Steve of the Dump

by Danni Keane

Steve Jennings has a dream -- to be a refuse superhero.

Unfortunately, life at the Langley Civic Amenity Site is not all it's cracked up to be. Far from spending his days freeing the people of Langley from the scourge of broken furniture and unwanted clutter, Steve finds himself either avoiding the stinking wash room or dodging the vicious attentions of Site bully, Pete.

But with the arrival of a quiet, attractive stranger, is it possible Steve's childhood dream will finally come true?

Genres: M M Romance

21 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 27, 2013

About the author

Danni Keane lives in the depths of English suburbia, where she likes to divide her time equally between writing, daydreaming and napping.

Having never really grown up, Danni fits right in at her day job, working with children. She spends her days avidly listening to the whimsical imaginings of five-year-olds, and then rushes home to shamelessly plagiarise their ideas. However, she has yet to write a story about an exploding ghost banana. Maybe one day...

She loves to read and write all different types of stories, but her favourite characters usually have one thing in common: they are ordinary people with extraordinary dreams.

Reviews

[Mandy*reads obsessively* · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have to say the title of this book caught my eye and then the storyline of a boy who's dream it is to be a 'bin man' and knows this in first grade and actually achieves his goal.
He wanted to be that guy who jumps on and off the bin lorry, a superhero of refuse!
It didn't quite work out that way, but working at Civic Amenity Site was close enough for 23 year old Steve, if the bullies at the site, Pete especially, didn't call him Stig and make him feel miserable.
He likes his work, he does his job and does it well, but the bullying that is just shy of physical only gains momentum, since Pete encourages the others to join in the torment.
One day a good looking young man, Tomas joins the crew and works with Steve in his section.
Pete immediately targets Tomas too, but since Tomas doesn't seem to speak English they quickly move back to Steve and Steve is terribly embarrassed for Tomas to witness his humiliation at the hands of Pete and his cronies.
Now, there is a lot of bathroom tales, Pete takes his daily dump in the break room bathroom and Steve shares his unhappiness and the unpleasantness of that with the reader.
This is a very short story and as such there is no romance or relationship building between Tomas and Steve as such and barely any real hint of attraction for me.
It seemed more of a bonding between two young men with a crappy work situation, they do exert some revenge on Pete, I personally shuddered, but I have a sensitive stomach and most might think it's funny, there really isn't much else they can do against him, I guess, so they take what they can get.

[Macky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having just read and enjoyed a short story of Danni's I decided to check out another that Ive kept looking at for a while. It's a very short, but quite quirky tale set on a waste disposal,site! Admittedly a strange setting for a m/m, so I wondered how she could make the story pan out. I honestly didn't think it would turn out as well as it did but I have to admit that I did enjoy what there was of it and that's actually the biggest niggle - the length. Its just a bitesize really and I was just getting to know and like Steve( Stig), Thomas and the rest of this motley crew when it finished! I would have loved to have got to know more about these guys ( good and bad ) and definitely would have liked more of Steve and Thomas as a couple because the little interaction we see of them together is quite endearing and had a lot of promise. Longer and more in depth this had the makings of a 4 star romance. Its light in the heat factor against the other I read, theres no sex to speak of but I like Danni's easy style of writing and I do like her men so I'm looking forward to her next offering! Liked that the bully got his comeuppance, he deserved it, but it was a bit gross! Lol.

[Kim Alan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Danni's characters. They're so charmingly ordinary... is that a thing? Quirky and lovable, I always want more. Which leads me to the only notable flaw I find in Danni's writing: there's too little of it.

[Syfy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Danni Keane offered a copy of this in exchange for review, I jumped on it.

A delightful little short about an adorably simple young man with refreshingly realistic expectations and insights. A little bitter with the sweet, maybe an "eewwww that is not funny" while you giggle under your breath... (not me, I was laughing out loud!)

Steve's voice is clear as a bell in this, and I'd love to read more of his adventures in life as a grown-up as well as be a voyeur while he explores this budding friendship with Tomas.

;P

[Helenayu · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a such short and nice story. I think that there's a lot potential to expand this story longer. It's well written,especially those subtle description of Steve's inner thought and those bullying scenes. You can easily picture the image of an awkward young man sitting there and taking oral abuse from a big old man and can't stand up for himself. People always think that a grown up man should and can stand up for himself. Sadly,that's not always the case. You know, this story doesn't look like a love story to me. Because there is almost no development of the relationship between him and Tomas. So maybe Danni you can put more words on this aspect. Anyway,it's a nice story and I hope to see more of your work.

[Gabbo Parra · Rating 4 out of 5]

THE UTILITY OF LIFE

A sweet short story, where the villains are obvious and the heroes are not what they seem.

Ms. Keane ability to incorporate those tiny, silly details that make life captivating transcends the frontiers of fiction to give us an intimate biography of her characters. With just a few words, she can make us connect with them as if we were facing a mirror.

Full of unexpected laughs, this story will leave you with a smile on your face and, perhaps, with a little more knowledge about yourself.

I received this book as part of the ARR program of Making Connections.

[Pati · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an amusing, no sex, short story. Ms. Keane has managed to take a subject that I hate and leave me with a chuckle and a smile. I wish that I could say more but since it is only 5k words I on't want to chance spoiling it.

Disclaimer: I wish to acknowledge that I received a copy of this free from the author in exchange for a fair and honest review.

[Karl · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sorry, I wish I could give it more stars because the characters had potential. I had to give it 2 stars because, in my opinion, it was too short for even a short story. This didn't allow for any insight into the characters to allow for a connection. It has great potential to be be expanded and the characters explored in more depth.

[jules0623 · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Short (perhaps slightly too short - I would have liked to see more of the MCs connecting) but not a bad read.

[Meggie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wish this shorty was at least a novella, because Danni Keane, story here is excellent, even if it's personally, to short. Why so short, if it's so good :)?

[Zane Kage · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute, quirky little read, this one. I'm becoming quite the fan of Danni Keane.