This was an odd one! I really had to push myself to get through the first part of the book, it just seemed so silly! How does an entire town go along with the delusion of a grieving wife? But then it got interesting enough for me to push forward when a mystery started to take form around some of the main characters. I was happy for the islanders in the end but it wrapped up a little too neatly.

We all deserve an escape to a remote island and this story is the perfect destination! I was swept away by this book!

A town caught up in an elaborate fiction to protect one of their own gets tangled in untruths when a reporter breaks the story of his life and risks loosing the woman of his dreams.

This is a heartwarming story that pulled me in from page 1, or honestly the title alone intrigued me. It did not disappoint, I truly enjoyed everything about this book, the people, the setting of Frick Island, all wrapped up in a true love story. I’m already telling friends and family to put this gem on their TBR list for May and can’t wait to recommend to patrons.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley.

Piper Parrish is a young widow on a small island in the middle of the Chesapeake Bay. What makes Piper unique is that she continues to behave as if her husband, Tom, is still right there by her side, carrying on his everyday activities....and the islanders begin to act as if they also see Tom at Piper's side! Enter a rookie journalist named Anders Caldwell, who comes to the island to cover the annual cake walk and instead finds himself investigating what appears to be a group delusion. Told largely from Anders' perspective, this was a delightful story of community connections that are largely missing from most of our modern day-to-day lives. Absolutely delightful!

A warm, wonderful story of real people and honest emotions. The plot hook of an invisible husband drew me in, and the beautifully crafted story kept me to the end.

Due to release May 25, 2021. You'll want to add this to your Books To Get list. Don't miss it!

Thanks to Berkley and NetGalley for the chance to read an advance copy

You know those stories where one of the main characters starts down a path that you KNOW will get him into trouble, but he can't seem to stop? This is one of those stories. Anders has always wanted to be a reporter (like Clark Kent), but he's stuck working for a small town paper and sent to cover stories like the Cake Walk on Frick Island. Frick is a small island in Chesapeake Bay with about 100 inhabitants and only accessible by boat. Once there he discovers Piper, an attractive young woman who seems to be talking to her dead husband....and everyone on the island talks to him too! Anders is intrigued by both Piper and her story, so he decides to write about it, or rather to create a podcast about it without letting Piper or her friends know that's what he's doing. As expected, all does not go well.

Yes, it's predictable. Yes, I did a "face palm" frequently. Yes, I thoroughly enjoyed this book!! The characters are incredibly endearing and loveable, even the cranky ones, and everyone is so well drawn they are individuals that I wanted to get to know. The story is filled with lots of sub-plots that create tension, suspense, and humor. This could have been a sappy Hallmark romance, but instead it was delightful and entertaining. Fun, sweet, funny, sad, romantic. A great read!

If you love Rachel Joyce or Gabrielle Zevin, then you will MELT over The Invisible Husband of Frick Island.

I literally fell into the prose: as if Oakley were there tipping me over and immersing me in the easy poetry of her balanced land and sea-scapes.

I melted for these characters. This is a poignant tale with a soft philosophy and an aching treatise on love and heartbreak at its core.

It is wonderfully human and will appeal to those who are trying to find optimism during the world's dark moment and also just hopeful of love.


(also shared on twitter, fb and instagram)

This book had a great story with a mystery in the background. I did not guess the ending at all, which is lovely. Keep me interested until the last page.
I highly recommend this book!

This was a delightful romantic comedy about finding love after a significant loss. What I loved most…it doesn't quite end the way you imagine it might!

This was better than I expected. More than fluffy chick lit. Will recommend it to patrons.. ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.

This was a delightful read that kept me fully engaged throughout the book. I loved the quirky characters and the unique storyline. Colleen Oakley is a one of a kind story teller who never disappoints. I truly love all her books! #NetGalley #ColleenOakley #TheInvisibleHusbandOfFrickIsland

This was cute but not more than that. Too many stereotypes and not enough character depth. I really don't like books where the premise is based on deception.

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

A tiny, sparsely inhabited island is the setting for this sweet love story.. While predictable, the characters are relatable and interesting.

The Invisible Husband of Frick Island is a one of a kind, clever, wonderful to read story that is funny, poignant and hopeful. Oakley describes the true love Piper and Tom have for each other beautifully. I felt every emotion her characters felt because her writing so pulled me in I was there truly feeling everything they were going through.
It’s a story about the people who live on Frick Island as well as the Island itself, and the growth of Anders who comes to visit the island for a story and can’t help but keep returning.
Refreshing to read.

This was such a good story!! Colleen Oakley's The Invisible Husband of Frick Island truly pulled on my heart strings. Piper was an incredibly deep and real character that I absolutely loved. Frick Island's residents were all so wonderful, and I LOVED Anders.

I was into the story from page one, and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a heartwarming story in an incredible setting.

Mesmerizing, thoughtful, heart-stirring, original, unpredictable—those are just some of the adjectives I’d use to describe Colleen Oakley’s new book. The setting of this book, Frick Island, is an integral part of the story; not because most of the action takes place there (which it does), but because the setting shapes the characters who live there, as well as those who come to visit. The characters themselves are quirky and original, and even the minor characters left a lasting impression with me—they are all drawn so skillfully at the author’s hands. Piper and Anders are the soul of this story; two extraordinary people whose lives are complicated and messy and who wrapped themselves around my heart from the very beginning. Their lives become entangled when Anders comes to the island to cover a story, her grief and his ambition at odds when he uncovers a much larger story, one that could catapult his career, but that could ultimately hurt Piper and the other islanders. I felt like I was living this book, tuning out everything else, costing me a couple of hours of sleep, because I kept wanting to go back to Frick Island.

Travel to Frick Island for the Cake Walk annual fundraiser.
Escape reality and enjoy the island. Time here is jiffy, awhile, and later on.

Good lighthearted read!
I have read & enjoyed others by Colleen Oakley and this another good read!

Oh, I really like this one!!! What a fun, original story! Dear sweet Anders. And all the fun inhabitants of Frick Island! It was fun to slowly unravel what is really going on with Piper. This should be a series. I would definitely read more - the characters have so much more to show us I think!

Bittersweet story with a good message!

Anders is a reporter but he wants to become a famous podcaster like the one who made Serial. He goes to Frick Island on an assignment. It’s the yearly Cake Walk. After doing his interviews, he stops by the One-Eyed-Crab to get a bite to eat when a beautiful young woman enters the place. After arming himself with courage, he walks toward her and asks her if he can sit with her. The woman's name is Piper and she tells him absolutely not. She is married.

After leaving the island, Anders gets an email from someone who tells him that he missed the Island's big story. He returns to the island and he learns that Piper's husband, Tom is dead but that Piper believes he's still with her. The whole island is happy to continue her delusion and they continue to talk or say hi to "Tom".

Anders spidey senses go crazy, he knows he has hit the jackpot of a story. He hopes that doing a podcast about Piper is going to make him get more listeners and finally his podcast can take off.

But what happens when your subject starts captivating your heart?

And what will happen when Piper finds out the truth about what Anders is really doing?

Just as Anders, my notions and objections about Frick Island started melting away. The island and its occupants were quite entertaining. A tight group of people who knew everything about each other. I like how Anders started gaining the favor of the island inhabitants. He started doing things for others and they went from tolerating him to actually looking forward to seeing him.

It was so sad to see Pipers' denial. It has to be devastating to lose your partner, your first and only love so young. I felt sad and my heart broke for her and her loss. I wasn't sure how much her denial was going to affect her psyche.

Also, I learned to love Anders. I loved his quirkiness. In general, he was a nice guy and his shortcomings made him more real to me. His character development was well done.

I liked many of the messages the author gives us: To learn about other people before scratching them from your life. To be more tolerable. To be more helpful. Understand that people grieve in different ways. To open up to others. After all, "no man is an island".

4/5 fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by Berkley via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.