Trifles & Treasures

Hearts of Snow Lake, Book 4

By: Ashton Cade

Narrated by: Cam Walker

Length: 6 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's summary

Ben:

Despite never making a move of any kind on Adam and my absolute certainty that I'd never talk to him ever again, I’ve never let this flame go out. And now he's back here in Snow Lake. I don’t know what it is about this guy that sparks something in me - a need, a drive to be more. Whatever I have to do to make him notice me.

How pathetic is that?

But now that he has noticed me, I don't know if I can face losing what I've always wanted.

Adam:

My mom's really sick, and I'm back in Snow Lake to take care of her - whether she wants me to or not. It's bringing up all kinds of memories - but at the same time, I can see that things have really changed.

In Des Moines, I'm a recluse who doesn’t date. Here in Snow Lake, the place I couldn't wait to get away from as a teenager, I'm like a different guy. One who could have friends, family, maybe even a relationship. But that's not really me, is it? It's just a vacation version of me. It's not real, and when it’s time for me to leave, none of the connections "Snow Lake Adam" made here will be either, so what's the point of a relationship? Besides, Ben thinks I'm still that punk guitar player he had a crush on so many years ago. Little does he know I turned out to be kind of a dud. The way he looks at me with stars in his eyes makes me want to both puff up and hide at the same time, so he doesn't find out I'm just a regular guy. But he's so kind. And too hot for my own good.

What would have happened if I had met him back then? Is there still a chance now?

©2019 Ashton Cade (P)2021 Ashton Cade

Great to Visit Snow Lake again! Fantastic Listen🎧

Aston Cade delivers another wonderful novel in her “Hearts of Snow Lake” series. I am enjoying her writing style she creates original stories with interesting storylines and characters that are realistic, easy to relate to and connect with. I love the small town charm and its charming residents and business owners. This book is Ben and Adam’s story, Margaret Stowe is Ben’s best customer and one of his closest friends who is a mother figure to him. She browsing new arrivals at his shop when she collapses and is rushed to the hospital. He knows her son Adam from school, he was a couple years ahead of him and he had the biggest crush on him, though Adam never noticed him. Adam left to become a rockstar and never looked back, never visited his mother either and Ben was not happy about that. He calls to tell him his mother is in the hospital not expecting much from him, surprisingly he comes right away. Adam does not know what Ben’s deal is so he was weary of him and a bit cold. He eventually warms up, his mothers intervening helped with that too. This is a great enemies to lovers second chance at love, the story is nicely plotted with plenty of drama, angst, heartfelt and emotional moments all leading to a wonderful romance.

🎧📚🎧 And for the wonderful narration, Cam Walker is a talented narrator and a versatile voice artist. He continues to bring these characters and their story to life. He performs the voices for all the characters, gives each their own distinct voice which makes it easy to follow along and tell who is who. He is awesome at portraying the characters, taking each role and making it her own, grasping their persona and playing the role with perfection, sounding believable and just as I picture them to sound He is an entertaining storyteller and a pleasure to listen to. Thank you for another great listen🎧

Cute and fun loving

When Ben's high school crush moves back home, it's up to Ben to get noticed.
This is a fun, light-hearted story about a son trying to compromise with his mother after having a stroke while gaining the attention of his secret crush.

solid 4 stars

Ashton Cade is a new author for me and I enjoyed Trifles and Treasures.
📖 My first reaction to this story would be: 🤔 ... "complex" (lots of miscommunication, not good behavior and hurtful words and actions on everyone's part!)

I enjoyed the story and will look to further investigate the other titles in the series. Individually the characters are well written and likeable and the story has a good pace .. its a difficult road to a HEA, but it was worth it.

My heart breaks for the three main characters in this book. The broken relationship between Adam and his mother, the way Ben is put between Mrs Stowe (who has been the mother Ben wishes he had) and Adam (who is jealous of their relationship and Ben's high school crush), and the way Mrs Stowe wont look past her criticisms to see Adam is only trying to do what's best for her health.
- Personally, I wouldn't call this story light and fluffy, (but that could be influenced by my own experiences!), but I could probably go with sweet. 😊

🎧 Cam Walker is a new narrator for me, and I think he's done a good job on Trifles and Treasures. I had no problem distinguishing characters or feeling the emotions of the story, and the characters dialog had good inflections and intonations and their voices suited their personalities. I did find the content between dialog to be a tiny bit slow for my preferences, so nudging the speed up to 1.1 easily corrected this minor issue - overall though, I enjoyed his narration and will look for further tiles narrated by him in the future.

⚠ I received a complimentary copy of this book at my request - it has in no way influenced my review.

A trifle for Adam

Plot: Enemies to lovers, HS crush, prodigal son, meddling mom
Feels: Bouts of frustration
Drama: Miscommunication and misunderstandings abound, Adam’s reaction to his mom’s collapse and her reaction to his return
Heat: 2/5
Characters: Ben is a sweetie, but he along with Adam and Margaret have their faults throughout the story
Pacing: Good flow
Length: Ok
Ending: It takes a while to get there, but Ben and Adam finally get their hard-won HEA.
Performance: Good, solid narration. You can hear the sound of inhalation at every pause as well.

Love this series!

I love this series and love Snow Lake, however I was never completely sold on Adam. Usually I love the grumpy guy by mid book but Adam never really seemed to change ! Ben tho!! He is a sweetheart and I’m glad he got his HEA! Great series can’t wait for the next book to come to audio !

Another good addition

The story was good. Adam was a little over protective, but I get it. I wanted to slap his momma so many times though!