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Tanaka Rain: Yakuza Claimed Series
Description
Plus size beauty Ebony Drake has been poor all her life. Instead of wishing for her situation to change, she decides to change it. She moves away from her drug addicted mother to start her life anew. The last thing on her mind is love until she meets the mysterious Rain Tanaka. Ebony doesn’t know what he sees in her, all she knows is that he scares her with the way he makes her feel.
Rain Tanaka has spent his life taking care of his family. He realizes quickly, he had been a fool in thinking everything he needed was found at home. Ebony Drake, is the missing piece. He knows he shouldn’t get involved with her, but there’s just something about the dark skin beauty that pulls him to her. However, just when things begin to heat up between them, he has to walk away.
No matter how much Rain tries, he can't erase Ebony from his sweat filled dreams. Risking it all, Rain will do anything to get the love he left behind back. He should have remembered the code; NO ONE disobeys the Yakuza.
Plus size beauty Ebony Drake has been poor all her life. Instead of wishing for her situation to change, she decides to change it. She moves away from her drug addicted mother to start her life anew. The last thing on her mind is love until she meets the mysterious Rain Tanaka. Ebony doesn’t know what he sees in her, all she knows is that he scares her with the way he makes her feel.
Rain Tanaka has spent his life taking care of his family. He realizes quickly, he had been a fool in thinking everything he needed was found at home. Ebony Drake, is the missing piece. He knows he shouldn’t get involved with her, but there’s just something about the dark skin beauty that pulls him to her. However, just when things begin to heat up between them, he has to walk away.
No matter how much Rain tries, he can't erase Ebony from his sweat filled dreams. Risking it all, Rain will do anything to get the love he left behind back. He should have remembered the code; NO ONE disobeys the Yakuza.
- GenresRomance
156 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 2, 2020
266 people are currently reading
63 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews
January 12, 2023
I felt a connection to the story but there were places that could have been cleaned up some. There were date and age issues. There were times passages that were not explained or alluded to. That why I say there were issues with ages. The audio was not superb but it was a way to miss some of the flaws in the printed story. I would like to say that the narrators did a good job but that would be a lie. The lead characters were from different ethnicities. It was not reflected in the narration. The Japanese male sounded like any other American. No distinguishing difference. Neither narrator made that distinction.
June 22, 2020
Great Story!
The only thing I would suggest is a little more details on the ruthlessness of the brothers. How can you call them Yakusa if there's no real violence that's seen in the page's. Lots of author's feel they need a lot of sex to sell books. But more action is just as important to the older set of readers
The only thing I would suggest is a little more details on the ruthlessness of the brothers. How can you call them Yakusa if there's no real violence that's seen in the page's. Lots of author's feel they need a lot of sex to sell books. But more action is just as important to the older set of readers
June 30, 2022
Great storyline although bit rushed. Terrible editing, writing style, and sentence structure. Always difficult to determine who was speaking. A real shame that a good story with likable main characters buried underneath so much garbage.
June 15, 2020
The editor failed the book.
The plot was good. The flow of the story wasn't bad. However, the editing of this book was horrid. No real misspelled words, but the wording and sometimes how things were written just made this book a long read. Which is really unfortunate because everything else was actually pretty good. Usually when you get editing like this you expect the book to just as bad and quite frankly I usually tend not to get out of the 1st chapter. However, you could clearly see what the author was visioning, hence the 3 stars. I'll read the next book to see if the editing has gotten better before I put the author on my don't read list. If you have time, read everything else and don't mind doing your own "in read" editing , then go for it. I'm not mad I read it all.
The plot was good. The flow of the story wasn't bad. However, the editing of this book was horrid. No real misspelled words, but the wording and sometimes how things were written just made this book a long read. Which is really unfortunate because everything else was actually pretty good. Usually when you get editing like this you expect the book to just as bad and quite frankly I usually tend not to get out of the 1st chapter. However, you could clearly see what the author was visioning, hence the 3 stars. I'll read the next book to see if the editing has gotten better before I put the author on my don't read list. If you have time, read everything else and don't mind doing your own "in read" editing , then go for it. I'm not mad I read it all.
April 20, 2022
I liked this
I enjoyed this. I wish ebony wasn't a damsel in distress & had a little more fight in her. I think the deeply insecure black woman trope is tired & boring. She forgave Rain way too fast. It funny because the women on the cover book look NOTHING how the women are described which is odd. Black women can feel beautiful & still be kind & worthy of love. Acting like these women look like the elephant man is a theme I wish bw authors would retire. Give these women some confidence & pride. I hope some of the women in the series got some fire in them. Ebony had a hard upbringing but she was acting like she had the life experiences of a rich white girl. Growing up in the hood with addict for a mother gives you some grit. It's ok even preferably to have backbone. She didn't even make Rain grovel. No woman with any sense would forgive such crappy treatment so fast.
I enjoyed this. I wish ebony wasn't a damsel in distress & had a little more fight in her. I think the deeply insecure black woman trope is tired & boring. She forgave Rain way too fast. It funny because the women on the cover book look NOTHING how the women are described which is odd. Black women can feel beautiful & still be kind & worthy of love. Acting like these women look like the elephant man is a theme I wish bw authors would retire. Give these women some confidence & pride. I hope some of the women in the series got some fire in them. Ebony had a hard upbringing but she was acting like she had the life experiences of a rich white girl. Growing up in the hood with addict for a mother gives you some grit. It's ok even preferably to have backbone. She didn't even make Rain grovel. No woman with any sense would forgive such crappy treatment so fast.
December 16, 2020
One word....
EDITING. Good Lord the editing in this book is horrible. I mentally had to fix errors in my head to keep the story flowing. And to the story itself, wasn't half bad even though I had to 🤔, at how quick Ebony was ready to give it up to Rain. I thought their courtship would have been a little more longer than one date, being how she had trust issues and he was quote on quote "mean". I didn't get the angst I was looking for even though Rain left after Ebony's dramatic episode, which also seemed a bit out of character for her.
EDITING. Good Lord the editing in this book is horrible. I mentally had to fix errors in my head to keep the story flowing. And to the story itself, wasn't half bad even though I had to 🤔, at how quick Ebony was ready to give it up to Rain. I thought their courtship would have been a little more longer than one date, being how she had trust issues and he was quote on quote "mean". I didn't get the angst I was looking for even though Rain left after Ebony's dramatic episode, which also seemed a bit out of character for her.
September 14, 2021
Great storyline poorly written and/or poorly edited. I'm not sure if the editors disappointed the author (and readers) by not doing their job and/or if Kenya is just not a great writer.
Their are so many miss-connections I can't count them all. For example, Rain and Ebony are going on their first date. They are in the limo when Rain says it is a long ride to the restaurant and during their ride they can get to know each other. I'm thinking this is a good opportunity for us to get to know these characters better. So in the limo Rain asks Ebony one (1) question, she answers immediately and then they suddenly have arrived at the restaurant. Do they pick-up a conversation during dinner? Nope. We never get a connection between them much less a love connection but before you know if they are in love.
Lots of missed opportunities to use the potential this story had. What happens when the brothers are sent to train with Takashi? All we know is that he is a monster and he trains Rain and his brothers to become monsters but we don't have any other details about what happens when they are sent to the mountains to train with him. I like the idea of Rain being the head of Yakuza but this author has made him a little too tamed to lead a Japanese mob.
I really did like the storyline just wish it was written better. I tried to give it 3 stars but couldn't because of all the editing mistakes that almost ruined a good story. I'm glad this book was free and guess what. I'm going to read the next free book in this series! Hopefully I can give it more than 2 stars.
Their are so many miss-connections I can't count them all. For example, Rain and Ebony are going on their first date. They are in the limo when Rain says it is a long ride to the restaurant and during their ride they can get to know each other. I'm thinking this is a good opportunity for us to get to know these characters better. So in the limo Rain asks Ebony one (1) question, she answers immediately and then they suddenly have arrived at the restaurant. Do they pick-up a conversation during dinner? Nope. We never get a connection between them much less a love connection but before you know if they are in love.
Lots of missed opportunities to use the potential this story had. What happens when the brothers are sent to train with Takashi? All we know is that he is a monster and he trains Rain and his brothers to become monsters but we don't have any other details about what happens when they are sent to the mountains to train with him. I like the idea of Rain being the head of Yakuza but this author has made him a little too tamed to lead a Japanese mob.
I really did like the storyline just wish it was written better. I tried to give it 3 stars but couldn't because of all the editing mistakes that almost ruined a good story. I'm glad this book was free and guess what. I'm going to read the next free book in this series! Hopefully I can give it more than 2 stars.
June 10, 2021
It was fine.
When businessman and future Yakuza boss Rain meets Ebony, he’s instantly smitten with her. They begin a sweet and intense love affair until Rain’s father throws a wrench in his life. Causing him and Ebony to part ways. Of course they still love each other and still long for each other, but there are forces who don’t want to see them happy.
First, I really liked all the characters. They were all so likable or unlikable depending on their part in the story. I could spend more time with this group of people and their big makeshift family.
This is a short book and shows in the lack of detail in certain areas. We don’t get much description on how the characters look so you’re left to your imagination. We also hear a lot about how dark Rain can be and how lethal he and his brothers are but we never really see it. Even in the climax we’re told about things but we don’t get to experience it so it’s hard for me to really believe it.
Not a bad book, entertaining cast of characters, but lacking detail. If you’re looking for a quick read check it out.
When businessman and future Yakuza boss Rain meets Ebony, he’s instantly smitten with her. They begin a sweet and intense love affair until Rain’s father throws a wrench in his life. Causing him and Ebony to part ways. Of course they still love each other and still long for each other, but there are forces who don’t want to see them happy.
First, I really liked all the characters. They were all so likable or unlikable depending on their part in the story. I could spend more time with this group of people and their big makeshift family.
This is a short book and shows in the lack of detail in certain areas. We don’t get much description on how the characters look so you’re left to your imagination. We also hear a lot about how dark Rain can be and how lethal he and his brothers are but we never really see it. Even in the climax we’re told about things but we don’t get to experience it so it’s hard for me to really believe it.
Not a bad book, entertaining cast of characters, but lacking detail. If you’re looking for a quick read check it out.
June 26, 2020
Just Okay
I have been searching about what to say exactly about how good or not this story was. First of was.a.good story but it can be better, there is no connection in any of the scenes. The writer is giving us a series of events but we are not getting any connection, it's.as of we are just walking from one frame to the next. I would have loved the build up to this couple reuniting and a farther meeting his children for the first time. Also were these children in mute,because at 2943 years of age the are forming words and making mischief. Would have been great it we had gotten a father's introduction to the twins, felt this was a missed opportunity.Don't get me wrong there are some really good moments just think their was room for more. Also there were a few typos, that took away the importance of the scene. Overall I found this to.be a good story but it needs a rewrite.
I have been searching about what to say exactly about how good or not this story was. First of was.a.good story but it can be better, there is no connection in any of the scenes. The writer is giving us a series of events but we are not getting any connection, it's.as of we are just walking from one frame to the next. I would have loved the build up to this couple reuniting and a farther meeting his children for the first time. Also were these children in mute,because at 2943 years of age the are forming words and making mischief. Would have been great it we had gotten a father's introduction to the twins, felt this was a missed opportunity.Don't get me wrong there are some really good moments just think their was room for more. Also there were a few typos, that took away the importance of the scene. Overall I found this to.be a good story but it needs a rewrite.
October 10, 2020
Not for me
This story was promising but moved quickly to disappointing. Rain and Ebony were a decent pairing but the story just dragged on and on and I lost complete interest in this couple. Rain is a Yakuza boss that romances Ebony and walks away without a word leaving her high and dry. The couple reunites 3 years later and Ebony easily forgives him. The biggest issue with the book is the lack of a cohesive storyline. There are 9 million side characters and references to people that had never been mentioned, like the readers know who they are. The story was frustrating to follow and was in serious need of a proof reader. There was also some inconsistencies in the story where information about the characters changed from page to page.
This story was promising but moved quickly to disappointing. Rain and Ebony were a decent pairing but the story just dragged on and on and I lost complete interest in this couple. Rain is a Yakuza boss that romances Ebony and walks away without a word leaving her high and dry. The couple reunites 3 years later and Ebony easily forgives him. The biggest issue with the book is the lack of a cohesive storyline. There are 9 million side characters and references to people that had never been mentioned, like the readers know who they are. The story was frustrating to follow and was in serious need of a proof reader. There was also some inconsistencies in the story where information about the characters changed from page to page.
September 4, 2021
WTF
So many errors. Spelling. Word usage. Punctuation. Missing words. I just lost count. With all this I still fished the story. I finished because it did captivate me. I wanted to know how Ebony was going to get through. I wanted to know how rain was going to get her back. But the sad thing is that after this series, because I am interested in the remains Tanaka brother,. I am not interested in spending my hard earned money on a story that I have to fill in the correct word(s). Or I need to figure out what word or words are missing or misspelled or just the wrong word. Just sad.
So many errors. Spelling. Word usage. Punctuation. Missing words. I just lost count. With all this I still fished the story. I finished because it did captivate me. I wanted to know how Ebony was going to get through. I wanted to know how rain was going to get her back. But the sad thing is that after this series, because I am interested in the remains Tanaka brother,. I am not interested in spending my hard earned money on a story that I have to fill in the correct word(s). Or I need to figure out what word or words are missing or misspelled or just the wrong word. Just sad.
June 11, 2022
Yikes
This book was objectively bad besides the typos the stereotypes of the characters were just yikes Ebony ghetto fat girl and Rain almond shaped eyes and mention of pens really was just distasteful. Oh and I cannot believe there was a plot point to sell a Black woman. The only saving grace was Jess, Chase, and Mae. I won't be continuing in this series.
CN: addiction, stealing, attempted sexual assault, kidnapping, caning/torture, auction into sex trafficking including a child, cheating,
This book was objectively bad besides the typos the stereotypes of the characters were just yikes Ebony ghetto fat girl and Rain almond shaped eyes and mention of pens really was just distasteful. Oh and I cannot believe there was a plot point to sell a Black woman. The only saving grace was Jess, Chase, and Mae. I won't be continuing in this series.
CN: addiction, stealing, attempted sexual assault, kidnapping, caning/torture, auction into sex trafficking including a child, cheating,
September 14, 2023
I listened to this story through AUDBILES and it was fast-paced and structured to deliver the major parts of the plot early in the story. Who the bad guy is and the boy meets the girl with the promise of sexy times between the main female and male characters. There are plot links to the other stories in the series dropped off here and there throughout. There were also interjections of the Japanese language (spoken) where appropriate, which the male narrator seemed to handle well. Overall a good story and introduction to the series.
May 10, 2024
* Mafia Romance Readathon 2024 *
Listened to the audiobook and read along with ebook.
⭐️⭐️.75/6.
🌶️🌶️/5.
I didn’t expect much from this since it’s a short one. It was insta lovey but I can get behind that. What I can���t get behind was the fact that Rain ghosted the woman he loved completely and 3 years went by and he was married. Like what now?!
Of course there were reasons why and I can somewhat get that but he could’ve comeback whenever he wanted since he just up and left the moment he learned he had kids so there was nothing stopping him. This was kind of a mess.
Listened to the audiobook and read along with ebook.
⭐️⭐️.75/6.
🌶️🌶️/5.
I didn’t expect much from this since it’s a short one. It was insta lovey but I can get behind that. What I can���t get behind was the fact that Rain ghosted the woman he loved completely and 3 years went by and he was married. Like what now?!
Of course there were reasons why and I can somewhat get that but he could’ve comeback whenever he wanted since he just up and left the moment he learned he had kids so there was nothing stopping him. This was kind of a mess.
July 22, 2020
As Right As Rain
"Tanaka Rain" was a treat. It would have gotten five stars, but it was chock full of grammatical errors...
Anyway, Ebony meets Rain at the restaurant where she is a waitress. He is immediately attracted to her, but Ebony is sceptical. He wins her over and they begin a passionate affair. Rain is in love. Ebony is in love. Then Rain ups and leaves Ebony without warning, but not quite alone.
"Tanaka Rain" was a treat. It would have gotten five stars, but it was chock full of grammatical errors...
Anyway, Ebony meets Rain at the restaurant where she is a waitress. He is immediately attracted to her, but Ebony is sceptical. He wins her over and they begin a passionate affair. Rain is in love. Ebony is in love. Then Rain ups and leaves Ebony without warning, but not quite alone.
April 23, 2021
Good story.
This is my first time reading this author. I admit that I thoroughly enjoyed this story. And I like that it is a family saga with more interesting characters and stories to be told. Hopefully by the end of the series all the characters will come full circle.
My only complaint would be the editing. And how a few characters were brought in without ever being previously introduced or mentioned.
This is my first time reading this author. I admit that I thoroughly enjoyed this story. And I like that it is a family saga with more interesting characters and stories to be told. Hopefully by the end of the series all the characters will come full circle.
My only complaint would be the editing. And how a few characters were brought in without ever being previously introduced or mentioned.
September 14, 2021
Rain took a while to be a man
I was not fond of rain in the beginning. He was a coward who should have never taken from Ebony and left like a thief in the night. She forgave long before I did. It felt like he did not have enough accountability for his decisions and actions. In any case, I have no complaints about the ending but I would have liked it better if he had to fight and really understand what he did to her. I am glad I did not start with this book, because I would not have read Ren and Kenji's stories and they were amazing.
I was not fond of rain in the beginning. He was a coward who should have never taken from Ebony and left like a thief in the night. She forgave long before I did. It felt like he did not have enough accountability for his decisions and actions. In any case, I have no complaints about the ending but I would have liked it better if he had to fight and really understand what he did to her. I am glad I did not start with this book, because I would not have read Ren and Kenji's stories and they were amazing.
April 11, 2022
Rain & Ebony
Rain Tanaka isn't one to mess with. Ebony Drake after a life of sadness just wants a man to be real. Ebony is a true treasure. Rain meets & falls in love with Ebony but alas the life of the Yakazu isn't easy. Rain makes a sacrifice that causes so much pain. Will Ebony forgive Him? Will they get their HEA. Read their journey. This is the beginning of a great series. 😊
Rain Tanaka isn't one to mess with. Ebony Drake after a life of sadness just wants a man to be real. Ebony is a true treasure. Rain meets & falls in love with Ebony but alas the life of the Yakazu isn't easy. Rain makes a sacrifice that causes so much pain. Will Ebony forgive Him? Will they get their HEA. Read their journey. This is the beginning of a great series. 😊
May 2, 2022
Love the Tanaka!
A fast read, finished in one setting! Rain and Ebony was a perfect couple, both needed the love they received from each other! Learning the culture of others is a new experience for everyone! But Rain and Ebony clicked! Sometime blood relation do not always show you the love you need! Ebony was lucky to find it with her friends and her man! Story moved fast, you will not be disappointed!
A fast read, finished in one setting! Rain and Ebony was a perfect couple, both needed the love they received from each other! Learning the culture of others is a new experience for everyone! But Rain and Ebony clicked! Sometime blood relation do not always show you the love you need! Ebony was lucky to find it with her friends and her man! Story moved fast, you will not be disappointed!
July 12, 2022
Was okay...
The story felt rushed. Not enough details throughout the book. Always trying to understand who was talking and who was the listener. Conversations need to be separated. Some grammatical grammatical mistakes that threw of the meaning of whatever was written. It’s not horrible, good story plot, but some stuff did not flow. I wound up skipping some parts too informative and other parts not enough.
The story felt rushed. Not enough details throughout the book. Always trying to understand who was talking and who was the listener. Conversations need to be separated. Some grammatical grammatical mistakes that threw of the meaning of whatever was written. It’s not horrible, good story plot, but some stuff did not flow. I wound up skipping some parts too informative and other parts not enough.
June 7, 2020
Rain and Ebony
Rain was good for Ebony but I think he should have been honest with her about his arranged marriage. It hurt my feelings so bad with the way he left. Mei should have ate a bullet. She didn't care about Ebony's wellbeing or her kids and Rain should have felt the same way. I look forward to Kenji's story next.💛💛
Rain was good for Ebony but I think he should have been honest with her about his arranged marriage. It hurt my feelings so bad with the way he left. Mei should have ate a bullet. She didn't care about Ebony's wellbeing or her kids and Rain should have felt the same way. I look forward to Kenji's story next.💛💛
June 20, 2020
Sooo Good!
I loved this book!I loved Ebony, Rain(my god did I love him:)Jess,Chase,and Rain's whole Yakuza crew including his bros.There were no boring parts to this book,it pulled me in from the beginning and just got better.Now.....I gotta get Kenji's story.I have a feeling that's gonna be just as good.Great job to this author.
I loved this book!I loved Ebony, Rain(my god did I love him:)Jess,Chase,and Rain's whole Yakuza crew including his bros.There were no boring parts to this book,it pulled me in from the beginning and just got better.Now.....I gotta get Kenji's story.I have a feeling that's gonna be just as good.Great job to this author.
July 12, 2020
Editing
The idea behind this story was refreshing, the editing, tone, and overall flow of the were awful. It read more like someone was telling me a story one minute and then I was reading it the next. I suggest the author take this book and start over, actually pay an editor or I will do it for free.
The idea behind this story was refreshing, the editing, tone, and overall flow of the were awful. It read more like someone was telling me a story one minute and then I was reading it the next. I suggest the author take this book and start over, actually pay an editor or I will do it for free.
July 25, 2020
Yes, yes & yes
I love these characters. They are so perfect for each other. This story keeps you guessing till the end. It is such a rare love story with relatable elements that makes readers cry, cuss, and root for these uniquely diverse characters with very similar ideas about happy ever after. Please Read you'll be glad you did.
I love these characters. They are so perfect for each other. This story keeps you guessing till the end. It is such a rare love story with relatable elements that makes readers cry, cuss, and root for these uniquely diverse characters with very similar ideas about happy ever after. Please Read you'll be glad you did.
August 9, 2020
Enjoyable read
I wanted to like this more but it was just ok. I love the pairing of a black woman and asian man because you don't see many romance pairing these two groups together.
I look forward to the next story in the series just hope there will be more attention given to editing.
The characters were likeable and I was rooting for their romance.
I wanted to like this more but it was just ok. I love the pairing of a black woman and asian man because you don't see many romance pairing these two groups together.
I look forward to the next story in the series just hope there will be more attention given to editing.
The characters were likeable and I was rooting for their romance.
October 22, 2020
Fantastic read
I have to say, once I started to read this book I could not put it down. It is 4 o’clock in the morning, I’m due to start work in the next two hours but not before I find and start the next book in the next series. I hope all the brothers have their own story to tell.
I have to say, once I started to read this book I could not put it down. It is 4 o’clock in the morning, I’m due to start work in the next two hours but not before I find and start the next book in the next series. I hope all the brothers have their own story to tell.
October 14, 2022
Ok Rain
Now at first I was mad at how Rain handled Ebony and not tell her about his marriage contract but I can understand why he did it. Was it messed up to basically leave her without a word and pregnant however I am glad he finally got from under his father and is shaking up the Yakuza can't wait to see what else happens
Now at first I was mad at how Rain handled Ebony and not tell her about his marriage contract but I can understand why he did it. Was it messed up to basically leave her without a word and pregnant however I am glad he finally got from under his father and is shaking up the Yakuza can't wait to see what else happens
July 24, 2023
Great Book
I really enjoyed reading about Ebony and Rain Love Story. It was very well written. It was such a fun book to read. The thing that got me about this story is Rain left Ebony for nothing. I mean protecting your brother was a good thing. I'm just glad that everything worked out for Rain and Ebony.
I really enjoyed reading about Ebony and Rain Love Story. It was very well written. It was such a fun book to read. The thing that got me about this story is Rain left Ebony for nothing. I mean protecting your brother was a good thing. I'm just glad that everything worked out for Rain and Ebony.
December 17, 2024
Forever mine
Good read, loved rain and Ebony characters.
The book was well written with just enough background to keep you interested.
That contract was the best thing Rain could've come up with. But the result took them especially Ebony for a crazy ride, glad everything worked out in the end...
Good read, loved rain and Ebony characters.
The book was well written with just enough background to keep you interested.
That contract was the best thing Rain could've come up with. But the result took them especially Ebony for a crazy ride, glad everything worked out in the end...
June 14, 2020
Not a bad read...
This book started out like someone new to writing. A few grammatical errors throughout. However, you see the writer evolve as the story moved forward. The plot was but and enjoyable.
This book started out like someone new to writing. A few grammatical errors throughout. However, you see the writer evolve as the story moved forward. The plot was but and enjoyable.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews