Daley Amory is eleven years old when her parents split up, leaving her torn between two worlds. While her mother thrives in her new life, her father loses control of his - often seeking solace in the contents of his liquor cabinet. But the more he drinks, the more unpleasant he becomes, and as Daley grows up she watches him transform from the charismatic father of her childhood, into a bitter and manipulative drunk.

The older she gets, the more clearly she understands that any aspirations of her own will suffocate if she stays in her Waspish hometown, in thrall to her father's malign influence. College offers an escape route - and Daley grabs it. There, she grows into a remarkable young woman and a passionate academic; and when she meets Jonathan, she slowly begins to trust him with her heart.

But when she receives news that the other man in her life - her father - is all alone and losing the will to live, past and present suddenly come crashing in around hr. Yet again Daley faces a terrible dilemma: Should she return to the messy scene of her childhood - or follow her heart and embrace the future she has worked so very hard to build?Provocative and masterfully told, Father of the Rain is a spellbinding journey into the emotional and magnetic pull of families.