to keep us guessing all the way to the final pages. Don't be surprised if you finish the novel one day, then pick it up and read it over again the next.
—C.J. Darlington, Titletrakk.com
"Author and journalist Giorello, whose Christy award-winning debut novel, The Stones Cry Out, made a splash in the evangelical Christian literary community, offers another crisply written crime story featuring Raleigh Harmon, the female geologist turned FBI agent. Agent Harmon is transferred from Richmond to Seattle, disciplined for not following orders. She arrives in Seattle with no sure footing and must quickly adapt to the unfamiliar as she begins the search for a missing wealthy young woman, with no choice but to trust her instincts. But there are distractions: her mom's sanity is iffy, her aunt has clairvoyant friends, and a whole host of fellow officers Harmon can't quite trust yet. As the search intensifies, so does the pressure, and Harmon keenly feels the strain of remaining an unemotional agent while coming into intimate contact with evil personified. With great attention to detail, gritty descriptions and fast-paced action, Giorello's tale of suspense is a sure bet."
—Publishers Weekly
"Raleigh Harmon, the Virginia forensic geologist and FBI special agent introduced in The Stones Cry Out (2007), is not having an easy time. Abruptly transferred to the Seattle office, she's finding that they do things differently here than in her native South and that her new boss seems hell-bent on seeing Raleigh fail. But Raleigh doesn't have time to worry about personal squabbling: a woman is missing, and only Raleigh, with her unique investigative gifts, can find her before it's too late. Giorello, a Pulitzer Prize-nominated journalist, has made the transition from journalism to fiction writing smoothly: the novel reads as though it were written by a veteran of the genre. Raleigh is a strong, assertive series lead, and, if these first two novels are any indication, she should be around for quite a while."
—Booklist
"Four stars! Fans of CSI-type dramas will enjoy trying to solve this crime right along with Raleigh. This well-written mystery is sure to keep readers stumped until the last page."
—Romantic Times
"Raleigh Harmon, a geologist turned FBI agent, has recently relocated from Virginia to Seattle. Though beset by mistrustful colleagues and personal problems, she proves to be key in the search for a missing woman. A journalist who worked at the Richmond Times, Giorello uses her considerable writing skills, in part, to explore Christian themes—but lightly, in a way that will appeal to crime-fiction fans along the religious/spiritual continuum. In other words: You don't have to be Christian to enjoy her books."
—Seattle Times Sunday Books
"For a lifelong Richmonder, a move to the West Coast can be a culture shock equal to the eruption of Mount St. Helens.
For FBI forensic geologist Raleigh Harmon, it can be as dangerous, too, as she finds in The Rivers Run Dry (324 pages, Thomas Nelson, $14.99), the second in Sibella Giorello's mystery series.
The first book, The Stones Cry Out, was set in Richmond, where Raleigh cracked a case in spectacular fashion but fell afoul of her control-freak boss, who had her transferred to Seattle. Shortly after arriving in Washington state, Raleigh is faced with the disappearance of a young hiker, whose parents want their daughter found and will pull all their considerable political strings to make it happen.
Raleigh, of course, is no master in the art of office politics, and her investigation is laced with what her superiors and colleagues see as problems. The truth comes out—but not before Raleigh finds herself the target of a cunning and particularly cruel criminal.
Giorello, a former reporter for The Richmond News Leader and the Richmond Times-Dispatch who now lives with her husband and their two sons in Washington state, pulls this all off with measured pacing, plausible characters, and arresting prose ("The [cloud] shapes shifted and bled and twisted with the fluidity of wild horses . . . " ). Add themes of faith and family, and The Rivers Run Dry is a fine beach read that transcends the genre to become thought-provoking fiction."
—Richmond Times-Dispatch
"Gritty and poetic, with an evocative sense of place, a quirky cast of characters, a fast-twisting plot, and a compelling, complicated heroine, this superbly crafted mystery will keep you reading compulsively as hope runs short, the clock runs down, and the rivers run dry."
—5 Minutes for Books Blog
"In today's landscape of thrillers that are either indifferent to the evil in the world or glamorize the gore they leave behind, Giorello believes she has carved out an untapped middle ground."
—IssaquahPRESS.com
"This is classified as Christian fiction, but Raleigh's faith isn't an overt thing. No one's throwing a lot of religious cliches around or acting holier-than-thou, which I appreciated. I got the feeling that the main character's faith stabilized her often chaotic life, but I never had to read those words, per se. This is apparently the second novel with the same Raleigh Harmon, so hopefully there are more to come. Any of you southern belles get a chance, spend a couple rainy days with this one!"
—Hagermans.blogspot.com
"The Rivers Run Dry is twice as compelling and fascinating as its predecessor."
—LoriAnn Weldon, Musings-in-a-strange-land.blogspot.com
"I think that Sibella Giorello is a very talented author who has a bright literary career ahead of her. I look forward to reading additional novels written by her."
—cashcrate-becky.blogspot.com
"Nicely done. It wasn't at all what I was expecting. When I read the blurb, I thought it would be more of the typical suspense stuff that's out—which, don't get me wrong, I love suspense. But Sibella is refreshingly different. Her characters are fresh and quirky. The dialogue snappy."
—kitwilkinson.com
"Sibella Giorello's name is as exotic as her writing style. The word-pictures she paints in a reader's mind are crisp—almost tangible. You can hear, feel, see, smell and taste everything taking place in the life of one very intelligent, very tough-as-nails FBI agent named Raleigh Harmon. Readers who enjoy suspense-filled mysteries...look no further! Sibella Giorello's Raleigh Harmon series is top of the line entertainment in every way!"
—Kim Ford, berlysue.blogspot.com
"I need books like this for when the weather stinks. Here is a novel that takes you places—first, into the mind of Raleigh, a southerner in the Northwest, into the heart of Seattle, into the FBI, and of course, into a suspenseful and unpredictable mystery. I enjoyed the plot, the characters and the descriptions, but I think my favorite part of this book was all the unique metaphors."
—Kristi's Reading Room
"My problem with The Rivers Run Dry was this: It created an internal battle within me. After reading the first chapter, I couldn't decide whether to stay up all night reading it, or saver it over the next few weeks! After great struggle....I finished it in 24 hours."
—Cherie Hill
"This book reminded me of reading Nancy Drew books as a kid. I had a great time reading it. Raleigh is a wonderful main character with a complex but relatable personality. The plot moves along quickly, and the action is well written. Unlike many Christian authors, Giorello doesn't preach, but God still shines through in her writing. Rather then being a Christian Novel it is a novel about a Christian....Overall I found Giorello's writing refreshing for Religious fiction and would compare her to authors like Ted Dekker and Frank Peritti."
—Krystal
"Giorello's prose is like poetry. Her descriptions of the mountainous terrain of Washington State are unforgettable. I could see the places she describes. It made me want to go hiking. The taut suspense, likable characters, and gorgeous scenery make this a novel to curl up with on a rainy day."
—Nancy Famolari
