Deadly Little Lessons by Laurie Faria Stolarz

Deadly Little Lessons:
Camelia Hammond's trying junior year of high school is finally over...but her troubles aren't. After she discovers a painful truth about her family, she escapes to a summer arts program in Rhode Island. Determined to put family - and boyfriend - drama behind her, she throws herself into her artwork.

At the arts school, she gets caught up in the case of Sasha Beckerman, a local girl who is missing. Even though all signs suggest that the teen ran away, Camelia senses otherwise. Eager to help the girl, she launches her own investigation. She finds a blog by someone named Neal Moche, a psychometric who might have clues to Sasha's whereabouts. There is something familiar about Neal, and Camelia realizes how much she misses Ben, despite being committed to Adam.

But time is running out for Sasha, and Camelia will have to trust her powers if she's to save her. Will the lessons Camelia has learned in the past give her the strength to do so?

Deadly Little Lessons was a marvelous ending to the Touch series by Laurie Faria Stolarz. While not necessarily the strongest book in the series, it had everything I needed to say goodbye to these characters, although I was sad to see them go. I loved that each book had its own separate mystery and has suspense filled pages. Laurie created dramatic and thrilling storylines in every book and this was no different, she never failed to keep me guessing right up until the very end when the killer is finally revealed. All of the characters in these books were well rounded, and I’m just as sad to say farewell to Wes and Kimmie as I am to Ben and Camelia. The push and pull of romantic tension between Ben and Camelia had me on the edge of my seat through the last three books, and can happily say that I was ecstatic when Ben finally admits he loves Camelia—and they end up with their own version of a happily-ever-after. Camelia’s journey throughout these books was ultimately one of self discovery. Her psychometric powers continued to grow in strength, and she had to decide whether she was going to become a victim like her mentally ill aunt, or make the choice to use them as they are meant to be used.

When Camelia discovers a life altering secret her parents have kept from her, she looks for an escape. And she finds one in a summer program for high school students to study art at certain colleges. But that is just an excuse for her to get closer to the home of a missing girl. Camelia begins hearing a voice crying and is having psychometric episodes that are giving her clues to where the missing girl might be. While she is trying to excel in her pottery classes, figure out clues and sort out her feelings for her parents, Adam is pressuring her to simply “let it be.” He wants her to be happy, and he is truly a great guy, but he just doesn’t understand what she is going through and how her powers are going to affect her future. Ben is adamant about staying away from Camelia, but when he learns that she is having difficulties, he cannot stay away. His return really opens Camelia’s eyes about her relationship with Adam. And Ben returns to her just in time, because Camelia knows where the missing girl is, and she’s bound and determined to save her. Even if it means putting herself in danger.