REVIEW: The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise by Colleen Oakley

In The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise by Colleen Oakley, Twenty-one-year-old Tanner’s life changed drastically because of one foolish decision towards the end of her college career. Something that affected her physically while also wreaking havoc on her emotions and mental well-being. Taking a job as a caregiver to eighty-four-year-old Louise Wilt is supposed to get Tanner out of her funk. It’s tough to feel sorry for yourself when you’re focused on someone else. Or so her mother says. But she got a whole lot more than she bargained for with Louise considering a few days after moving in her house, Tanner gets woken up in the middle of the night to the octogenarian telling her they need to leave. Right now. What soon follows is one of the most chaotic weeks of Tanner’s life. Yet somehow, it’s also time spent showing her exactly what she’s capable of–which turns out to be leaps and bounds above what she ever imagined.

‘Yes, Tanner knew how it felt to make a mistake, to want to set things right before it was too late. And though it may have been too late for Tanner, it wasn’t for Mrs. Wilt.’

Louise is every bit as thrilled as Tanner appears to be, which is to say not at all, that her daughter hired the young woman as a live-in caregiver after a tumble that broke Louise’s hip. If her (grown) children only knew the things she had done and lived through in her lifetime, they wouldn’t be so quick to point out any of the undignified changes as she grows older. When Louise’s past catches up with her, the only choice she has is to take off for California to set it all straight. Only, she can’t drive anymore after her hip surgery. Good thing Tanner has a license. Louise is fairly certain she can talk the girl into making the trek with her, dangerous though it might become. As awkwardness and miscommunication starts the whole adventure off on the wrong foot, she’s afraid she might not get to the West Coast in time. But as she and Tanner finally start seeing eye to eye, Louise realizes she might just get to see it all through to the sweet end after all.

“I’m sorry I yelled at you earlier.”
Mrs. Wilt shrugged… “It’s fine.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Angry women don’t bother me. It’s the ones who aren’t furious that I worry about.”
“What?” Tanner asked, confused. “Why?”
“Means they aren’t paying attention.”

Colleen Oakley’s fantastic storytelling was on full display in The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise. The plot twists, intriguing backstories, and the unexpected friendship between an octogenarian and a twenty-one-year-old as they traveled the U.S. kept me hooked from page one.

‘The truth was, she did feel a level of understanding with the girl, a kinship that perhaps was created under forced circumstances, but flourished beyond Louise’s imagination.’

Content warning: View Spoiler »domestic abuse, murder, struggles with dementia and Parkinson’s detailed. « Hide Spoiler

I’m already a fan of Colleen Oakley’s writing, having read all of her books to date, but there was something magical about The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise. Aside from its Thelma & Louise-ish vibe, not only was it a multi-generational *and* multi-POV story, but it also had such a rich backstory for each character that it felt like we really got to know them on a whole other level. And that kept me invested right out of the gate.

Louise and Tanner made quite the unlikely pair. An eighty-four-year-old and a twenty-one-year-old, respectively, they were worlds apart in terms of life experiences and viewpoints. But they both were women who knew how cruel the world could be. And Tanner and Louise were also each attempting to come to terms with unwanted changes in their lives. I won’t get into specifics. It would ruin the intricate work Oakley did with their truths–particularly with Louise’s past and why she chose to go on the lam across the country. Wow, what a life she’d led! But it was the way she was able to impart some of her years of hard-won wisdom to Tanner and the bond they formed as two women on the path to doing what was necessary that got me right in the feels.

I thought it was interesting how Oakley let the secondary characters get their own time to shine and explain their personal situations–it added so much to the overall storyline. There was a lot to explore and uncover. From the text exchanges between Louise’s grown children (hilarious) to the home-life struggles of the lead FBI agent (sad) and the insight into the antagonist’s reasons for doing what he did (surprising) this was an entertaining novel to savor as well as to cherish.

QOTD: Are you a sucker for a good plot twist? If so, do you have any favorite books that include this element?

Book Info:

Publication: March 28, 2023 | Berkley |

Twenty-one-year-old Tanner Quimby needs a place to live. Preferably one where she can continue sitting around in sweatpants and playing video games nineteen hours a day. Since she has no credit or money to speak of, her options are limited, so when an opportunity to work as a live-in caregiver for an elderly woman falls into her lap, she takes it.

One slip on the rug. That’s all it took for Louise Wilt’s daughter to demand that Louise have a full-time nanny living with her. Never mind that she can still walk fine, finish her daily crossword puzzle, and pour the two fingers of vodka she drinks every afternoon. Bottom line — Louise wants a caretaker even less than Tanner wants to be one.

The two start off their living arrangement happily ignoring each other until Tanner starts to notice things—weird things. Like, why does Louise keep her garden shed locked up tighter than a prison? And why is the local news fixated on the suspect of one of the biggest jewelry heists in American history who looks eerily like Louise? And why does Louise suddenly appear in her room, with a packed bag at 1 a.m. insisting that they leave town immediately?

Thus begins the story of a not-to-be-underestimated elderly woman and an aimless young woman who—if they can outrun the mistakes of their past—might just have the greatest adventure of their lives.