YVONNE’S SHORTIES #316 – Meet Me In The Margins // The Invisible Husband Of Frick Island

Time for another round of Yvonne’s Shorties! This time around a bookish romance that sadly failed to hit the mark completely, and another that did work for me despite the slower pace.

Title: Meet Me In The Margins
Author: Melissa Ferguson
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
First published: February 15th 2022
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Finished reading: August 9th 2022
Pages: 309

“Waiting impatiently for something that will inevitably happen either way is a waste of time. Enjoy the journey, not just the destination.”

I always love a contemporary with a bookish angle, and I fully expected to have a great time with Meet Me In The Margins; especially if you take in account the publishing house setting and the main character being both an editor AND a new author writing her first book. Unfortunately the story ended up being mostly underwhelming for me. I still love the premise with the focus on the inner working of the publishing house and the main character Savannah writing her first book. The idea behind the mystery editor and the little hideaway nook in the attic is brilliant, and the promise of their interactions is what made me want to read this story. I can’t say that I was all that impressed by the execution of that idea though. I found the story to be riddled with cliches, the identity of the secret editor was completely obvious from the very beginning, and I was disappointed that hardly any editor notes and interactions were actually included in the text. To make things worse, I really didn’t like the characters at all, and Savannah’s family is simply horrible. I can’t believe she just lets them treat her this way and not say anything! The love triangle vibes were likewise a huge turn off for me. Oh yes, sadly I ended up having quite a few issues with Meet Me In The Margins… The writing was pretty solid and I liked the bookish references and premise, but overall the story was mostly a miss for me.

Title: The Invisible Husband Of Frick Island
Author: Colleen Oakley
Genre: Contemporary, Romance
First published: May 25th 2021
Publisher: Berkley
Finished reading: August 15th 2022
Pages: 368

“Every human being – every single one of us – wakes up each morning hoping, believing, that today is not our day. Not our time.”

I’ve been curious about this story for a while… I love a contemporary with a small town setting, and there was just something about the fact that a whole town indulged in the fantasy of a young widow that her husband was still alive intrigued me. I also like a podcast angle in my stories, so I’m still not sure why it took me this long to read The Invisible Husband Of Frick Island. I’m glad I did, but I ended up having a great time with this story. Sure, the pace was a tad too slow for me and things can be said about the fact that the plot is quite uneventful and maybe not all that original. The main character Anders is a bit awkward, and I wasn’t sure what to make of Piper in the beginning… But there was also something rather charming about it all, and I do love a quirky story with quirky characters. The descriptions of Frick Island and its inhabitants made it feel like I was visiting the island myself, and I liked how the podcast was incorporated into the plot. The romance is true slowburn, and the story focuses instead on grief, mental health and small island life… And I liked how everything was wrapped up in the end.