Review: The Invisible Husband of Frick Island by Colleen Oakley

Colleen Oakley
Publication date: May 25, 2021
Genres: Adult Fiction, Women's Fiction, Contemporary
Format: eARC
Source: Berkley and Netgalley
3 Stars
Piper Parrish's life on Frick Island—a tiny, remote town smack in the middle of the Chesapeake Bay—is nearly perfect. Well, aside from one pesky detail: Her darling husband, Tom, is dead. When Tom's crab boat capsized and his body wasn't recovered, Piper, rocked to the core, did a most peculiar thing: carried on as if her husband was not only still alive, but right there beside her, cooking him breakfast, walking him to the docks each morning, meeting him for their standard Friday night dinner date at the One-Eyed Crab. And what were the townspeople to do but go along with their beloved widowed Piper?

Anders Caldwell’s career is not going well. A young ambitious journalist, he’d rather hoped he’d be a national award-winning podcaster by now, rather than writing fluff pieces for a small town newspaper. But when he gets an assignment to travel to the remote Frick Island and cover their boring annual Cake Walk fundraiser, he stumbles upon a much more fascinating tale: an entire town pretending to see and interact with a man who does not actually exist. Determined it’s the career-making story he’s been needing for his podcast, Anders returns to the island to begin covert research and spend more time with the enigmatic Piper—but he has no idea out of all the lives he’s about to upend, it’s his that will change the most.

The unique title and the oh-so-intriguing synopsis had me excited to try this latest release from Colleen Oakley. A remote island setting, a young widow who carries on as if her husband is still by her side, and a village of people who play right along? Yes please! Unfortunately, The Invisible Husband didn't deliver quite the story I wanted or expected.

Before starting the book (and not being familiar with Oakley's work), I thought this might be a whimsical tale with quirky characters. Or, on the flipside, a solemn story of loss and the rippling effects of grief. What I got was a little of both but not enough of either to make much of an impact. 

Anders is an ambitious reporter working for a small newspaper. When he's sent to Frick Island to cover an annual fundraising event, he discovers the whole town (all 94 residents) pretending that Tom Parrish, a fisherman who died in an accident several months previously, is alive and well. Determined to discover why they would take part in such a charade, Anders returns to Frick Island each weekend, stays at the lone bed and breakfast, and tries to understand the people who live on the tiny island. 

There was no lack of quirky characters on Frick Island: from BobDan who ran the ferry, to Lady Judy who was so secretive about the packages she carried to and from her home, to Piper Parrish, the young woman who apparently still considered her deceased husband very much alive and well. Unfortunately, the slow pace kept me from fully engaging with the story or the characters and it took me a solid week to make my way through the 368 pages. Anders' trips to the island began to feel repetitive and the snippets of information he gathered felt too small and too infrequent for the story to gain any real momentum. 

Despite my issues with the pace of the story, I was interested in the character's motivations, and the slight mystery aspect and the few red herrings had me curious and wanting to see the outcome. I have no doubt that The Invisible Husband of Frick Island will find its audience and I do believe this is a case of it's not you, it's me. It's likely my expectations kept me from fully appreciating what this one had to offer.


Disclosure: I received a complimentary advance copy of this book for review. This does not impact my opinion of the book or the content of this review. I received no compensation and my review is voluntary.

THE INVISIBLE HUSBAND OF FRICK ISLAND
RELEASES ON MAY 25, 2021

YOU CAN FIND THE INVISIBLE HUSBAND OF FRICK ISLAND HERE:

20 comments

  1. I like the sound of this one but I would probably want a faster pace myself. Maybe someday.

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    1. Yeah, the slower pace made it a bit of a struggle at times.

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  2. I'm sorry to read this book was not what you expected it to be. It definitely does sound like a very interesting story. But I'm really not very good with slow paced books at the moment. (Probably due to the baby brain :D)

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    1. LOL Slow pace + baby brain does not sound like a good mix! :)

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  3. I liked this one more than you did, I think in part just because the setting reminded me so much of Tangier Island off the coast of Virginia, but I completely agree about the slow pacing and all of the trips to the island feeling repetitive.

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    1. That's cool that you had a certain connection or frame of reference to the setting. That had to make for a more interesting reading experience.

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  4. Hmm, interesting premise, although it's a bit of a bummer that it didn't go deep enough. I feel like I've read another book by this author that also delivered a different story than I was expecting from the synopsis.

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    1. I actually have another by Oakley on my shelf right now but this one has made me a tad hesitant.

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  5. Hmmm, I had my eye on this one, but if you thought it had pacing issues, I know I would and that's a bit of a pet peeve for me. Sorry it didn't quite deliver for you

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    1. Thanks Sam. Yeah, I kept waiting for it to pick or for something to happen... it made for a long read.

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  6. Great review! I can't recall if I've seen this one before or not.

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  7. This sounds messy in a weird way from your review. It seems like it had such potential and just didn't quite live up to it. Great review!

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    1. Yeah, not quite what I was hoping for... but still an interesting read.

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  8. Oh bummer! I got a copy of this one too. I hope I like it a little more. Sometimes when I lower my expectations I enjoy the story more. This will be my first time reading Oakley too. Wonderful review, Tanya!

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    1. Yeah, it didn't quite live up to my expectations but it was still enjoyable. I hope it works better for you, Rachel. I'll be excited to read your thoughts on it!

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  9. I don't think I'd read this one but... I AM intrigued! How could I not be after that synopsis? I'm suffering from second-hand disappointment that it didn't live up to it. :(

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  10. Oh wow, this story sounds like it has the potential to be a phenomenal tale and even one we could watch on the big screen. I'm sorry to hear this one just didn't deliver a story of that magnitude.
    Jen @ Star-Crossed Book Blog

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    1. You are so right, Jen! I actually think this would work really well as a movie.

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