Reckless Jesse

by Zane Menzy

In the space of ten years, Jesse Donavon has gone from chart-topping rock star to a thirty-something has-been longing for the roar of the crowd. When he is forced to sell his apartment to avoid bankruptcy, he finds himself needing a place to stay. Unfortunately, no one is too keen to help out the former heartthrob. Well...there is one person.

Robbie O'Carroll isn't like the rest of Jesse's friends. He isn't famous, wealthy, or remotely pretentious. He also happens to be Jesse's number one fan. The lovable goofball worships the ground Jesse walks on, so when the rocker falls on hard times and needs a place to stay, Robbie jumps to his idol's rescue.

Jesse can’t stop wondering if there is more to his young host’s adulation than meets the eye. The more he thinks about it, the more curious he is to see how far Robbie will go to prove his devotion. Jesse coaxes Robbie into sharing his innermost secrets before luring the shy young man into a twisted seduction that tests both their limits. It’s exhilarating and addictive, but if Jesse isn’t careful he might just lose the one thing he has left…a real shot at love.

Genres: Friends To Lovers, BDSM, M M Romance, Musicians

364 pages, Paperback

First published May 20, 2019

About the author

Zane lives way down under on the west coast of New Zealand; the wet side. He is a fan of ghost stories, sport, ducklings and nights out that usually lead to his head hanging in a bucket the next morning.

He enjoys creating characters who have flaws, crazy thoughts and a tendency to make bad decisions. Zane’s stories are emotionally-charged and don’t shy away from darker themes. After all, they do say there is no light without the dark.

Reviews

[Lena Grey · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Sooner or later in life, we will all take our own turn being in the position we once had someone else in.” ~ Ashly Lorenzana

Jesse Donovan is his own worst enemy. He has made so many mistakes that he has lost track. He is so arrogant, hardly anyone can stand him. At one time, Jesse had it all: success, fame, respect, but it didn’t last. Instead of accepting his fate, adjusting his lifestyle, and doing his best to move on, Jesse can’t do so. He continues to pretend to live like he did when he was a rock star. As a result, he has lost everything except for his friend Robbie, who sees through Jesse’s tough, arrogant facade and into the person he is underneath.

Robbie is an uncomplicated person who attempts to see the good in everyone. Quite literally, he has been a fan of Jesse’s, following him since he was a rock star. Robbie is a loyal friend, caring about Jesse both when he was on the top of the world, and, as he is now, down about as low as he can go. Robbie has stuck by Jesse because he loves him, although he has never told him. In return, Jesse treats him with the same disregard that he does everyone else. Yes, there is a lot of sexual innuendo in their friendship, but Jesse disregards it as joking. Jesse takes Robbie for granted, just assuming he will always be there, no matter how badly Jesse treats him.

Jesse treats his ex-wife, the only other person who comes close to understanding him, with the same indifference. He tries harder with their son, the product of a teen marriage, but Jesse is such a narcissist, he has no idea how to relate to him. His ex and son have put up with his behavior for so long that their expectations for Jesse are very low; his ex keeps pushing both of them because she feels they should have, at least, some level of a relationship.

One night, Robbie slips up and admits that he had a crush on Jesse when he was younger. Jesse’s all-about-me attitude will not let it go; he presses Robbie to tell him about it, but Robbie refuses for fear that Jesse will make fun of him. Jesse persists, wanting to hear about anything that will flatter his ego so Robbie finally gives in. Instead of handling Robbie’s feelings with the sensitivity they deserve, Jesse is determined to see how far he can take a physical relationship with Robbie. Even knowing that it’s Robbie’s first time with a man, Jesse is not gentle; he treats Robbie as badly as he has treated numerous women he has seduced in the past. Afterwards, Jesse tries to pretend as if it never happened, leaving Robbie feeling raw and used. He loves Jesse, but even his feelings have limits. Robbie decides that the pain of not having Jesse in his life is less than the humiliation he has to endure to be with him.

This has to be one of the best examples of how even the most obnoxious of people, given the right circumstances, can grow. I detested Jesse at first but, as the story went on, started to realize that Jesse had such disrespect for himself, that he constantly acted out, pushing people away because he didn’t think he deserved to be loved. I adored Robbie from the start. Yet I was relieved to see that, when it came down to it, he was wise enough to do what he needed to in order to take care of himself. He was forgiving enough to care for Jesse when he realized he was truly sorry and needed his comfort. Thanks, Zane, for a sometimes dark but hopeful tale, reminding me that, even under drastic situations, redemption is possible.

[Alastair · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wow okay so this is the first book I've read from New Zealand. I'm assuming things are a bit different there than here in the good ol us of a. So let's talk about it.
First of all, Jesse (the main character) is a piece of shit that becomes less shitty at about the 60% mark in the book and slowly works to become a somewhat decent human. Up until that point I was really ready to throw in the towel. Like I wasn't sure I could make myself finish this book. It wasn't until Jesse got a taste for his own medicine that he finally started to act like a human being and until then lots of people were hurt.
The story is told from the POV of Jesse and we get a front row seat to all his awful awful thoughts. And they're awful. The book does have a HEA and despite everything, ended up giving me a warm fuzzy feeling. While some parts had me laughing, it was simply from word choices and odd phrases which I don't think make this a comedy at all.

Knowing what I know now, I probably wouldn't have read it.

[Jennifer Ali · Rating 1 out of 5]

This just really wasn’t for me. I didn’t like any of the characters

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an intense, dark and unpredictable story. Jesse is a has been rock star who ives his life he's still "all that", and he treats his "number one fan" best friend, Robbie, like crap. His son, Finn, thinks he's a tool and doesn't care to spend time with Jesse. Robbie has had a thing for Jesse for years and allows Jesse to treat him badly because he's Jesse. One day Jesse is feeling frustrated with his life, so he decides to tease Robbie about being into him. They end up doing more than just fooling around. Jesse gets off on the power trip, and starts demanding more from Robbie. Jesse thinks that his his son is gay, and he starts to question his feelings, and how he feels about what he's doing with Robbie. There are some shocks that he has to deal with, and karma might just come bite him in his butt. I loved the storyline, it's intriging and suspenseful.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jesse is a jerk in the first order. Once famous, he has alienated everyone except his number one fan, Robbie. Now working a day job that he hates and bunking at Robbie's flat, he is deathly afraid of growing old and disappearing. Luckily for him, Robbie is crazy for him. Slowly, Jesse begins to obsess with the fact that Robbie wants him. He is NOT gay. Absolutely not. He just wants to torture Robbie to feel better about himself. Robbie's always been the uber fan that followed him around, but soon, he starts to notice how attractive Robbie truly is. This was a good read although he is a true jerk and kind of sad. Sex is raunchy and fun though. A one-sided friendship romance.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Worth it

Firstly, I really do like this book but it should have come with some trigger warnings about rape. The MC learns a lot of important life lessons & I even liked him by the end of the book despite his extreme narcissism at the beginning.
The book describes graphic coersive rape as well as this relatively vague statement: "They never said no, and even if they did, I didn’t give a shit. They got whatever rough love I gave them."
Needless to say some of the characters have seriously major flaws.
The sex is hot, the story kept me turning the page, and the characters are real people with real problems. I enjoyed this read so much that I'm gonna go find more by this author.

[Ken Cook · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kiwi rom com

Menzy gives the reader a tale featuring Jesse, former front man for rock band (reference the title) who has fallen on bad times, and Robbie, a younger mechanic who claims to be Jesse's biggest fan. For the first two-thirds of the book, Jesse comes across as an arrogant womanizer, living in the past, using and abusing his circle. The straight-to-gay trope triggers some intriguing about-faces as well as graphic physicality. There are supporting cast members from his family and work colleagues, some of whom fit into the bad guy roles. Enough humor to get through the cringe worthy sections, but the MCs never really grabbed me.

[Mim Crenshaw · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a well written read that i found to be an okay read. I just couldn't connect with Jesse. In the beginning, I found him arrogant, vain, self absorbed, mean....it was just all about him. And poor Robbie was naive and just a doormat for Jesse. Then Jesse changed and started caring for Robbie, but seemed to have lost his confidence. If it wasnt for his loss of confidence, I wouldve liked it more.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Shifty Bugger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved the book, the story was well written and the characters were intriguing. Once I started I could not get enough, from the start till the end I was engrossed I was even on the edge of my seat with twists and turns, lust and passion, strength. The story of eroticism with sensation. Do yourself a favor and buy the book you want be disappointed.
Thank you for allowing me to review your book.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[David Goldon]

Sadly I just couldn't get into this, which was a shame because I have loved all the previous books from Zane.

[Kk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definition of a guilty pleasure...

Some ZM novels are a little too far out there for me to enjoy. A little too dark and icky. This one was better balanced & fun.

[Tayra Sanders · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is totally worth the read. Every page will have you enthralled and panting for more. Let’s not forget to mention the chemistry of these two.

[Racquel · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF

[BAG of Books · Rating 1 out of 5]

No. Way too much for me. I can't get into it. I just dislike him so much. I keep waiting for him to improve as a father, friend, basic human, but in the meantime, I just can't keep reading. DNF.

[Nikky · Rating 2 out of 5]

So confused

Ok selfish prick from the get go and bother line abusive. How can I hate a book that I almost didn’t finish and like at the same time.

[Kat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, but I have to say it was my least favourite by this author. That being said, if there were to be a sequel centred around Finn, I'd definitely read it.

[Itsnothing]

I'm sure there's a good story in here even with its light stakes and light plot (neither are bad). I don't have any issues with the degrading sex that the author has taking a liking too. Or even the shitty personality of the MC since they make for a decent character arc. This book was so hard to finish because it needed a serious editing pass. You can cut about a 1/3 of the words in a Menzy novel if the author spoke more directly and with brevity. There is redundant information repeated in the head of the MC and then spoken in dialogue. The back and forth exchange between characters seem to add nothing to my understanding of the scene. The Chunky, long sentences with off handed descriptions are tedious to read. And the lack of rhythm in the sentence length amount to a frustrating experience. I find myself being exhausted by the blocks of words that I skimmed half the book and realizing that I didn't miss much.
I have to emphasize that the actual bones of the book are good but half of the process of making art is taking out what isn't needed. It gives me the impression that the author is in love with hearing himself speak or has no confidence that the meat they present is good enough without the fat. I'm certain that the author's works can be successful if they force themselves on a max word limit.

[maya musser · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book started off rough for me but then it got really good. This is my 4th book by Zane and I’m liking this author a lot.