George is a teacher who decides to supplement his income by
helping out at the local gym. Lonnie, a regular, has a big
mouth around the boys, but in business he's all
professional. He has a client who's injured and won't be
able to play football again - yet he's barely able to read
so he has no other career. Lonnie asks George to coach the
upset young man and give him a future.
CRUNCH TIME introduces Darren, aged twenty-four, late of
the Philadelphia Eagles, whose good looks and athletic
ability have taken him through life without his needing to
worry about education. George discovers that Darren is
bright but an undiagnosed dyslexic. He's also secretly
gay. George is a gay man who spent a long time in the
closet due to his job, but while he's not flamboyant he
doesn't hide anymore. The two have a heart-to-heart and
decide they can work together. Darren can now aim for a TV
sports presenter job, while George is spending his own
money to buy stickers for kids who write good essays
because there's never enough money in the school budget.
George has a dodgy hip, but Darren assures him they can do
upper-body training in the gym together. Darren couldn't
be flirting, could he?
There's a lot to like in Andrew Grey's stories, and
this Workout series with running characters and new
personal dilemmas gets to feel like a bunch of old
friends. Darren already knows that his former high-school
buddies just want to hang out with him so he can pick up
the bar tab, but now he learns how to read a menu instead
of just asking for one of the specials, and gains
confidence. As we're reading the book presumably Grey is
not writing for a poorly educated readership, but he does
encourage us all to learn as adults anything that seemed
beyond us as youngsters, and grow as people. There are
good details about working on TV and the pressure on a
presenter to find guests, balanced by the tedium of the
school teacher's work.
CRUNCH TIME is a good addition to this series and the
romantic element leaves us pleased with the outcome.
Grey's latest in this series is called Cardio
Conditioning..
When George Higgins agrees to help a soon-to-be-former
professional football player rehearse for a guest appearance
on a talk show, he doesn't expect anything to come of it. To
his surprise, Darren White shows up on time and actually
makes an effort to learn from George. But Darren has
definite problems; he can barely read and sounds awful when
he speaks. Luckily, George is a teacher and Darren's
motivated. It's crunch time: the first rehearsal for Talking
Sports is looming, and Darren and George will have to work
together if they want Darren's guest appearance--and their
budding relationship--to turn into a full-time gig.
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