The Invisible Husband of Frick Island by Colleen Oakley has been described as a love story, but I would classify it as Women’s Fiction, maybe Fantasy. I found the novel to be a light read that was just silly in my point of view. The premise of a woman with an invisible husband just did not hold up.

Piper Parrish lives on fictional Frick Island, based on Smith Island in the Chesapeake Bay. Her husband was killed when his crab boat capsized but she pretends that he is still alive, and the 90-some population of the island go along with the fantasy.

Instead of rapidly running away from this woman who is said to be suffering from post-bereavement hallucination experiences, journalist and podcaster Anders Caldwell falls in love with the young woman who has a strong interest in science.

WorldCat labels this book as Fiction : Secondary (senior high) school, which may be my whole problem with it. It is a story for a younger audience.

Colleen Oakley’s You Were There Too was long listed for the Pat Conroy Southern Book Prize.