Josi Kilpack Top Ten List and a Review: Daisy

I just finished Josi Kilpack's new book, Daisy, the second installment in the Newport Ladies' Book Club.  I'll be honest, I was a little worried because I didn't know how the authors would handle essentially the same situations, except from a different woman's perspective.  I worried for nothing.

Josi's writing voice is loud and clear in Daisy and so different from Julie Wright's Olivia.  I think that's what I liked most about it, is that I enjoyed both books, but for very different reasons.  Olivia's story was gut-wrenching, and Josi's s main character Daisy has just as many complicated decisions that she's facing in her life, but she deals with them in a way that makes her story compelling and compassionate.

I guess what I'm trying to say is I liked looking at the women from the perspective of knowing what was going on, but seeing it through someone else's eyes.  I often think if we could really see a situation from someone else's view, through their eyes so to speak, perhaps we wouldn't be so quick to judge because we would see why they reacted the way they did because of their background and experiences.  Does that make any sense?

The other thing that I really enjoyed about this book was the character growth in Daisy.  It was so subtle and well-crafted and really makes you take a look at your own inner child and what it means to grow up.  The characters are so real and flawed, it added that sense of realism to the story in that it felt like we were peeking into these people's lives.  Really well done.

My point is, I really enjoyed the story, even though I didn't know if I would.  Josi has such a smooth writing style it was easy to get lost in the story and Daisy is a character that I could see wanting to be friends with.  She's dealing with a blended family and yet feeling lonely, with daughters who are making adult decisions that they may or may not be ready for, and when life-changing events come along, she finds support in friends from a book club she didn't know she needed.  This book will make you laugh and make you cry, and make you wonder why you waited so long to read it.  It is a wonderful second installment to the series and I'm anxiously waiting for the next one.

Here is the back copy:


Motherhood is not for the faint of heart. And no one knows that better than Daisy. Raising two kids as a divorced, single mom, Daisy has faced each and every one of the obstacles in her life with courage and determination.

Now with her oldest daughter ready to have a baby of her own, her youngest daughter ready to graduate from high school, and her new husband, Paul, ready to embrace the life of an empty-nester, Daisy feels like she might finally be able to check "motherhood" off her list of things to do.

Except life often has a mind of its own. When, at age of forty-six, Daisy suddenly finds herself facing a very different future than the one she had planned--and an uncomfortable evaluation of the past she thought she understood--she realizes that there is still some growing up she needs to do.

Looking for a distraction to escape the growing tension at home, Daisy joins the Newport Ladies Book Club, where she meets Paige, Athena, and Olivia--unlikely friends who offer encouragement and support when Daisy's perfectly crafted life is turned upside-down


And to continue our Top Ten List for Writing Motivation When You Don't Feel Like Writing from best-selling authors, here is Josi Kilpack's.

Ten things that keep me motivated:

1--Deadlines from publishers


2--Deadlines from friends (I'll make bets or have to report to them)


3--Venting to people who care enough to listen to me vent (and realize I'll be venting again in the future)

4--Rereading fan mail and remembering why I do this in the first place.


5--Taking a break to write something else (short story, different book, article, journal entry, blog, etc.)


6--Doing some research.


7--Taking a break to read a book written by authors I love.

8--Cleaning out a closet and thinking about my story while I do it.


9--Going back to my character sketches to make sure I know them well enough to write 
about them.


10--Run.




Thanks, Josi!