Josie De Clare has recently finished high school and is going to start university, though a semester late; she and her boyfriend just broke up, and she is grieving her father’s recent death from cancer. Her mother, divorced from her father years before, isn’t someone she can look to for support. So when she finds out that her father had bought an old estate needing renovation in the north of England, Josie decides to go there to check it out. Soon after she arrives at Cadwallader Manor, she finds a cache of old letters written to a young woman named Josephine, and the more she reads, the more the young man’s descriptions of Josephine sound just like her! And it’s not just letters she finds, but an unfinished novel.

In 1820, Elias Roch is the illegitimate son of a nobleman who stands to inherit his father’s title and property since there were no other children. Although he’s been well-educated and trained to take his father’s place, Elias feels keenly that he doesn’t quite fit in. He feels more comfortable at the more secluded family estate of Cadwallader Manor. He is expected to marry a suitable young woman of good family and name, but he had an extraordinary connection with a young lady named Josephine whom he met once and is trying to find again. In the meantime, he’s writing her letters and even a novel based on himself and his feelings for her.

As the book goes on, it becomes clearer than somehow, Elias and Josie are connected, but how can they possibly be together when they’re separated by 200 years?

This whole book is written mostly in letter form, as emails or texts from Josie to her friend Faith and from Faith to Josie; as the letters from Elias to Josephine; as other texts interspersed to and from Josie’s mother, her ex, and a young man she’s befriending in the town next to the manor. The remainder is the novel written by Elias, and they’re all mixed up together. The novel and the letters from Elias are the heftiest part of the book; Josie’s emails and texts take up less space in the book and are not as well-written, considering they’re by a modern-day 18-year-old and the words from Elias are created by someone in a past era where missives were given more thought and heft. I’ve found that the method of crafting a novel exclusively through letters is a challenging one; the writer really has to do it well to make it work, and many authors simply don’t. That’s the case here. The story feels choppy and lopsided. It could have used a lot more work with a talented editor to make it flow better.

I could appreciate the “moral of the story” once the book concluded, but it felt tacked on, rather than being a truly natural conclusion of the narrative. And while I have no problem suspending belief for any kind of magical stories or stories that have some element of fantasy, this didn’t work for me because, even within the fantasy, it didn’t make sense. There still has to be some internal logic, and I never found any explanation for Elias somehow having met Josie, while she never met him.

All in all, this one fell flat.

I enjoyed Dearest Josephine much more than I expected!
Josie De Clare’s father recently passed away, and she’s still reeling from his loss. After finding out about a house he bought to renovate, Josie retreats to the secluded manor to try to fix it up and figure out her next steps.
The story unfolds through emails, texts, letters, and excerpts from a novel by one of the manor’s previous tenants. Not my favorite format for a book, so it’s extra impressive that I enjoyed it!
Throughout the book, Josie is working her way through grief. She’s fixing the house, reconnecting with her friend Faith, making new friends, and falling in love with a man who lived 200 years ago. Did she have the healthiest coping mechanisms? No. Were they heartfelt and authentic? Yes.
I was most invested in Josie and Faith’s relationship and the rocky path of mending it again because that was the relationship I could relate to the most.
Did I swoon at some of Elias’s letters? Yes, yes, I did. I adored the Pride & Prejudice references, and the beautiful, pure emotion of the letters got to me a little more than I expected (even considering they were written to a woman that he only knew for a few hours). Honestly, I can’t blame Josie for falling in love with him because I would have too.
I enjoyed the little bit of mystery, as well: is there actually time travel? Do they somehow end up together? How does Elias know so much about Josie?

The format of the book is a little different than traditional so you are sort of more absorbed in a way. The prose of the story was intriguing and I find myself rooting for the characters and eager to find out what happens next.

I was so intrigued by this story but it really let me down and I wasn't able to finish more than half of it.

"Hearts are muscles, and muscles have memory."

At her father's house after his death, Josie discovers some hidden letters addressed to her—except that they're 200 years old! Reading through them, she develops an attachment to Elias, the man who wrote them. When she finds the start of a manuscript he wrote about Josephine, she's determined to find out how his story ends.

This is a story of heartbreak and healing, of words that stretch across time to connect with a soul who needs them. It's romantic and engrossing, poetic and emotional. Readers of YA romance, contemporary romance, and Regency romance will all find something to love about this book.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

The BEST reason for having a Kindle.... Is reading in bed at night❤

"Dearest Josephine" by Caroline George was adorably cute and romantic. Yes, I use the word adorable.

What I loved the most about this story is the way the author told it: letters, texts, and email. Very creative! I also have a soft spot for our main character as she shares a name with my own sassy J. This one gave me all the feels, and I loved the twist at the end. Elias Roch is the ultimate swoon-worthy romantic who is on a quest to find Josephine. Elias also means messenger.... Did the author choose his name on purpose?
As Elias pens his letters and novel chapters, Josephine reads them, and together they work thru their emotions. They find healing, and dare I say love.

I now have a desire to procure cute stationary, and write letters of my own....

#dearestjosephine #carolinegeorge #thomasnelsonpublishing #harpercollinschristianpublishing
#cleanromance #youngadultfiction

Josie relocates to Cadwallader Manor in England. She discovers some beautifully written love letters which

were apparently meant for her, even though they were penned more than two hundred years before her birth..

The letters were never actually posted. Josie sets out to solve this mystery while falling in love with Elias, the

writer. This is a wonderfully written timeslip novel. A story within a story. It is atmospheric and emotional..

A true romance.

Thank you to NetGalley, Thomas Nelson Fiction, and Caroline George for the opportunity to read Dearest Josephine in exchange for an honest review.

This book is an absolute joy told in letters, e-mails, texts, and prose. Josie De Clare has just moved to Cadwallader Manor after the death of her father. She cleans up the place, looks for a job in the local community, and even meets a boy. Throughout, she e-mails and texts her friend Faith about all the adventures the massive home has to offer. The biggest adventures are the letters and unfinished manuscript by Elias Roche.

Josie indulges herself in the unsent letter by Elias Roche as well as the novel he began writing. The structure of the novel goes present-day Josie, Elias letters, Elias novel, in that cycle. Josie lives in contemporary times, and as she gets to know Elias through his letters and manuscript, she falls in love with him, despite the fact he lived 200 years before she did. The catch? Elias is writing to a girl named Josephine De Clare. There's even a painting in Cadwallader Manor that resembles Josie. She is absolutely convinced that Elias is writing to her from the past somehow. But how can that be? What will Josie discover as she continues to read Elias's letters and manuscript?

I enjoyed the glamor this novel presents in its romance aspect, though the coincidences are quite unrealistic. But that's what makes it magical. I felt like the ending was very realistic, even though I was somewhat disappointed. There is definitely a good message that lingers with the reader at the end of the novel. I thought this was a quick read and quite a joy. This book is a great recommendation for those who love the Regency era romance genre.

Dearest Josephine had a unique premise but with too many plot lines. I hope the final copy is placed on the page to make it easier to differentiate which plotline. I found it confusing to figure out in that it is a slip time story, with various voices, and a novel inside the story. It was just a difficult read, repetitive with unengaging characters. Those who enjoy Regency/modern-day slip time novels may appreciate this, but I don't recommend it. My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for affording me an ARC for this honest review.

So today, I got sent home from school because I am a moron and my quarantine wasn’t over. 🤦‍♀️ I knocked this out on audiobook at 2X speed. I recognize I may have missed some stuff at that speed, but it was just a little too out there for me. I liked it fine, but it’s not one I’d recommend for people to read.

I am not sure how to approach this book. I did not finish it, I end up DNFing it.
The premise was really good, but I did not manage to connect with it, and I was dragging to finish, so I decided to leave it alone. It was a shame because the audiobook is so good, the voices and the format really worked for me, but the content just did not appeal in the end. I guess because of the time travel aspect, I suppose there would be some fantasy to it and that did not happen, and that is totally on me.
I did like it overall, just could not connect to it, unfortunately

What a beautifully written, emotional story about grief, love, and loss. I loved the way the epistolary format allowed us inside the characters minds while preserving their unique perspectives. All throughout the book I thought it would end a certain way and tried to imagine how the author would make it work, but the ending took a pleasantly unexpected turn. This is billed as YA fiction, but I think it would be enjoyed and appreciated by readers of all ages.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I was expecting a love story through the ages, but the emails and text messages of the present-day person made it very confusing for me to follow and keep up with

There is something magically voyeuristic in reading letters written to others. It took me a while to get into the grove and learn the voices, which is normal for me with books like this and not a negative. A beautiful love story, past and present, and the love of a forever friend. The author really brought the story to life. Any book that makes me giggle a bit out loud, especially when unexpected, is a win for me!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Dearest Josephine was one heck of a ride. The formatting, while I know some readers will hate, once I got used to it made the story go by quickly, I read it in one setting and it felt like no time had gone by. The plot was very interesting and while I could tell kind of how the book was going to end, I didn’t know how it was going to get there, I certainly wasn’t expecting the plot twist. The characters though, is why I loved this book. I don’t want to spoil anything but I loved all the characters, well except Josie’s mom, but that’s to be expected. I feel like the way the story was formatted made you feel like you had a closer connection to the characters and I was a little sad when the story ended and that connection was gone. Overall it was a really good read.

I was so excited about the idea of this book, and that’s about where my excitement ended. I liked the storytelling device - letters, emails, etc. but a lot of the rest of it fell flat for me. First of all, some of the very important plot elements are never explained - like how did Elias know her? Had the actually met in some worm hole of time/space? Additionally, I felt like the story was VERY repetitive. I appreciate the epistolary frame, but in this case, it often get like just listening to people discuss the same thing over and over. I did love some of the characters, and the setting was lovely. Overall, this was a miss for me. Lastly, this ARC had a LOT of editing and formatting errors, which I’m sure will be fixed before publication, but it did make the reading experience a bit confusing.

*Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an early copy of this book for review, all opinions are my own*

The way this book is written and formatted was in my opinion what will make you like it or hate it. I admit that at first I didn't like it but I got used to it until I picked up the pace of reading.
I thought it would be a faster book to read but it wasn't, I think my biggest problem was The Novel part of the book which besides being a bit boring seemed irrelevant to me and left me confused.
The story itself is a bit still, but it has a mystery that kept me interested in what was going on.
The romance or the romances depending on how you understand the story was what irritated me the most, the deep and irrevocable love that the characters felt made me roll my eyes at each page, which made me hate the characters and dislike the story not caring anymore about the mystery going on.
In the end, it wasn't even the format of the book and the author's writing that made me dislike this book, but the story itself, where characters fall in love without any interaction with each other. (If you read you will understand what I'm talking about)

I am speechless, I am happy but sad at once. I wasn't expecting this book to be this brilliant. I have to admit the format seemed a bit strange in the beginning but when I have got into the story it all made sense. I've hoped until the very end for a miracle but on the other hand, I wouldn't want another ending as this one was truly amazing and made the story a happy one.

This story grabbed me with its paws and hasn't let loose until the very end.

It was a book inside of a book, lots of letters, texting, and emails written apart in two different centuries yet so very close. The wait for a reveal was worth waiting until the end. I was feeling Josie's and Ellias's pain. All their emotions, the love for each other, the sadness, and first and foremost the hope to meet their soulmate.

I can only recommend this amazing book as I enjoyed reading it.

I would also like to thank NetGalley and Thomas Nelson for the early ARC.

To be honest, I don't typically read many YA books, but every once in awhile a story will catch my eye and I'll give them a shot. Dearest Josephine was one of those stories. I was intrigued by this unique star crossed love between the years concept. Aside from that, many of my favorite books as a kid and teen were those written in letter form, so that aspect interested me as well. I had high hopes for this book, and couldn't wait to check it out.

I must admit, for me, it was a little bit of a letdown. I discovered that perhaps my taste in writing styles has changed more than I'd realized as I didn't find myself being drawn into the story as it was being told through emails, text, etc. That being said, the book still had a lot going for it. First and foremost, the story itself is quite unique both in it's content and how it was told... definitely not your typical love story or like any YA fiction I've read. And while I may not have connected with the story, I could appreciate that it was well written as well. Honestly, I found myself thinking that this was just the type of story that I would have enjoyed when I was younger, even if it wasn't for me now.

Overall while it wasn't my personal favorite read, this was a well written and unique story that I think younger readers and those who enjoy stories written in this format will enjoy. It's definitely worth giving a shot!

** I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley for consideration. All thoughts are my own.

This book blew my mind! Like, it’s been a while since I finished reading it, and I still can’t completely wrap my head around it. It was vastly different than what I had expected, and I mean that in the best way possible.

First off, let me start with the format of the novel. I love epistolary novels, and this book offers us this in multiple forms, from emails, to text messages, to letters dating back over 200 years ago. I love the way this book was written; it was just perfect for this type of story.

There was so much depth to this story. While it is marketed as YA, it doesn’t necessarily read as a young adult novel. Yes, there is a coming of age vibe, but the book goes so far beyond that. The writing is so sophisticated, making it more appealing than most YA lit. There are so many layers to the story that it roots in your heart and causes you to really think. About time and your life and the lives that came before you.

And the setting. Be still my heart. I absolutely adore books set in the moors of Northern England. But when you add an old castle–that may or may not have a ghost or two haunting it–to the mix, then I am so excited I can hardly think straight! That kind of Gothic flair lends such atmosphere to the setting and is just perfect for this story.

All these elements combined made this book so hard for me to put down. Dearest Josephine is a book that I will most certainly be recommending to others, as well as a book I see myself returning to in the future.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Thomas Nelson through NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.