Rating: 3 stars out of 5
Who wouldn’t want a do over?
When Thaine wakes up in the hospital after a bull-riding injury, he immediately asks for his lover, Jerry. He has no idea who this man next to his bed is, despite the fact Drew insists they have been an item for the last five years.
Thaine’s best friend, Jesse, calls Jerry. He thinks it’s a pretty crappy thing to do to the new boyfriend, but tells himself it’s unlikely Jerry will come after so many years. He also doesn’t get why Thaine would pass up the opportunity to be with Drew since he’s young, optimistic, and hardworking. In short, everything Jesse ever wanted in a man.
Jerry still carries a torch for his cowboy, so when Thaine asks to go home with him to recover, Jerry agrees. At first, they pick up their intense physical relationship right where they left it before the breakup. Jesse, in turn, consoles the now homeless Drew and offers him quite a bit more than a shoulder to cry on. But in the back of all the men’s minds loom Thaine’s lost five years.
Amnesia is two stories wrapped into one. It can also be seen as past and present relationships. Not only the individual pairings take the forefront, but the friendships between the four men play an important part too. As couples, they don’t interact with each other much, but their decisions had repercussions in each other’s lives.
Thaine Russell can be considered the central characters since he’s the bull rider with the amnesia problem. He’s the one having a role in all of the men relationships. It’s hard to see Thaine as a heartless bastard because the only thing he wants during the entire story is to be happy with JJ. I think we needed to see a little about his relationship with Drew to sympathize with him.
Drew Zucker is the new man in Thaine’s life. At the time of the accident, they had been together for three years. He’s younger and sweeter than his partner. Very devoted to him and he only wanted to get Thaine back. It’s easy to see his concern for Thaine and how much he meant to him, but as soon as he has the first chance to spend time with Jesse, I stopped feeling sorry for Drew.
Jesse Lourdes is Thaine best friend. At the same time, he has been holding a candle for Drew. He knew his friend was fond of the “kid” but not in-love with him. Reading the blurb, you will think that everything he does is for Thaine’s benefit, but his primary concern is for Drew.
Jerry Wortmeyer is Thaine’s one true love. He has made money since his cowboy left him and after seeing his man once again, he’s back into their original relationship. He comes back to Thaine’s life and takes charge. He doesn’t care about anything else than Thaine’s health and happiness. Everything else is secondary.
I enjoyed Thaine’s and JJ’s relationship. Their love for each other is strong and still there after five years. They work great together in and out of bed. Their exchanges and banter felt real, and we get to see more of them beyond the sex, not much, though. I wanted them back together since the very beginning and was happy that it happened. Unfortunately, the good sex and their isolation weren’t enough.
And Drew’s and Jesse’s relationship felt more like a consolation prize. I wished Drew had taken more time before completely accepting Jesse. There was no transition between relationships. He entered the room as Thaine’s partner and left as Jesse’s possible new partner. I liked Jesse, but never warmed up to Drew.
Originally, I thought this was my first Sean Michael’s book. After looking at my bookshelves, I realized it was my second. One thing is true about both books, they are more PWP than anything else. The first line of my review for Malting said, “This was a nice piece of smut. Definitely, not a romance,” those words ring true here as well.
This story is a compilation of sex scenes tight together by common characters. Every time I thought I’d get an answer, I got a sex scene instead. In the end, all the sex isn’t worth the lack of plot and missed opportunities. The premise was good, but the execution failed. Sadly, this was a second edition. I wonder why simple things like the years and word repetition weren’t updated. And why the plot wasn’t developed. Overall, a really disappointing book.
————-
Brooke Albrecht is a new-to-me cover designer, and I’m very pleased with the result. The cover has beautiful sky colors, and bull rider is the center of it. The superimposed images matched the two stories in the book.
Sale Links: Dreamspinner | Amazon | ARe
Book Details:
ebook, 200 pages
Published: June 13, 2016 (2nd edition), Dreamspinner Press
ISBN: 1634769759 (ISBN13: 9781634769754)
Edition Language: English
The course of true love doesn’t always run clean. But sometimes getting dirty is half the fun.
Cat-sitting is a dangerous business.
This was an amazing story, both complex and intriguing, and it held my attention throughout the twelve and a half hours of audio. 
Aaron Downing worshiped his mother. She saved his life. She did everything for him. But Anthony Downing has a different perspective. He sees the woman who tossed him into a basement for eight long years and forgot he existed. When Anthony decides he’s done being invisible, he packs up and heads for Detroit to stay with his Internet friend Jay, but fate intervenes.
From the 2016 Daily Dose package – A Walk on the Wild Side 
