Home Truths

Love in Three Lakes #1

by Sasha Goldie

Nate’s there to make a deal, but he won’t say no to a tryst…

Nate Semkins’ career is about to skyrocket. All he needs to do is help developers turn one tiny hamlet into a tourist hotspot. When his car breaks down in Three Lakes, it threatens to derail the entire deal. He’s trying to sell Three Lakes, not stay. But the local mechanic might be a nice distraction. His busy career means he only has time for the occasional hookup, not a relationship, but one small town guy might be able to make him change his ways - if only he is brave enough to face some home truths.

This mechanic will repair a closed-off heart…

Ian Garland is happy to put down roots in Three Lakes and loves the fact that he knows everybody. Then Nate Semkins limps into town with a broken car, and Ian’s world tilts on its axis. They say opposites attract but Ian has already been down that road - and it didn't end well. He promised himself he wouldn't fall for another ambitious man, but the chemistry between them is hot enough to burn. Ian will do anything to save his home and prove to the sexy big city real estate agent that it has its own kind of charm.

A Small Town Romance.

Genres: M M Romance, Audiobook, M M Contemporary, Gay, Contemporary

194 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 20, 2019

Reviews

[~BookNeeds~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok. So I really enjoyed this. Loved it actually. I don’t care the way the book ended. I feel like I have to read the follow up and I’m sort of a rebel. I’ll come back to this series.

[Gustaf · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars

[Lulu]

DNF

Good god I couldn't 😳 You just met!!!!

[DENICE · Rating 5 out of 5]

FIRST TIME LOVE CAN BE SCARY

I received this book for free and am giving my honest and voluntary review

Ian and Nate find themselves trying to make things work, a city boy who’d rather stay in the city, and a country boy who wants to stay in the country. Nate’s job makes things difficult and being that he’s never been a relationship, things get a little dicey. Reading this story makes one wonder why people can’t be open and honest and throw their insecurities to the wayside.

[Kimberlie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed Nate and Ian's story! They are two guys coming from entirely different backgrounds to help each other realize they were both on the wrong path in life. Characters were relatable, the story was nicely written. It didn't wow me, but I'll definitely read more in the series. It all wrapped up in a very nice HEA... except Tyler... What happened to him?! Maybe he will resurface later in the series. The scene at the very end felt out of place until I realized it was setting up the next book in the series.

Narrator Richard Reynolds did a great job!

There was an audio production issue that drove me crazy, though. The time between chapters was even less than the pause between sentences. Add to that the chapters switching POVs and I struggled to catch up to who was telling each part of the story.

I received an audio copy of this story in exchange for an unbiased review.

[Kathleen Bradbury (Bulfon) · Rating 5 out of 5]

The great plot was well written and the characters were so well developed that as I turned each page the chemistry between the characters kept me totally hooked until the very last page!

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Anne Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliant boxset couldnt put it down!!!
This is a fantastic collection of books about 4 gay men who live in Three lakes.
Ian has always lived in Three lakes and is happy with the community, He has always been excepted as being gay. He is slightly jiggered from a past relationship so isn't looking for a man. That is until he goes out on a call to collected a car that's broken down. Ian is a mechanic. As he drives by the car he sees the most tasty man laying on the bonnet of the car. Woohoo he is fine!!! But just looking at his clothes he knows he is a city man just like his ex Scott.
Nate cant believe his luck today. It started so well. He finally got his chance to show his boss that he could cope by himself to get the best price for a piece of land in somewhere called Three Lakes. If this went well Nate was in line for a promotion. And then it would be the big times. Then it started to go wrong. A stupid woman walked into him and split his coffee all over his luck suit so that had to go to the cleaners and now his baby of a car he had restored had broken down and there was no phone signal!!! Nate got on the bonnet of his car and just waited for a car to come past so he could get help. And thankfully a man stopped and promised to get him help. SO he just had to wait some more but that meant he had missed his reservation at his AirB&B so he would need to find somewhere to stay when he got there. arrrhhhh. When the tow truck finally arrived Nate was relived. But when he saw the man who got out, his heart went into over drive, he man was sex on legs and Nate got nervous. Trying to be funny fell on deaf ears maybe he shouldn't joke about be a country bumpkin. He was obviously a straight man probably with a family. Nates day just kept giving.
Yep this man was just like his ex and Ian couldnt wait to get he back and out of his truck!! Then he asked him if he knew of any B&B's in the area as he had missed his reservation. Ian knew there was nothing in town due to it being the ski season. And Ian knew he would offer him his spare room when he really didnt want too. But he wouldn't leave this man without somewhere to stay. They ended up going for a drink and something to eat And the attraction between them was electric , the chemistry was off the chart but would they be good for each other???
And that's all you are getting. This is a story of learning to see what is in front of you and not leaving in the past. They could make each other so happy if they just communicate. I just couldnt put this book down. They dragged me into their time together and my heart was in my mouth the whole time. I promise you will not be disappointed. One amazing boxset!!!!!

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Jenny Saul-Avila · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable and fairly light read for me. The timeline for the two characters to fall in love is VERY short, but they did spend time getting to know one another to some extent - in so much as people can in a matter of 2 weeks. Readers definitely need to suspend some disbelief for some bits of this book, but sometimes it's not a terrible way to spend one's time.
The characters are flawed, each with their own reasons for their flaws, for their seriously bad habit of jumping to certain conclusions. Ian had been burned by a guy who wanted a fancier city life and Nate had grown up poor, wanting success financially and being further influenced by a manager at work who was even more focused on that kind of success. Meeting each other caused them to have to reevaluate themselves and their prejudices. It was a little Hallmark tropey, you know, the gruff, down to Earth small town guy meets the fancy city boy. But I liked the characters, as they were sweet, funny and sexy. Ian was my favorite of the two.
There were a couple flaws for me, which is what took it down to a 3.5 to 4-star read. Every romance novel couple needs themselves a challenge to overcome for their final happy after. It's almost a rule - some authors are more subtle about it than others, but there is usually some kind of wrench thrown in at least once. (No pun intended with the wrench thing, considering Ian is a mechanic). In this book, I felt that the situation was out of character and weak. I think the author could've found a more interesting wrench to throw in. But that's me. Another flaw is that the timeline was a little sketchy at times, nothing big in this one, but I found that this tendency to muck up the timeline continues through the series. There were a few other inconsistencies in various conversations that kind of made me shake my head. But I decided to just do a mental shudder & go on, because I did find the story and the characters interesting and likeable, even if they did make some questionable decisions at times. They're only (fictional) humans after all.
For the audio version, I liked the narration with no reservations.

[Stephanie W · Rating 4 out of 5]

All the feels and a nice HEA.

NATE - loves living in the city, making money selling real estate and shares an apartment with his sister, conveniently located near their work. Married to his work, he's never had time for anyone but himself. The express lane to loneliness, a chance meeting with a hot mechanic in a small town is a surprise unto itself.

IAN - former military, lives in a small town, own a mechanic shop and does what he loves - repairing cars. After a separation with his boyfriend Scott, resolving to the occasional tourist romp but lacking long-term small town options, he's spent many of his nights alone.

On his way to the real estate deal of his career in Three Lakes, Nate's car breaks down and needs a tow. Expecting your cliche tow truck operator, Ian arrives and both are inwardly drooling over one another while reflecting on the typical stereotypes.

Because Nate had to be towed, he missed out on his planned accommodations and Ian offered to put him up for the night. To not feel like he's taking advantage, he offers to pay for dinner.
A good meal and a few beers later, both are feeling the heat so to speak. Opening up in ways could have been unimaginable.
One night of last minute lodging turns into days and nights of charm, wit, fun, food, and passion.
Kind of caught between a rapid flame, a simmer, and getting to know you in the most interesting of ways. Each man learns more about each other every single day. The kind of progression that forces them to rethink everything.

The week is over. What will they do? What a wonderful beginning to this four book series.

****I received this free copy of book one in a four book bundle via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.*****

[Vaughn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every big city has it's little communities, 

but they don't have the quaint, small-town charm. ~Michael Goss~
This was a sweet, easy going romance. It was a light listen with an interesting plot. It feels like nothing is working out for Nate when his car needs a part, he can't find a room to stay in a busy town and gets stranded on the side of the road. This story was a great start to this series as it eases you into the small town residents and builds for the next book. I felt like the fight Nate and Ian had was kind of silly, mainly miscommunication issues, but at the same time it was a smart way to add a little bit of drama without overdoing it.
I will say that the best part of the story was the narrator! This is the first time I've listened to Richard Reynolds, but he was wonderful. I love his voice and the depth he gave to all of the different characters. I really felt like I was part of the book just hanging out with friends and hearing about their lives. Really good!

[MommyCelia · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good until it wasn’t

I was going to rate this a 4 because I like the writing. It was all good that Nate and Ian wanting more and willing to make life changes just to give the relationship a chance. Then the “fling” drama happened. Why would you say something you didn’t mean and then had the audacity to feel hurt and disappointed when the other person didn’t disagree? Really? I hated Nate after that and didn’t care about the ending anymore.

[Kirstin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a quick, whirlwind romance, but there just wasn't enough there between the two to make it believable. There was absolutely no communication whatsoever. Moving is a huge step, one you don't take lightly after a week long affair, but these men were both all in. I also thought something was missing from the way Scott was mentioned multiple times, yet we never heard that story at all.

[Mrs.V · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. I loved the plot and the small town setting is one of my favourite.
I usually don’t care much about the whole misunderstanding / we-just-don’t communicate thing, but in the end it didn’t detract from my appreciation of the whole story.
I’m excited to read the rest of the series.

[Mandy Sawyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a lovely start to this series. The setting is a quiet town with likeable characters. A steamy storyline of two guys falling hard and fast. It seems to set book 2 up nicely as well. Fantastic performance from Richard.

[Ray · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy read. Lacks deep character development and it’s definitely insta love.

[Hmmm · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ian & Nate

[BooksSaveMe · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars - nice sweet easy read

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

📒 This is steamy, romantic and entertaining. Nate is a real estate agent on the fast track to becoming a partner, so when he's offered the chance to be in charge of an auction for a multimillion dollar piece of land, he hops in his car to go home and pack, and then immediately heads to Bend so that he can familiarize himself with the property. He never makes it though because his car breaks down outside a very small town. Ian owns the tow and repair shop his father started, so he gets the call to get the car and man. When they first meet Ian thinks Nate is just another hoity toity city boy and Nate thinks In is country hick, but both think the other is hot. When they get to town, and Ian realizes that there's nowhere for Nate to stay, he offers his spare bedroom. What starts as a one night emergency lodging, and a little sexy time, turns into a week long stay. Knowing how wrong for each other they are doesn't stop the attraction, or them from acting on it. But when the week is over they have to decide what, and maybe who, they want going forward. And or not an easy decision for either of them. The storyline is packed with small town quirks, love and angst. I'm looking forward to reading the next book, for the story, and I'm hoping to find out what happened to Tyler.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author. This is my honest and voluntary opinion of it.

[Eduardo Pace · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would give give stars to creativity and general fluidity of this story. As a reader, I was completely drawn into the story from the beginning and the sexual heat was introduced early in the story, which captivated and kept my attention throughout the storu.

The story failed in two areas. When Ian and Hate first engage in sex the story suggests the only activity they both can engage in is "handjobs" because neither man has condoms. Later both men engage again in sex and go further without using a condom. Later, again sex is performed and after performing oral sex Ian suggests he should've worn a condom. It was confusing logic to follow.

I also found it difficult to believe that Mate would suggest what he and Ian had "was just a fling" and that Ian wouldn't call him on it. It didn't fit the storyline.

Last, when Ian conveys to Mate that it was no fling for him and slams the door; it would indicate to anyone that Ian wanted more out of the relationship. So, for SEnate not to understand that was again, difficult to follow.Otherwise it was a very good story.

[C.B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

When has waiting for a car part ever been so much fun? Nate is on his way to participate in an town land auction. His car breaks down outside Three Lakes. He is an ambitious workaholic real estate developer focused on advancing in his profession. Ian's Toe & Garage responds to help Nate. With no apparent vacancy, Ian offers his spare bedroom. While waiting for the car repair, Nate and Ian progress from customer/mechanic to friends to more. They, casually progress through their days. It's an interesting read of men who aren't eager to jump into relationships and procrastinate facing reality. How long before a fling becomes a relationship? Does Nate get his land? What happens when the sale is complete? Absolutely enjoyed the tension of contracting values and ideals. Good opening story to Three Lakes citizens. Nicely done! I received an ARC from Booksprout for a review.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a series that makes your heart clench and brings tears to your eyes. Nate is on the fast path to loneliness with his workaholic schedule and sporadic hookups. The sparks that fly when he meets staid nice guy Ian makes you want to be a fly on the wall. I love that this isn’t an over the top love but one that treasures and adores. This story sets you up to meet the next hot eligible bachelor of Three Lakes.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Keith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well Done

Mostly a well written story if you ignore the fact the author knows nothing about the roads in Oregon. (Describes highway “exits” on what turns out to be only a 2-lane US highway?)
There are some story threads which are not resolved although the romance does find a HFN ending. The book ends with a lead in for the next story.

[Mim Crenshaw · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book gave me all the feels. Nate and Ian's chemistry is wonderful. This was very well written with an interesting storyline that makes you want to keep reading. I cant wait to see what the next book will bring.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Louise · Rating 4 out of 5]

The alternative idea!

A land agent was sent out to a county town to look over some land and take it to Auction, His car broke down and eventually got towed to the local mechanic. He was offered a room by the mechanic as there was none in the small town. There begins a relationship well worth reading. Can't wait for more in the series.

[Jeanine Beaulieu St Pierre · Rating 5 out of 5]

Small town love

I loved this book I grew up in a small town and it is nice when someone from the city can fall in love with someone from a small town

[Elaine Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant

Absolutely loved this book and the bonus chapters were magical, can't wait to read the next book in this series.