When the Rain Ends

by Mary Ellen Taylor

From The Brighter the Light author Mary Ellen Taylor comes the emotional story of a mother and daughter learning to endure life’s twists and turns as they grieve a loss and face an uncertain future.

When artist Dani Peterson learns she’s slowly losing her vision, she becomes unmoored. Her ex-husband died only months before, leaving Dani and her preteen daughter grief stricken. Suddenly, the life Dani built for her family on the Outer Banks feels like a painful reminder of all they’ve lost.

On a whim, Dani sells her waterfront home and buys an old farm inland near the Virginia state line. But Dani’s daughter recoils at the sudden, drastic change. The Outer Banks’ sun-swept beaches, pink dawns, and savage storms are all she’s ever known.

But Dani is resolute, and the pair move to Virginia to embark on a challenging renovation. That summer, their efforts to turn a run-down silo into an art studio bring forth new friends, new loves, and new challenges.

As mother and daughter navigate the fiercest storm of their lives, they learn that instead of waiting for the skies to clear, they can withstand the wind and rain, so long as they do it together.

Genres: Fiction, Romance, Contemporary, Chick Lit, Audiobook, Art, Book Club

334 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 1, 2023

About the author

A southerner by birth, Mary Ellen Taylor’s love of her home state of Virginia and its past is evident in her contemporary women's fiction novels, from her first THE UNION STREET BAKERY to her latest, THE WORDS WE WHISPER, which debuts July 20, 2021. Her novels explore issues of family, home and belonging and entwine the past and present.
Richmond born, Mary Ellen has lived there most of her life. Alongside writing, cooking and baking are important creative outlets for Mary Ellen, who's been known to name recipes in honor of her characters. Just a few years ago, she earned her Baking and Pastry Arts Certificate at the University of Richmond's Culinary Arts Program. "In some ways, I liken baking to my efforts as a writer. You need to learn the basic tools of the trade before you can push the limits and create a distinctive sweet dessert or savory novel.”
Mary Ellen is also known nationally as New York Times and USA Today bestselling suspense novelist Mary Burton. Together, they have published forty-five novels, with Mary Burton’s latest, NEAR YOU, debuting April 13, 2021.
When not traveling or holed up writing, she and her husband spend time alternately enjoying their empty nest and spoiling their miniature dachshunds, Buddy, Bella and Tiki.

Reviews

[Barbara Benton · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wasn’t a big fan of this story. It was predictable and uneventful. Eh 🤷🏻‍♀️

[Jessica · Rating 1 out of 5]

Really couldn’t get connected with the characters, and the plot was terribly boring. What I did like about it was that it was based in outer banks so that felt familiar. Otherwise this was a flop for me

[Vickie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a poignant and heart-tugging story of a mother and a daughter and the other people who touch their lives at a vulnerable time. Dani Peterson is losing her vision. Her husband died four months before the story begins and Dani is struggling to find her footing with their pre-teen daughter Bella. Bella was very close to Matthew and is having a hard time with her grief. When Dani decides to leave her beautiful home on the Outer Banks to move inland to a farmhouse in Virginia, Bella is less than thrilled and her anxiety comes out in mini-rebellions against her mom. Dani decides to send Bella to a grief camp and that camp and dealing with grief is a central focus of the story. Bella makes a new friend, Reggie, at the camp and gradually learns to do the activities without too much difficulty. Both Dani and Bella are dealing with terrible losses—Dani, her vision, and Bella, her beloved father. Both of them have to come to terms with their love for each other as well as letting new people into their circle. The mother-daughter relationship is in the center of the well-woven and intricate plot, but there are so many developing relationships as Dani establishes a new home and a new business in a new place. There are also the farewells that have to take place, the letting go that is never easy and the author portrays well the grief that lingers and overtakes you when you least expect it. The plot moves at a good pace for the content, neither too fast nor too slow, but ebbing like the tide that rolls in and out. The characters are well-developed and likable, dynamically portrayed as they grow from bitterness and anger towards acceptance and moving on. I enjoyed every part of reading this book and was sad when the story ended but I’m delighted to report that it is one of my top books for the year, with all of the emotion that can be packed into the pages of a really good book.
Disclaimer
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author via Netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255, “Guidelines Concerning the Use of Testimonials and Endorsements in Advertising.”

[KellyJ1028 · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautifully written book about love, loss and healing.
This book will tug at your heartstrings..

[Nina · Rating 2 out of 5]

As another reviewer commented, this story was predictable and boring. so boring. nothing ever really happens and the epilogue takes place 2 weeks after the “end” which doesn’t give any time for anything to have happened. The author also belabors plot points, like WE GET IT, Dani is closed off and doesn’t let people in! don’t need to say it every other chapter. not a fan.

[Melyssa Polen · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was cheesy and predictable. Kinda like all the pizza the characters in this book were CONSTANTLY eating.

[Valleri · Rating 3 out of 5]

When the Rain Ends is a heart-tugging story of a mother, daughter, and the people who touch their lives at a vulnerable time.

Dani Manchester's ex-husband died four months prior to the beginning of the book and her preteen daughter, Bella, is struggling with her grief. Dani is struggling with her retinitis pigmentosa diagnosis and has already lost a good part of her night vision and peripheral vision.

When the Rain Ends was heavier in the romance department than I usually read. Also, I found the paranormal part of the book to be rather pointless. My biggest complaint was with Dani still driving, even after having more than one near accident! (My father did the same thing, which is probably why it made me crazy.)

Having said all of that, however, there were parts of the book I loved. Bella's new friend, Reggie, was very sweet and I especially liked the wise and kind Juniper. This is a nice story about starting over.

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

This beautifully written book is about a mother and her daughter at a crucial point in both of their lives. It's a story of coping with grief and learning how to go on with life and how to rely on other people to help you through difficult times in life.

Dani is an artist and has just learned that due to an eye disease, she'll be losing her vision in the future. Her life is in turmoil, her ex-husband (but still good friend) has just died in a car accident and she's working to help her daughter Bella cope with life without her dad in it. Dani decides to move from their home in the Outer Banks of NC to an inland farm near the Virginia border and she's taking Bella away from the only home that she's ever known. Bella feels betrayed - not only does she have to learn to navigate life without her father but she's left behind all of her friends and the comfort of a home she loved. Most of the time, instead of lashing out at her mother, she stuffs her feelings inside and works to present a calm personality. But at 12, she does have bouts of anger and resentment and her mother is her favorite target. She's very resentful that her mother has signed her up for a 2 week grief camp for children who have lost someone close because she doesn't want to share her closely held feelings.

Dani has always kept her true feelings from the world around her - ever since her mother died when she was very young. She is extremely worried about losing her sight but doesn't share it with her daughter or her new boyfriend. She absolutely doesn't want anyone to feel sorry for her and wants to continue her life as a gallery owner.

Grief is difficult to navigate and affects everyone differently but it's absolutely crucial to have people to depend on. Will Bella learn to depend on her mother over the loss of her father and will Dani ever be able to tell Bella about her eye issues that will cause her to lose her sight? Will they both realize that together they can face whatever life brings their way?
This book is beautifully written and well written characters. Dani was a great example of a mother trying cope with changes in her life and Bella was a perfect example of a pre-teen girl who can go from happy to angry very quickly. These are two characters and a splendid story that I won't soon forget.

[Yen Nhi]

DNF😐

📚I just couldn’t finish this book. The storyline seemed nice but there was just something about it. Felt like it was dragging too much for my liking. From what little bit I read about it, it’s about a mother and daughter who are trying to reconnect and build back their strained relationship.

[BookAddict · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you read The Brighter the Light, you'll be delighted to know that is Dani's story, and we get just a little more of Ruth. It's another heartfelt, compelling read from a gifted wordsmith of women's fiction.

Dani Manchester is a single mom, and she recently received a medical diagnosis. The prognosis? Dani, an artist and gallery owner, is slowly losing her eyesight. She makes a decision to move away from the beach and across the sound to the mainland. In an act of spontaneity, Dani has purchased an old farm property on the sound and plans to open a new art gallery that will appeal to tourists traveling to and from the beach.

Dani's thirteen-year-old daughter Bella is not on board with this plan. Not only is she leaving her friends and grandparents, she's leaving the only life she's ever known. And worst of all, it feels like she's leaving behind all the memories of her recently deceased father. She also may have been holding out hope that her parents would get back together because they've always seemed like such good friends in Bella's eyes.

The renovations for the farmhouse and the silo that will be turned into a gallery are a much bigger job than Dani and Bella, provided she's willing, can handle. This brings Jackson Cross into the picture, recommended to Dani by her realtor. Jackson is a quiet, solitary man and has experience building luxury boats, but he's taking a sabbatical from the boat business to help Dani.

If you've ever read a MET novel, you know this description barely scratches the surface. From here, so many surprising, poignant, touching events are revealed. Jackson has a painful past that eventually comes to light and through it he finds healing. Bella struggles with such drastic changes in her life, and with a little help from a mystery friend and kids she meets at camp, she learns that now to handle many of her jumbled emotions. Dani tries to navigate a new normal as her world slowly grows dim, but through glimpses of Ruth, Dani's mentor, Dani recalls words of wisdom that guide her and light her path.

Brimming with emotion and heart, these characters learn about trust, leaning on others and being someone's soft place to land. Their journey is fraught with fear and uncertainty, but they learn that taking a chance and opening one's heart is its own reward. Beautifully written and masterfully told, this story of hope, faith, and healing is sure to please readers of every kind.

[Carole · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm leaving this one at 55%. It's too much like a Hallmark movie. Young Mom with a teenage daughter who is grieving her father's passing, falls in love with the contractor she hired to renovate her new home and business. Just not keeping my attention enough to pick it back up.

[Linda Langford]

I really enjoyed the story. Emotional and inspiring. A mother and her young daughter must make changes after the sudden death of the husband/father. I enjoyed the main characters and how the author developed them. Great read!

[Karen Forbes · Rating 1 out of 5]

zzzzzzzzzz

I really tried hard, got almost half way, but god it’s boring. I kept going in the hope something other than a possible ghost sighting happened. Self sufficient woman managing and controlling everyone around her while denying truth about herself. Move along people nothing to see here.

[Andrea Howard · Rating 2 out of 5]

Repetitive

If you like books about stray curls being tucked behind ears or characters with deeply tanned skin this one's for you.

[Jessica Ratliff · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn’t enjoy this book. The characters were too perfect, but also each flawed in the same ways, which didn’t offer too much character diversity. The house ghost thing wasn’t my jam.

[Diane Merritt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heartwarming book that will tug on your heartstrings. Love, loss and everything inbetween makes this book so touching and wonderful

[Meredith · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautifully written book about love, loss and healing. I was immediately drawn into the story of Dani and her daughter and quickly fell in love with the cast of characters who make up the rest of the book. The setting was perfect- and it would make a perfect Hallmark movie!

[Cari · Rating 4 out of 5]

When the Rain Ends by Mary Ellen Taylor was my Kindle First Reads selection for April 2023....

This was a really bittersweet book about trying to navigate life in the aftermath of tragic loss. When the Rain Ends follows Dani Manchester, who is still grieving not only the mother she lost to cancer twenty years ago--but also the impending loss of her eyesight after she was diagnosed with a disease that is slowly making her go blind. The book also follows the grieving process of Dani's 12 year old daughter, Bella, who recently lost her father in a car accident; as well as Dani's love interest, Jackson, who has been harboring unresolved grief since his daughter's passing several years before. The book alternates between the viewpoints of these three realistically flawed characters and each one became pretty dear to me as they each tried to learn how to treasure the past, but still look beyond the pain of today, and on to the bright future that lays in wait for them.

Note: Dani and Bella were first introduced in the author's book, The Brighter the Light , which is primarily about Ivy-- Dani's brother's girlfriend in When the Rain Ends . You can read When the Rain Ends as a stand-alone novel, but I think it will mean a little more if you read The Brighter the Light first. 😊

[KATIE HICKS · Rating 4 out of 5]

great summer read

This is an earth shattering novel. It is a sweet story. Very easy beach (or in my case rainy day) ready

[Maven_Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

When the Rain Ends by Mary Ellen Taylor is a tender and emotionally resonant contemporary novel that follows Dani Manchester, an artist whose carefully built life on the Outer Banks begins to unravel after the sudden death of her ex-husband and the shocking news that she’s slowly losing her vision, forcing her and her preteen daughter Bella to leave behind everything familiar and start anew on an old farm near the Virginia state line, where they face grief, change, and the possibility of healing together. It’s a story steeped in themes of loss, resilience, family bonds, reinvention, and how love endures even when life feels unbearably uncertain.

From the very first chapter I felt the ache of Dani’s heartbreak paired with her fierce determination to create a life for Bella that wasn’t defined by loss, and that emotional tension stayed with me throughout the novel. Taylor writes with a gentle and compassionate touch that made me feel deeply connected to both Dani’s struggle to accept her diminishing sight and Bella’s raw grief over losing her father and leaving her beloved home, which often simmered beneath the surface of everyday moments with quiet poignancy.

The renovation of the old silo into an art studio becomes more than a project: it becomes a symbol of rebuilding, hope, and the fragile beauty of starting over, and as new friendships and a tentative romance with a local neighbor take root, I felt this book as a reminder that life’s fiercest storms often bring unexpected gifts. Some parts lean toward predictability and the pacing is reflective rather than fast-moving, yet the emotional honesty and the way the story embraces both sorrow and joy made my heart soften and swell in equal measure.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars. This book made me feel profoundly moved by its portrayal of grief and renewal, the tender mother-daughter bond, and the quiet courage it takes to rebuild a life that feels irreparably broken. Its warmth and depth linger, making it a meaningful read for anyone who appreciates emotionally rich contemporary fiction grounded in love, loss, and the enduring power of hope.

[Cristina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sometimes I pick a book without reading too many reviews or looking too deeply into the plot summary before I begin. And I rarely ever fail to complete a book.

I started this one because I have a trial membership of Kindle Unlimited and I wanted an easy read to listen to as an audiobook while completing menial tasks like cooking, folding laundry, sewing on my machine, etc.



This one had nothing pulling me in. I skimmed the first page or two of reviews and saw a couple of others mention that it was dull and there was no plot, but I took it with a grain of salt. There have been slow books that I felt had payoff in the end, like All We Left Unsaid by Natalie K. Martin, that felt more raw and authentic. This one had felt phony, even though the subject was grief and death. Maybe it was the wooden voice that read the audiobook. But it felt like some Caucasian rich privilege fantasy world where the worst thing that could ever happen to them was mortality. I just could not connect with these characters. And the narration was absolutely tedious. There actually was no plot. The author dragged us into the minutiae of their lives that added absolutely nothing to the story. We don't need to know every item Dani shopped for at the store, or how many goddamn times they ate pizza, or every outfit in every scene, or every minute of every day. We don't need to know what each individual person dressed their burger with after listening to the narration of flipping each burger. This story felt like mostly filler and padding and no substance.

And these characters were just too peppy. I just wanted them to act like real people but they were all so wooden. It felt kind of like the interior design trend of Modern Farmhouse. The author shiplapped the hell out this story.

[Gloria ~ mzglorybe · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pleasant and poignant tale of dealing with loss and big changes in the life of an artist-mother, Dani, who is going blind and trying to hide it, and her pre-teen daughter, Bella, who is dealing with grief when her father dies unexpectedly.

Bella’s parents had been divorced for some time but were on friendly terms. She idolized her father, a chef and restaurant owner and his loss is devastating her. Dani’s hiding her eyesight condition from everyone as she doesn’t want to add to her daughters burden, and she wants to continue her work on a new project of an artist’s gallery.

This novel addresses many issues, not just grief. There’s joy and sadness, even romance for Dani, a plethora of emotions, both from a pre-teen’s point of view and her mother’s as they try to get on with their lives in a new location.

I thoroughly enjoyed this writing. The characters were relatable, and it moved along at a good pace, never leaving me bored. This is my second novel by this author and I am happy to recommend it to fans of women’s fiction.

[Cassidy McCormack · Rating 2 out of 5]

The more I think about this book the more I realize how bad it was. SO boring. Bland characters. Every conversation was a line from a self-help book and cliché. Eye rolls for days. Two stars because I was at least able to finish it.

[Deborah Sherman · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great book; beautiful and very emotional. I liked it so much that I wrote a letters to my Mom, Dad and brother who have passed away. I didn't put them in a jar but did burn them in our last camp fire of the season.. I have to admit that it made me feel light and happy after. I recommend this book.

[Linda · Rating 1 out of 5]

Inte min grej för tillfället

[Sandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to this on Audible. Awesome narration. Beautifully written book about loss, grief and starting new with a mother and daughter. Good character development.

[Holly · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.8, good story about love and loss.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Light summer read with a tug at your heart strings

[Lori Wiemers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tearjerker but well worth the read

Fast reading, great characters, good feel good book. First time reading this author, and will definitely read more of her work!

[Rebecca]

Amazon First Reads - April 2023