Reviewed by Vicki
TITLE: Rival Within 
AUTHOR: SJD Peterson
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 200 pages
BLURB:
“When you come out of the storm, you won’t be the same person who walked in.
That’s what this storm is all about.”
~Haruki Murakami~
Officer Thomas Webber made a vow of marriage to his wife, a vow to his God to resist temptation, and a vow to uphold the law. But when Tom is forced to shelter a dark-haired stranger from the tornado raging over the county, long suppressed desires are brought to the surface and he is powerless to resist.
Ben Parker has hidden his true nature his whole life. The laws in 1952 are very clear, and to expose himself would mean rotting in jail, shunned or worse, a possible death sentence. Unable to find a job, he turned to crime. Seven years later, he’s still angry and tired of hiding who he really is from the world. After meeting Thomas, Ben can envision himself settling down for the first time. The only problem is, he’s already forced Thomas to break the law and become his alibi. And then there’s the little obstacle of Tom’s wife, family, and commitment to the town of Ramer.
REVIEW:
Wow. This book brought out some serious emotions in me, both good and bad. I love it when a book does that!
Tom Webber is a cop in a very small town in Tennessee, in 1952. He is a homosexual, but has kept it hidden since he was a teenager. There is no choice for him, he’s been taught by church and family that it is not acceptable, so he ignores that within himself. He’s married, and has a child. He loves his son and tolerates his wife, he’s made a good life for all of them. It is what it is, he’s as happy as he can be. During a storm event he picks up Ben Parker, a possible criminal, and takes him back to the very small police office and locks him up. He knows something is up with Ben, but not what, and doesn’t have a way to call anyone to ask, in the middle of a storm. Ben is a handful, flirting and pushing Tom, and they end up fucking in the storm cellar while a tornado rages overhead. It was seriously hot, but fucked up.
Ben spent some time in the war, coming home lost and confused. He’s been aware of his sexual preferences but it’s not a time where he can be out, so he just deals with it. He’s not been able to find work, he looks like a criminal with a scar, so he decides he may as well be one. But he’s really not. He gets himself in a bad spot, and runs in to Tom one night in a storm. He wants the cop in a bad way, and is determined to get him. Not just the night of the storm, but again later.
So they meet, have nasty sex in the basement, and it all goes bad from there. Ben won’t leave Tom alone, and winds up using him as an alibi for a crime he didn’t actually commit, but Tom exagerates the time they were together to cover for him with the horrible excuse for a Sheriff the next county over. Cronkite, the Sheriff bastard, has it in for Ben thinking he’s caught himself a bank robber, and is really pissed off when Tom covers for him. He’s now after both men. Ben keeps coming back, trying to convince Tom he is wrong to live his careful life, that he should come away with him leaving his wife and child. This is the part that pissed me off no end. I agree that Tom should not have to live his life as he has, squashing his true feelings deep inside, but it is the life that he has chosen to live. He has responsibilities to his wife, his son, his community, whether right or wrong. Who the fuck is Ben to come tell him his wrong? And force Tom out? But that’s pretty much what happens. Of course it all goes wrong, Cronkite tries to blackmail Tom, and it is a mess. The only bright part is Marna’s reaction to the whole thing. I had some serious respect for her. But Tom is forced to run, to Ben, but still. It’s a mess. I was so mad at Ben!
It does work out, this is a romance afterall, but I was still very uncomfortable with the whole thing. There is also no resolution with Tom’s wife and son. I wasn’t happy about that, I’d like to know what happened with them. But damn, was this a well done book. I love it when a book gets me emotionally involved, both with happy emotions and pissed off emotions. And I was pissed off at Ben in a big way! For most of the book. It’s not that I didn’t like him, I did very much, but I just think what he did was wrong! Oh! I’m still wound up!
Jo gives us a great story, dark and messed up, with some awesome characters. I loved Tom, I hated Ben most of the time, I HATED Cronkite the bastard, and I felt sorry for Tom’s wife. I loved the story, it felt very plausable to me. I didn’t like what happened always, but I like how it was written and presented to us. I believed it even if I didn’t like it. If that makes any sense…. The connection between Tom and Ben is strong, and the couple of sex scenes between them are very well done. They are powerful men, and neither is gentle. Their sex is somewhere between sex and a fight, even toward the end when they are committed. I did like the ending for them, it worked very well, except for the lack of resolution with Marna and Tommy.
This is a very good book. I’ve read most of Jo’s books, I think this may be the best I’ve read from her in some time. I have liked all of hers, don’t get me wrong, but this one is particularly good!
RATING: 
BUY LINKS: