"Her Good Name"

One of the side benefits of writing books is that I've become friends with some really cool people. One of those very cool people is Josi S. Kilpack who lives in a nearby small town. Small town people already have a connection. There's an unspoken understanding of what it's like to be able to mail a package without standing in line, to have people wave because they recognize your car--when I got a new car it took me a while to figure out that people weren't suddenly snubbing me, they were snubbing the car. And to know that most people are related, so it's best to keep your mouth shut if you're thinking about passing along some gossip. But with Josi, it's more than that conncection. She's just one of those people. You know, the kind of people you want to hang with--for the rest of your life if possible.

Josi is really a busy though. So hanging out with her for a day is difficult, let alone for the rest of your life. But there's a really easy way that everyone gets to spend time with her. And that's through her books. Picking up a book of Josi's is seriously like having her be your best friend for the afternoon. The kind of books I like to read are the ones where I feel like I could go shopping with the character and know what they would pick out to buy--take Chrissy, the main character in Her Good Name. She buys bright clothing that accentuates her cute figure, loves high heels--all different kinds--even knows the names of the types of heel, which right there says we wouldn't be friends, but she is frugal and hardworking and knows how to get a good deal. She is tough, says what she thinks, but is compassionate when it comes to the people she loves. Chrissy is proud of her Mexican-American heritage, but refuses to let people see her as a stereotype. I like Chrissy. That's why I got involved with the story when her identity is stolen and the other person gets into all sorts of trouble that messes up the real Chressaidia's life and she has to take action in a big way.

I was lucky enough to read "Her Good Name" before it actually came out in print. I highly recommend Josi's books. They really do capture your interest from the first page, gives you a bunch of new friends to hang with for a few days and even think about for long afterward. Josi is good at having each book be about something more than suspense or romance. This book brings identity theft to the forefront and includes information at the end on how to avoid becoming a victim, but the information doesn't intrude on the story.

Josi has a new book coming out in the spring. The next book proves to be a lot of fun. I've only read a chapter or two of the next one, so it will hold more surprises for me than this one did. It is a culinary mystery!