Immortal Eclipse by Sherry Soule
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I received Immortal Eclipse as an e-Arc for review on behalf Literal Addiction. I read the blurb and was really looking forward to it but have to admit that I tend to stay away from ghost stories and haunted house stories. But, I honor my obligations so I tucked in yesterday to see what this story had to offer. Skylar is a gifted photographer who has had photos on the cover of some of the best fashion magazines published. She also spends more than her fair share of money on designer shoes and clothes. Her glamorous life takes a turn and she is suddenly without direction. She has received several calls from her recently deceased uncle to handle his estate which was left to her. She decides it is as good a time as any to go to California and see how the investigation into his death is proceeding and handle his estate.

From the moment she arrives in California she is warned away, harassed, haunted and threatened. Everyone she has met that works at her uncle’s mansion, now her mansion, seems to dislike her. Oddly enough she expected better treatment from those that depended upon her for their livelihood. She finds that it is hard to trust any of them and some openly distrust her though they just met her. That is one of the things that is great about this book, the character development. You have no trouble seeing who the bad guys are but, there is some difficulty determining if those that seem like good guys really are good guys because everyone there has secrets and some of them involve Skylar though she is not aware of the secrets. One of the other things about Immortal Eclipse is the story line. Though ghost story/hauntings are not usually to my taste this one was well told and held my interest. Honestly at times it kind of crept me out which might be why I stay away from them. Skylar has to decide if risking her life is worth determining who killed her uncle since the police have already closed the case as a suicide or going back to New York and trying to rebuild her life. She sticks it out until it is too late and she has no choice but to push on and find out the secrets of her uncle’s home. I will be looking out for more titles by Sherry Soule!

Review can also be seen at http://LadyTechiesBookMusings.blogspo...

Flirting in Italian by Lauren Henderson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I have to say that this book really hit me more than I thought it would. I chose it hoping to get to see Italy again but through the author's eyes hoping she had been there and was sharing her experiences through her character's eyes. What I got out of it was so much more than that. I was reminded of things I saw and things I missed and plan to go back and see. I was reminded of this weird kinship I felt with Rome despite the fact that I did not speak the language and did not know anyone there. My Goddaughter still talks about the food we ate and the places we visited and how we just roamed around and fell in love with this place. It seemed really odd to miss a place and think about it every single day as if it was a second home, and only after a first visit. We both talk about how much we miss it. I read everything I can that has Roma as its setting. The author did an amazing job expressing the same feelings I had when our driver dropped us off at the airport. I knew immediately when we left that I had to go back and that I would miss it. Reading Flirting in Italian felt like I was reading my own travelogue, though I wish I had the great experience with the fellas while I was there, but, I was with a minor and my focus was on making the trip amazing for my Goddaughter. More than that this book captured the people of Roma just as I remembered them. I know I will read this book again and again and look forward to it every time I begin it.