How to Deal

All Cocks Stories, Book 3

By: T.M. Smith

Narrated by: Joel Leslie

Jon Brennan comes from a long line of men in uniform; all born and bred to both bleed and wear blue. His family and the majority of his co-workers support him every step of the way, so he doesn't need to hide the fact that he prefers men over women. Between the job and his larger than life, loud and rowdy half Irish, half Italian family, there isn't much time for dating, much less finding a guy who can deal with the stress and demands placed on the shoulders of an NYPD detective.

Kory White is cocky and abrasive with most people, but it is all a facade he hides behind to keep his heart safe. As a child, Kory lost his mother to an act of violence. Soon after, he and his baby sister Kassandra were separated by the system. Kassandra was immediately adopted, but Kory spent the next 10 years cycling through foster homes before moving to the Big Apple. In an effort to keep everyone at a distance, Kory has meticulously built himself an alter ego: Hayden Cox, All Cocks cockiest model.

These two strong-willed men definitely prove opposites do attract. Both are stubborn and hard headed to a fault, Kory more so than Jon. But Jon is used to being in control, the one calling the shots, and Kory fights him at every turn. Just when it seems they have found a way to navigate the unchartered territory that is love, tragedy knocks on Kory's door yet again. Volatile and strong, even in the face of adversity, both men refuse to give up on each other - or their love.

©2015 TM Smith (P)2016 TM Smith

I loved the Brennans

This series is awesome. I love the characters. Cory and John were so real in their behavior. Even the physical stuff. Relationships are not perfect and this author nailed it. The Brennans were freakin' hilarious. I loved them.

I cannot say enough how much I love Joel Leslie's performance of this series. He really brings Ms. Smith's characters to life. This series is so well written. The stories are simply told. Not dragged on. In real life, you go back and forth about things but you make a decision. This author gets it. No unnecessary angst just to fill the story. These characters are written as adults and I simply love it.

Getting ready to read the next book in the series. Will it be about Gabe and Micah and possibly Tristan?

Also, I was given this book by the author for my unbiased review.

A sweet and steamy opposites attract!

This is the third book in the series and can be enjoyed as a standalone.
I enjoyed Kory(Hayden's) character alot. I found him to be so multi dimensional and I loved how his 'public' brash personality contrasted starkly with his sweet and vulnerable side.
It takes a while for Kory to warm up to Jon, and when he does we can see the sparks and chemistry between them.
This was a sweet, opposites attract hot read and highly entertaining.
Joel Leslie's narration was absolutely brilliant in this one.

Not "Relationship Goals"...but okay.

I mostly enjoyed this story. Mostly. There's a lot more angst in this one than in book 2, and I had a little bit of a "yeah, right" moment toward the end when a dangling plot point was resolved WAY too conveniently, but from a story-telling perspective, I had an okay time.

My main issue is that I really struggled to be sympathetic with the "volatility" of the relationship the blurb mentions. I get the reasons for Kory pushing people away, I was basically on board the empathy train for his issues, but when both men's POV talk about the fights getting physical like it's okay and normal, and semi-violent sex without a conversation is talked about like it's both a legitimate discussion tool and hot....I'm not down. These guys needed a couple's counselor. Had one of this pair of men been a woman, the problems with this dynamic would have been obvious to every reader. The fact that they're both men does not make those problems go away, even if it does kind of hide the problem under a cloak of testosterone. Just because they're both hard headed and stubborn (per the blurb), that doesn't give either one a pass on getting violent in a fight. And while we don't ever see one throw an actual punch at the other, it's talked about a couple times like it's a given that it will happen, and that's supposed to be fine. Not to mention the grabbing, shoving, yelling, throwing things, etc. And if it ever got addressed in the story like a problem or something they needed to work on together, I would have been okay. But the accepting tone of the book just turned me all the way off.

Joel Leslie does a good job with the narration. Kory's southern accent was a little thick and abrasive for my taste, but that's just because the accent itself is a bit harsh, not an issue with the narrator. It's well executed, so if you're a fan of a little south, you'll like it. The emotions are well done, narration is easy to listen to, and characters are successfully differentiated. I have no complaints on this front. Based on his excellent performance, I'd recommend getting the audio over the ebook. I think his work made me enjoy the story more than I would have had I read the text.

Nice story; great narration

This is another nice installment to the All Cocks series. Kory and Jon are a very different couple. Although there is a lot of love, almost instalove, there is also a lot of volatility. Kory grew up in foster care and has some demons because of it. Jon grew up in a loving big Italian/Irish family that didn't care that he was gay. Also, Jon is an out and proud NYPD detective that get along with his colleagues for the most part. So I really enjoyed both those aspects of Jon's life, it was a refreshing change from the regular homophobic story arc. That said, I found most of the conflict between Kory and Jon very superficial and there is a lot of telling of the story instead of feeling the story. The big time jumps didn't help my lack of empathy for the couple, their romance moves very fast. There is a tragedy in the story that introduces up to the next MMM relationship, that I look forward to listening to.

I say listening to because what really made this more enjoyable for me was the range, dialect and emotions Joel Leslie brought to the story. He does a great NY accent and Irish brogue. He also revived his wonderful Victor accent from Book 2. Overall, I really good listen.

I’m glad Kory got his HEA

Jon and Kory are perfect for each other. I loved that Jon was willing/able to put up with Kory’s BS to see and address the hurt underneath. I’m really enjoying this series. The narration is really good with each character having a distinctive voice.