Svetlana's Reads and Views

Name of Book: The Witch of Napoli Author: Michael Schmicker ISBN: 978099094022 Publisher: Paladino Type of book: psychics, mediums, spirits, ghosts, channeling, seance, table levitations, skepticism, faith vs science, Italy 1899, responsibility, Europe travel Year it was published: 2015 Summary: Italy 1899: Fiery-tempered, seductive medium Alessandra Poverelli levitates a table at a Spiritualist séance in Naples. A reporter photographs the miracle, and wealthy, skeptical, Jewish psychiatrist Camillo Lombardi arrives in Naples to investigate. When she materializes the ghost of his dead mother, he risks his reputation and fortune to finance a tour of the Continent, challenging the scientific and academic elite of Europe to test Alessandra's mysterious powers. She will help him rewrite Science. His fee will help her escape her sadistic husband Pigotti and start a new life in Rome. Newspapers across Europe trumpet her Cinderella story and baffling successes, and the ...

Name of Book: Lady of the Eternal City Author: Kate Quinn ISBN: 978-0-425-25963-4 Publisher: Berkley Part of a Series: Empress of Rome Type of book: love story, romance, relationships, homosexuality, complexity, Roman empire, Emperor Hadrian, Simon Bar Kohkba, Judea, 118-137, Egypt, conspiracy, morals, Marcus Aurelius, father/son relationship, hidden love Year it was published: 2015 Summary: National bestselling author Kate Quinn returns with the long-awaited fourth volume in the Empress of Rome series, an unforgettable new tale of the politics, power, and passion that defined ancient Rome. Elegant, secretive Sabina may be Empress of Rome, but she still stands poised on a knife’s edge. She must keep the peace between two deadly enemies: her husband Hadrian, Rome’s brilliant and sinister Emperor; and battered warrior Vix, who is her first love. But Sabina is guardian of a deadly secret: Vix’s beautiful son Antinous has become the Emperor’s latest obsession. Em...

Name of Book: Shadow Ritual Author: Eric Giacometti, Jacques Ravenne ISBN: 2370000202604 Publisher: Le French Book Type of book: Secret societies, WWII, traitors, Thule, Freemasons, traditions, knowledge, modern days, controlling the world, thriller, politics, secrets, France, Israel Year it was published: 2015 Summary: An electrifying thriller about the rise of extremism. Two slayings—one in Rome and one in Jerusalem—rekindle an ancient rivalry between modern-day secret societies for knowledge lost at the fall of the Third Reich. Detective Antoine Marcas unwillingly teams up with the strong-willed Jade Zewinski to chase Neo-Nazi assassins across Europe. They must unravel an arcane Freemason mystery, sparked by information from newly revealed KGB files. Inspired from the true story of mysterious Freemason files thought to hold a terrible secret, stolen by the SS in 1940, recovered by the Red Army in 1945 and returned half a century later. Characters: Strangely...

Name of Book: The Daughter Author: Jane Shemilt ISBN: 978-0-06-232047-6 Publisher: William Morrow Type of book: Suspense, abduction, Gypsies/Travelers, clues, secrets, England, 2009-2011, family, cracks in a foundation, missing child Year it was published: 2015 Summary: How well do you really know those you love? Jenny loves her three teenage children and her husband, Ted, a celebrated neurosurgeon. She loves the way that, as a family, they always know each other's problems and don't keep secrets from each other. But when her youngest child, fifteen-year-old Naomi, doesn't come home after her school play and a nationwide search for her begins, secrets previously kept from Jenny are revealed. Naomi has vanished, leaving her family broken and her mother desperately searching for answers. But the traces Naomi's left behind reveal a very different girl to the one Jenny thought she'd raised. And the more she looks the more she learns that everyo...

Name of Book: Cauchemar Author: Alexandra Grigorescu ISBN: 978-1-77041-234-7 Publisher: ECW Press Type of book: spirits, orishas, Louisiana swamp, birth, death, love, parenthood, secrets, dreams, nightmares, thin line, crossroads Year it was published: 2015 Summary: An eerie and romantic Southern gothic drama Gripping, fast-paced, gorgeously written, and with unforgettable characters, Cauchemar tells the story of 20-year-old Hannah, who finds herself living alone on the edge of a Louisianan swamp after her adopted mother and protector dies. Hannah falls in love with Callum, an easy-going boat captain and part-time musician, but after her mysterious birth mother, outcast as a witch and rumoured to commune with the dead, comes back into Hannah’s life, she must confront what she’s been hiding from — the deadly spirits that haunt the swamp, the dark secrets of her past, and the nascent gift she possesses. Like the nightmares that plague Hannah, Cauchemar lingers an...