The 'magical small town that brings people together' is a trope I didn't know I needed until I read this book. All three stories were so unique and feel-good; each bringing in different fantastical aspects. The concept was so interesting; three different strangers heading to the same place, meeting different people in the same small town.

Each story was interesting, with its own unique characters and plot. The first story was an enemies to lovers type romance that I enjoyed so much! Ed and Lyn were really interesting characters that complemented each other perfectly. The progression of their relationship and the subtle magical aspect was fun to read.

The second story wasn't as enjoyable for me. I couldn't really connect to Rome or Darcy. There was also a lot of focus on Rome's backstory and not a lot on Rome and Darcy's relationship. I was expecting a romance, but there was very little of it which left me disappointed.

The third story was the cutest of all. Again, I was expecting a romance, but it was delivered in the most unexpected way. I absolutely loved the concept of Echoes, and I loved all three boys. Fielding was a really interesting character, and Joshua and Logan were just the sweetest! The plot was the best out of the three stories, I think. It was simple and beautiful, and the ending was so satisfying.

I'm a sucker for queer stories, and this book delivered them in an amazing way!

The contents of “Shared World” short story or novella anthologies, with multiple authors working ostensibly in the same setting, can be notoriously hit/miss depending on factors as varied as the depth and breadth of the world-building before the authors start on their own stories, how all of that information is communicated from editors to authors, faithful to the shared setting the individual authors are. Typically, the more writers working in the setting the more likely it is to find “outlier” stories that don’t fit the setting or match the mood of the majority of the stories in the anthology. I’m happy to be able to say that Three Left Turns to Nowhere, a collection of novellas all set in the magical small town of Hopewell, is far more hit than miss despite, or perhaps because of, the quite different tones of the novellas. What all three stories have in common is the set-up of a slightly grumpy out-of-towner stranded in Hopewell meeting a local (or locals) who help lift the out-of-towner’s mood.

Jeffrey Ricker’s “Roadside Assistance” is a great lead-off: a sweet meet-cute of a romance between the grumpy out-of-towner (Ed) and a friendly local mechanic (Lyn) that doesn’t let the grumpy guy stay grumpy for too long. The attraction between the characters is clear from the start and nudged along by forces both human (Lyn’s BFF Josh) and not (a local ghost that only Lyn can see). I could try to count the number of times I found myself smiling at a geeky exchange or adorable moment, but there were too many. Ricker also does a wonderful job setting up the shared world in which these stories operate: by the end of the story I had a solid mental image of the “downtown” of Hopewell, a good sense of the character of the townspeople as a whole, and a total acceptance of the town’s subtle magic and how it works.

“The Scavenger Hunt” by J. Marshall Freeman is still a romance, but not as sweet meet-cute as Ricker’s. It’s a bit darker – homophobia rears its ugly head early in the story and stays a threat throughout in a way that doesn’t quite fit with the other two stories herein – but still centers a budding romance between an out-of-towner (activist Rome) and a local (artist Darcy). I liked the pacing of the story, I liked the way the town’s magic expresses itself (by sending Rome on the same type of scavenger hunt he’s designing for the Con all these out-of-towners are on their way to), and I loved Darcy’s found-object sculpture art. In fact, I loved Darcy – awkward, artistic, possibly neurodivergent Darcy – from the moment he’s introduced. Unfortunately, I can’t say the same for Rome, who I found self-centered beyond likeability even at the end of the story. (Your opinion, of course, may vary.)

The third novella, “Hope Echoes” by ‘Nathan Burgoine, doesn’t center romance for the lead character at all but still hinges the plot on one. The out-of-towner in the equation is Fielding, who can see echoes of the past, and the locals are adorable boyfriends who show him around town and help him resolve a mystery he’s stumbled into thanks to the echoes he can see. The romance is one that occurred well before any of the young men in the story were born, and I won’t spoil how the mystery of the love letter is resolved other than to say there’s a happy conclusion for all involved. The fun of this story is Fielding’s growing friendship with Josh and Logan, a nice interpretation of the way the town’s magic works. The town recognizes that what Fielding needs isn’t a boyfriend or romance – it’s supportive friends and a way out of his depression.

As one would expect, characters from one story pop up in the background or are mentioned in the other stories. But the authors also do an excellent job populating the story with interesting local characters: bed and breakfast owner Candace, used good store owner Mrs. Tremblay; Lyn’s mother; Josh’s father; Logan’s grandmother and her fellow residents at a nursing home; and auto shop owner Sloan and her wife the town Mayor. They make the shared setting of the stories consistent.

I do hope this isn’t the last we’ll see of the magical town of Hopewell. In fact, I’m putting in a request right now for a second anthology with perhaps a focus on lesbian characters – and please, Bold Stroke Books, let one of those be the story of how Sloan and Dina met!

I received this book for free from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Three Left Turns to Nowhere is a breezy collection of companion stories touched by magical realism. Written by different authors, each revolves around the same small town in rural Canada that somehow collects people on their way to a SciFi convention in Toronto. Maybe coincidence, or maybe the town really does know what people need. All the stories feature main characters in the moments surrounding the precipice of adulthood: what to do upon graduation when everyone else has other plans or life is dictating for them.

Even though much can be seen in the underlayer of the stories, the on page action is light enough for a wide audience. While “ghosts” feature in two of the stories, they motivate other action rather than taking center focus. The stories continue to be realistic fiction in spite of those interactions. While I wanted more depth and story development, I am not the target audience for this book. The book centers queer perspectives while serving up what feels like a serialized sitcom, repeating events in a now familiar place. I believe many readers will appreciate the short vignette style, the addressing of issues without wholesale solutions, and the message to be yourself and live your truth. For readers who enjoy small towns with Gilmore Girl vibes, m/m romance, and short stories this will be popular.

I received this as an ARC from Netgalley!

A queer short story anthology where three people heading to the same convention in Toronto find themselves in rural "enchanted/ cursed" Hopewell, Ontario.

- Hopewell was very well thought out
- A bit of fantasy/ magic
- a bi/ pan mayor! although she never shows up in any of the stories (i think)
- grilled cheese sandwiches
- even though they are all heading to the same convention, they never actually interact with each other
- The Scavenger Hunt: Jewish/ Indigenous rep, CW for homophobia, slurs/ racism
- Hope Echoes: friends, sapphic love letter/ book cipher
- The first two stories have more of a hopeful ending

Roadside Assistance - Jeffrey Ricker (4.5)
The Scavenger Hunt - J. Marshall Freeman (4)
Hope Echoes - 'Nathan Burgoine (5)

This is an anthology with three stories that are completely separate but also happening simultaneously in the same small town. All the stories are about queer teens traveling to a sci-fi convention who end up stuck temporarily in this small town because of car/road trouble.

The town itself is believed by the townspeople to have a touch of magic that often brings people together or helps people find what they need, but each story also included a bit of a more explicit fantasy/magical element, however small. It's a cute anthology idea.

These are all novella or novelette length more than shorts, and I was glad for that because it meant there was enough time for me to actually get to know the characters a bit and get into their stories.

I enjoyed them all, and since there are only three, I'll give my thoughts for each.

"Roadside Assistance" by Jeffrey Ricker - Ed, recently moved to Canada, still struggling with missing home, is driving through with two friends when their car breaks down. He ends up bonding with the 18-year-old mechanic helping to fix his car, and they go chasing after a mysterious apparition together. This was a cute start to a romance between two boys who were both missing something in their lives. Both Ed and Lyn seemed sweet, despite the slightly bad start they got off to.

"Scavenger Hunt" by J. Marshall Freeman - Rome goes to visit his grandmother in the hospital but has to get back home because he's planning a scavenger hunt for an upcoming convention, and he has to make the trip by himself. Unfortunately, he has car trouble and, while in the town, he ends up on a sort of magical scavenger hunt of his own when clues start appearing. This one captured that feeling of being an older teen and wanting that feeling of independence and adulthood, but also having some anxiety about it. Especially so in this case, because of the danger being out and proud could pose to Rome. This one had a lot of that was touched upon but not explored in depth (including the MC being Jewish, the other character having an Indigenous mother, and different feelings toward sex). There is a hint of something that could potentially turn into romance, but I don't think romance was the point of this one. To me, it was more about the experience of queerness, that transitional phase between teen and adult, and embracing yourself, your identity, and your passions.

"Hope Echoes" by 'Nathan Burgoine - Fielding is on his way to hang with friends and attend the convention, but a fallen tree causes him to take a bit of a break from driving and head into town. For a couple years now, he's had the ability to see echoes of the past (sort of brief replays of someone doing something, not ghosts), but this town has a lot of echoes, and he ends up trying to solve a mystery and use his ability to do something good, with the help of two boys he meets. This was the story that made me feel the most. I felt for Fielding and how much he was struggling and how alone he felt with his burdens. I loved how sweet and supportive Joshua and Logan were (and also how cute they were together). I loved the friendships that started forming. And though I love romance in stories, I loved that this wasn't about the main character wanting or finding romance, but rather about finding joy and beauty in knowing about other queer relationships that exist or have existed. This was a sweet story about a character realizing his strange ability could be a gift instead of a burden, friendship, and, much as the title suggests, hope.

Overall, this was a calm, low-key, sweet novella anthology about queer teens just living their lives and finding something unexpectedly good in a magical small town.

Thankyou to NetGalley and Bold Stokes Books for providing me with an arc of this book.



Roadside Assistance - Ed and Lyn seem to be on a mission to injure themselves at every single opportunity. How none of them ended up in a&e will never not surprise me, but maybe that's got to do with the magic of Hopewell? Anyways, this was an insanely sweet queer romance, which went from them hating each other for no apparent reason, to being completely in love with each other in less than 24 hours. Would definitely love to read more about Ed and Lyn, but I think it just being such a short snippet of how they find each other is what makes it so special.



The Scavenger Hunt - Rome is horny and a drama queen. That's it. That's literally the plot of this story. Pahaha, in all seriousness, this one was really good as well! It perhaps ended a bit too open ended and 'unfinished' for me, but that's just me personally needing a neat bow wrapping up every story to feel completely satisfied with them. This one was less of a romance than Roadside Assistance, which I think is partially why I preferred that to this. Still a really good read though, I enjoyed it a lot.



Hope Echoes - Out of the three stories this is the one I was looking forward to the least, simply because I'm not a huge fan of ghost/spiritual stories, but I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it. This was less romancy than the other two for the MC, but the main plot was this sweet old sapphic romance and the two other MCs were in a relationship so it was still very much a queer romance if that's what you're looking for(MC is gay as well). I also loved the crossover with Roadside Assistance and seeing Ed and Lyn from a passerbys perspective and I like to think that Fielding eventually meets up with them as well what with Joshua being Lyn's best friend and all.



I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book a lot more than I though I would. I always enjoy reading queer books that aren't focused on the romance, but the characters are just gay and vibing, because it's not something that's often written. Overall this was a really good and well thought out story, definitely going to check out all the authors other work and would 100% recommend picking up Three Left Turns to Nowhere

Three Left Turns to Nowhere is a story about three people stuck in rural Ontario, Canada. And like any town, the residents are friendly and unique in their own way. This book has a lot of heart and its themes of friendship and love are prevalent throughout the three stories.

Three Left Turns to Nowhere is a captivating, charming collection of queer short stories. It's constantly surprising, and wonderfully empathetic to the experience of being a teenager. Each story's hints of magic are unique, really cool, and felt meaningful. In this fictional small-town called Hopewell, the secondhand shop plays a major role (long live secondhand stores!), grilled cheese is legendary, the town's mayor is bi / pan, sooo many adults are supportive of the queer teens in their lives, and the town seems to have a mind (and magic!) of its own to bring people together when they need each other most. It could definitely have the alternate title 'There's Something About Hopewell.'

I did feel like the story had way too many specifically-mentioned-as-white people (especially for a book written by three white men. Like, at least don't mention their race and let me imagine these people are POCs! Why specifically say allll these people —even random side characters— are white.) but overall, this was a great read! Here are my thoughts on each story:

<img src="https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FLku9BwX0AQ6Hr7?format=jpg&name=medium" width="400" height="400" alt="description"/>

"Roadside Assistance" by Jeffrey Ricker

This is a really sweet opening story, and the perfect one to start with for readers like me who love a spark of romance to pull the story along. In "Roadside Assistance", a boy sees ghosts around town while he's waiting for his car to be fixed, and decides to follow them. His friend group is perfectly nerdy and supportive; the introduction to Hopewell and its characters (the mechanic shop! the diner! THAT grilled cheese!) welcoming and fun. I understood where each of the characters were at in their lives, and especially loved when the two boys connected. The way Ricker writes about their first kiss is !!! yellow sparkle emoji !!!

I always adore when fictional characters take each other to their favourite places. In this story, we get to read "Whenever I just need some peace and quiet, this is where I come. I've fallen asleep under that tree a zillion times." And then they fall asleep under the tree together!!! Another line I loved: "Sometimes, a coincidence is just a coincidence. Things happen without any explanation other than blind luck. People meet or don't meet, fall in love or don't, live or die. Even seeing a ghost on a semi-regular bases doesn't make that any less true."

I had a smile on my face at the end, and would totally read a follow-up story about the couple post-Hopewell meet-cute!

Content warnings: mention of a parent who died in a car accident.

"Scavenger Hunt," by J. Marshall Freeman

This story was the most compelling from the start; The characters are so sharp and vibrant, coming to life, bounding off the page. It made me giggle, made me say "wow, bars" out loud (the line "you only ever hold my hand as a political statement" is woah), and certainly evoked a visceral response from me. Eventually, though, that got to be too much. I couldn't get through this story. I've tried to go back a few times, and maybe I will eventually, but I found it too jarring and raw and unpleasant an experience for the type of stories I'm able to read right now. (This is very much about a personal preference and level of comfort.) I was intrigued by the mysterious scavenger hunt clues, and didn't get far in enough to grasp the Discord situation (and would have really liked to!).

I am alll for unlikable characters, and especially queer characters, but I really couldn't get into this one. At first, it was the blatant use of homophobic slurs that turned me off, but as I continued reading, it escalates into a kind of story I simply don't enjoy. Many other reviewers have reflected that this is a refreshing take on being queer at a certain age, and so I'm sure it will connect with many readers. The protagonist here is also Jewish, which may appeal to readers looking for more Jewish queer rep.

Content warnings, bearing in mind that I only read part of this: Mentions and descriptions of violent, brutal homophobia. Homophobic slurs. At one point, the protagonist sees someone and decides they're Chinese (instead of simply saying Asian) and then later says someone else has "a brown, South Asian face" which made it feel even more questionable that he said "Chinese" earlier. Visiting a family member in hospital after they've had a stroke. Casual, almost frivolous, mention of pedophiles.

"Hope Echoes" by 'Nathan Burgoine

"What? You've never walked up to someone and delivered a long-lost lesbian love letter to their grandmother before?" This story is my favourite of the lot! I've deeply enjoyed and appreciated Burgoine's stories in the past, and it's mainly his blog posts and tweets about the main character of this story, Fielding, that drew me to read this book. "Hope Echoes" was filled with all the wonderful details I expected: the feeling of significant, serendipitous magic; seriously hopeful boys; and shining with queer history. Also the Mustang on the cover of this book is a huge part of this story, and it never stops being cool!

There's so much heart in this story, so much tangled emotion —and "the grilled cheese is good company." Even the descriptions of basic things like his hoodie blowing in the wind brings the story to life for me in ways that made me appreciate Burgoine's writing. True to the heart of what is part of 'Burgoine's mission when he writes, it's absolutely radiant with "insistent history." While reading "Hope Echoes", you can't help but be filled with the encouraging knowledge that queer people have existed all along, and that there have always been people who loved them back, and people who came together to support them and allow them to thrive.

Fielding sees "echoes" of people —not ghosts, but replays of memories from moments when emotions were strong, all throughout time: A joyful mailman waving at people while delivering letters, two women in love on the swing of their porch, a girl crying while holding a letter she couldn't deliver. It's happened a few times before, but it's happening way more since he arrived in Hopewell. I love these descriptions of what he sees: "She wove together in twists of light at first, as though where she stood was drenched in sunlight, and it made the girl brighter than the world around her. The real world." "Everywhere he looked, moments were blooming, replaying, and then wilting away in front of him. It was incredible."

The way Joshua (a wonderful, and wonderfully-written autistic character with an adorable and also very hot boyfriend) takes Fielding under his wing is the best. And Fielding's overthinking the way they interact with him —also relatable! ("How had Joshua known he could mention his boyfriend to him Or did he do that with everyone?")

The book ciphers were such a cool, clever aspect of mystery to unfold in their adventure. (I'm currently watching the CW show '4400' where this small detail plays an important part for one of my favourite characters, so it was especially timely for me!) And pheeew, when they translate the key and we're hit with the line "My love for you is as precious as air." Literal intake of breath reading that! Also, Fielding draws all the people he sees throughout the town, and at the end of this story he initiates a project that would be SO cool to happen in real life. He's a wonderful, brilliant character and I hope this story gets to reach many teenage boys —he'd inspire them.

This story is also funny! There are moments of humor, mostly about Fielding's tendency to say out loud when people are hot (once again, he just like me fr!). There's a lovely old-age home visit. And oh man, when Fielding has his crushing emotional moment, it is FULLY heartbreaking. I wrote a Kindle note that reads: "So heart-filled and encapsulates the shattered brilliance and ache of being a teenager —the shards of heartbreak lingering on the edges, the ever-present worry, the big quiet wishes." But his moment of pain blooms into something even lovelier than you could hope for.

But 'Nathan, what's the reason Fielding never got a reply to his texts from his friends back home? I need to know!

Content warnings: several mentions of Fielding's uncle having had a heart attack ("but he got a pacemaker, and he's going to be okay"), and his mom having reduced hours at work which led to Fielding not going to uni yet. Family member away on a military mission, who they haven't heard from in a while and do not know if they're alive (left unresolved). Mention of a couple struggling with infertility, in the context of celebrating them eventually having a child. (Logan's dad says he has "defective loins" and tries to tell the story of Logan's conception with an air of both celebration and driving home that infertility is common and should not have shame surrounding it.) Panic attack. The unfortunate case that a family member is named Brian Landry.

Note on the rating: I'd give the first story four stars, and the third story five stars, but my troublesome experience with the story in the middle would pull the rating down. I've settled on four stars here to honour the two stories I enjoyed and completed. On Goodreads, I've left it without a rating so as to more honestly reflect my experience.

Three Turns Left to Nowhere includes three separate short stories, all of them involving the tiny rural town of Hopewell, a sort-of otherworldly location where each of the protagonists finds something they need. I most enjoyed the second story of the three, although this one also includes some darker elements. I think I struggled to invest in any of the characters or feel emotionally attached to their journeys - I always felt somewhat kept at arm's length while reading. Perhaps it might have been different if the three narratives converged at some point but being kept separate in that way left me wanting something a bit more. There's nothing I can put my finger on that I didn't like specifically, it just didn't particularly stand out for me unfortunately. I think readers who enjoy slightly eerie short fiction might enjoy this book.

As much as I love novels, every once in a while I find myself craving a shorter story or two so when I came across this book and read the description I was intrigued. It's a trilogy of interlocking stories about three young men on their their separate ways to a SF convention, but find themselves diverted to the town of Hopewell. Hopewell is billed as a magical place by its residents and gradually these three visitors find that the boasts are not exaggerated as these three different authors use modest touches of magic realism to upend their characters' lives.

In "Roadside Assistance", by Jeffrey Ricker, Ed Sinclair finds himself stranded in Hopewell with two of his friends after their car has mechanical issues. He meets Lyn, one of the local mechanics, and finds himself clashing with the young technician, but is it dislike or something else? It's a cute romantic story that's well written, with the town itself, in a sense, serving as another character and an engaging sense of wistfulness. I'd rate this one four stars.

From there we go to "Scavenger Hunt", by J. Marshall Freeman. There were some interesting facets to this story, especially the characters, including the main protagonist, Rome. However, the story had quite a jarring turn in tone from "Roadside", turning a bit darker than I expected. It was almost as if Hopewell was recast as a town from a David Lynch film. Freeman writes well, but I felt this story didn't fit in with the others. 3 stars.

Finally, "Hope Echoes", by 'Nathan Burgoine, my favorite of the three stories. Fielding finds himself stranded in Hopewell, where a certain gift he has is magnified to a stronger level. He embarks on a quest of sorts when he finds a letter meant to be sent from one lover to another. With the help of local residents Joshua and Logan, Fielding solves the mystery and forms new friendships while learning to accept his gift. It's a very hopeful story and I found myself enchanted with it. 4.5 stars.

I hadn't read any of the authors before so I was very happy to discover how much I enjoyed the stories. While I didn't connect with Freeman's story I'll definitely be following up with more from Ricker and Burgoine.

Coming of age but in the best way.

These are all little tidbits of a particular coming of age story. Hopewell is an adorable town with a great back story. Each story shows you a different angle of Hopewell that you don't get just from the little pieces you learn at the beginning and it further enforces for me the need to find a town like this.

Ed is sort of lost in his own life, living how he pleases not really happy with his life. Not really happy with the way things are going and right now he's even more upset that they aren't headed directly to the Con he's been looking for. Lyn is a mechanic happy in his particular life but sort of wondering how he's going to find someone for himself. They form an unexpected alliance of sorts and head on a journey that leads to self discovery on both their parts. Ed is probably my favorite of the three main characters.

Rome might be out and proud as the description states but he's struggling with things under the surface. He's sure when it comes to things that are within his control but when his car breaks down on the road to a Con he's forced to make some time to take a step back and slow down. Another story of discovery of oneself and growth. I loved Rome's style, that he's unapologetically him for the world to see.

Fielding is trapped in Hopewell due to the fallen tree on the main highway. He's not looking forward to being trapped in town, not looking forward to not knowing what's waiting for him. Fielding seems a little bit troubled and a little bit lost in life, but as a character in this book he's very well rounded. I super enjoyed the way his brain worked, and the things he paid super close attention to.

Loved the grilled cheese, the little glimpses into the other stories. Really enjoyed how well written the town of Hopewell was, all of it's intricacies that at the start of the story the main characters aren't in the least bit excited to explore.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

What a great collection of stories! Three individual stories about three strangers each on their way to a convention in Toronto. Each one is temporarily stuck in a rural small town named Hopewell, where strange events lead them to the answers they didn’t even really know they were searching for.

Each story flows nicely and is not contrived or forced. Hopewell weaves its magic in each of the lives we encounter. From a snarky Doctor Who fan, to a man confident in his identity but clueless about love, to a man seeing the past via spirits around him. Each one is treading a pretty lonely road in their personal lives, but they find hope in Hopewell.

I’m a new reader for J. Marshall Freeman and Jeffrey Ricker, but I’ve loved everything by ‘Nathan Burgoine. I knew if ‘Nathan was involved, it was going to be great. I’m glad to know I was right, and I look forward to reading more from the other two authors.

I’d love to live in Hopewell. Or just even visit for the amazing grilled cheese sandwiches!

This is an adorable set of three short stories that all have a similar premise: a boy in his late teens is driving to Toronto for a con, and gets sidetracked in the small town of Hopewell for a short period during the same weekend. Hopewell is a lovely little town with pieces of magical realism, and the residents are kind and friendly.

This is a young adult book with main characters around 18 years old, in that period of transition between high school and “real life”. Each of the travelers is bringing their own baggage that they are hoping to take a break from during their trip to the con, each of them get waylaid from their trip and get “stuck” in the town, and each of them find some semblance of peace and resolution during their stay in Hopewell.

My favorite part is that even though all three boys are similar in age, travel destination, and sexuality, they never actually interact with each other. Fielding (Hope Echoes) sees Ed (Roadside Assistance) but actively avoids him out of awkwardness! When the boys pass by similar places, such as the nursing home, this made me smile so goofily. The stories are very charming! It feels like the writers wrote down the lore and layout of the town ahead of time so that the stories would match up, and they did this very well!

The stories of Ed, Rome, and Fielding are the perfect cozy Saturday morning read.

Three Left Turns to Nowhere is a story about three people stuck in rural Ontario, Canada. And like any Canadian town, the residents are friendly and unique in their own way. This book has a lot of heart and its themes of friendship and love are prevalent throughout.

On their way to a convention in Toronto, three characters will find their way to Hopewell, a small town in rural Ontario, Unbeknown to them, this unexpected stop in their journeys is going to change their lives in different ways.

'Three Left Turns To Nowhere' brings us three heartwarming stories about change, discovering something more important that any price and finding hope after a dark time. Like each setting, each of these stories have this gentle and quiet aura around them that leaves room for these characters to find the truth about themselves, and those missing pieces that they need before restarting their journeys.

Each author brings a different point of view, and a different character that ends up enchanted by this quaint town and its inhabitants.

Totally recommended for people who wants hopeful stories and heartwarming journeys.

Roadside Assistance - Jeffrey Ricker
4⭐️
This is a really cute story with Lyn, a local of Hopewell who has no plans of leaving town, and Ed, an American come to Canada and trying to make it to SciCon with his friends. I loved the elements of mysticism and mystery with the ghost and the friendship between Ed, Curtis, and Siobhan. I would have liked to see more of Lyn with his friends, but this was still a cute romance.

The Scavenger Hunt<L - J Marshall Freeman
3.5⭐️
This one feels complicated and kind of hard to determine how I feel about it. I liked the queer Jewish aspects and addressing influence of colonialism on Native history. But this was also rough with <spoiler>homomisia, transmisia, anti-Native racism, and vague reference to antisemitism</spoiler>. I did like the way it worked out in the end and the way scavenger hunt clues brought Rome and Darcy together.

Hope Echoes - ‘Nathan Burgoine
4.5⭐️
‘Nathan Burgoine is the only author from this collection I’m familiar with, and I really enjoyed this story. I loved the mystery and hope of finding an old love letter and wanting to find the intended in order to make sure the love isn’t lost to time. I loved the way it all worked out, and the dynamic between Fielding, Logan, and Joshua. This was so fun and sweet, and absolutely brightened my day to read.

First, I loved the title of Three Left Turns to Nowhere. In this case, Nowhere is Hopewell, a small Canadian town off of Highway 11. It has a draw to it as many people stop by there, even if because of breakdown or fallen trees. We learn first that Hopewell is not really Nowhere. It's a town with its own imagination and history. And not a few gay persons!
told as three separate short stories, the book begins with Ed Sinclair, a passenger with two others on their way to SciCon in Toronto. When their car breaks down, they meet the handsome young Lars, a local mechanic. The diner waiter Joshua enlists Ed to bring Lars his lunch, and a multitude of things develop from that, not the least of which is infatuation.
The second story involves Rome, short for Jerome. He too is on is way to SciCon but also has to stop in Hopewell. Frankly, after the first story, this one starts out slowly and made me wonder why such inconsistency in the two stories. Story 2 just doesn't have the pizzazz of story one, but it does pick up toward the end.

We now have the concluding story, the third. I confess that somehow I expected all three stories to converge in the third, but they do not. Fielding is driving a 1965 Mustang, and it cannot go past fallen trees. So here's yet another gay guy stuck in Hopewell. He meets Josh, the diner waiter, and his boyfriend Logan who try to show him around town. But Fielding keeps seeing echos, which for some are called ghosts. That leads into a search for the writer of a secret letter.
The stories are heartwarming, and except for the second one, well-written. I guess that I had hope for a story where the three would merge, but it was not meant to be,

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.

Roadside Assistance - 4*
I found this story beautiful with a very hopeful ending.
The Scavenger Hunt - 4*
I didn't care for this one as much when I started, probably because I enjoyed the first so much but then I really got invested in the story.
Hope Echoes - 3.5*
My least favorite of the three stories because I didn't feel like it had a complete ending, there were too many things left unanswered. Honestly the more I write this down, the lower I think the rating should be. It definitely wasn't a complete story.

I would like to start off this review by saying I was sent an ARC copy of Three Left Turns to Nowhere in exchange for an honest review. Now that is out of the way, let’s start with the first introductionish page. I found it to be extremely intriguing and very descriptive. Not only does it give us the characters, but also the setting in a fun way. From the first page alone, we already know so much about the characters (which I think more authors should do!).

Let’s talk about my favorite character, Lyn :
I love him. He’s funny. He’s relatable. And maybe just maybe he’s a little too relatable! I absolutely love the characterization we get on page 2 which reads, “Despite his best attempts to be light-footed, his steel-toed boots still clomp when he goes downstairs.” STEEL-TOED BOOTS?? I need a pair! I’m sorry but, “He gives her his best puzzled puppy head tilt” Is probably one of my favorite lines ever written in a book. The imagery is amazing (i love imagining a cute little confused puppy). I find Lyn and his mother’s relationship to be so nice, she is absolutely so supportive of her son (we all need a mom like her).

All Stars Wars fans listen up : THERE ARE STAR WARS JOKES IN THIS BOOK!! (very important information there).

Overall this was a thrilling and action packed read. I think it is a must read for those who want a queer thriller. The representation was great and the characters felt real. The ending was so worth it, and you really learn to love the characters. This is definitely a book that should be added to your TBR list (to be read).