Reviewed by Valerie
TITLE: The Creek
SERIES: Briar County #3
AUTHOR: Riley Hart
PUBLISHER: Self Published
LENGTH: 255 pages
RELEASE DATE: October 20, 2022
BLURB:
Divorced for two years, August Reynolds needs a change. He and his teenage son, Reese, pack up and move to Briar County, the home August left at fourteen. He’s hoping it’ll help him and Reese connect again, that Reese will come into his own there the way August did. For him, it was all because of Clint Jones, his childhood best friend and first crush.
At forty-two, Clint figures he’s probably never going to find the one. He’s dated on and off, but he’s never fallen in love. He has his business, his dogs, his friends and family. Most of the time, that’s enough, but then August moves home—Clint’s first kiss and bisexual awakening—making him realize he might be lonelier than he thought.
Clint and August fall back into an easy friendship. Some of their best childhood memories are the days they spent at the creek: talking, laughing, and learning about who they were. But now they’re adults, the attraction palpable between them. It’s not long before they’re tumbling into bed, stealing moments for secret kisses and spending days exploring each other.
They can’t move too fast, though. Reese misses his other father, and sometimes August worries Reese would rather be with him. They’re just getting their life on track, and the last thing August wants is to shake it up by telling Reese he’s with Clint. But as it turns out, that’s not the only obstacle in their way…
REVIEW:
The Creek is a lovely second chance, friends to lovers romance – two of my favorite tropes – in Riley Hart’s shared world series, Briar Creek. Briar Creek is home to the small towns of Harmony and Everett where a tight-knit group of queer men and their teenaged sons and nephews have formed a wonderful chosen family. This time around, we meet Clint, a life long resident of Harmony, and August, the man he fell in love with twenty-eight years ago when they were teenagers. They were best friends and each other’s first kiss, but August abruptly moved away and they haven’t seen each other since. Now, almost three decades later, August moves back to Harmony for a fresh start. He’s recently divorced and August thinks his former hometown is a better place for his troubled son, fifteen-year-old Reese, to live.
The prologue begins with a look in the past from when middle school best friends, Clint and August, met at the creek where they formed a close bond as first crushes. Kissing led to Clint’s bi-awakening and confirmed to August that he was indeed gay. As grown men, they return to the creek numerous times to recreate those feelings.
When they see each other for the first time as adults, both Clint and August realize they’ve never again felt the electric bond they had as kids. They have never forgotten each other. Clint, in fact, has never been in love; his life has been all about work and his dogs. They navigate their way through reawakened feelings, becoming friends with benefits, at first, so they can keep their relationship a secret from Reese. August is worried about Reese getting too attached to Clint or thinking he’s no longer his dad’s number one priority.
Reese has an integral role in the book. He hates that August broke up the marriage and family. He treats August poorly, testing the limits to see if August will abandon him, the way he feels his Pop did. He’s so desperate for his Pop’s love that August becomes jealous of his ex-husband.
I adored the brotherhood between Monroe and Holden (Firefly Lane), Deacon and Grady (Sundae’s Best), and Vince and Colby who seem destined for their own book soon. Reese makes friends with Sean, Wyatt, and Scout, too. I particularly liked the relationship that develops between Clint and Reese.
What I missed in this book was the small-town feel present in the prior books. The beauty of fictional small towns is found in the whimsy of the setting and the eccentricities of the townspeople. One missed opportunity was August’s job as a veterinarian which could’ve led to a myriad of quirky people and their pets. I commented in my review of Sundae’s Best how Hart’s attention to the small-town details was one of my favorite parts of the book. Sadly, it’s lacking here. There was also something about the third person POV that didn’t work for me.
I recommend The Creek for its highly likable cast of characters. It makes me want to re-read the series. It’s refreshing to read romances with older leading men, and the crew of teenagers brings a whole other dimension to the series. This installment is another sweet, heartwarming story.
RATING: 
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