Mild spoilers below. However, I can argue it's abuse with elements of cheating (sucking face with an old friend while in a relationship) and therefore my review is a warning.

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I can't help it. The more I read, the more it's bothering me: is Zane in an abusive relationship? I get that Ty, a boy wonder (he sings, he dances, he speaks Farsi, he ...I wouldn't be surprised if he macrames), is unpredictable, but he is very consistent where it comes to punishing Zane for one thing or another. Verbally, physically. Lash out first, think/talk/explain later. Scratch the think part. It never occurs to Ty that holding a drunk person under water may result in serious damage. It also never occurs to Ty that hitting a person with a fresh head injury in the jaw and sending him into a wall may also result in serious damage.

Ty is also needy and selfish. They've been together just a handful of months and Ty is already freaking out because Zane can't say the L word out loud.
- It doesn't matter that Zane loved his wife deeply, had wicked hard time after her death and is still grieving.
- It doesn't matter that every person functions at a different pace.
- It doesn't matter that Zane is more about showing his love rather than telling. Actually Zane did admit to Ty as much, just didn't use the L word itself.
- It doesn't matter that Zane cares and saves Ty's ass over and over again.
None if it apparently counts in Ty's mind.

To me, Ty comes off as a selfish abusive insecure jerk. Who, by the way, was sucking face with Nick right after their conversation about how Ty wasn't sure about Zane being monogamous. He dismisses Zane at almost every turn yet still expects iloveyous from him. The prick. Ty, not Zane.

Maybe it's because I am not into sex scenes. I skip those. And so the rest of it, the out-of-bed relationship, is in. my. face.

I can continue on about this mess of the series, but the list is too long. The bottom line tho, I am now convinced that all the characters in these books are jumping through the hoops to accommodate the authors, although some to lesser degree than others. That's never a good thing and therefore I am done with this series. However, I will re-read [b:Warrior's Cross|6782412|Warrior's Cross|Madeleine Urban|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1355864076s/6782412.jpg|6916543] if only to compare my own notes from 5 years ago.

*

PS I was just cheering for Zane when he slogged Ty, but dammit, what a disappointment it was when he started grovelling right after it.

Like I said, DONE.

Not as great as the first time I read it. 3.5 stars instead of 5.

I remembered very little of this book when starting a reread, yet the serial killer was very obvious to me. That and the MCs talking for chapters on end with nothing else happening brought the stars down.

I wish I had notes from my first read for comparison.

~~ Cut & Run 

by Abigail Roux & Madeleine Urban

(Cut & Run series book #1)

Ten years after graduation, Jake "the jock" Campbell and Brandon "the nerd" Bartlett are teaching at their old high school and still living in separate worlds. When Brandon is thrown into a coaching job on Jake's baseball team, they find themselves learning more about each other than they'd ever expected. High school is all about image – even for the teachers. Brandon and Jake have to get past their preconceived notions to find the friendship needed to work together. And somewhere along the way, they discover that perceptions can always change for the better.

 

Review

 

I picked this book up because I have seen it everywhere on Favorite Male Male Romance books. 

I can see why its is so popular. Parts of the love story and topics are really great and thoughtful but some of the basics of the writing and the romance genre aspects are rough. 

The heroes have that opposites attract mojo going on. I love that Brandon and Jake are both teachers and love their work with students. The slow burn of the romantic connections is well done and the relationship is sweet. However, we get a HFN and I wanted more really.

The book takes a thoughtful look at high school cliques and politics at the teacher and student levels. The thinking about coaching and also extra work of tutoring is compelling as is the hard work of student be they athletes or academic high achievers. 

The writers also look at the damage high school and college athletics do to the body and we venture into pain pill addiction but the hard work recovery is left for after the book ends and that was disappointing. 

Not so good: 
Some of the side characters are interesting but all the women are not drawn with complexity. The changing of pov are pretty awful and hard to track who is thinking and the third person subjective point of view is.... not working.

So, I like a lot of it but think the over book hints at these writers desire to write something romantic but not romance and in more of a long running series which is what happens later.