Dusty Anderson left his hometown in Justin, Texas for the Big Apple not long after graduating high school with dreams of becoming an actor. A year later, no closer to realizing his dream but pretty damn close to being broke, he comes across a flyer in a local gay bar that provides a solution to his dilemma. Six years later, Dusty has all but forgotten his dream to be an actor. The family he … gained when he went to work at All Cocks and the job itself are enough for him, for now at least.
David Thompson is barely twenty-one, high on life and starting his second year at NYU as an Art student. Now that he is old enough to enjoy the city’s night life, David finds his first crush at a local hot spot in the village, The Monster Bar. Young love is laid to rest though, when David comes out to his mother and older brother with disastrous results.
A tragic incident at the hands of David’s brother changes the course of all of their lives and brings the two together, but is it coincidence or fate? Regardless of unlikely circumstance, Dusty is inexplicably drawn to David, who suddenly finds himself alone in the world. Protective of David from the start, Dusty realizes his extended family at All Cocks and his best friend Kory will not understand this new relationship. Fearing the worst, Dusty plays a dangerous game of hide and seek, risking everything to keep David safe and sheltered.
But hiding can only last for so long, and David and Dusty aren’t the only ones dealing with uncertainties. The Dimir men find that the one thing they’ve longed for might be within reach and Dusty’s father, Dean, arrives in town unexpectedly with secrets of his own. Truths come out and trust is put to the test. Can the All Cocks family find the happiness they deserve?
This is the 6th book in the All Cocks stories series, the series would read best if read in order, but each book can be read as a standalone story.
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I knew from reading the blurb that this would have a bit more angst than the other books in the series, so I had put off reading it for a bit. I should have read it earlier! While there are sad parts, overall it’s a story of sheltering those who have no one, of the family you make and falling in love. It took this and more for Dusty and David to get their HEA. There might be triggers for some, (homophobia, some violence – not graphic), but overall, this is a great story and a great addition to the series.
Audio review
The narrator was just OK – he sounded good – had a nice voice to listen to, but I didn’t feel the emotion of the characters in his narration. Would I listen to him again? Yes. I just wish he had brought a bit more oomph more to the story.
Out of tragedy comes love (an audio review)
A while back I listened to the first few All Cocks books and then the series sort of fell off my radar. I own all the audios, and I plan to listen to all of them at some point, but life kind of got in the way. When I had the opportunity to listen to this book and review it, I leapt at the chance. So let me start by saying you don’t have to have read the other books. Does it help and provide context and backstory? Yes. Is this book compelling and complete on its ow? Also a yes.
Dusty has just undergone a tremendous tragedy, and although he’s affected, he wasn’t personally injured. But people he cares about have been hurt and that’s enough to pique his ire. Yet there’s another offshoot of the tragedy and something compels him to dig deeper. He finds the younger brother of the perpetrator of the violence only to discover not only is the young man hovering near death, he’s all alone in the world. Dusty is moved. He is, as I said, compelled. He doesn’t yet understand why, but he starts to care for David – a young man he’s never met. But there’s a long way from the injuries David has suffered to some kind of recovery.
David has undergone profound physical and psychological trauma. He meets the man he considers to be his angel who has been by his side this whole time, yet he knows he doesn’t know the man. This Dusty. But alone and facing a harrowing recovery, David accepts help. Every day is a struggle but every day things improve. And when it’s time to leave the hospital, he accepts Dusty’s offer of a place to stay. Because, truthfully, he has no where else to go.
My heart broke for David. My heart sang for Dusty. That the men came together under such tragic circumstances cemented their friendship, although the relationship – to David anyway – never feels equal. He has to rely on Dusty for just about everything and that doesn’t sit well. That I can relate to.
Dusty is hiding things to people. To David, he doesn’t share that he’s a gay porn star. To his friends, he doesn’t share the fact David has become his someone special. There will be ramifications for this deception, and the question was whether Dusty would lose those closest to him. Then his father comes to town and things get really crazy. (A subplot I loved, btw.)
There are plenty of emotions and feels in this book – as I expect from T.M. Smith. The book just worked for me and to see others living in their happily ever after was pretty sweet as well. I love when previous characters make cameos and you get to see what their lives now look like. Finally I’ll mention Mackenzie Brennan. I loved the previous narrator and was a little trepidatious about taking on a new narrator. He did a good job. I expected more Texan from Dusty and his dad, but since Mackenzie was solid with all the other characters, it wasn’t a big deal. Overall I think it was a great ending to a great series.
Audiobook review:
Overall – 4.5
Story – 5
Narration – 4
Great story, OK narration.
I really love this series. I read the first book back in 2018 and quickly read through as much of the series as was written at that time and then I went through the audiobooks. The series was known as All Cocks back then and the narrator was different for most of the other books. The series is best read in order as some of the books overlap timelines and build on one another. It’s possible to read this as a standalone but you probably won’t understand who all of the characters are (and there are quite a few of them).
Mackenzie Brennan did an OK job with his narration of this book. My main issue was that I had a hard time distinguishing between the two MCs. They call each other “D” and this caused some confusion for me because the narrator did not use voices that were different enough for me to always tell who was speaking. Other characters had voices that were more easily distinguishable. His voice was pleasant to listen to but I would have enjoyed this more if the voices were more distinct.
The blurb is really good and quite detailed so I’m not going to rehash it. I loved the story and really felt for David and everything he’d been through. His homophobic mother and brother were just awful. Dusty was drawn to David since he first learned that he had survived the attack on him and began visiting him in the hospital.
After David and Dusty settle in with each other, Dusty’s father comes along with a big surprise for Dusty. I really can’t say more as it would be too much of a spoiler. There’s a lot going on in this book and it sets up the next one in the series very nicely.
A copy of this audiobook was provided to me but my review was voluntary and not influenced by the author.
***Reviewed for Xtreme-Delusions dot com***