Italy to Die For

From the Savino Sisters Mystery Series

By: Loretta Giacoletto

Narrated by: Susan Fouche

Length: 8 hrs and 35 mins

Publisher's summary

From The Savino Sisters Mystery Series.

Too much togetherness spells disaster for these thirty-something sisters vacationing in Italy. When glamorous Margo opts for a steamy romance in Florence, "plain Jane" Ellen travels alone to their next destination, a charming hillside villa at La Spezia. The owner Lorenz, a mysterious widower, insists on showing Ellen around Cinque Terre, five picturesque villages overlooking the Ligurian Sea. Ellen is determined to experience the local culture but instead encounters intrigue in Monterosso el Mare where gypsies are turning up dead faster than Lorenzo can show her the sights. Then Margo arrives, and soon discovers her own life is in danger.

©2013 Loretta Kay Giacoletto (P)2015 Loretta Kay Giacoletto

Italian Holiday Gypsy Curses Jane Erye Plot

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

It was an enjoyable read.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

Sort of sad yet predictable.

Have you listened to any of Susan Fouche’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

This is my first listen.

Did Italy to Die For inspire you to do anything?

Not really although I would of liked to of choked Margo the irritating narcissistic sister.

Any additional comments?

Two sisters go to Italy on holiday. Margo is a spoiled flighty narcissistic sex pot who dumps Ellen to get it on with an Italian mama's boy. Ellen the other sister is the intelligent, plan Jane, former nun librarian. Two bodies are found dead on the beach. One was a woman who had pick pocketed Ellen. The naive innocent Ellen has her first romantic fling and becomes a woman. Then there are the Gypsies, and the Gypsy curses. Also there are shades of Jane Eyre in the plot. Over all not a real interesting original plot. The self absorbed irritating Margo and the narrator's performance of Margo is what made the book an enjoyable and interesting listen.

“I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review via AudiobookBlast dot come”

Flawed Characters and Mysterious Deaths

This was an interesting story. The characters were flawed, and in some cases irritating. I view this as a positive- characters aren't supposed to be flat and predictable. The story was entertaining and kept the plot steadily moving forward, if a bit slow at times. I enjoyed the surprising throwback in the story to an old favorite. (To name it would be a spoiler.)

I liked the narrator as well and would gladly listen to her in the future.

I received this book for free from the author, publisher or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review.

Bella Italia! (with a little blood)

This light, frothy romantic cozy mystery is as much fun as a vacation in Italy. The writer has captured the delightful ambiance of the Ligurian Coast, and has created a setting that appeals to all of our senses in charming ways. The mystery elements tease the reader, and the fun of this book is not as much in the resolution as in the clue by clue unraveling of the puzzle. Alongside the main mystery are a few others, like why are the 2 main characters being threatened and by who? This isn’t a serious book, by any stretch, but, as escape literature, it provides enough charm and fun to make it well worth the reading, and can function nicely as a mental palate cleanser after a more dense and serious book. The writing is very good, sometimes direct, sometimes dramatic, and sometimes vividly descriptive, demonstrating the author’s stylistic capabilities to excellent effect.

In addition, the character building here is excellent. Each character is unique and interesting, and all of them are believable. They act in ways the reader would expect from the information either provided directly or implied (from what they say, among other techniques), and each character adds something to the story as a whole.

I cannot fault the narrator’s professionalism, either. She is able to give each character his or her own “voice”, including the rather delicate task of differentiating 2 sisters of similar ages and backgrounds. This becomes very important, because the story is told in alternating chapters, each narrated by one of the sisters. One can tell who is narrating at any given time, just from the tone of voice, and certain speech mannerisms the narrator uses. In addition, the narrator is obviously more than a little familiar with Italian pronunciation, so her presentation of Italian words and of accented English is impeccable. True, her gypsies aren’t quite as natural or believable, but she still manages to make them unique from the other characters and from each other.

I did find the narration sometimes a little overdramatic, and the narrators voice a bit too light and sweet for my taste, but that is a personal preference, and has nothing at all to do with her capabilities.

I give both book and narrator 4 stars, and recommend this lovely little “vacation” to anyone needing to walk on the lighter side of life for a little while.

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for this unbiased review from audioBookBlast dot com.

No thanks

I was gifted this book with the understanding that I would give a true review. The storyline on this book just moved way too slow for me I was also not a fan of the characters.I did feel that the narrator did a wonderful job

Italy to die for

Any additional comments?

This was an entertaining story. The descriptions of the setting were evocative and authentic. The story is about two sisters vacationing in Italy where they encounter some mysterious happenings, including murder. There are a lot of twists and turns and surprises along the way

This audiobook was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review courtesy of AudiobookBlast dot com

Convoluted!

Either this plot was one coincidence after another or I missed it. At the end I wasn't satisfied with the ending at all. It did keep my interest all the way through.

A little slow, but enjoyable

** I was given this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

I love Loretta Giacoletto, and this book was good. It did seem to drag and took a while to get into. I have to say once into it though, it was fun and interesting. I have never been to Italy, so the site seeing was a lot of fun. The characters...Ellen was ok, a little boring for me. Margo..didn't like her. Very self centered, not my kind of "friend" and I tend to try to relate to the characters. Love Lorenzo, felt for his plight in life and wished things would have worked out differently. And who would have thought that Johnathan would have been as important a character? Lots of things to keep track of and work through, and in the end the story was enjoyable.


The narration of this book by Susan Fouche was outstanding. I thought she did an amazing job bringing the characters to life. Her Italian accents were spot on and she definitely kept me going while I was listening.

Italy to "meh minus" for!

Italy to Die For is a weird book. I could not get into it at the beginning because it was seemingly plotless, and i was somewhat bored about the book the hole time! Loretta Giacoletto never made me interested enough to care! When i don't care i just want to quit! So i was bored all 8 hrs and 35 mins, so it felt like it was 16 hrs long! So that is not a positive thing! The Savino Sisters did not make me a fan, and i will not return to this series! this was my first Loretta Giacoletto book, and i am not sure if i will read something else by her!

Susan Fouche is more then okey, she is good. To bad the material was so "meh! I would quit Italy to Die For: From the Savino Sisters Mystery Series if it was not for Susan Fouche. Not sure if Susan Fouche is totally engaged in this book, but i cant really blame her! So the 8 hrs and 35 mins would be so much more boring without Susan Fouche, but i still don't recommend this book!

I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review via AudiobookBlast dot com

Awful Narration

I thought this was being narrated by a computer voice. I could not listen to it, the narration is really terrible. "I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review via Audiobook Blast."

Who is killing Gypsies?

I love to travel in the books I read. Having just finished a wonderful book from this same area I picked this for my next read. This really did not provide much of the area and the story seemed contrived to just add the dead gypsies. the connections with the sisters, the grand Italian, the American tourists and the mystery? They seemed to jump in and out not really connecting. It was a puzzle with missing pieces! The reader drove me batty. What a forced obnoxious voice! Sorry but OMG. I always finish a book but was left at the end was mostly feeling disconnected.