Review: Trees Cry For Rain by Dr.Jeri Fink

Trees cry for rain,
And mountains for wind.
So my eyes cry for you
........Sephardic folksong

It’s August in Bryant Park, New York City. A man with fiery eyes hovers on the edge of a grisly mystery.

Five hundred years earlier, Rozas, a Marrano or Secret Jew, is betrayed. She’s anonymously reported to the Spanish Holy Office of The Inquisition. Dragged into an underground dungeon, Rozas is tortured, forced to “confess” crimes against the church, and convicted of heresy.

The Inquisitors demand that she reveal the fate of her three daughters. She refuses. Rozas is burned alive at the stake; the secret dies with her.

The story jumps seamlessly in time, connecting Rozas, the man with fiery eyes, and characters that amble across Bryant Park’s Great Lawn. Suddenly three women find each other.

Time freezes. The man is ready. Something unthinkable is about to happen.

My thoughts:  Although the book moves between the past and the present the greater emphasis is on the historical story which is told in the first person, first by Rozas and then her daughter , Marianna. Right from the beginning I made that all-important emotional connection that would draw me into their lives and sharing their pain and suffering. I'm familiar with the Inquisition and the atrocities committed by them against those they considered heretics but the impact of another telling wasn't lessened by that knowledge. The writing flows , there is some beautiful descriptive prose and I loved the dream sequences and the recurring symbolism of trees, keys and purple flowers.

I also particularly liked learning something of what happened to those who fled Spain. The time in Portugal and the different parts of the world the survivors of the Inquisition ended up in.

The modern part of the story set in New York didn't have the same appeal even though I liked the theme of reincarnation and 'gilgul' - the chance to make things right'. There wasn't enough time to get to know any of these characters or their backgrounds well enough to really get involved in their story.

Overall Trees Cry For Rain was a pleasure to read and will appeal to historical fiction lovers.

About the Author
Dr. Jeri Fink is an author, Family Therapist, and journalist, with over 19 books and hundreds of articles to her name. She writes adult and children’s fiction and nonfiction, and has appeared on television, radio, book events, seminars, workshops, and the internet. Dr. Fink’s work has been praised by community leaders, educators, reviewers, and critics around the country.

To find out more about Dr. Finkhttp://www.drjerifink.com

I received a copy of Trees Cry For Rain to read and review from Pump Up Your Book promotions.