Noah's Rainy Day by Sandra Brannan

Noah's Rainy Day        

I read the first in Sandra Brannan's series featuring Liv Bergen several years ago; my main complaint about In the Belly of Jonah was the weirdness of the murders.  

Noah's Rainy Day, however, did not have that problem at all, and the main reason for my interest in this one was the character of Noah, Liv's nephew.  

Book Description of Noah:  From birth, Noah Hogarty has lived with severe cerebral palsy. He is nearly blind, unable to speak, and cannot run, walk, or crawl. Yet his mind works just as well as any other twelve-year-old's--maybe even better. And Noah holds a secret dream: to become a great spy, following in the footsteps of his aunt, Liv ''Boots'' Bergen.

I loved the title and the cover, and whether the portrayal is realistic or not, falling in love with Noah just happens.  

Noah, whose life is circumscribed in so many ways, has a natural curiosity about the world and an imagination unlimited by his actual circumstances.  His Aunt Liv takes the time to communicate with him (and communication is both time-consuming and frustrating).

Liv Bergen's most likable characteristic lies in her relationships with members of her large family, and it is here that Sandra Brannan excels and where her novels feel most believable.  Brannan, like her protagonist, has eight siblings and similar circumstances.  

On to the plot:  a young boy is separated from his escort in a large airport and disappears.  His parents are famous and wealthy; his father was once engaged to one of Liv's sisters.  The case is high profile and getting desperate.  

Noah, from his window, sees a face in the window opposite.  Later, when his mother and sister take him out in his wheelchair to enjoy the snow, he meets the child next door.  

Noah's knowledge may cost him his life.

NetGalley/Greenleaf Book Group

Mystery/Suspense.  Sept. 2013.  Print version:  392 pages.

• ISBN-10: 162634017X