Book Chatter

whatnot26 — The Otter Pup strolling through the neighborhood.

The last Wednesday in May. Incredible. As we were tooling around the neighborhood I was reminded that we have a holiday weekend coming up. Flags popping up here and there. Memorial Day, especially where I am, kicks off summer for us. It has been very warm mid-day but wonderfully cool in the mornings. I wish our summers were like this. In a few weeks it will get very warm. On today’s walk Chloe, The Otter Pup, made friends with a Golden Retriever. Historically speaking, Chloe does not like Goldens. She feels that they are too happy and the ones who carry their own leashes? Please! She wants nothing to do with them but today, she found one, behind a fence who wanted to greet her so I allowed it and Chloe liked her. A first!

This past Monday I reviewed The Invisible Husband of Frick Island and it was lovely. If you missed the review, check it out when you have time. I loved the story so much. I want everyone to read it this summer. My current read is People We Meet On Vacation. It wasn’t originally in my line-up of books but so many of you are reading it now and it was available from the library so I grabbed it. So far, so good.

Ah, Memorial Day. BBQs, a long lazy weekend and a big blockbuster movie. Uh, well, okay. No big blockbuster movie this year. Baby steps. It will be good to have an extra day. My husband’s work has been extremely busy. He needs an extra day to relax and I will NEVER pass up extra reading time. My daughter is officially done with her classes and the musical so she needs some downtime too before graduation on June 1st!

Just now I looked over at a box of donations I have for Goodwill. I think I will try to add to it this week. My daughter’s closets and drawers and heck, my son’s too, have a lot of stuff that does not fit anymore. That, along with the garage purge I never got to last week ought to keep me busy.

Hope you are all well and reading something really good. Also, tell me your plans for Memorial Day weekend even if it’s just a long nap, and movies at home.

The Invisible Husband of Frick Island
By Colleen Oakley
Berkley, 9781984806482, May 25, 2021, 368pp.

The Short of It:

This book was everything I wanted and needed in a story.

The Rest of It:

Piper Parrish lives on a tiny island in the Chesapeake Bay. She is well-loved by the island inhabitants and is overall, a very happy person. She works a few jobs and spends her days going back and forth between those obligations. But no matter how she keeps busy, she is constantly reminded of the one morning her husband Tom went out on his crab boat and never returned. The boat capsized, and his body was not found.

Anders Caldwell is a struggling journalist trying to garner a little bit of a following by hosting his own podcast and writing about local events. One such event takes him to Frick island. Frick is small, less than 100 people call the place home and it’s disappearing. Literally disappearing due to climate change and erosion. Anders decides to spend some time on the island to get the scoop but what he finds if much more interesting.

You see, Piper’s husband never returned but in her mind, he’s never left and is still by her side. The entire island goes along with it and Anders decides that this, THIS is his next big story. The story that will take his podcast to new levels and he’s not wrong.

Oh my word, what a book. I loved this book to pieces. It’s a sweet story about love, loss and moving on with your life. I could SEE these characters so clearly. Their quirkiness, their sense of humor but mostly the love they have for Piper. You could call this story a romance, but it’s so much more. It’s about community and loyalty and watching out for the ones you love. Do yourself a favor and get yourself a copy. It comes out this week! I highly recommend it.

Source: Review copy sent to me by the publisher.
Disclosure: This post contains Indiebound affiliate links.

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