The Heat of the Sun
US publication 13 November 2012

PRAISE FOR THE HEAT OF THE SUN

“This fantastic story swirls around an irresistibly charismatic ‘bad boy’ whose odyssey of self-definition pulls the whole world in its wake. Like the historical epochs and episodes it weaves into a mesmerising puzzle, The Heat of the Sun is by turns wildly colourful and straitlaced, witty and rueful, reserved and operatic. David Rain’s clever mixture of fact and famous fiction puts a new spin on the ‘butterfly effect’.” – ANDREW SOLOMON, National Book Award winner, author of Far From the Tree and of the New York Times bestseller The Noonday Demon

“David Rain’s striking debut manages the audacious feat of burying its soul of romantic tragedy inside a story of great theatrical invention and whimsy. The result is wholly original and a lot of fun. Read it and the twentieth century may never look the same to you again.” – JOHN BURNHAM SCHWARTZ, author of Reservation Road and The Commoner

“The more I read The Heat of the Sun, the more I admired it: for its imaginative reach, its emotional power, and the lit-up beauty and exactitude of its writing, I though it breathtakingly good.” – SUE GEE, author of The Mysteries of Glass

“[A] masterpiece of imagery, depth and range. The fact that The Heat of the Sun is David Rain’s debut novel is somewhat shocking to me. I honestly believe not only this body of work, but future endeavors will be stories that rest among that place reserved for some of the most notable authors. Truly, he is a 21st century novelist to pay attention to … The Heat of the Sun is a stellar accomplishment and a story that is destined to be read by many.” – FEATHERED QUILL BOOK REVIEWS (US)

“There are passages in the novel that have a heartbreaking beauty … Rain is a talented writer.” – WASHINGTON POST

“The book captures the gaiety and tumult of a troubled age. But it is ultimately a novel of friendship, of love, and of lives.” – IRISH EXAMINER

“David Rain is far too young to be writing this exquisitely … Pinkerton is glamour encapsulated … The scope of the book is vast … from the early 1920s, through to the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki … The whole is a story about the universal search for love and for self, set at a time when there was less freedom to do either of those things … There isn’t so much an echo of Scott Fitzgerald in these pages as a gentle background refrain that hauntingly lingers at the edges of every page.” – THE BOOKBAG (UK)

The Heat of the Sun
UK publication 1 July 2012

“[A] stunning debut … Rain’s writing is incredibly clever. His colourful prose transports you to roaring Manhattan, to Nagasaki, to Mexico. The dialogue between the two main characters is believable, honest, and told in such a way you think you’re watching one of those classic black and white films rather than reading a book … I think David Rain’s star is only going to get brighter.” – THE BOOKBOY (UK)

“[Rain] numbers Dickens and F. Scott Fitzgerald among his favorite authors, and there are shades of both in his debut novel. The novel also reminds me a bit of John Irving’s work and, bottom line, The Heat of the Sun is one of the more imaginative debut novels I have encountered in a while.” – BOOK CHASE (US)

“[A] truly inventive tour de force … [The] dénouement was a crescendo of great emotion, inevitable tragedy, pathos, and some degree of redemption. And is that not what great operatic drama is all about? BRAVO, David Rain!” – BRODART VIBE (US)

“Rain’s worthy novel is a touching, often searing tale of friendship, betrayal and love. His flawed characters are staggering beneath the weight of the past, which they carry like burdens even beyond the book’s chilling, operatic conclusion.” – BOOK PAGE (US)