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Fresh Start

Cedarwood Beach, Book 1

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Fresh Start

By: Rhys Everly
Narrated by: JD Tomlinson
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He was my first love. Will he be my last?
Going home after twenty years was supposed to be a short stop. Before following my dreams.

Instead, I’m forced to face my past... and the ex that betrayed me.

Dawson Eldred.
• Hollywood superstar.
• America’s most eligible bachelor.
• And the jerk that walked out on me.

Seeing him again opens old wounds. But the spark is still alive.
We failed being in a relationship once.
Should I even give him a second chance?

Listen now to find out.

Fresh Start is the first book in the Cedarwood Beach small town gay romance series and is completely standalone. It contains two rivals in close quarters, a Butterfly festival, and a young niece hell-bent on getting her uncle his happily ever after.

©2020 Rhys Everly (P)2024 Rhys Everly Literature & Fiction Romance
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Dawson Eldred is a jaded closeted A-list actor who’s been playing the same major super-hero character for years—he’s highly successful but it has come at a price. He hasn’t seen his parents since they moved to the small town of Cedarwood Beach a few years ago and it’s high time he went. He doesn’t expect to run into his first love, ex-boy band heartthrob / struggling actor Leo Karras. Leo is also visiting family and he has many bridges to mend, having been away for nearly 20 yrs. It isn’t a happy reunion for Dawson and Leo. Leo is a hothead and he’s never forgiven Dawson for stealing his part and his potential agent during their final weeks of acting school. It seems like every rapprochement that Dawson attempts is thrown back in his face and he starts to lose his patience too. But the two men can’t escape each other in such a small town; maybe they can finally let bygones be bygones.

I actually really enjoyed this small-town / enemies-to-lovers / second-chances romance! I can understand why some reviewers felt the book leaned into the ‘enemies’ part a bit heavily, it got tiring watching the two guys fight. But hey, that actually felt realistic to me—people can be stubborn, especially when they’ve had decades to stew over it all. I liked the focus on Dawson’s celebrity status, his fear of being outed, and the seamy side of Hollywood he was exposed to. I also liked the focus on Dawson and Leo’s families in Cedarwood Beach, and how both had ground they needed to make up. I’ll definitely chase up further books in the series. 🎧 Voice actor JD Tomlinson did a great job on the audio, I especially liked the way he voiced Dawson.

Hotheaded enemies to sweet, sweet lovers!

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