Virtual Tour and Review: Pumpkin Roll by Josi S. Kilpack

First line: “So, what’s the difference between a sociopath and a psychopath?”

From the back cover:

HALLOWEEN SALE AT THE WICK’D WHICH

Experiencing paranormal activity in your home?

Worried about ghosts, ghouls or goblins?

Hearing voices? Slamming doors? Feeling a cold mist?

Maybe it’s time for a quarterly cleansing…Hurry in now!

Sadie Hoffmiller believes in her abilities as a cook and as a detective. She believes in the beauty of a perfectly baked pumpkin roll. She does not, however, believe in ghosts.

As Halloween approaches, Sadie is looking forward to spending her favorite baking season of the year making delicious New England recipes in Boston, Massachusetts, with her favorite leading man, Pete Cunningham, as they babysit his three young grandsons. When the boys insist that Mrs. Wapple, the woman who lives across the street, is a witch, Sadie and Pete are anxious to distract the boys from such silly ideas.

Sadie tries to befriend Mrs. Wapple, but when her foolproof plate of cookies fails to work its magic, she is left with more questions than answers. And Sadie has never been one to leave a good questions unanswered.

The more she investigates, however, the stranger the answers become. And when Sadie learns the eccentric Mrs. Wapple has been attacked in her home, she knows time is running out. As the unexplained occurrences escalate, Sadie finds herself embroiled in yet another mystery with life-or-death consequences. Can Sadie discover whoever – or whatever – is behind the mystery before anyone else gets hurt? Or will this be the last time Sadie takes the case?

My thoughts: This is the 6th book in Josi S. Kilpack’s Sadie Hoffmiller’s Culinary Mystery series and it was quite a thrilling read. It’s the perfect book to curl up with during the Halloween season as it keeps you on the edge of your seat the entire book. 

Things get spooky pretty quickly for Sadie and her boyfriend Pete who are on vacation together while watching Pete’s grandchildren. Between light bulbs exploding, strange faces in the window, night time visitors and the witch across the street who is always digging in her yard, Sadie is sure there’s a mystery to be unraveled. In her nosy neighbor way she offers a plate of cookies to Mrs. Wapple and is determined to figure out why she’s so strange. From there, things take her on quite a thrilling ride.

Pumpkin Roll is a great read, with plenty to keep the reader guessing. I was never sure of the outcome or even what was going to happen next. The anticipation was not just for the next part of the story, but for the next recipe as well. Josi S. Kilpack includes recipes from “Sadie” within the chapter that she prepares the delectable dishes and there are quite a few that I plan on trying such as The Pumpkin Roll, Laree’s Ginger Cookies and the Cinnamon Twists. I’ve read all the books in this series and have to say this one is the scariest one by far. As an extra treat, there was a sneak peak of the next Sadie book, Banana Split, coming out next Spring.

About the author: Josi has combined her love of MOST things edible and her love of writing into the Sadie Hoffmiller Culinary Mystery series. Pumpkin Roll is the sixth book in what will be an eight book series. When Josi isn’t cooking or writing she’s trying to say ahead of her four children, hiding somewhere with a book in hand, or enjoying her backyard chickens. Josi and her family live in Willard, UT.

For more information about Josi, you can visit her website atwww.josiskilpack.comor her blog at www.josikilpack.blogspot.com

 I received a complimentary copy of Pumpkin Roll by Josi S. Kilpack from Pump Up Your Book  as part of the tour.

***Don’t forget about the giveaway to win an iPad 2 from author Josi S. Kilpack and the publisher, Shadow Mountain – click here to enter.