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Deeply intense! Lisa‘s first historical fiction novel is a masterpiece! I‘m a huge fan of her work and not surprised at all that Eternal lives up to the praise. Set in Italy, between 1937 and 1943, three childhood friends, Elisabetta, Marco, and Sandro are coming of age, and both young men are vying for Elisabetta‘s love. War, tragedies, food, and love.

Full review and video of Lisa‘s event at Poisoned Pen Bookstore at https://abookandadog.com

What a wonderful historical fiction book. It covers the years 1933-1945 following 3 friends through the horrific tragedy's of those years. One boy is Italian and a fascist, one boy a Jew (but they are best friends), and one Italian girl. It's an emotional book.

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I absolutely loved this book. It was my first time reading this author & it is her first in this genre. It is not a happy topic but she wrote about it in a very real but respectful way. In the first half of the book there were many Italian references and it painted a beautiful picture of Rome for me. I would definitely recommend reading this book.

When I started this book, I could tell the history was well researched. I learned a lot about Italy during WWII. However, the author lost me at the end. An event happened that caught me off guard both in action and in how the event happened. From there, the ending just felt rushed and forced together. With a strong start, I was disappointed with how it ended.

What a story this was! I‘ve never read a WW2 historical fiction novel that takes place in Italy before. It definitely showed a different side of the war. I did get a bit aggravated at times with the fickleness of the female protagonist. You‘ll know what I mean if you‘ve read the book. I loved everything else about this book. It made me want to visit Italy!

Because there is so much WWII historical fiction out there and much sits both read and unread on my own shelves, I judge it harshly hoping each reading experience is of unique value. I was intrigued by this on knowing the author‘s love of her Italian heritage. I loved this book, Elizabett, Marco, Sandro, and their families swept me into 1938 and the anguish of their next 5 years.

Overall premise of the story was interesting but it was not as engaging at some point. Maybe I felt rushed to finish it but I sure was not into it somewhere in the middle onwards. The ending was what I have thought it would be. I would think this as an entertaining read, to pass time and liked that it has an interesting look during the Mussolini regime. Just wished it was more engaging this time around.