It took reading a couple of chapters for me to connect with this story; but once I did, I loved it! This is not your typical “romance”. Duncan and Hazel are not your typical hero and heroine! They each have personal challenges that leave them with insecurities in many areas of their lives. Hazel aptly describes their challenges as “my broken body and his broken brain.” Facing an uncertain future, can a marriage of convenience be the solution to their insecurities? This well-crafted story combines humor and angst. The characters are well-developed and endearing. The intellectual discussions and number riddles that Hazel and Duncan share are delightful. Ms. Kilpack’s expressive prose enables you to feel the emotions of the relationship. Their “differences” are handled with sensitivity. Love and Lavender is Book 4 of the Mayfield Family but works well as a standalone. I highly recommend this poignant, heartwarming Regency romance.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Shadow Mountain Publishing. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Okay, so each of these books keep on getting better and better! Love and Lavender is the fourth book in the Mayfield Family series. I was so excited to see that Hazel had her own story especially after reading Harry’s book!
Hazel Stillman was born the oldest child, the older sister but because of her clubbed foot she was outcast. Left basically on her own, Hazel learned how to make a life for herself working as a teacher. However when she finds out that her school may be sold, she finds herself needing to consider other options. Duncan Penhale has a brilliant mind and a need for order and process. He has no expectations of his life changing. When Elliot Mayfield, his guardian’s brother, presents him with an inheritance if he marries a woman of social standing, he finds it interesting but unimportant. However with his inheritance he could purchase the building he was working in and run his own firm. Hazel and Duncan come together with a solution to their problems, they could marry each other, receive their inheritances and part ways. But Elliot Mayfields puts his foot down and tells them they must leave together as husband and wife for a year, Duncan and Hazel reluctantly agree. Will they learn to love each other at the end of the year, or will they go their separate ways?
Hazel was so different from the women of her time. She had to be independent because of her clubbed foot, however she was also lonely; she wanted someone to love her for herself. Life had not been easy for her and there were times when she struggled with life. I really enjoyed reading about Hazel and seeing her more. I felt bad for her, But I was also amazed at all she had done. However she was a little jaded, a little weary of those around her. She had to care for herself so she didn't quite know what to do with Duncan. Would she be able to let Duncan into her life and ultimately in her heart?
Duncan was a lovely character, I liked reading about him and learning about him. He was different from those around him and he knew it but that was his life. He was a sweet guy, but there were some things that made life harder for him, he processed things differently. I liked his growth as a character as he learned how to live and care for Hazel. Hazel was a person that made him feel special and helped him learn to live. However would he be able to show Hazel his love and help her see how much she has come to me to him?
Hazel and Duncan were super sweet together. They were both different and yet they found their place in the world through each other. I liked reading about them interacting with each other and watching them fall in love. They had a lot to overcome as they figured out how to be married to each other and how to build a life together. Were they willing to change their life in order to find happiness together?
Love and Lavender was just as good as I had hoped! The characters were awesome and relatable. I was cheering them on as they learned to work out their relationship. I would totally recommend it! Love and Lavender is a clean marriage of convenience, historical romance.

I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the publisher through Netgalley. All views expressed are only my honest opinion, a positive review was not required.

I posted on Barnes and Nobles and Goodreads on 05/23/2021. I couldn't find it own Bookbub. I will post on Amazon and blog closer to release date

This is book 4 in the Mayfield Family Regency Proper Romance series and the first one I have read. I had no problem following along with the characters or keeping up with the storyline, despite not reading the first books published in this series. This regency was different than your typical romance. This has a depth of heart, emotion and featured characters looking beyond what is on the surface. Hazel is very smart and perceptive. Her character is a wonderful compliment to Duncan who is affected by what we would now define as autism. Hazel is very patient with Duncan and Duncan’s character learns to grow and accept Hazel as well. Hazel has her own infirmities and I love seeing the two of them come together and accept each other as they are and grow on that to become more than what they think they are. I thought this was a very sweet romance and for anyone looking for more substance than fluff.

Thanks to the author and NetGalley for the copy. All thoughts in this review are my own.

Hazel and Duncan both have their quirks, but are well matched. Overall, not a bad story, but at times felt a bit more modern than historical. Would recommend.

This was such a beautiful book. So much heart. So much emotion. I felt so full of emotion by the end. Part of that is because I babysit a very smart little boy with autism and a speech disability and I often wonder what life holds for him. So seeing Duncan as a functioning adult was encouraging to me and seeing him find love was even more so. The romantic relationship between Duncan and Hazel is different from typical ones of course but so touching. I love how Hazel adapted to understand Duncan and relate to him to see his goodness and how his mind works. But I also loved that the author showed us that frustration would be a typical response to dealing with autism on a daily basis as well. And I loved that Duncan, in what appears to be a non-emotional way, cared for Hazel and her special needs. He could clearly see that her boot was not good on her clubbed foot but he didn't even talk about it. He just went to find the most expert help he could to get her properly shoed. She hadn't had anyone to truly care for her in her entire life. They are two people with special needs that learn quickly how best to care for the other and together they make a beautiful team. I loved this book.

Sex: references to marital relations
Language: no
Violence: a little
*I received an ARC of this book through NetGalley and voluntarily chose to review it.

When I started reading Love and Lavender I thought this book wasn't a book I wanted to read. It is like an accident, you want to look away but you just can't! The characters are so unique with their flaws and indomitable spirit, It is the story of Hazel and Duncan, both of whom have received an inheritance to be received when they are properly wed. Hazel with her club foot, has never fit in and has spent most of her life in school. Now she is a teacher at a girl's school. Duncan is a special person. He doesn't like to be touched or laughed at. He takes everything literally. Duncan and Hazel decide to wed each other to gain their inheritances. Dancan could buy his building and Hazel could buy her school and they could continue on as friends, but there are some stipulations to the inheritances. Duncan and Hazel must live together for a year. It was enlightening to learn about these two very different characters. What they went through each day in their struggles just to live is amazing. It makes you realize how blessed you truly are. It also makes you realize that each of us has our own flaws. Some are more visible than others.
I really enjoyed this book and I am glad I read it.

This is a beautiful, beautiful story about two people with disabilities learning to grow a life together.

Hazel has a physical disability. She was born with a club foot and it's painful to walk on it. Her family sent her away at a young age and she makes a living for herself as a teach of advanced math.

Duncan has a less visible disability, a mental one (autism?). He's extremely intelligent but is socially awkward, but he his the hero in this story.

They meet at Uncle Elliot's house when he offers them the same he has already offered others in the family before (this is book 4 in the series). Both Hazel and Duncan don't think they can find someone who'll marry them, and therefore won't be able to accept the financial settlement.

But circumstances change and Duncan comes up with the idea that they marry each other so they can each receive the bequest.
But Uncle Elliot says they will have to live together for a year.

Hazel and Duncan develop a friendship and peculiar relationship as they learn to accommodate their solitary lives to living together, and there are a lot of tender moments. There was a particular part that brought tears to my eyes.

I highly recommend this one.

I received a copy from the publisher via NetGalley and this is my honest opinion.

Thank you net galley for the advance reader copy of this novel. I love this author and series and was thrilled to get an advance copy of the next book about the Mayfield family. I loved this story about Hazel and her journey of self to overcome her club foot and learn to love an autistic man Duncan. Both main characters were so real and the dialogue at times was laugh out loud funny. I can't wait for the next Mayfield book and will highly recommend this clean recency romance!!!!

This love story was unique and such an uncommon take on a marriage of convenience! The characters are unconventional as is their romance. This story is more of a journey as the reader learns about these characters as the story develops and grows fond of each of them as the pages fly by. Any time a plot can keep me invested and intrigued I am impressed and I had to see this romance play out until the conclusion! This book had so many unexpected moments that will warm your heart to this logically minded hero. He is as kind as he is observant! Josi Kilpack does a great job of writing these two characters and their challenges and showing their growth as the book progressed! The conclusion was sweet ant well worth the wait!

Featuring Hazel Stillman and Duncan Penhale, "Love and Lavender" is the emotional and heartfelt fourth installment of Josi Kilpack's Mayfield Family series. They enter into a marriage of convenience that exposes the ugly side of people's prejudice and gossip.

Hazel's struggles with her physical infirmity are so realistically and vividly depicted one can almost feel her pain. Intelligent, methodical, precise and literal Duncan is only understood by those close to him. His attachment to his cat, Elizabeth, is so sweet, as is his devotion to Delores. Their journey to true love is fraught with difficulties. Uncle Elliot, Amelia and Hazel's twin brother Harry make appearances.

Kilpack's prose is beautiful and descriptive. Her characters are well-developed, and their emotions are palpable. While "Love and Lavender" has its lighthearted moments, it is not a "unicorns and rainbows" tale. While technically this is a stand-alone story, the previous three installments are all wonderful, and I read them prior to this one. For me personally, this book is even more heart-wrenching than "Rakes and Roses", which I also loved.

Thanks to NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for an ARC of this engaging and touching novel.

So far I have loved every one of the novels in the Mayfield Family Regency series, but this one was quite unique! Both Hazel and Duncan are ostracized by polite Society--Hazel due to a clubbed foot and resultant limp and Duncan due to being on the autism spectrum (something relatively unknown for that time period). But rather than being institutionalized, both were given the chance at education instead, and then are offered Uncle Elliot's strange inheritance gift if they marry according to his specifications. Since it has worked so well with his three nephews--even Harry--Uncle Elliot is sure that it will work for his niece and his somewhat adopted nephew. But neither Duncan or Hazel feel that they will find love due to their respective circumstances--so they agree to a marriage of convenience to each other to keep themselves supported. Uncle Elliot agrees, but only if they agree to live in the same house for one year after their wedding.

I loved both Hazel and Duncan. Hazel is pragmatic, patient, and smart. Duncan is almost savant and his straight-forward comments are detailed, honest, and occasionally funny. These characters are very well-written and well-developed and I was invested in their story. There were several laugh-out-loud moments, but also several touching scenes as well. I very much recommend this one!

Rated PG for some frank discussions
--no language
--no overt sexual scenes, however Duncan is very...technically accurate...in his descriptions of marital expectations
--no gore
--no violence

I received this ebook free from NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing in exchange for an honest review

I know Josi S. Kilpack from her culinary mystery series and was excited to read her newest regency era romance. Hazel Stillman is educated, teaches mathematics and likely never to marry having been born with a clubbed foot. Her uncle Elliott Mayfield offers her a substantial dowry in hopes that she will marry. He offers a similar type inheritance to Duncan Penhale. Duncan is a ward and was raised by another aunt of Hazel's. Elliott is giftedly bright and quirky. Today we'd say he was in the autistic spectrum.

Duncan comes up with the idea of a marriage of convenience thinking they could both have security with Mayfield's generosity. Instead he insists that they must live together as man and wife for a year. In a rom/com this would be a set up for flirting and funny thrown together moments. Kilpack instead gives a poignant story of Hazel dealing with her insecurities, adjusting to Duncan's routines, quirks and kindnesses. It is an uncommon love story beautifully written.

I've actually read three different romances with a main character in the spectrum this past year and this is my favorite. I like the how the author shows Duncan's thinking process and seeing Hazel accept and not try to change him. This is the fourth in a the Mayfield Family series but it is written as a stand alone. A clean read and would easily recommend for 15 and up. Thank you to NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for an ARC ebook in exchange for an honest review.

As a novel, this is a great read. Well written, with characters that grow over the course of the story, well developed secondary characters, and some brilliant lines. One of my favourite parts is where Sophie rebukes Hazel:
"Hazel, you are one of the smartest women I know. Do not insult your own intelligence by saying something so incredibly stupid."

As a historical novel however, this falls far short of the mark. Writing a character with autism in a novel set in the 1800s is a difficult task. Yet the only assistance the author cites at the end is from a Special Ed teacher. Why not interview people with autism before writing? Why not research how autism was viewed in this time period? Why not show more people's reactions to Duncan instead of keeping it predominantly at surface level?

I would have appreciated this more if the author had cited her historical sources and actually spoken to people with autism in order to write Duncan accurately. A Special Ed teacher can provide a plethora of experiences of course, but only the person themselves can tell you what's going on inside during those experiences.

This story unexpectedly stole my heart. When it first started I wasn't sure at all if Iwould end up enjoying it. Duncan's character right from the start was a little off putting. As soon as I realized he was meant to, what we in modern times would call, be on the autism spectrum (like by the second chapter) my heart went out to him and I instantly loved him. Having a family member on the spectrum who has so many of the same "problems" (not sure how to better describe it) as Duncan made me understand him and feel for him even more. Being so completely honest and not understanding social que's is a huge roadblock that puts a person at a great disadvantage in life.

I always feel so heartbroken for characters who have physical problems that today would be no big deal, but 200 years ago made them a sort of instant social outcast. So sad. Hazel was written as one of those characters being born with a club foot. Having no support, she did what she had to do for herself to be successful in life and I admired that about her.

Duncan and Hazel together were so perfect. I loved that Hazel was protective of him and so quickly learned how to understand him. And Duncan's total honestly with Hazel was so endearing to me.

The only thing I could even complain about (it still gets 5 stars) is that I wish I knew why Catherine left her life in society to be with Duncan's father. What made Caffeine tick? What made her take such good care of and love Duncan? Those questions were left unanswered and I found myself frustrated by that.

There isn't a lot of typical romance in this book but I found I didn't care at all. It was perfect the way it was.

Love and Lavender by Josi S. Kilpack is a wonderful, sweet, heartwarming, inspiring, and positive historical romance that really tugged on my heart and warmed me from within.

This is the first book of the Mayfield Family series that I have read (this is #4), and I was easily able to follow along. I enjoyed this book so much that I will now be reading the rest of the series.

This book is set in the early 19th century England (which is a favorite of mine) and here we get to see the lives of Hazel Stillman and Duncan Penhale. Both are wonderfully developed characters. Their backstories are complex, interspersed with difficulties, and through their own respective “disabilities” and circumstances they end up joining in a union to secure their own futures and hopeful future successes.

What starts out as a marriage of convenience, or a business arrangement, ends up blossoming into a healing, therapeutic, and completely transformative and loving partnership. The author has such a talent at crafting such real, raw, and true characters that I could not help but love. Their respective quirks lead them to one another, and in that process, they find out so much more about themselves. The process was so heartfelt, but yet never bordered on anything unrealistic or cheesy. It was so tastefully written.

I loved seeing Hazel and Duncan find success in their own respective lives, as well as with each other. Beautiful.

5/5 stars

Thank you NG and Shadow Mountain Publishing for this wonderful arc and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately (as of 5/14/21 no BB account has been created) and will post it to my Amazon, Instagram, Deseret, and B&N accounts upon publication.