The Shadow Besider Her – Elizabeth S. Devecchi

Strong 4.5 stars

Elizabeth drew me in so much with Maria’s story that I forgot entirely that I would be meeting Princess! I was so caught up in what was happening with the war and Maria’s family and all the horrible things that were happening there that it completely slipped my mind about Princess and Maria being from the first book **facepalm**

Which, speaking of, WHAT A TRAGEDY!! Jesus, heart ripped out to the max.  War stories are always hard for me, having grown up in the VFW, and Elizabeth did such a good job showing the impact on the common people that World War II had.  She gave a unique perspective of a family post Italy’s decision to change sides and work with the Allies and it made Maria’s situation hit even harder, especially given what ends up happening to her entire family.

Elizabeth has a way of writing characters that, even when you don’t particularly like them or empathise with them, you can’t help but being drawn in and absolutely invested in every little thing about them.  I always have a hard time with protagonists who are children because it’s more difficult for me to relate to them and understand the way they act and the choices they make, but I couldn’t help falling in love with Maria and Gianni (bless her poor naive heart on that one).

The Shadow Beside Her is an excellent follow up to A Whisper in the Dark! It gives all the backstory and answers that I was looking for after reading Whisper, though now it’s even more tragic that Maria was already gone at that point.  I’m so intrigued and curious about the world that Elizabeth has built here and Princess and all her weird lizard self!  Maybe a bit slow at the start for my liking, but a fantastic read nonetheless and I can’t wait to see what else Elizabeth has in store