I absolutely loved this book! I am a huge fan of Oakley's previous novel, The Invisible Husband of Frick Island, and I was hoping this one would leave me feeling the same way. Warm, fuzzy, a little emotionally spent, with a few great laughs between the covers. And I'm thrilled to say that I got exactly what I wanted! Like a bizarre "Thelma and Louise" or buddy road trip comedy, Tanner and Louise are incredibly winning characters who are easy to root for despite their flaws, There is nothing sappy about how their friendship progresses, just honesty, tension, and generational gaps that demand to be bridged, A truly lovely read.

Thank you to @berkleypub @netgalley for the # gifted copy of the book.

Tanner is miserable living at home after an accident ends her college soccer career. She finds herself hating life and her mom is pushing her out the door. She finds a job as an elderly live in caretaker for Louise Wilt. The two are an unlikely match, but Louise insists on taking a road trip and agrees to pay Tanner enough money so she can pay for her last year of college. Louise’s children report her missing and then the FBI gets involved.

I will admit that I was a little worried I wasn’t going to like this one but I ended up loving it. I enjoyed the banter between the two and there was so much to be learned from each other. It was an awesome road-trip. Read it.

Love the cover, love the title. Love the premise of the story. I think this is the perfect story to hand to someone headed on a summer vacation, looking for a book club book to discuss or just needs a good story.

This was a lovely read. I enjoyed reading about Tanner and Louise and their journey. The author did a great job bringing these women to life and exploring their choices. I do wish we had gotten more about George's and Patty's work helping women escape abusive husband's.

Thank you to Berkley for an advanced copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

There are so many things to love about this book. The setting of a fun road trip that showcases a friendship between an 80+ woman and 21 year old woman. The motives behind Louise and her backstory. Tanner learning about herself and coming into her own now that life has changed for her.

The two women learn a lot throughout the book. They both are interesting characters, but the star and most interesting for me is Louise. I loved the twists, turns, and the unfolding mystery at the end.
This is another great book from Colleen Oakley.

THE MOSTLY TRUE STORY OF TANNER & LOUISE by Colleen Oakley (The Invisible Husband of Frick Island) is a LibraryReads selection for March and a very fun romp. The title characters are Tanner Quimby, a college student rehabbing from a leg injury who needs a job and place to live, and Louise Wilt, in her eighties who (according to her daughter) needs a live-in caregiver. Initially, the two do not mesh well at all, but gradually they do form a bond and then take off together on a road trip adventure, dodging the FBI and an organized crime gangster. There are plenty of humorous moments and several snide remarks about technology: "This is called conversation. It's what we used to do before cell phones ruined it." Plus, Oakley incorporates some serious reflection on the changing roles for women: "women didn't have as many choices back then as they do now. Sometimes you had to do the wrong thing to do the right thing." Both Tanner and Louise are transformed as they depend more and more on each other, but Tanner especially learns to break rules and take some chances. Have fun reading about this appealing odd couple!

I thoroughly enjoyed romping across country evading police and a mob boss with Louise and Tanner! What a fun ride with laugh-out-loud moments, as well as tender glimpses into each heart. Louise, age 84, and Tanner, a GenZ-er, form an unlikely pair, and their banter is perfectly written. The way @writercolleenoakley fleshed out the characters kept me turning the pages! It never slowed down. Was Louise really who Tanner thought she was? I loved how we get little tidbits of their stories along the way. And the ending was perfect!
Thank you to NetGalley, @berkleypub and @thoughtsfromapage for making it possible for me to read this ARC.

The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise by Colleen Oakley is a Wonderful Friendship Fiction Story!

Twenty-one-year-old Tanner Quimby, recovering from an off-the-field injury and still reeling from the loss of her soccer scholarship, is being forced out of her parents' house. She needs a job and a place to live fast, and the live-in caretaker position she hears about will have to do.

The client is eighty-four-year-old Louise Wilt, a widow who's recovering from a broken hip. Her kids decided she needs live-in help but she's not happy about it or welcoming to Tanner. Louise gets around her house just fine, she's sharp as a tack, loves her evening cocktail(s) and looks to Tanner only as her driver.

Soon Tanner begins to notice a few strange things about Louise, concerning things, perhaps even dangerous things. When Louise comes into Tanner's room carrying a suitcase in the wee hours of the morning with news of an immediate road trip, she can't just let Louise leave on her own, can she? She's her driver, after all...

I love this feisty octogenarian and her twenty-something companion-accomplice as the two main characters in this fun and fast paced story. Tanner and Louise couldn't possibly be any further apart in similarities than their huge age difference, yet listening to their banter the longer they're on the road together you begin to realize there's something very special happening here.

Traveling with Tanner and Louise on their road trip is entertaining but there's so much more to this story that's best discovered as you read along and I suggest going in without knowing too much beforehand.

The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise is full of great characters, twists here and there, and a bit of a tearjerker in the final chapter. Should it be taken seriously? Perhaps not, but there are great topics and who doesn't love a feisty octogenarian, right?

I love Colleen Oakley's book The Invisible Husband of Frick Island and The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise is right there with it. I highly recommend with 4 Solid Stars!

Thank you to Shelf Awareness, Berkley, and Colleen Oakley for an ARC of this book through NetGalley. It has been an honor to give my honest and voluntary review.

LOVED!!! Colleen’s writing is awesome. This story is great. Full of humor and heartfelt emotions, I enjoyed it so much. All the characters were great.

The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise by Colleen Oakley is a contemporary story that has a bit of mystery, a bit of romance and a whole lot of humor. The story in The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise is one that is told by changing the point of view between the characters.

After suffering an accident twenty one year old Tanner Quimby finds her life on hold as she recovers in her parents home. Tanner’s parents are trying to overlook the constant video games as Tanner wallows after her accident and just want her to get out and get a job. That’s where Tanner meets Louise Wilt.

Louise has suffered her own accident and being in her eighties her children are concerned about her being alone in her home. In an effort to appease her children Louise agrees to higher Tanner to help out. Shortly after Tanner’s arrival though Louise hears from an old friend and the pair end up on a road trip neither will ever forget.

Boy was The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise by Colleen Oakley such a fun story that had me laughing all the way! I picked this one up thinking I couldn’t go wrong with a road trip as I love a little virtual travel in my reading but I immediately fell in love with the story and characters too. Loved the growth of Tanner and the mystery of Louise with their adventure certainly keeping the pages turning. Definitely one I’d recommend!

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

Louise (age 84) and Tanner (age 21) are unlikely companions who travel together to uncover a mystery that took place over forty years ago. Both women are struggling to deal with past events and together they are able to face their fears and move on.

This book was such a pleasure to read.. I loved how strong and bad ass Louise is and how she is able to encourage Tanner to take some risks in life. I found myself laughing out loud at the great one liners Louise uses throughout their journey. I loved the twist at the end to tie it all together. The author is a talented storyteller and I highly recommend this book.

The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise is a feel good story that drew me in from the first pages. Tanner life has just fallen apart. In need of a job and a place to stay, she becomes the live in caretaker for Louise. Louise may be recovering from a broken hip, but she doesn't need help. Except her kids believe she does. And so begins the unlikely friendship, road trip, and adventure of Tanner and Louise. I appreciated the balance of humor and heartfelt moments. The road trip was fun and unraveling why the two were making the cross country journey was full of surprises. Louise's kids and their text conversations added a nice element to the story. I enjoyed this one immensely, especially the ending.

Thank you Berkley Publishing for the gifted copy.

Great book! I laughed many times to the point of people wondering if I was losing it. The story line follows an elderly woman (Louise) whose family gets her a young lady (Tanner) to assist her - mostly driving Louise to appts. But after seeing a news alert on tv - the young lady is positive that the elderly woman is a jewel thief. They go on a cross country road trip to help a friend of Louise's and their friendship and trust grow along the way.

**Many thanks to Shelf Awareness, Berkley, NetGalley, and Colleen Oakley for an ARC of this book!**

Thelma: "I feel really awake. I don't recall ever feeling this awake. You know? Everything looks different now. You feel like that? You feel like you got something to live for now?" (Thelma & Louise)

This crazy caper brings together two of the unlikeliest friends you've ever imagined...and the secret that binds them would make the aforementioned Thelma and Louise BEAM with pride!

Octogenarian Louise is used to living life by her own rules. She lives alone and does just fine at that...until a slight trip gives her a broken hip, and her persnickety daughter to INSIST that Louise needs a full-time caretaker. Louise is miffed to say the least, but is helpless to stop her headstrong offspring once she sets her mind to something...and Louise braces herself for her new house guest to move in.

Enter Tanner, a 21 year old adrift on the sea of uncertainty. After a similarly tragic accident cut her soccer playing career at college short and a falling out with her best friend at school makes her almost glad to be gone, she can't find anything to hold her interest....other than her video game, that is. So when the opportunity to become Louise's caregiver pops up, she's desperate enough for the cash to put her hesitations about caring for an old lady aside and take the plunge.

...However, a LOT can happen in 84 years. And when Tanner starts noticing some strange things....and potentially DANGEROUS things about Louise, she starts to wonder if there's more to this elderly lady than crossword puzzles and the daily 'Cocktail Hour' she hosts in her living room. A news story about a jewel thief who was never apprehended catches her ear...and the artist's rendering of the 'aged up' thief bears a STRIKING resemblance to Louise herself. And when Louise determines she needs to hit the road posthaste, does Tanner really have the courage to follow Louise ANYWHERE and do just about ANYTHING...with no questions asked?

A story this crazy and wild would normally stray into the sort of goofy yet charming cozy mystery territory I so often avoid. Unless I'm reading a satirical book or something resembling fantasy, I need a certain amount of realism in my reads to keep me invested. What Oakley does so brilliantly in Tanner & Louise, however, was to present such LOVABLE and realistic characters, that no matter what their hijinks, NONE were too out there to be ridiculously FUN!

Tanner could have easily been written as a younger character, presented as a sullen and pouty teen, bored with the world at large...but Oakley gave her so much more depth and honestly, a bit of pain to work through that was really refreshing and provided a perfect balance to some of the silliness in the book. At the age of 21, she both thinks she knows everything and also realizes she ABSOLUTELY doesn't. Regardless, she isn't afraid to engage in verbal battles with Louise OR to try to get HER to broaden her horizons too.

As the perfect counterbalance, Louise is both sassy and sage, wise and witty, but also has a bit of buried pain of her own. The two go from begrudging companions to confidantes, and the transformation is the beauty of this journey. The mystery itself is fun and twisty (and somewhat unpredictable!) but at the end of the day, none of it would matter without the moments of connection between these two souls and the realization that age CAN be just a number.

Best friends are often referred to in jest as 'partners in crime.' But in the case of this duo?

Well...you'll just have to read it to find out!

4 stars

I've enjoyed Colleen Oakley's books in the past and was really looking forward to this one. The blurb sounded promising, and there's just something so sweet and charming about a friendship that blooms between an elderly person and a teen/college student. You expect, of course, the passing of wisdom from the older generation to the younger one, and if a story is handled well then you'll also get to see the younger generation teaching the older one something in a way that is respectful but fun and interesting.

Unfortunately, this book needed more development of everything -- the plot, the characters, the settings, all of it. Tanner's anger and guilt are understandable, but it feels like those were the only things defining her. Louise's "past" came in fits and starts, and at times it felt like some plot elements were being forced to fit a specific idea or maybe even an outline. The road trip that Tanner and Louise take together started off with some promise, but it quickly fizzled into what felt like the two of them driving in circles. I know they make it from Atlanta to California, but it didn't feel like a bona fide road trip story.

There were some incredibly sweet moments between the two of them, but there were also plenty of things that got overlooked in a major way. About halfway through the book, I completely forgot that Tanner's family even existed. After the initial "where is my child and what's happened to her" scene that her parents and siblings experience, they get left behind for several chapters. The portions with Louise's children were somewhat better -- I loved the text exchanges between Jules, Charlie, and Lucy! -- but those kind of fizzled out too. It felt like there was some sincere effort being made to build the story of Agent Huang, but that got superseded by the main plot of Louise and Tanner's road trip. And the comment that August makes toward the end -- about the mix-up -- just left me disappointed, because I had a similar, "That's it?" kind of feeling.

The sweetness carried this book for me and earned it three stars. Otherwise, everything felt pretty under-developed and was kind of a let-down. I do love Colleen Oakley's work, though, so I'll be keeping an eye out for her next one, but this one just didn't quite hit the mark for me.

almost did not read this book. I am not sure why but it just did not sound like a book I wanted to read. BUT… I did pick up the book and I am so glad I did. It was a one day read for me. I could not put it down.

I laughed at Louise and Mrs. Wilt’s adventures. I cringed at the reason why they had these adventures. But, oh what adventures they had. I loved how they interacted with each other; you could see their age difference but you could also see how they did care about each other.

The Mostly True Story of Tanner & Louise had me turning pages as fast as I could read. I recommend picking up with fun and unique story and falling into all the adventures.

This was such a fun read! As I sit here deciding what to say about this book I just keep coming back to what a fun ride it was. All of the characters were witty and I smiled throughout the book at Louise's antics. Humor was on point in this one. The interspersed chapters of conversations between Louise's children cracked me up. They were so entertaining & I found them especially interesting because although they weren't necessary to the storyline, they added such a fun vibe to the book (as well as a little glimpse into Louise as a mother). Colleen Oakley is a genius for including them.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was such a fun, light, and easy read with lovable characters that were entertaining to follow. Tanner and Louise's forced proximity allowed the author to develop their characters and explore their nuances so well. I was completely engrossed in the story from start to finish, and I enjoyed reading about the side characters that occasionally popped into the plot. Read if you want to be taken on a lighthearted adventure with lots of unexpected elements!

Read if you like:
🚙 Road Trips
🩻 Healing
👯‍♀️ Unexpected Friendships
🎥 90’s Movie vibes

This one is so cozy and so unbelievably heartwarming! I absolutely adored this book and its characters. I loved the overarching theme of finding genuine help and support where you absolutely don’t want it, and from a source you would never have expected.

Both of the characters are dealing with their own struggles when the unlikely pairing are smashed into each other’s lives and seeming like a terrible fit, but beauty and true growth for both characters was such an unexpected result.

I highly recommend this heartwarming story of opposites coming together and being what the other needed whether they wanted it or realized it at first.

Thanks so much Berkley Publishing for my ARC of this one in exchange for my review!

This was a cute story with some fun twists! I enjoy stories with older characters and Louise was so great. Entertaining characters and humor along the way made this one an enjoyable, fun read