this was a really enjoyable read, i enjoyed getting to know the characters and the world that they were in. it was a wonderfully done story.

I loved this book. Such a great story. It made me laugh, cry and have all the feels. Look forward to more by this author.

Very mixed feelings on this book.

On the one hand, I really enjoyed it. It was totally different and refreshing. I loved all the stories going on - Ollie's "recovery", the search for treasure, the family relationships. It was interesting, it was engrossing.

On the other hand, it got way too bogged down in descriptions for me and sometimes it felt like it was telling me how everyone felt rather than letting me figure it out. For those people who LOVE detail, you will love this book. I prefer leaving just a little more to the imagination.

Thank you to the author, the publisher and #netgalley for the ARC which did not impact my review.

I started reading Ollie Come Free expecting a funny book, based on the cover. Instead I found a tale of family, friendship, and betrayal. Ollie is a funny, mischievous middle-schooler. He's hopelessly awful at baseball, but he plays anyway. It is while he's goofing around in the outfield that Ollie is struck by lightning. He suffers a small cut, but his family notices a marked change in his personality. Gone is the happy-go-lucky kid who put his jockstrap on a chicken. In his place is the new Ollie, a boy who doesn't like to be touched, rocks to comfort himself and prefers to draw instead of talk to the people who love him. As his family struggles to understand and support him, Ollie adjusts to his new life. His family owns one of the last working cattle farms in the Southern California. His girlfriend leaves him and his brother runs off. Ollie Come Free is a story of a family and their attempt to survive. The ranch is populated with several interesting characters and a search for hidden treasure is an exciting side-plot. How Ollie and his family survive their hardships and keep the ranch for an excellent, if convoluted story. There are surprises at every turn. I recommend this for older readers as well as anyone who enjoys a unique and interesting story. Thanks to Net Galley for the chance to read an ARC.

This is one of the best books I have read in a long time. I was able to connect with and see all the characters as if the story was based on a real family. The plot touches on multiple difficult subjects without sensationalizing them. I am very pleased to recommend this story not only to adults, but I believe even teens will find themselves enthralled with this tale.

In not sure if this book is going to be marketed as a young adult (YA) book or not but it probably is based on the prose and quiet way extreme parental stress was presented. Ultimately, I didn't care for the book but do appreciate being given the opportunity to read it.

Ollie Come Free is a contemporary realistic novel that draws readers into a suspenseful family drama with high stakes. Set on a cattle ranch in California, the story follows the Buckmeyer family as they face a spate of challenges that could destroy the happy life they have built. While Bob and Cathy Buckmeyer struggle to keep their family ranch solvent, their best hope is a generations-old tale of buried treasure that an ancestor stole and hid on the family land. After decades of searching, all of Bob and Cathy’s efforts have turned up nothing, just as his father’s and grandfather’s efforts failed. Bob also struggles with his memories from Vietnam and the PTSD that he has battled since his return. His best friend, whose PTSD led him into crime and destroyed his own family, joins the ranch upon his release from prison. But these challenges pale in comparison to the battles they face with each of their sons. Older son Cody is a talented athlete who always takes the path of least resistance and will roll over anyone in his way. Younger son Ollie is a carefree dreamer until he is struck by lightning and sustains a traumatic brain injury. While each character faces his or her own battles, the family is stretched and strained. Ollie must learn to live with his injury, Cathy and Bob must decide whether to save the ranch, Cody must choose how he will live, and Cathy must choose whom to trust. Some characters grow stronger from their challenges, while others weaken and worsen.
Ollie Come Free is an engaging story that is difficult to put down at times. Timothy Patrick does an excellent job of building suspense, allowing readers to guess an approaching event and dread it while hoping that the characters will somehow avoid the looming danger. Some readers may struggle with the amount of information Patrick tells rather than shows. In lengthy passages, he analyzes his own characters, describing their motivations, fears, or hopes, rather than allowing readers to see those attributes through character actions. As a result, some sections of the story seem like a character sketch or a book review instead of a novel. Those sections are slower and more apt to bog a reader down, while the action events are enthralling and do a much better job of presenting a story.

Ollie Come Free by Timothy Patrick was a very good read, beginning with Ollie, his brother Cody, mother Cathy and father Bob on a ranch where there is a rumor of gold, stolen years ago and hidden on the property.Bob desperately searches for the gold, which would put the family in a much better financial footing, and keep Bob from losing the ranch that has been in the family for years.An accident on the ball field changes everything in ways no one could foresee. This is a very honest novel of the frailties of egos and family dynamics and our perceived places in the world, where love and loyalty are tested. Ollie becomes an unassuming hero in more ways than one as he struggles to find a very precarious hold on his station in life, the same struggle his brother Cody has. I look forward to more from Timothy Patrick in the future.