#josi s. kilpack

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Top Ten Tuesday: 11 Pink Books

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Autumnal Reads

Autumn Chills by Agatha Christie

The Pumpkin Spice Cafe by Laurie Gilmore

Anne Of Green Gables by L.M Montgomery

The Midnight Club by Christopher Pine

If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio

How To Sell A Haunted House by Grady Hendrix

Hallowe'en Party by Agatha Christie

Accidentally Amy by Lynn Painter

The Cinnamon Bun Bookstore by Laurie Gilmore

Pumpkin Roll by Josi S. Kilpack

The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury

Pumpkinheads by Rainbow Rowell

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

The Ex Hex by Erin Sterling

The Pumpkin Muffin Murder by Livia J. Washburn

Death of a Neighbourhood Witch by Laura Levine

Her Favorite Jack-O-Lantern by Rebecca Rennick

Halloween Fiend by C.V. Hunt

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The Candy Cane Caper by Josi S. Kilpack

Josi S. Kilpack’s The Candy Cane Caper is a wonderful and gentle Christmas cosy that’ll fill you with holiday joy. This is my first book in the series but I had no problem understanding what was happening.

Former private investigator Sadie has an overflowing plate this Christmas. She’s prepping for an epic holiday gathering for her huge blended family. But now, there’s a mystery in the mix! Someone has stolen expensive antique Christmas tree ornaments from Mary, Sadie’s elderly friend. Mary lives in a care facility and this will probably be her last Christmas so Sadie hides the theft from her. Mary wants to enjoy her ornaments for one last Christmas before she gives them to her beloved great-granddaughter after Christmas Eve Mass. With time ticking, Sadie must recover Mary’s precious ornaments before it’s too late!

I wasn’t expecting such a sweet and deep story but this book strikes all the right chords to really move you! Kilpack skilfully handles issues of death, making amends, and family against the backdrop of the warmth and hope of the holiday season.

This book is a true cosy. It’s super clean with no violence. I really like the mystery of the missing ornaments and I loved learning about their history. I enjoyed Sadie’s culinary adventures as well as her sleuthing and shenanigans! There are several viable and well-written suspects and the plot takes some interesting turns. I really didn’t guess the culprit until the big reveal.

However, I wish the plot was more exciting with more tension and suspense. I had no doubt that Sadie would save the day. However, this didn’t ruin my enjoyment of the book. The lack of tension actually adds to the gentleness of the book and I think this will appeal to readers who are looking for an easy and quiet read.

The characters are all memorable and well-crafted. I like Sadie but her anxiety and judging attitude isn’t entirely relatable and sometimes irritated me. Mary’s storyline is touching and sad. I loved her interactions with Sadie, as well as beloved great-granddaughter Joy and somewhat estranged daughter Ivy. I like that there is meaningful and organic growth for all these characters.

I absolutely love the delicious festive recipes! I like that they’re meaningfully placed at the end of the chapters that the food was mentioned in. I love that so many of them are approachable and I can’t wait to make Sadie’s Candy Cane Crinkles or her Cinnamon Pie.

The Candy Cane Caper is a sweet cosy that’ll put you in the Christmas frame of mind. This is the first Kilpack book that I’ve read and I will definitely check out more in this series!

Thank you to NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for this book in exchange for an honest review.

🎅🎅🎅🎅 Santa Clauses out of 5!

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Book Showcase: LOVE AND LAVENDER by Josi S. Kilpack

Read an #excerpt from LOVE AND LAVENDER, book 4 in the Mayfield Family series by @josiskilpack. #fiction #historicalfiction #newbooks #regencyromance #inspirationalfiction #historicalromance #VBT #blogtour #AustenProsePR @ShadowMountn @austenprose

Love and Lavender, Mayfield Family #4, by Josi S. KilpackISBN: 9781629729299 (paperback)ISBN: 9781649330345 (ebook)ASIN: B09DDKF4F7 (Kindle edition)ASIN: B09BK6MRR5 (Audible audiobook)Release Date: November 2, 2021Publisher: Shadow Mountain PublishingGenre: Fiction | Historical Fiction | Historical Romance | Regency Romance | Inspirational Fiction  Hazel Stillman is a woman of rare independence…

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Daisies and Devotion by Josi S. Kilpack

Daisies and Devotion by Josi S. Kilpack

Timothy Mayfield is ready to marry for love, but, since his personal finances are thinner than he’d like, he knows he’ll also need to find a wife with wealth. After receiving an unexpected inheritance, Timothy’s circumstances change, and he is free to pursue his “perfect woman”—one with blonde hair, blue eyes, a light laugh, arched eyebrows, elegant fingers, and a dazzling smile, among nearly…

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Life comes with only one guarantee - it will not last forever. Embrace every day and know that there is never a shadow so dark that some joy can't find its way through if you let it.

Josi S. Kilpack, The Candy Cane Caper

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Lemon Tart by Josi S. Kilpack

Lemon Tart by Josi S. Kilpack

I love mystery novels, the suspense, the way your mind spins trying to solve the puzzle; there is nothing quite like it. So my mom is a mystery junky as well and convinced me to start the Culinary Mysteries series. If you’re a fan of the famous TV show Murder She Wrote, you will fall in love with this series just as I did. The story starts out with main character, Sadie Hoffmiller, doing a…

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Happy STS! What are your favorite genres to read? Are there any books (or fics!) you would recommend in those genres?

I love reading mystery, fantasy, and superhero stories!

For mystery, I recommend reading “A Culinary Mystery” series by Josi S Kilpack. (Thank You, Grandma for recommending me this book series in 2016!)

For fantasy, I recommend reading:

“The Chronicles of Narnia” series by C.S. Lewis

“100 Cupboards” books 1,2,3 by N.D. Wilson

“The Clockwork Faerie Tale Novella” series by Jes Drew

“Howling Twenties” series by Jes Drew

ALL FANTASY BOOKS SERIES BY NICKI CHAPELWAY

“Remnant” Trilogy by Angela R. Watts

Superhero books I recommend:

“IDIA” series by C.B. COOK

“Ninja and Hunter” series by Jes Drew

“Agents Adam and Eve” by Jes Drew

“Kristin Clark and the American Agenda” series by Jes Drew

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Review: Daisies and Devotions

Synopsis:

Timothy Mayfield is ready to marry for love, but, since his personal finances are thinner than he’d like, he knows he’ll also need to find a wife with wealth. After receiving an unexpected inheritance, Timothy’s circumstances change, and he is free to pursue his “perfect woman”—one with blonde hair, blue eyes, a light laugh, arched eyebrows, elegant fingers, and a dazzling smile, among nearly twenty other characteristics.  Maryann Morrington doesn’t match anything on Timothy’s list—except for wealth. An heiress in her own right, she is tired of men pursuing her only for her money. But at nearly twenty-two years old, and not a particularly stunning beauty, she can’t be as picky as her friend Timothy is. The two friends end up playing matchmaker for each other. Timothy will find a decent gentleman for Maryann, and Maryann will prove to Timothy that his “perfect woman” doesn’t exist. Until Miss Shaw comes to London. Now, with Timothy’s heart captivated by the blonde, blue-eyed beauty, Maryann must decide if she should risk her heart and reveal her true feelings for her friend, or if she should settle for someone else. It’s an up-and-down game of “he loves me, he loves me not” with both hearts and friendship on the line.

Plot:

Maryann was tired of London. She was tired of the balls, tired of the callings to her home; all she wanted was to go back to her family’s home in the country, back to the sea. With her fortune known to many of the men in London, Maryann was struggling to find if they liked her for her, because it was defiantly not for her looks that keep them coming to her door. Maryann took the bold step to finally ask one of them, the one being her friend Timothy Mayfield.  Timothy was shocked by Maryann’s boldness but answered her regardless. He was a man that wanted to marry for love but also for wealth. Where Maryann was not his perfect women, he would marry her and find ways to love her, despite all her flaws. When he went to visit his Uncle Elliott, Elliott gave him to the marriage campaign proposal, promising Timothy that if he married someone Elliott approve of, he would gain money and land. Timothy was overjoyed, as finally, he can marry whom he wants, and not have to rely on her wealth for him to make a family. When he told Maryann, his friend, he thought that she would be pleased; however, she was the opposite. Demanding to know what his ‘perfect women was’ Timothy gave her his list: “she should enjoy dogs and riding horses traveling at a moment’s notice, dancing in the rain, fine wine, and social events” (46).  Maryann was more hurt, as she does not fit any of Timothy’s requirements to be his wife. Determine to find math for the other, Timothy and Maryann set off to find someone they think the other would like. Where Maryann finds Miss Shaw, the tall blonde, light laugh girl of Timothy’s dreams, Timothy finds her Charles, who is not a true beauty himself, enjoys talking to Maryann. Yet something is off about Charles and Miss Shaw, and as the two lovers stare at the perfect match, they cannot help but look back at each other, to see if they were making a mistake.

Thoughts:

What another wonderful edition from the Mayfield family, brought to us by Josi S. Kilpack. Taking from the point of view of Maryann and Timothy, Kilpack gives us a proper romance that we will soon not forget. Where you do not have to read the first book in the series, Promises and Primroses, to understand this one, it is pleasant to see where the two stories cross over, as this book takes place after Peter and Julia’s engagement. As Timothy is Peter’s younger brother, they share the same childhood but have overcome things differently. Where Peter was a brooding character that Julia brought to light, Timothy is an over-energetic character, to whom Maryann seems to settle down. The romance between Timothy and Maryann is sweet, as they pretend to be friends that do not feel anything when they see the other on dates or dancing with someone else. Timothy and his list were a bit much; however, most men in Timothy’s situation have their ideal women that have personality traits, physical traits, and traits that a girl cannot control, like her laugh.  Like all proper romance novels, Kilpack has you sitting at the edge of your seat, waiting for the characters to confess their love to each other in a very non-proper way, a way that does not ever come. With nice writing that keeps the story going, a few plot twists like what was wrong with Charles and Miss Shaw, and of course the hope that Timothy would realize that his friend Maryann was the girl he had been looking for all along.

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A Hopeful Fall TBR '23

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Reading List 2019 (January - June)

Below are the list of books I’ve read so far this year. I’d like to write short reviews for the books, however, I don’t know if I’ll be able to do it for all them but I’ll try. Once I write the review I’ll edit this post and add the link to the review. Also, we still have another week until the end of June so I’ll edit this list with any other books I read in the following week. 

ADULT FICTION

Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

The Palace of Illusions

Paula Brackston

The Silver Witch

The Winter Witch

The Little Shop of Found Things

The Witches Daughter 

The Return of the Witch 

Dana Chamblee Carpenter

Bohemian Gospel

The Devil’s Bible

Yangsze Choo

The Ghost Bride

Deborah Harkness

A Discovery of Witches

YOUNG ADULT

Alexandra Christo

To Kill a Kingdom

Y.S. Lee

The Agency: A Spy in the House (Book 1)

The Agency: The Body at the Tower (Book 2)

Tricia Levenseller

Daughter of the Pirate King

Daughter of the Siren King

ROMANCE

Tessa Dare

Girl Meets Duke Series

The Duchess Deal

The Governess Game

Josi S. Kilpack

Mayfield Family Series

Primroses and Promises

Daisies and Devotion

Lisa Kleypas

The Ravenels Series

Cold-Hearted Rake

Marrying Winterborne

Devil in Spring

Hello Stranger

Devil’s Daughter

Mimi Matthews

The Matrimonial Advertisement

The Love Letter: A Victorian Romance

The Viscount and the Vicar’s Daughter

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Like a quilt, life comes together one piece at a time, and it takes some patience before you can stand back and proclaim it a masterpiece.

Josi S. Kilpack, The Candy Cane Caper

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Horses, Hounds & Happily Ever After

Horses, Hounds & Happily Ever After

Horses, Hounds & Happily Ever After Clarissa Kae & Jolene Perry & Josi S. Kilpack & Jennifer Moore & Nancy Campbell Allen & Martha Keyes The Wolf of Heathrow Manor, Clarissa Kae – When wolves threaten her home, Lady Josephine rides through Lord Fennyson’s woods, a man as wild as the wolves.Della and Archie’s SecondChance, Jo Perry – One awful mistake separated Della and Archie. Can they return to…

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Tour & Giveaway | Meet Me Under the Kissing Bough

Tour & Giveaway | Meet Me Under the Kissing Bough

On Tour with Prism Book Tours Meet Me Under the Kissing Bough By Josi S. Kilpack, Anneka R. Walker, Sarah L. McConkie Historical Romance Paperback, E-book, & Audiobook, 268 Pages September 1, 2021 by Covenant Communications A CHRISTMAS ROMANCE COLLECTION We wish you a merry Christmas and a happily ever after! This special holiday historical romance anthology featuring three heartwarming…