Narrated by Kale Williams

Riley Hart is the author of a large number of m/m romances, but I haven’t yet tried any of her work, so when I saw that Kale Williams was narrating her new Briar County series, I decided it was time to rectify that! The series is set in small-town North Carolina, and Firefly Lane is what I often refer to as a ‘quiet’ book – the angst level is low, and there are no silly misunderstandings or melodramatic plot devices. It’s a simple, character-driven story about two men in their forties who thought love had probably passed them by, about family being what you make it, and about having the courage to go for what you want.

Monroe Covington likes his life in small town Harmony, NC. Family is close by, he runs a successful store and his son Wyatt is a terrific kid whom he co-parents with Wyatt’s mom, Roe’s best friend, Lindsey. The only thing missing is someone to share his life with, but at forty-five, Roe realises that a long-term relationship probably isn’t on the cards, and he makes do with the occasional hook up on his trips to Asheville or Charlotte. He knows that practically everyone in town expects him and Lindsey to end up together, the fact that Roe is gay not deterring them from thinking that way; he and Lindsey decided to have a child together because they both wanted kids and a long-term relationship wasn’t on the horizon for either of them – and they went into it with their eyes open, knowing they’d be parents but not life-partners. (I had to side-eye the fact that Lindsey got pregnant “the usual way” – Roe is most definitely gay, but had sex with his female best friend. Not being a gay man, I have no idea how likely that is – I suppose it was the most cost effective option?)

Holden Barnett is forty-three and is an airline pilot based in Atlanta. He likes his job and city life, and for the past year has been in a casual relationship with his best friend Vince. They’re more than friends with benefits, but neither of them is interested in anything really serious; they get together every couple of weeks to go out or just hang out, and that suits both of them just fine. But Holden’s settled life is suddenly turned upside down when, out of the blue, he receives a phone call from his estranged sister, Marilee, whom he hasn’t seen or heard from in years. Her dead-beat husband – who is the reason she cut ties with her family – recently left her and their son Sean, took all their money and they’ve been evicted. Holden immediately offers her and Sean a home with him, but she doesn’t want to uproot Sean and take him away from his friends, so even though the small town she lives in is exactly the sort of place Holden had hoped never to set foot in again, he sets out for Harmony the next day to see what he can do to help and support her.

Marilee and Sean now live in a small cabin on Roe’s land (which he’s renting to them very cheaply), and when the two men meet, there’s a definite interest on both sides. As they start spending time together and getting to know each other, Roe finds himself attracted to the other man in a way he hasn’t been to anyone in a long time – but it’s just his luck that Holden has a boyfriend, and doesn’t plan on sticking around.

This sort of small town romance is probably nothing you haven’t read or heard before, but it’s well written, the characters are likeable, and I especially appreciated the way Roe and Holden communicate so openly and honestly with each other. I also liked the way Holden’s relationship with Sean is presented, with Holden slowly overcoming his nephew’s initial resentment and mistrust to prove he means what he says when he tells Sean he wants to be part of his life. Roe and Wyatt ‘s relationship is similarly well written, and Wyatt and Sean are believable thirteen-year-olds. I enjoyed their growing friendship, too.

The romance between Roe and Holden is a slow burn (there’s no cheating – Holden and Vince break up before Holden starts anything with Roe) and I liked the way it grows naturally from their friendship. The UST is nicely done, but the chemistry seemed to become weaker once the relationship turned sexual, and some of the dirty talk in the sex scenes made me giggle rather than want to reach for the ice bucket – it felt really jarring.

This is as much a story about family and community as it is a romance, and although I’ve seen some reviews complaining there is too much focus on the family element, I enjoyed the ensemble feel of the book. I do, however, think that may partly be because there’s not actually much else going on; there’s no angst and the tiny bit of conflict (around Holden’s probable return to Atlanta) is just that – tiny – and the romance alone isn’t really enough to carry the story. Another quibble is that everyone is just so nice and well-adjusted; nobody has a bad word to say about anyone, which, especially in a small town where everyone knows everybody else’s business, felt very unrealistic. I suppose a story about lots of nice people isn’t a bad thing, but in fiction, it makes things a bit dull.

Kale Williams is a favourite narrator, and I admit that his name listed as the narrator of Firefly Lane is what initially caught my eye. He has a lovely, smooth voice and has a way of getting to the heart of the stories he narrates in a way that is low-key but true to the emotions the characters are feeling. That’s true of his performance here; he realises the complicated feelings between Holden and Sean well and there’s a warmth to the interactions between Holden and Roe that reinforces the connection the author is building between them. His pacing is just right and his characterisations are generally good – the two teens are especially well rendered. The characters are clearly differentiated for the most part, although the one exception to that is in the portrayal of the two leads; there isn’t enough of an audible difference between Roe and Holden. Each man’s voice is fairly low pitched, and although Roe does have a slight accent, it sometimes disappears, making it more difficult to tell them apart, and I had to rely on the dialogue tags to work out who was speaking at certain points.

Firefly Lane is the first book I’ve read or listened to by this author, but while it didn’t wow me, I liked enough about it to be interested in trying something else of hers. I do tend to like my romances on the angstier side though, so if you enjoy cute, small-town, low-angst romances, this one may work better for you than it did for me.