Early retirement doesn't suit Karl Blake. He's discovering his new home life boring and unappealing. His career as a mercenary kept him on his toes until a bullet ended his career, and Karl misses his stressful hostage rescues and covert missions for the government almost as much as he misses sex. Karl's days begin to brighten when he meets the new gardener, Adam. Adam's young, impressionable, and just innocent enough to spike Karl's heart rate and make his teeth ache with the possibilities of awakening his passion. Adam gives him a chance to get one of his two desires taken care of thanks to sex served up with a dash of roughness and the promise of waking with marks and a dull ache to remember the event. But Adam isn't what he seems to be, and Karl hates feeling manipulated and lied to. Will Adam's secret be too much for Karl to forgive?

Jane Davitt & Alexa Snow's takes us into to the life of Karl Blake, a former mercenary who doesn't have time for love, commitment, or dating. He's a man who reminds me of that family member that refuses to censor their thoughts prior to speaking them. Between his tone and cutting words I found myself happy I wasn't on the receiving end of most of his conversations. The man knew how to leave a wound a paper cut would envy. Most of that edge seemed to be a way for Karl to protect his heart and not allow anyone entry. While I could understand him taking that approach in his former occupation, it left me wondering what happened to make him try to escape love's clutches entirely.

Adam was no saint. I whole-heartedly understood Karl's reaction when the truth was revealed. Adam betrayed so many with his actions, including himself. It shouldn't have taken an encounter with Karl to notice certain aspects of his life were a mess, but I'm happy he manned up and decided to take ownership. It helped restore a touch of my respect for him. There were moments where I didn't like either of the characters, and then they would do something that would draw me back into the story. Show a moment's weakness, or allow the other to see them at a venerable time without trying to hide from their feelings. Those scenes stick out to me the most. Truthful Change is a fast-paced story with a dose of action and suspense to balance the hard edged encounters between Karl and Adam. I'm looking forward to reading more stories created by this duo.

Reviewed by: NeNe