Reviewed by Cheryl
TITLE: Deep Cut
SERIES: Permanently Black and Blue #1
AUTHOR: C.R. Scott
PUBLISHER: NineStar Press
LENGTH: 269 Pages
RELEASE DATE: April 13, 2020
BLURB:
Shaun’s an outsider. He has a dark past and an even darker habit of cutting himself and burying his emotions under his skin. The only thing he’s got going for him is his guitar and a head full of lyrics.
When Jesse moves to town, bringing big bright smiles and warm blue eyes into Shaun’s dark life, he insists they become friends.
But that’s going to be a problem for Shaun. He’s never had a real friend before. Oh, and he’s also finding himself hopelessly attracted to Jesse’s undeniable charm, which is definitely not going to work out.
Being gay isn’t brutal and Shaun has an image to uphold if he’s ever got a shot at becoming the death metal God he knows he’s destined to become.
REVIEW:
This is a very powerful book, with a lot of trigger warnings. The author handles dark very well, and this book certainly takes us into dark places. Throughout the book. Jesse brings light to those dark places and he was instantly likeable. It’s not that he has an easy life, but he doesn’t allow it to get him down. Brought up to be caring and responsible, and taking care of his younger brothers and sisters he is extremely open and empathetic.
Shaun, on the other hand has a much darker past and a present that is nothing to brag about. The only light in his life is his dream of becoming a heavy metal star. He shuts out everything but his music and seems set to be a loner for the rest of his life.
The author writes very well. The story arc is fully realized, there are some significant curve balls that were handled elegantly and the characters, even secondary characters are fully realized.
For me, the only issue was that I was never able to warm to Shaun. He was, in my mind, unlikable and I never really bought into him enough to really care about what happened to him. There is no doubt that he went on a journey through the book, or that he had cause for his surly, untrusting nature, but he was ceaselessly thoughtless, uncaring and selfish, and I have no idea why Jesse kept going back when Shaun was ceaselessly grim.
That being said, I’m sure there are some who will love him just for that, and for the way his character relates to Jesse. I’m even more certain that readers will fall in love with Jesse’s whose journey was also very real but who started from a much stronger place, given his warm and giving nature.
There is no doubt that the writer is skillful and tells a cracking good story. If you are able to buy into Shaun, then you will have a challenging but rewarding experience. As I have said many times, reading is subjective, and I will not mark the author down because of my own preference. I have also said many times that reviews have to be honest or they are worthless. Take from it what you may.
RATING: 
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