The Novel Approach

Stars & Stripes (Cut & Run #6) by Abigail Roux

“Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.” – Dr. Seuss

Well, Ty and Zane did an awful lot of saying what they felt in this installment of the Cut & Run series. I just did an awful lot of feeling what they said, which I really didn’t mind at all—not that I matter, but it was still pretty shivery and goose bumpy inducing all the same for me. Ty Grady, Zane Garrett, jeans and boots and cowboy hats… The mental picture doesn’t get much better than that.

They’ve come out to their families now. Actually, Grandpa Chester, he of the wicked shovel and questionable soundness of mind, outed them to Ty’s family, which just goes to show what happens when you underestimate the mental faculties of the mostly befuddled. It ended up going fairly well in the end, though it was touch and go with Ty and his dad for about a West Virginia minute. Ty and Earl did their talking with their fists and Ty ended up with his hand in a cast for all it was worth. But that’s just how they roll, and it all came out okay once the manly testosterone anointing stopped.

It couldn’t have gone any smoother with Zane and his dad. His mom, though? Uh huh. Let’s just say I’m not her biggest fan and leave it at that, which is fine since her own family barely tolerates her. She is definitely not a mom of the warm and fluffy variety. She’s more a mom of the eats her own young variety, especially if it’s to preserve the reputation of the Carter-Garrett clan, and the idea of the Garrett line dying with Zane because he’s in love with another man is more than her shriveled little heart can tolerate.

Given the choice, going back home to Texas was never going to be at the top of Zane’s To-Do list, but as they say, blood is thicker than water and when there’s been bloodshed, how could he possibly stay away, even if it takes him away from the man he’s only just reconciled his love for? Leave it to Ty to go all rogue agent, though, so he could get to the Lone Star state to be with Zane again and help him figure out what’s going on. Something bad’s going down on the family ranch and we’re not just talking cattle rustling here. God no, that’d be much too pedestrian for these men. ::yawn:: No, we’re talking exotic animals going missing and a tiger that develops an unnatural attachment to Ty-the-Cat-Whispering Fed. Really, is there anything that man can’t do?

A precocious and formidable toddler; horses that want to eat Ty; a tiger that may love him, and may or may not find him tasty; lassos and guns and tranquilizer darts and pinheaded bigots; danger and suspicion and illegal activity are all par for the course in Stars & Stripes.

This wasn’t a federal mission for Grady and Garrett. No, this was entirely personal, which gave the storyline a slightly different feel, and for me, didn’t quite equal the depth or complexity of the previous books, but that’s not to say it was bad at all, far from it. Please. This is Ty and Zane, and their banter and aggressive sensuality alone make these don’t-bother-me-I’m-reading books. I’m hoping the next book will throw these guys back into the chaotic mix of cat and mouse, government mandated undercover work I’ve always loved.

Buy Stars & Stripes HERE.