Five Oaks is a resonant story, fluctuating between three generations of women, of three distinct eras, all facing romantic, familial, and moral dilemmas eerily alike yet vastly unique.

I particularly enjoyed the pacing of this novel, particularly given the alternating story/timelines which would leave me calling for "one more chapter, one more chapter" over and over.

Five Oaks is quietly powerful, and a story sure to resonate particularly with women whose coming-of-ages align with those of our distinct characters. Though maybe not a bestseller for the charts, I can imagine this novel leaving an impact on a lot of hearts--a surer sign of success, in my eyes.

Readers, if you are looking for a soul-satisfying novel to kick back in your Adirondack chair with this summer, give Five Oaks a shot.

Reading this novel felt like sitting down and looking through a stranger's old photo album, hearing the story behind every single photo—very little dramatic arc, just a retelling of some past family events.

"Five Oaks" tells the life stories of three generations of women - their journey to finding love and the losses along the way. Set in Arkansas in the Summer of 1988, Wren and Sylvie have come to Five Oaks to spend time with their grandparents. Our narrator, Sylvie, tells the story of her sister Wren's coming of age; her mother Margaret's love and tragedy; and her mamaw Georgia's brush with the war and her nursing career. These three have all had a secret they've kept, and the house at Five Oaks has been their anchor through it all.

This book really has potential. It just needs to go back to the table to be hashed out. The stakes and intensity of the dramatic arc need to be raised in all three stories. The dramatic arc is nearly a flat line in the stories of Margaret and Georgia - enough for me to question the purpose of including them at all. I found the idea of using Sylvie as the narrator to be a brilliant idea, especially as we get to see Wren, who is the primary focus (I think), through her eyes. The story of Sylvie and Wren has so much potential. I think Julie Hensley could have had a five-star read for me had it only been a story centered around the two girls - without the photo album approach to their mother and grandmother. It just fell short for me.

A special thank you to NetGalley, Julie Hensley, and Lake Union Publishing for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book is for lovers of women’s literature and historical fiction. It follows 3 generations of women in a family across different timelines. The story centered around a vacation cottage named Five Oaks as a touch point for all generations. See how different women found themselves and matured into adults amidst different time periods

While I had a hard time staying interested in the slow pace of the story, I absolutely adored the writing in terms of intertwining each generation’s story while still allowing them to be interesting and dynamic independent of each other. I liked the uniqueness of the plot lines while the common place of Five Oaks. It’s perfect for summer reading filled with vibes of firefly, late nights, and slow lazy days.
I appreciated the twist in the present day plot line, but it felt rushed and unsettled by the end of the story. I also wonder if I would’ve been more invested with Wren as a narrator rather than Sylvie. Also, I felt as though the character of Hollis was at best unnecessary and at worst creepy and predatory.

I feel like this book had a great a deal of potential, but it did not live up to it. The writing itself was good. The descriptions were beautiful. I did like the characters, but the way their stories were supposed to be connected felt disjointed. There is also the issue of on page child SA in this book that I did not see mentioned anywhere at all in any trigger warnings.

I was hooked from the beginning!!
It was amazing and engaging.
I was instantly sucked in by the atmosphere and writing style.
The characters were all very well developed .
The writing is exceptional and I was hooked after the first sentence.

3.5 Rounding Up

A beautiful snapshot of summer, we follow 3 generations of women as they come of age in and around a family lakehouse. We follow these women as they navigate life’s many trials and make decisions that will change the course of their life.

I did really enjoy reading from the 3 different timeline, and the descriptions were very evocative of the time and setting. This did feel layered when it came to the way each generation made their decisions and how the time and perception would have influenced them. I did want more from the more recent timeline. I felt like I wanted some things explored more and more of a definitive conclusion.

Overall this was a nice summer read and I wouldn’t hesitate to pick up this author’s next work.

I received an eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was okay. The description seemed more exciting than the book actually was. The writing was stunning and vivid, the author did a wonderful job telling a story. I enjoyed reading about the three generations of women in this family and I liked all the characters.

I love coming of age stories and reading Wren and Slyvie’s experiences as little girls starting to get a taste of the real world kept me engaged.

I kept expecting something big to happen because of how the beginning was written. What happens to Wren at the end is kind of up to the reader to interpret and I think it left me more unsatisfied than wanting to use my imagination. I wish there was more development on the main characters part and the timeline jumped would at times get confusing.

I liked this book but I neither loved it nor disliked it.

3.5⭐️

Thank you NetGalley and Brilliance Publishing for proving me a copy.

This book was an absolute delight to listen to. Starting off with Sylvie our FMC and narrator of the story of 5 Oaks located on a lake in Arkansas, a family vacation home for the family stone that spans over 3 generations. Sylvie our FMC tells the story of her grandmother, Georgia, her mother Margaret and her sister Wren. The book touches on the stories of 3 generations of women and how they came to be in the world. Starting off in Texas 1942 with the story of Georgia, how her love for Byron spans a war, how she experiences heartbreak and loss when he goes away to war. How Georgia’s fragmented relationship with her mother leads her to keep a devasting secret. In tandem we follow Margaret in Vermont the early 1970’s in college where she endures a heartbreaking trauma that shapes the rest of her life but she keeps it a secret too. Georgia is Margret’s mother and Wren and Sylvie are Margaret’s daughters. Wren’s story is told in the present day of the year 1988 and is told by Sylvie who goes through her own trials that one year they visit their grandparents at 5 Oaks. The Generational trauma in this book is told with such subtility that I had to concentrate on nothing else but the story whilst listening to these crucial parts. Julie Hensley sure knows how to keep the reader guessing at whether they are on the right track with conclusions. Wren’s story is eerily similar to that of her mother Margaret except the sign of the times is evident even just 15 years into the future. Kids were getting more daring with what they get up to when their parents aren’t looking. The confusing parts were in Wren’s story as I didn’t quite understand what actually occurred. The ending does explain it from Sylvie’s perspective having been present that summer at 5 Oaks and not even she had a grasp on what occurred. All in all, the book does go through some heavy themes and some mild trigger warnings might be needed for this book. I’d give a solid 3.75 stars out of 5. I would have loved to read a copy rather than listen, but for an audio book consumer, the narrator did a good job of getting the accent right for the part of the US, Kansas and Kentucky, that the book talks about. Fantastic read of lovers of subtle story-telling, incredible descriptions of scenery as well as the feelings evoked within the characters of the book. Job well done Julie Hensley.

Thank to NetGalley for the ARC. This is a coming of age story that follows two sisters and the life they lead growing up in a rural town. From young love, teen mistakes, and decisions from their past.
This story goes back and forth from their childhood times to current.
The narration was well done. The narrator was able to tell the story using the voices of all the characters, and it allowed me to feel as though they were in the same room with me, telling this story.
I did enjoy this book and look forward to others by this author.
Clara B

2⭐️ Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for an advanced copy of Five Oaks.

Sylvie and her older sister Wren are spending the summer with their grandparents. This tells the stories of three generations of women.

This had such potential but it fell flat in the execution. The book really drug on and was very overly descriptive. Then the ending was very sudden and abrupt. There was a lot of unanswered questions.

Three generations of women and their coming of age stories. Amazing writing! The descriptions of the people, places and events are so well done I feel as if I just watched a movie. I love the setting and the character development. Simply wonderful all around, just excellent!

Southern historical fiction is one of my favourite genres, especially ones set in Appalachia, but this one missed the mark. It's a multi-generational story about three generations of women. Teenager Wren and her little sister Sylvie go to their Grandma's house, Five Oaks, in the Appalachian Mountains. This is a tale about coming of age and, of course, first love.

What didn't work for me was the pacing; it was so slow, especially at the beginning, and I had a hard time getting into the book at first. The story itself was interesting enough, and the book is very descriptive, sometimes overly so. The character depth of the sisters was very well done. I loved Wren and Sylvie's relationship. My sister is older than I am, and I could see us in these girls. Julie Hensley is a wonderful writer, but this got bogged down in all the little details. It's a very character-driven story with many issues and topical matters that were dealt with appropriately. But the ending was unsatisfying and felt unresolved.

Overall, this book will suit those who enjoy literary fiction with a strong sense of time and place. Some readers will appreciate the beautiful prose that I found too wordy. I do commend the author for her ability to capture Appalachian life in such a realistic way. I was missing a dramatic plot and emotional drama, I thought the book would entail, but it deserves recognition for its portrayal of the Appalachian Mountains and its people.

This coming of age novel focusses on the events of one critical summer when two young sisters go to visit their grandparents at their lake house in Arkansas.

Teenage Wren is testing her boundaries while the younger sister Sylvie is the onlooker who keeps Wren's secrets - including the most problematic ones (perhaps especially the most problematic ones).

Except when Wren goes missing, it becomes clear just how high the price of secrecy is...

This one was not for me. Rambling and inconclusive, it may appeal to readers who like intergenerational sagas without clear resolution.

This moves back and forth in time between 1988, the 1970s, and the 1940s to tell the coming of age stories of three generations of women. It's meant to be dreamy and atmospheric but I never quite fell into it. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Over to others.

This book was not good. I would not recommend this book to anyone I know, simply because it dragged out, was confusing, and just plain boring.

a beautiful story that felt really immersive and contemplative. i found myself wrapped up in these characters stories. there were parts that i felt dragged a little too much but over all a really gorgeous novel that i will be recommending.

a beautiful story that felt really immersive and contemplative. i found myself wrapped up in these characters stories. there were parts that i felt dragged a little too much but over all a really gorgeous novel that i will be recommending.

DNF. This was not my cup of tea. I tried and got 47% the way through thr book and had to stop. The ever changing points of view from different time periods is confusing. Maybe I should have written down everyone's names to keep them straight but sometimes I couldn't figure out which character was being referred to and whose point of view it was.

I did not enjoy this story for the confusing nature and it was difficult to get even slightly interested in the characters.

I was unable to finish this book and thus will not be posting a full review. Thank you for the opportunity and your consideration.

I was very very hopeful for this novel, and was immediately drawn into the story that focuses on multi-generations and a coming of age story. I am usually such a fan of these stories however this one did not click for me. I could not really find myself drawn into the characters stories. I wanted to love this novel and did love the setting and concept of the story but something was missing for me. I know that a lot of people will not feel the same way though, and I know that this book will find its intended audience!