In “Maintenance Man II: Money, Politics and Sex…Everyone Has A Price” Baisden builds upon the saga of his former main character, Malcolm Tremell, a gigolo who first came to life in Baisden’s 1999 release “The Maintenance Man.” “The Maintenance Man” saw the author gain notoriety for unapologetically disclosing the lifestyle of a man who rendezvoused for pay with married women. The original “Maintenance Man” followed a litany of releases, including “Men Cry In The Dark,” “God’s Gift To Women”, “Do Men Know What They Want” and solidified his stance as one of the most successful self-published male authors on the literary scene.
With “Maintenance Man II,” Baisden broadens the storyline as Tremell comes out of retirement to not only rebuild his contact list of high-end female clientele, but also franchise a male escort service worldwide. Intrigue, drama and danger quickly come into play when Tremell liaisons with the wife of a powerful and corrupt Republican senator. When they unwittingly uncover the senator’s underhanded deal with the powerful Kross brothers for political control, Tremell will have to tap his military training and street smarts to not only save his life, but also those closest to him.
Baisden, once again educates as he entertains, brilliantly engaging his readers. Utilizing Malcolm Tremell as the ultimate Renaissance man protagonist, he brazenly unveils several harsh and dark realities behind the current political process. He skillfully touches on some of the most critical political issues to date, including voter suppression as well as corporate greed, seamlessly interspersing them between a romantic and politically charged plot. The novel’s tone is captivating and inviting, whisking the reader into a non-stop escapade of sex, action and adventure.
After years of being out of the gigolo lifestyle, Malcolm has to rebuild his list of contacts and high-end clientele. But he still has his good looks, his Rolodex, and his reputation. This time he vows that nothing will stand in his way of getting back on top and creating a franchise of escort services worldwide. He disguises his gigolo lifestyle as a nightclub owner in Miami—the perfect cover to mix business with pleasure.
When it comes to entertaining, enlightening and educating, no one in talk radio compares to Michael Baisden. His high-octane energy and love for interacting with his listeners is just one reason for the popularity and success of The Michael Baisden Show. The Bad Boy ignites heated discussions with explosive episodic themes like: Living Your Dream, Your Body Is Your Temple, and Pimps In The Pulpit.
His radio career began in 2003 when 98.7 KISS FM in New York City offered him a position as the afternoon drive-time host. Because of budget constraints the station was unable to offer him a salary. Michael's response was, "Just give me the damned mic!" And sure enough, within six months, their afternoon drive ratings went from number 9 to number 1.
After eight months of consistent high ratings, Michael suggested taking his show national but management was apprehensive, suggesting that New York wasn't ready. A few months later, Michael threatened to quit if management did not pursue a syndication deal. "There was no doubt in my mind that I could have one of the hottest shows on radio! I knew the impact it would have on people all across the country and I wasn't taking no, for an answer," Michael rebutted.
His vibrant personality on and off the air has made him a people magnet. He began attracting attention with primarily female followers as author and publisher of the highly successful provocative books: "Never Satisfied: How and Why Men Cheat", "Men Cry in the Dark", "The Maintenance Man", and lastly "God's Gift to Women". Two of his titles ultimately were adapted into stage plays.
But his proudest moment came on September 20, 2007, when he passionately and skillfully spearheaded the famous Jena 6 March in Jena, Louisiana. This historic and momentous occasion garnered tens of thousands citizens of all races to peacefully marched in support of six young men who have been unfairly treated by the justice system. In addition, he urged millions of listeners to wear black on September 20 in protest of unequal justice. The news traveled throughout the country, everyone wore black in support of the Jena 6, from college students of all races to corporate executives.
2008 was another historic year. In late January Michael endorsed Sen. Barack Obama in the democratic primary against Sen. Hillary Clinton. Sen. Obama ultimately won and went on to defeat Sen. John McCain in general election on November 4. Michael celebrated with over 4,000 fans at a watch party in Miami on election night. The Obama camp along with millions of listeners credited Michael with being one of the major forces behind this historic victory to elect the first African American to the Presidency of the United States.
The Bad Boy continues to entertain, enlighten and educate as he pursues one of his first dreams, to have his novels adapted to major Motion pictures. The other dream was to host a Late Night Talk show. He got that chance in the fall of 2007, when he partnered with TV One to host and co-executive produce "Baisden After Dark," featuring comedian George Willborn and band leader Morris Day. The show was a smash hit, breaking records for viewers on the black owned network.
I didn't know that there was a second part 2 Michael Baisden Maintenance Man until the other day. I was allowed 2 read it and it was pretty good. Normally I would have read part 1 again just 2 catch up but part 2 was totally different from 1. And it was good.
This book was awful! I was excited that after waiting all these years that there is finally a sequel to The Maintenance Man. Michael Baisden came out of nowhere with this ridiculous story that Malcolm was all of a sudden a Navy seal and have this extrodinary killing ability. This read like similar to what Eric Jerome Dickey tried to do with the Gideon character but atleast his didnt feel forced. After reading this book the first book DID NOT, i repeat DID NOT need a sequel.
Wow. Just wow. I know Michael Baisden as a radio personality and I knew that he was an author, but I had no idea of his skills as a writer. The Maintenance Man II was the first book written by him that I have read. It was hard to put it down. Although I have not yet read the original Maintenance Man, I could easily follow the plot and characters of the second installment. I was pleased that although the Malcolm character was a gigolo, that he (and the plot) wasn't all about sex. A reader could take away from this novel the lesson that a person needs to think about how to be successful on a grandscale rather than caught up in limitations. I enjoyed the intrigue. I enjoyed the action. I found the politician who was involved in dirty dealings to get to the White House to be very realistic. At the very least, it addressed the question we have all asked ourselves one time or another: How far would someone actually go to further their own political agenda? What I also found realistic was that the character, Senator Nelson wasn't apprehended as people would have liked him to be. Well connected people tend to stay out of reach of the law. I am glad that he did get his in the end, especially after what he did to the Alex character. I'm also glad that Vincent died a horrible death himself. I truly couldn't stand him. I look forward to reading the rest of Michael Baisden's works.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
VERY Disappointed! I am not sure if I expected something more from when I read maintenance man years back but this was not at all what I was hoping for when I paid for it. I have much respect for Mr. Baisden and all that he do, but this seemed like I was reading a rough draft of a EJD Gideon series. The story line was OK, but it seem very far fetched. Really like a rough draft of something that had the potential to be great but fell short really fast. Oh well,I'm still a fan of his work but not this particular book. Maybe next time
If you read The Maintenance Man and thought “Hmm, what an interesting life this man is going to have in the next book” ….i suggest you put this down.
Honestly, this book felt like Michael Baisden got a little too excited about writing his own “Bourne Identity” thriller and forgot that this was supposed to be a second book about a successful, gigolo navigating relationships and life in a high-stakes, low-profile business.
First, how are you going to change the entire location of the story? The first book was primarily based in LA, Atlanta and Chicago with the infamous Melvin’s residing in LA. This was established several times over in the first book. Melvin even died in a Compton hospital! However, for some reason he wants us to forget that and pretend that Melvin’s has always been in Miami and that Miami has always been “home”. Incorrect. Malcom is from Soufside Chicago, primarily lived in LA, visited ATL for Simon’s club. At bare minimum, I could have bought him moving to MIA after leaving Toni BUT nothing is explained in regard to that situation i.e what happened to them, where they lived, what attempts were made by Malcom to “adjust”. Also, Toni pretty much being written out for reasons I guess. To say “he wasn’t made for the suburban life” totally contradicts his character’s transition at the end of the first book.
Secondly, the characters we enjoyed in the first book have all been watered down to basically nothing. They have no true purpose throughout the book and really just serve as a way to stroke Malcom when he is in a mood. Simon was blah and lost all his eccentricity but at least his move to MIA was justified from the previous book. Poor Ariel 🥱 Baisden did her so dirty in this second book. She was a feisty, independent woman, who was not going to let any man diminish her….except this book she is a young piece of ass who gets to talk…oh but she is the manager of the club still. That’s bout all we get with her the entire story.
And finally, my biggest issue with this stupid book! Why tf did this have to become a “money, sex and politics, James Bond” book. No where in the first book was it mentioned that Malcom possessed any special forces training. But out of nowhere this book starts talking about how this man was essentially a well-behaved Rambo. Very little “Gigoloing” is happening in this book. The AWFUL sub-plot of the radically, racist Senator hell bent on world conquest was boring, predictable and uneventful. And the grammatical errors almost took me out, the plot was a mess, the ending was so 🤮. I despise a “hops in car with hot girl, quippy one-liner, drive off in the sunset” ending…okay 007! 😴
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Oh, wait. I actually have something else to add in the case of this book.
HOW IS THIS THE SEQUEL TO THE MAINTENANCE MAN BEYOND HAVING THE SAME MAIN CHARACTER? What the hell happened to the woman that dude JUST fell in love with and had only just really gotten into an official relationship with at the end of the first book? All we get to answer that question is a single throwaway line, as crucial as their developing relationship was to the previous book's plot? Are you kidding me? It felt as if I were reading some sort of "What If?" multiverse version of The Maintenance Man rather than a sequel to it.
As for the rest, well, see my review for Men Cry in the Dark, because as I said in that review...it pretty much applies to every Michael Baisden book I've read.
⭐️: 3/5 🌶️: 🚫 I DNF’d this book with maybe 80 pages left 😅, in my opinion had absolutely nothing to do with the first book 😒 .. Malcolm all of a sudden went from gigolo to James Bond 🤣🙄. I jumped the gun buying the second book before reading the first one lmao, I will think about revisiting this book just to say I finished it but I really wouldn’t recommend unless you like gigolo turned James Bond.
Again, Baisden wrote a book that was easy to read with a good storyline. I found myself trying to figure out if Malcom was the same guy from the first book. It seemed as thought he was much more accomplished in this second book, but maybe I just quikly red thtought the first book. IF you read the first one, you may want to read the remainder of the story.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The character was very different than from MM1. He had moved to a different phase of his life but remained loyal to his old friends in a major way! Lots of action, very vivid descriptions (some were hard to stomach though) but enjoyable nevertheless.
Straight page Turner!!! DO...NOT...PASS...ON...THIS...TITLE!!! You will love it!! This book is filled with action from start to finish. You're welcomed in advance.
As hard as I tried to like this book, I have to say I really didn't enjoy it. I'm not sure what Michael was going for here, but this book didn't feel genuine like the first in the sequel. It really pissed me off that Toni, Malcolm's lady love in the first book, was suddenly out of the picture in this book. Malcolm's new love interest or not-so love interest, Alex, was a great character, but the whole plot just didn't seem to come together.
I wanted Malcolm to do something vicious to the Senator, and although he did get his revenge on Victor, Senator Nelson's henchman, the book just left me wanting and wishing more could be done. There are so many directions I would have gone, if I were the one writing this, but I was not, so I had to deal with what Michael left the reader, and I have to say, as much as I respect Michael as a radio show host, this book fell very short of the first one and just didn't live up to what I was expecting. It seemed like he was trying to cram a lot of things in the book that, to me, didn't feel right and made for an awkward read.
And there were many, many errors I found throughout the book that were hard to ignore. Especially where it came to Angelita's name. At one point it was Angelita and then it was Angelina, and I'm like this sounds like the same character or is this a different person? This book almost reads like an author's first draft, which is not the draft that should EVER make it to print. Ummm, I don't know readers, I was highly disappointed with this sequel. I think the first book was fine by itself.
This book has really jumped the shark. The Navy Seal guy must be Malcolm's twin. That's the only plausible explanation. I'm expected to believe that gigolo Malcolm is now a former Navy Seal and special ops trained? I'm all for suspending belief while reading but it needs to make sense. This backstory was completely omitted from the original story. Honestly the author would have done better by creating an entirely new character, nixing the whoring and concentrating on Malcolm avenging the woman that he kind of like-loved and lost, while saving the world from corrupt politicians. So far I like the "new" backstory but it doesn't compute with what I know of Malcolm previously.
I have enjoyed his books in the past and while it's all over the place, if the focus was a hero out to bring justice it would have been great. I'm just not ready for a former navy seal, special ops, piano playing gigolo.
I read Maintenance Man when it first came out and I liked it but I like this one much better. I like the suspense! Malcolm is back! He returns to Miami to reopen a nightclub after being away from the city a number of years and at the death of his close friend, Melvin. He meets a long-time friend Alex who is getting married to a rutless politian. Before she is killed by her husband, she devulges a conversation that she heard her husband having with some very powerful men, the Kross Brothers. A lot of what is going on in this book refers to the present day. This book is an easy read and flows well. It is a page turner. I look forward to Maintenance Man III!
Malcolm is back, and there is action in more areas of his life than one would imagine. This second book picks up with information about his relationship with Toni, him and Simon's decision regarding Melvin's, and updates on Malcolm's escort service. Not everything turned out the way he anticipated, and Malcolm's life continues to be one of extravagance and flashiness. This was a good read, definitely holding my attention from start to finish, and allows readers much more insight into the world that Malcolm and his loved ones live in.
It took me a few chapters to get into this book but it turned out to be pretty entertaining and fast paced. An ex-Navy Seal building is escort empire finds himself using his military skills a lot more often than is gigolo skills. Malcolm loses (what seems to be) his second true love first to a crocked senator, then because of the crocked senator. A lot of death and dismemberment ensues, as well as a few quickies.
It is not a happily ever after ending, but I think this is a good end to the Maintenance Man series.
I tried so hard to finish this book, but I couldn't. I enjoyed Maintenance Man I, but book two dragged me through the glam, fame, and money, and left me with no substance. Besides the fancy cars, clothes, and every character looking good, I found myself waiting for the movie to start. I still couldn't believe this was a sequel. I felt like I was reading about a new character I never heard of. Where was the plot? I like Michael Baisden, but he couldn't reach me on this one. He did lose me, however. Sorry Mike!
Either Mr. Baisden's writing talent has drastically declined, or my literary palate has become much more sophisticated. Actually, I don't think it's either....I think this was book was rushed to completion to deliver a series of political messages. Whatever the case, I'm just glad it's over. Two stars because despite the shameless political pandering, it was sort of interesting to assign actual names to the characters in the book.
Maintenance Man part 2 was not what I was expecting from Mr. Baiden's writing was not the story I was looking for. Usually I love Michael Baisden's stories but for some reason I just did not enjoy this book as much. It was wonderfully written but it does not have that flare of humor and love scenes that his writing usually has. This story was more political. Never the less it was fast pace and short chapter which loved. Very diffrent from Maintenance Man part 1.
Wasn't what I was hoping for as a follow up. It seems like this could ave easily been made a standalone book. The book as a whole was alright but not as good as what it could have been. Disappointing follow up, just ok as a standalone.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Although the plot was a little far-fetched at time but I do recognize that it's fiction so the reader should have an imagination. I would recommend this book to others.
I got this book for free from Amazon. This book's storyline is awesome. I loved the action & how Mr. Baisden showed a different side to Malcolm. I am so glad I read this series looking forward to reading more books by Mr. Baisden great job.
This book was a page turner that was hard to put down! The main character was not only an exceptional business man, but one hell of a Navy Seal, which made this action in this book that much better!