The Truth About Al

Title: The Truth About Al
Author: M.L. Rhodes
Cover Artist: Trace Edward Zaber
Publisher: Amber Allure
Amazon:
Genre: Contemporary M/M, Diverse
Length: Extended Novella, 35K words
Rating: 4.25 stars out of 5

Review Summary: Al had to overcome Elliot’s defenses before he would let him into his heart.

THE BLURB:

To most, Al Baxter’s life seems charmed—he’s got looks, smarts, friends, and is headed to law school in the fall. But under the surface, things are far from perfect. Al’s mother is pursuing a career in national politics, and when her staff uncovers a potentially devastating secret Al’s been keeping from his family for the past four years, a painful rift forms in the once close-knit Baxter clan. Wanting to do the right thing to support his mother’s career, but conflicted over his growing desire to live his life in the open on his own terms, the last thing Al’s expecting, or needs, is to fall for stubborn and oh-so-serious Elliot Cullimore. Especially since Elliot has a protective fortress the size of Texas built around his heart.

Raised by a struggling single mother, Elliot Cullimore learned early that nothing in life was easy. That truth hit home when, at the age of twelve, a life-threatening illness left him partially deaf, making his teenage years difficult as he learned to cope with his new reality. Now, he works long hours to put himself through college. And he holds no illusions about ever finding love. He knows from painful experience that being a nerdy, hard-of-hearing guy doesn’t exactly make him a hot commodity. When he meets Al Baxter, however, he’s blindsided by his feelings for the man. The trouble is, Al is exactly the type of guy Elliot swore he’d never be with—rich, entitled, and one who has always had everything he ever wanted fall at his feet. And worse, Al’s hiding who he really is and pretending to be something he’s not. How can Elliot trust his heart to a man who can’t live his own life with honesty?

But for the first time, Al finally knows what he wants, and he’s willing to fight for Elliot. Even if it means risking everything…

Part of the Rocky Mountain High: Campus Hearts series.

THE REVIEW:

Elliot and Al were from different sides of the track – one was from a prestigious conservative family and the other was brought up by a single mother. They met in university and at first they were good friends, spending most of their free time together, until one day Elliot refused to have anything to do with Al and cut him off. Al couldn’t find out why, no matter how much he tried because Elliot refused to give him an explanation.

There was also a rift between Al and his family when they discovered what he had been up to in his spare time in his freshman year at university and all hell broke loose when he went home on holiday. His parents’ attitude and threats to cut him off if he didn’t mend his ways and toe the family line made him decide to leave Texas for good, so he gave up his scholarship to study law in his home state.  He returned to Colorado and found a job to support himself and pay his school fees since he needed the income. Unfortunately the job was at the same bar where Elliot worked and he still refused to speak to him a year and a half later.

Although he had dated women as well as men, Al hadn’t had a girlfriend since his last one made him recognize and accept who he really was, a gay man, however the man he wanted didn’t want him back. He was attracted to the nerdy looking Elliot who he thought was sweet and sexy, but he didn’t know how to get through to him.

Elliot was deaf, having contracted meningitis as a child and he had worn hearing aids most of his life. He was in love with Al and was jealous of all the women who hung around him in the bar even though Al didn’t encourage them. He knew he wasn’t good looking and he had suffered the taunts of other kids as a teenager because he was gay and a nerd, and he had no intention of having a replay at 25.

One night everything boiled over and Al couldn’t take the tension between them anymore. He demanded an explanation and refused to leave without one so Elliot let him have it: The women who were always hanging around him; the job he was taking away from someone else who really needed it; being in the closet about who he really was; and playing with Elliot’s emotions while dating women. Now that everything was out in the open it was up to Al to reassure Elliot that he was for real, but would Elliot believe his explanations? Just as all their misunderstandings were cleared up, disaster struck and Elliot was hurt.

I thought that these characters were realistically drawn when they could have been the usual opposites attract rich man, poor man, great looking vs. nerdy brainiac. M.L. Rhodes gave us two nuanced protagonists who were not perfect but were perfect for each other. Although the miscommunications and missteps in the relationship lasted longer than I would have liked, at least it wasn’t one Big Misunderstanding. 🙂

Elliot couldn’t believe that Al loved his quirky, insecure self when he could have his choice of great looking men or women who had no physical disabilities. He didn’t feel he had anything to offer Al and he knew couldn’t compete with the number of men and women he was sure Al could have in his bed so it took a while for Al to allay his concerns and demonstrate why he was important to him. You will appreciate his vulnerability and uncertainty about being attractive to Al and his lack of confidence, which would be similar to that of others in his situation.

I loved how protective Al was toward Elliot and his devastation when he was hurt. I expected him to be shallow, given his background and the fact that for most of his life everything was dropped into his lap, but he was tender and loving and didn’t care that Elliot had a disability. Whenever Al spoke to Elliot he was careful to ensure that they were face to face so that he could read his lips since he still had difficulty hearing even with the assistance of his hearing aids, and he did little things to minimise and accommodate Elliot’s hearing loss without being obvious and making him feel he was disabled. Of course this author writes some of the best sex scenes and The Truth About Al was no different. Be prepared for simmering, smoldering and then hot!

M.L. Rhodes always manages to pace her stories just right and her characterizations are tough to top; The Truth About Al was no exception. This is another book about a disabled hero that I  loved and I hope you do too.

Definitely recommended.