Both Sides of the Fence

Both Sides of the Fence #1

by M.T. Pope

To most people, 35-year-old Shawn Black is a mild-mannered and fun-loving family man. Filled with music recitals, football games, and family outings, his life seems to be picture-perfect. What observers don't know is that Shawn is living a life on both sides of the fence. He's harboring dangerous childhood secrets that could ultimately rip his family apart.

Shawn makes the mistake of befriending James, a gold-digging bisexual with a secret agenda. Pushing Shawn head first into a life of sex, secrets, and lies, James will stop at nothing to get what he wants.

Take a story where everyone has secrets, and then mix that together with explosive sex and a dash of the painful truth, and the outcome can only be disaster. Heads will roll as Shawn's faithfulness, love, sexuality, and family structure are tested to the very shocking end. Be warned: this is not your average down-low book.

249 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2009

About the author

Author M.T. Pope hit the literary scene in the Fall of 2009 with a knockout debut novel titled Both Sides of The Fence through the Publisher Urban Books/Kensington Books. M.T. Pope's thoughts of his first work of fiction are that of edginess, exploration, but effectiveness in getting people's attention on widely overlooked social issues.
Both Sides of the Fence was also pegged as shockingly realistic and over the top by his editor, publisher and many, many readers. Deeply filled with drama, suspense and graphic scenes, Both Sides of the Fence is a novel that doesn't disappoint the reader. M.T. Pope goes on record to say that with his first book 'either you're going to love it or hate it. There's no in between'. He doesn't get disappointed when a reader says 'it was too much' for them. He understands that not everyone will like it or finish it.
He continued his literary career and penned Both Sides of The Fence 2 & 3, which were released in 2010 & 2011. These two novels were just as successful as the first novel, even with a little less rawness within. Each one these have different plots and messages, but all are conjoined to hold a larger, impacting message; the message of communication, faith, family, struggle and cohesiveness as a unit.
In the spring of 2011 M.T. Pope was approached by bestselling author, Anna J to be including in an exciting anthology entitled Erotic Snapshots which was released that May and continues to be successful.
In the early summer of 2011 M.T. Pope was approached by his publisher for participation in an anthology entitled Don't Ask, Don't Tell. It was centered on the now repelled law by the same name. Again, M.T. Pope tactless the issue like only he can; Drama, suspense and ultimately, resolution. That work of fiction was released in the spring of 2012 and is successful as well.
At the end of 2011 M.T. Pope released his first independent selection; an e-reader short story entitled Don't Drop The Soap. He also completed his fourth full length novel, A Clean Up Man released in Fall 2012
In late Winter M.T. Pope gathered together three new and aspiring writers and presented another anthology titled Boys Will Be Boys in March 2012. The following month of May he released another novella entitled Stick Up Boys, which is his semi-street life based fiction. It remains one of his favorite works of fiction to date. M.T. Pope also began work on two short novellas entitled, Lost Pages of Both Sides of the Fence 1 & 2 of which Vol. 1 is being positioned for release in the late Fall 2012. He has also begun completion on his next full length novel, May the Best Man Win, to be released in 2013. New novel and story ideas are always popping into his head, during conversation or simple observing people. New and exciting things are in the future. He hopes that you will join him there.
His works of fiction has been seen in XXL Magazine, recommended in Carl Weber's novel Big Girls Do Cry and The Man in 3B. He's done numerous phone interviews, blog talk shows and e-magazine interviews.
M.T. Pope, is a born and raised Baltimorean. He was born into a large family with nine brothers and sisters. He's worked as a landscaper, movie theater concessions worker, an over the counter medication manager for Wal-Mart, pharmacy technician for Wal-Mart and a bookstore manager for Urban Knowledge Bookstores.
M.T. Pope loves to eat and cook. He enjoys action movies and getting a good night's sleep. He is an introvert by nature, but his writing speaks otherwise. He likes to write the drama but living it is for other. He likes meeting new people and getting in a good, meaningful, and enlightening conversation with strangers. He feels like he can learn anything from anyone given the opportunity, even if it's what not to do. He can be reached at the outlets.
Email: chosen_97@yahoo.com, mondellpope@gmail.com
Websites: www.Facebook.com/authormtpope
www.Twitter.com/mtpope
www.Instagram.com/mtpope
www.wix.com/mtpope/mtpope
Book ti

Reviews

[Landa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow!!! Yep I'm looking for the next one!

[Kat · Rating 2 out of 5]

A colleague recommended this to me, and out of respect for her with the hope to contribute to literary conversation, I finished the book. While I applaud the author for penning this undeniable page turner, it was a traumatic train wreck for me. I noticed a plot hole in the beginning that could have completely changed the story arc. (I.E. The protagonist black mailer addressed the wife by her name when he was pretending to not know her or her husband. This wasn't addressed and made me question if it was a typo or reflection of the characters’ obliviousness.) With the exception of the children, the characters were all immature with no agency. The over the top shock value of sexual violence numbs reader to the suffering of the unlikable characters, and after a while became predictable, grotesque, and unsexy. While the ending is a small ounce of justice it lacked complete justice. More people needed to go to be held accountable for rape, and everyone needed psychiatric help to deal with their hang ups. The moral of the story involves honesty, which I would think should be standard for a married couple, even with one’s unorthodox sexual desires. I mean if you can't be sexually liberated with the person you choose to spend your whole life with then why marry them? You can't let the opinions of others rule or ruin your happiness forever. Perhaps it's a sign of the time this was written that infidelity with a man in lieu of a woman was such a source of a shame that it steered every ill fated decision. I felt the over emphasis that he wasn't cheating “with another woman” as excessive. This book truly thought me the extremes people would go to to hide their sexuality, which is ridiculous in my opinion.

Trigger Warnings: Incest, sexual violence, rape, and internalised homophobia.

[Ronie Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

That was dark

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

BOTH SIDES OF THE FENCE by MT Pope is a captivating story that will have you reading and not wanting to put down. You will laugh and have so many OMG moments. This book has it all scandal, seduction, secrets and lies.

James is a bi-sexual who has been hurt from previous lovers. James set out for revenge, using anyone that crosses his path to maintain his luxurious lifestyle. .James is very manipulative and conniving and will do anything to get what he wants.

Shawn is a married man with two children and a beautiful wife Mona. Shawn’s sexual appetite is in the down low lifestyle. Unfortunately, Shawn and his family becomes James new target, as he weaves in web of lies, deception, and drama that unravels more secrets than you could ever imagine.

Mona has a secret she has been keeping from her husband as well. She suspects that Shawn is seeing another woman .Just when she feels things are going well between her and Shawn. Someone from her past comes into the picture and threatens to destroy her marriage.

Author M.T. Pope all I can say is WOW. I read this book in one day; once I started I just had to keep reading to see what was going to happen next. The story line was excellent and true. The characters were great. I love how each chapter was focus on a character. I loved how there were so many events that I did not see it coming.

M.T. Pope has talent and he did a good job with his novel Both Sides of the Fence. The story was entertaining; fast paced and held my attention from the first page. If you are looking for a good book with lot of drama. I highly recommend this book.

[Peaceful · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was crazy. It's not for everyone since it highlights the "down low" lifestyle, and it's "in your face" graphic. With that said, the drama was endless and kept my interest. I will read the next installment soon. My only complaint was that the book wasn't edited. I know it's "urban," but come on!

[Juanesia · Rating 5 out of 5]

A scandalous jaw dropping page turner!! I've been away from the paperback side of things for a bit but, this one certainly had me stuck from the very first page until the last. Both sides of the fence had me experiencing emotions that I couldn't even fathom. If you haven't picked it up, you don't know what you're missing. On to the next installment! Whew!!

[Kendell That'sMe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was truly a page turner!...

[Tameeka Mo'Nique C'Mor Kitt'e · Rating 5 out of 5]

Far from average this book is a-GOTTA HAVE IT! Two snaps and a twist, one I'm sure you truly won't miss..Get your Copy...COPY!

[Jacqueline Carter · Rating 5 out of 5]

First paperback that I have read since I got my kindle in 2012. Omg this was worth it. I'm getting ready to read part 2 . Can't wait to see what James will be up to next.

[N · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was so hard to put this book down I would read it to the point my eyes were get tired. I would go to bed in suspense to pick it up the next day. This book will have you on the edge of your seat. I read all 4 books in the series and all 4 are a must read you will not regret it. M.T. Pope is a genius and I will forever support him. I cant wait to purchase the next book. My next reads are: Don't ask don't tell, May the best man win, and Hustling on the downlow.

[Germaine]

Oh, wow! Talking about a great book discussing the down low lifestyle. M.T. Pope did his thing with this book. I couldn't wait to read all of the books in Both Sides of the Fence series. The characters were great and the plot kept thickening. I didn't want to put the book down.

[Alison is probably reading smut · Rating 5 out of 5]

Was kind of hesitant starting this book from the beginning because of the summary on the back, but once I noticed it was recommended from Ashley & JaQuavis, I knew it would turn out to be an excellent read. It was definitely entertaining, well written, and easy to binge read (my favorite kind of books!) Love how each chapter goes into each characters point of view. Definitely looking forward to reading the sequel.

[Liv · Rating 1 out of 5]

A bit too much anal rape for me…..

[Jay DeMoir · Rating 2 out of 5]

this was a very wild and intense story that seemed to cross many lines and was on the verge of being disgusting... It was a lot. I won't be finishing this series.

[Briana The Great · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had no idea what this book was after taking it from a friends home library.
Safe to say; I will never forget it.

…….. Idk whether to give it 0 or 5 stars.

[Toya · Rating 4 out of 5]

needs trigger warnings

[Lee Smith-Cusaac · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just started this on audible- the book has me interested enough to keep reading, but the narration is terrible - I'm sorry, it is T E R R I B L E - I have been wanting to read the book for month's and ended up having to request it through ILL ( interlibrary loan), through my local library branch, as this book (1), is the only book that they don't have - so I can finish it and push through with books 2/3/& 4 , but this narrator takes away from the author's craft, sorry, not sorry, and it really makes me want to return the audiobook and get (1) my credit back & just read it on my kindle. Sometimes it's just easier for me to listen when I can't focus on reading the book. This is really a shame.

[Linda Strickland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loving the drama and the realness!

[Johannes Booker · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF Yet, but I doubt I'll be editing this review. I'm over half way through and ... I would not be shocked if someone told me M T Pope is Tyler Perry's pen name... this is not good. but it's like a train wreck you can't look away from. I experienced through audiobook and thank God I did otherwise I would not even gotten close to finishing. even that, the Narration is not good, but looking at other reviews that may be due to grammatical and editing issues in the manuscript. I'm a strong proponent for "characters making bad decisions isn't bad writing" but characters NEVER making good decisions is.

Spoilers start here: TW for rape, incest, pedophilia, and other various forms of sexual abuse. NONE OF THESE CHARACTERS MAKE SENSE. NONE OF THEM HAVE PROPER MOTIVATION OR MAKE A SINGLE SMART DECISION.

Sean being a victim of child abuse and letting his kids be unattended with the perpetrator and never telling anyone? moving in with a man he's known for a week? not questioning James about how he can afford opulence while driving a broke down Kia? never asking James about the events of the night that triggered everything? his wife being a fighter but then just passively letting stuff happen to her?

James/Jerry actually has the makings of a decent villain but because none of the protagonists move in a way that challenge him, he just proves to be an outlet for the author to write sadistic abuse porn.

[TheReaderIsReading · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm no stranger to urban fiction and find myself thoroughly enjoying it, especially ones that feature LGBTQIA characters. So I went in expecting a pretty good time. Of course the sex scenes and sexual content does not at all disappoint... for the most part. I want to avoid spoilers so anyone who has read or will read this story should understand what I mean.

I haven't quite finished yet but I can say that the story is pretty interesting, if not very different from other novels about up to three black leads with one as the obvious morally deviant one. However, I did appreciate the vastly different viewpoints each of the three lead characters: Shawn, James and Mona, and each POV was definitely a completely different entity of their own.

My main criticism, aside from some of the idiotic choices of the non-antagonistic leads which plays right into the villain's hands, is the terrible grammar. I know, I know, this is a pretty petty thing to bitch about, but as someone who is very experienced with literature and the English language it almost takes me out of the story when I word is misspelled or used in the wrong way (one glaring example was something that SHOULD have said 'I rode the elevator' instead saying 'I road the elevator'). A few typos is no big deal to me, shy happens, but when it happens almost every other chapter and more than a few times in the chapter it occurs, Houston we have a problem. It makes me not blame the writer, again shit happens, but it makes me wonder how and why the publisher approved the finished product.

Overall, I am enjoying this story and hope that the two 'good' leads can get their shit together and turn the tables on the obvious villain.

[KamariLyrikal · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is another book that I am unable to rate due to the very sensitive subjects and my personal experiences.

I have read some disturbing books but this one is definitely one of the MOST disturbing. I am okay with the downlow lifestyle discussion but the Rape, Child molestation and Father/Son relationships in this book are HORRIBLE!!! The open and blatant disrespect that is shown is mind blowing -- and NOT in a good way.

This has to be somewhat based off a true story which makes it so much harder to read.

I wanted to add all these characters to my prayer request list even though they aren't real. I don't know how I made it through the whole book -- it was rough. I will not be reading part 2.

[Ti'Africia Lucas- Woodard · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a captivating story that will have you reading and not wanting to put down. It had me laughing and has so many OMG moments. This book has it all scandal, seduction, secrets and lies. I read this book really not knowing what to expect from the title but once I started, I had to keep reading to see what was going to happen next. The story line was excellent and true. The characters were great. Each chapter was from a point of few from a character. I loved how everything was unpredictable. The story held my attention from the first page. It was so entertaining and fast paced with so much DRAMA. I recommend this book to anyone that loves to read. ~5 stars~

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was to much. Everyone had secrets. They were falling out everywhere. I really enjoyed reading this book. James was doing way to much with his life. Shawn had a lot of things going on with him too but could have been worked past if he would just open up to his wife. I would recommend this book.

[Diane Rembert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Meet James, the male version of Monica from the My Woman His Wife series. I have to tell you that I have not come across a book of this caliber in a long time! M.T. Pope definitely delivered in this novel. These people are absolutely CRAZY!!! I will put my neck on the line and say that he is the next E. Lynn Harris... only grittier! On to part 2!

[Angel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Both Sides of the/Fence left me Speechless I couldn't believe Mona & Shawn was sleeping with James/Jerry Parks. So many plots & twist that came together so good I wasn't disappointed glad I picked this book up

[Erica L · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so juicy and exciting! M.T. Pope can spin a story! All the twists and turns...I LOVED IT! Now, I am not the one that reads books if they have a part 2,3,4,5,6,7, and so on, but I am on my way to get "Both Sides Of The Fence 2 right now!

[Gail Franklin · Rating 1 out of 5]

bad read

[Delonya · Rating 3 out of 5]

Way too much of the storyline was unbelivable.

[Robyn · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ugh. Horrible novel. I'm still not sure why I even bothered finishing this one. Boredom maybe? Insanity. It was a complete waste of time.

[Monica Mann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good read. I couldn't put it down.