Amazon Alice J. Wisler Bethany House ChristianBook.com Category:  Women Publisher: Bethany House ISBN-10:  0764204777 Type: Fiction Pages: 304 Copyright: October 2008 ISBN-13: 9780764204777 Will Nicole deal with her fears from the past so that she can enjoy the future? Rain Song is set in Mount Olive, North Carolina and has a distinct connection to Japan, the land of sushi, train stations, and cherry trees.  But to Nicole Michelin, Japan holds fear. Japan is where her mother died when Nicole was only two. Nicole avoids motorcycles, airplanes, roller coasters, and even an old boyfriend who unexpectedly shows up with a rose.  Will she be able to avoid the email messages of a man with a pond of koi 10,000 miles away?

Reviewed by Publishers Weekly
From Publishers Weekly June 9, 2008
In Wisler's likable debut, a young woman is offered a chance to find romance and make peace with her past. After her missionary mother dies under mysterious circumstances in Japan, young Nicole Michelin returns to North Carolina to live with her depressed father and loving grandmother. Now 31, and a middle school English teacher, Nicole bears the scars of a time she can't remember. She sleeps with her cloth kimono doll and nurses phobias ranging from anxiety about flying to a fear of commitment. But when she meets an intriguing man through a Web site column, her yearning for love encourages her to risk getting to know him even though he lives in Japan. Wisler's cast of Southern women is lightly sketched but no less charming for this, and her development of the relationship between Nicole and her three-year-old autistic cousin strikes poignant notes throughout. Faith fiction fans will appreciate the strong faith of Nicole's influential grandmother, Ducee Dubois, who helps Nicole face her fears. (Oct.)
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Reviewed by Library Journal
From Library Journal June 1, 2008
Nicole Micheli, the daughter of a missionary in Japan, is haunted by fears of secrets from her childhood. She writes an online column that brings an intriguing man into her life, but when she learns he lives in Japan, Nicole may not be able to face the past that prevents her from moving on, unless she can trust God to help her find the way. A worthy first novel with a Southern flair, this title addresses dealing with a painful childhood in a realistic way. Recommended for CF and women's fiction collections. The author lives in North Carolina. Copyright 2008. All Rights Reserved.