Small-Town Secrets

By: Ann-Katrin Byrde

Narrated by: John Solo

Length: 6 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's Summary

Everyone has a secret. Laurence has two. The father of his twin boys isn't who everybody thinks it is, but after escaping his abusive ex-husband and spending months in therapy, Laurence is done putting his trust in alphas. He's going to build a new future for himself and his sons, and he's going to do it all by himself.

Except that emergency substitute karate teacher instructing his twins? That's the alpha he spent a reckless night with in his youth. His best friend's big brother. His lifelong crush...and the twins' actual father.

When Laurence returns to Oceanport visibly scarred, Aaron feels guilty. Maybe if he had admitted to his crush, Laurence wouldn’t have gotten together with the bastard who treated him so badly. But Aaron has always had the hardest time facing his feelings for the younger omega. After all, who sleeps with their baby brother’s best friend?

Now that they’re both adults, Aaron wants nothing more than to take care of Laurence and give them another shot, but he can’t shake the feeling that there’s something the omega is hiding from him and the secrets Laurence is keeping might just be bigger than anything he ever imagined possible.

©2019 Ann-Katrin Byrde (P)2019 Ann-Katrin Byrde

loved It!!!

Amazing addition the Second Chances series, Small-Town Secrets captured my heart. Best friends' brother, secret babies, adorable dogs and kids, protective and caring Alpha and a strong omega survivor... This book delivered on all fronts. Funny, sweet, and perfect. Definitely recommend.

Narration is done by John Solo. A fantastic job. The characters really stand out in their personalities. Easy to lose self in story. great job.

2 people found this helpful

Great story

This was a sweet story. I loved John Solo's narration as usual. Not my favorite story by this writing dynamo but sweet none the less. I can't complain that the characters were not well written because they were. My only issue was how they were written. It made me want to skip through parts as the beginning was quite slow and I can't believe how dense the two main characters were written.

Like I said, this writing duo is awesome and I normally enjoy their writing. The characters in this story just were not my cup of tea.

1 person found this helpful

Small-Town Secrets

Two men share a secret past but to Laurence there is more to the story. When he returns to his hometown, he finds the man of his dreams is still around and soon to be teaching his children. Can Laurence keep the truth from Aaron, or will the truth finally come out? Will the men act on their attraction and keep the children safe while giving them a family?

This is a sweet story about love and never giving up on it. Both Aaron and Laurence try so hard to deny their feelings and always thinking that the other is not interested. It full of emotions and good characters. I enjoyed seeing their relationship take shape and the way the children’s feelings were always taken into account and were not glossed over as just a happy ever after. It was nice to see the love of the whole family alongside the romance of Aaron and Laurence. Narrator John Solo does a great job of bringing these men to life and letting the emotions come through.

1 person found this helpful

Such a sweet story!!

I just love this so much!! I love Laurence and Aaron so much! This is just another amazing story from Ann-Katrin Byrde. Then for John Solo to do the narration is just prefect again. I just love how he brings this story more to life. Love it so much!

1 person found this helpful

Sweet story for Laurence and Aaron and their kids

Small-Town Secrets is the second book in this series, which is a spin-off from the Oceanport series. This story works well as a standalone, although it might work best having at least read Mating of Convenience first.

Laurence is trying to make a life for himself and his twin boys after having left his abusive alpha. He also has found out for certain that Howard, his alpha who physically abused him, is not the biological father for his twins - that would be Aaron, his older brother's best friend. Laurence knows he needs to tell Aaron the truth, especially once Aaron really starts becoming a part of their lives, but how do you tell someone eight years later they are a father?

This was a sweet story, although it had a bit of a slow start for me, to be honest. So much of the first part of the book focuses on Laurence's sons, Chris and Tyler, and honestly I wanted the focus to be on Laurence trying to gain some independence and become more self-sufficient. And then Aaron is just a bit...oblivious? Passive? to so many things that went on between him and Laurence. And I know that Laurence is the younger brother, so he should be considered off-limits, but the age gap between the two of them isn't that major - it's not like Aaron was already 30 when Laurence was just 17.

I listened to this in audiobook format, and I really enjoyed John Solo's narration, as always! He does a great job with voices, and he always has such emotion in the dialogue (he does the hurt omega and strong alpha voices so well).

I simply CANNOT wait for the next/final book of this series - it's Jake and Conner! CAKE!

1 person found this helpful

Sweet Story

This was a very sweet story of an abused omega finally getting the family he truly deserves.

I'm so glad Laurence is finally with the right alpha. After everything he went through, it's amazing that he was still willing to take a chance on a former crush. What's even better is Aaron's desire to care for his omega, even when he takes on two boys that he thought belonged to someone else. When he discovers that Laurence's twins are actually his, he steps up even more to be a great dad (despite almost ruining Christmas).

As always, John has done a great job with another Oceanport story and I look forward to listening to him in the future.

1 person found this helpful

great second chance romance

Aaron proved to be such a great champion for Laurence and the boys. I cheered when he went to Howard's and they had a "talk". Long overdue! My heart ached for Laurence and his boys and for all they had been through. I liked how Aaron stepped up to the plate once he was made aware. The twins are endearing and annoying, as boys that age can be. The narrator was awesome. I look forward to seeing past characters mature and get their own stories in future books. loved it.

1 person found this helpful

New Start

Lawrence has faced so much and is trying to the right thing by his kids despite how hard it is. Aaron proves that he is a great guy with his caring even before he learns the truth of his connection to this family. He continues to show what a great guy he is by understanding all that motivated what came before yet can acknowledge his own sense of lost. Lawrence continues to show his own inner strength in helping to build this new life together.

I read my way through Oceanport

I’m a big fan of AKB Mercy Hilo’s Wolves. I read my way through Oceanport a little over a year ago and I stumbled across this little gem. Totally worth the credit and read. Adorable story exactly as you’d expect. Thanks!

Enjoyable

This is a sweet funny story. Which I adored I have read the book, so gave this a listen too. WOW John Solo gave this a life of his own, he actually owned this story. Would I recommend this, yes definitely well worth the time out of real time and just losing myself into the story.

1 person found this helpful