I feel myself getting into a bit of a rut this year when trying to find something to read. Nothing is really jumping out at me, and my must read list seems a little stale. I’m sure I’m just being dramatic, but luckily the internet turned me onto another interesting series.
Cut & Run is the first novel in a series co-written by Abigail Roux and Madeleine Urban. I’m not sure how co-authorship works in general, but these two seem to have the same end goal. They were able to deliver a tense crime novel as well as some NFSW content that I don’t really seek out too often. The premise is this, Ty Grady and Zane Garrett are paired up to help solve a series of murders in New York. Okay, that’s the story at a really, really high level.
From a business standpoint, this killer is of the serial variety, yet he doesn’t seem to follow any set modus operandi. He leaves a little token at all of his crime scenes, but given how different each kill is, along with the victims, it seems almost impossible to nail this guy down. On top of that, key evidence appears to go missing in original case files, and the most recent victims, two agents, leads the FBI to believe that someone internal is the culprit. With all of that information, I was kind of surprised at how relaxed all offices were and that there wasn’t more of a rush to get this case solved. I understand that connections can’t be made at the snap of a finger, but still.
Newly attached to the case are two polar opposite agents. Ty Grady appears to the outside world as a loose canon with no filter and all sarcasm. Zane Garett appears tightly wound and straight-laced. It’s almost a guarantee that these two won’t get along, and they are equally confused as to why they were paired up together. As the novel unfolds, we learn Ty spent a great deal of time in a recon unit, so his physical skills are top notch. Garrett on the other hand, after a downward spiral following the death of his wife, he’s spent the last several years in recovery and as a part of the cyber crimes unit. His ability to sift through details are unmatched. On paper, it makes sense why they were paired from a skill level, but that’s always only ever half the battle.
Although it ended up making sense, it’s kind of crazy that we really only spend a week with these characters together. Over that week, attempts are made on both Zane and Ty’s lives, the latter of which sidelines them for quite some time. It’s during these moments though that the tough exteriors and annoyances are put to the test. It’s clear that these men have sort of re-set who they used to be, but their near-death experiences sort of bring them back to their true selves. These traumatic moments also lower their guards down in regards to each other…and how they may feel about that. Both men cop up pretty quickly to the fact that they find each other attractive. When the injuries start piling up is when we see those resolves start to break and the heat turned all the way up.
The book did end in a good spot, though I’m not the least bit mad to know there are at least three other novels out there waiting for me. Given that story is based in crimes means that the subsequent novels could go in any direction, but I hope we don’t see too much more resistance in Ty and Zane’s relationship. To be determined!