For Real

By: Alexis Hall

Narrated by: Paul Berton, John Hartley

Length: 12 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's summary

Laurence Dalziel is worn down and washed up, and for him, the BDSM scene is all played out. Six years on from his last relationship, he's pushing 40 and tired of going through the motions of submission. Then he meets Toby Finch. Nineteen years old. Fearless, fierce, and vulnerable. Everything Laurie can't remember being.

Toby doesn't know who he wants to be or what he wants to do. But he knows, with all the certainty of youth, that he wants Laurie. He wants him on his knees. He wants to make him hurt, he wants to make him beg, he wants to make him fall in love. The problem is, while Laurie will surrender his body, he won't surrender his heart. Because Toby is too young, too intense, too easy to hurt. And what they have - no matter how right it feels - can't last. It can't mean anything. It can't be real.

©2015 Alexis Hall (P)2015 Audible, Inc.

Get this right now!

I loooooooooved this book when I first read it. And now I love it even more. John and Paul's voices were absolutely stunning, true to the character I pictured, and had me swooning with love for these characters all over again.
This is one I will listen to over and over again!

Soft lovely story

A hot chocolate is suitable. The best listen time is midnight. Well sounds like I get all my experience in a vicarious way. Life is too real. Let’s just enjoy this safe fantasy.

A story about a relationship, pure and simple

This little gem took me by surprise. At the core of it, it simply is about a new relationship while dealing with the past. Nothing new in and of itself. But the internal dialogue of each character, Lori and Tobi, gives you insight into how they think and the other characters perception. Both Lori and Tobi give each other what the other needs, yet both hold back something. It is getting at the “something”, the obstacle, that drives the story. It is a M/m story with BDSM Dom/sub, it is graphic but not violent. While the intimate scenes are many, it rarely felt gratuitous, as the scenes focused on what the intimacy brought to Lori and Tobi. Tobi is 19 and just discovering his sexuality, Lori is 37 and still hasn’t gotten over his longtime relationship that ended 6 yrs ago. It’s the coming together of a relationship that slowly builds overtime time. Both narrators did an excellent job narrating the story. Highly recommend if this is your style of story. I had no idea what to expect, as it came recommended to me and I bought it without reading the summary, hence the surprise. But I liked it a lot and it was good.

Change of Pace

I loved that this story's duo wasn't your typical BDSM older Dom, younger Sub or more experienced Dom, less experienced Sub. It was great to experience this type of relationship and truly escape. I totally binged listened and so glad that I did.

Perfection 😍😍😍

Alexis Hall is now my new fave author. I loved the sarcasm, and I was stunned how sex scenes can be funny, hot and emotional in the same time? I mean the balance was just perfect! And tge narrators?! OMG John Hartley's Tobey was soo good, sometimes I could not even tell the difference! Till now I did not feel tge urge to leave a review besides the rating, but now I just had to. 🤩🤩🤩🤩

Gorgeous, raw, and emotional romance

For Real is the first book I ever read by Alexis Hall. I loved it then and I still love it now. I would go so far as saying it’s one of my all-time favorite books. Laurie and Toby are so beautiful together. Their dynamic allows their emotions to be stripped down, flayed open, exposed and raw. Toby is charming, confident, and independent but also a little lost and vulnerable, with a deep need to be loved, adored, and emotionally supported. Laurie can’t get over his past hurts, jaded and bitter, but he takes a chance on Toby. It’s just beautiful to watch Toby’s warmth and excitement bring Laurie back to life. The writing is just beautiful. It’s funny, emotional, and raw, with messy characters and their messy lives. The book is dual POV, and the characters have very distinct voices. Laurie is educated, sophisticated, brilliant, but lacking in culture and creativity. Toby is creative and cultured, effortlessly charming, but is very much still a teenager. He knows exactly what he wants out of a relationship, but is still trying to figure out what he wants to do with his life.

The D/s aspect of the story is fantastic. I love the way Laurie and Toby’s dynamic defies expectation. They show that age, size, and experience don’t have to predetermine their roles. They don’t need all the toys and props, their relationship dynamic has boiled down to it’s essence. Domination and submission. Loyalty, respect, trust, and love.

“I gazed up at him, less shocked than I should have been at the evidence of the distances between us. Perhaps it was because, right now, there were none. We were simply each other’s, in a world of our own making.”

I highly recommend the audio version of this book. Narrators Paul Berton and John Hartley do an amazing job, perfectly capturing their characters, while also perfectly portraying each other in the dialogue.

A different kind of story

More mind. Less action.
Beautiful quiet British narration. Less brash than an American delivery of the same words. Nuanced.

Kinky and hot and lovely.

I really enjoyed it.

Romantic and sexy

The performances in this book are so good! They feel like real people and the love story feels realistic and touching.

Spicy

Spicy. Level 5 spice.
Loved the characters! And some of the situations they found themselves in had me pausing and walking away because you only want them to be happy!

Superb narration for superb story

As much as I enjoy reading Alexis Hall's excellent prose, this time I enjoyed hearing it even more. These narrators brought the characters to life by dramatizing the story, not merely reading Hall's beautifully literate prose.

I highly recommend this production, and know I will listen to it many times.