On The Ropes

Summer in the city heats up when the girl who got away moves in next door. Dean "The Machine" is a South Philly legend. Much to the dismay of fans who still hound him, the broody former fighter walked away from his boxing career right before clinching another championship belt. Tight-lipped on his reasons for retiring, he's busy trying to figure out his future when the past literally falls in his lap. Tabitha Tyler, the fiery redhead who captured his teenage heart, is back in town and staying next door. Only now the girl that got away is all grown up and offering him a strings-free, summer fling. Dean knows better than to start something that will leave him flat on his back and seeing stars. But there's only so much temptation a man can take. Kept away by the secrets that tore her family apart, sparkly filmmaker Tabitha is home for the first time in nine years. And her old friend and new hunky neighbor is just the distraction she needs. It's the perfect relationship for her - one with an expiration date. She's got two weeks to convince him to cave. He's got two weeks to convince her to stay. But when she refuses to let down her guard, Dean realizes that this time...he just might get knocked out for good. Author's note: A smokin' hot, friends-to-lovers, opposites-attract love story in a close-knit South Philly neighborhood with a quirky cast of nosy but well-intentioned neighbors.

Former boxer Roland Vandal discusses the sexual abuse he suffered as a teen, the resultant battle with addiction and PTSD, and his later success in business and as a motivational speaker.

In this long-awaited sequel to the legendary graphic novel Kings in Disguise, a young circus hand gets involved in dangerous underground activity. Kings in Disguise was praised by the likes of Art Spiegelman, Neil Gaiman, and Alan Moore. It won two Eisner Awards and has been hailed as one of the ten best graphic novels of all time (Guardian). This highly anticipated sequel tells the story of a young man’s coming of age in a world where the capacity to dream may be a fatal flaw. Set in 1937, On the Ropes continues the story of Fred Bloch, now apprenticed to escape artist Gordon Corey, a star attraction in a traveling WPA circus. Though damaged by the Depression and haunted by past mistakes, each man holds the key to the other’s salvation—but each also harbors a secret that could lead to their mutual destruction. Enacted against a backdrop of violent labor unrest and a nation’s faltering recovery, On the Ropes is a breathtaking visual achievement that delivers a powerful, timeless story.

A step-by-step guide that clearly illustrates how to turn great knots into great bondage. When Two Knotty boys, Dan and JD, began teaching rope bondage together they discovered that people learn best when they are shown close up how to tie knots and combine them with bondage techniques. They replicate this learning process with over 750 photos by acclaimed fetish photographer Ken Marcus and a wealth of captions, delivered in a lighthearted style, offering the world of safe BDSM to a new, curious audience.

An exploration of the boxing world, focusing on Brendan Ingle's famous Sheffield gym which has produced such fighters as Bomber Graham and Prince Naseem Hamed. Based on the author's own experiences in the gym, the book provides an account of the hopes, experiences and lifestyles of the boxers.

I've always been a fighter. With parents who barely managed to stay out of jail and two little brothers who narrowly avoided foster care, I became skilled at dodging the punches life threw at me. Growing up, I didn't have anything I could call my own. But from the moment I met Eliza Reynolds, she was always mine. I became utterly addicted to her and the escape from reality we provided each other. Throughout the years, she had boyfriends and I had girlfriends but there wasn't a single night that I didn't hear her voice. Meeting the love of my life at age thirteen was never part of my plan. However, neither was gradually going deaf at age twenty-one. They both happened anyway. Now I'm on the ropes during the toughest battles of my life. Fighting for my career, fighting the impending silence and fighting for her.

Duffy Dombrowski is not your average social worker. When he’s not counseling sex addicts and drug users in a town outside of New York City, you can find him digging Elvis tunes, getting “Schlitzed” with his quirky friends, or fighting ex-Olympians in the boxing ring. Our less-than-perfect hero occasionally uses his mean left hook on pimps and other lowlifes, too. But at least he cares about his clients. When Walanda, a schizophrenic, crack-addicted prostitute, is murdered, Duffy pledges to take care of her basset hound and find her missing stepdaughter, Shony. He’s horrified to discover the teenager is ensnared in a web porn ring—a vile enterprise that enslaves crack-addicted women and their children. On the verge of losing his job—and his life—Duffy also gets mixed up with a creepy doctor with ties to Pakistani extremists. Still, nothing will stop this conflicted Robin Hood from trying to save Shony and foil a terrorist plot. Praise for On the Ropes: “The funniest book I have read in a long time. This is a genuine good read.” —Harold Lederman, HBO Sports “Not since Carl Hiassen’s Tourist Season debut has there been a novel with such superb comic timing and laugh-out-loud lines.” —Ken Bruen, Shamus Award-winning author of The Guards “An Everyman with a big heart and a wicked jab, Duffy Dombrowski may well be the new Spenser. I can’t wait for Round Two.” —Marcus Sakey, author of The Blade Itself “On the Ropes is sly, funny, irreverent, and one hell of a good time. Read it or be sorry you didn’t. It’s just that simple.” —Laurien Berenson, author of Hounded to Death “It’ll put you down for the count with laughter. Tom Schreck is a contender for funniest author working in the crime genre today.” —William Kent Krueger, author of Thunder Bay “If you’ve ever despised your boss or secretly wanted to save the world, On the Ropes is a novel you’ll devour.” —Steve Farhood, Showtime Boxing “Duffy Dombrowski—a loose-cannon social worker and a boxer—has a lot more heart than is healthy for a guy. Give him an orphaned sidekick who hasn’t been housebroken (literally), jam them into the middle of a sinister murder plot that packs a surprising wallop, and you’ve got a winning combination.” —Lee Charles Kelley, author of Like a Dog With a Bone “One of my favorite writers…Can’t wait for Duffy’s next adventure.” —Nancy Claus, Westchester Magazine “It won’t take long to realize Duffy doesn’t run to type…occasionally over the top, but warmhearted, tough, funny Duffy makes a promising debut.” —Kirkus Reviews “Pure delight. The sharp-edged humor peppers you like a boxing master’s jab, and the poignant undercurrent of theme delivers with the power of a left hook. Duffy Dombrowski is a major new contender in the world of private eye fiction.” —Michael A. Black, author of A Killing Frost and A Final Judgment “Get ready to rumble with lovable losers, misguided misfits, and a disgustingly adorable dog.” —Michael “Let’s Get Ready To Rumble” Buffer, the Voice of Champions “This is one hell of a debut novel. On the Ropes is easily one of the best five books I’ve read this year.” —Jon Jordan, Crimespree Magazine “If you like underdogs, colorful characters, a fighter who never quits and a canine with more bite and heart than Jake LaMotta—a unanimous winner.” —Teddy Atlas, ESPN Boxing Analyst

A complete history of the famous "Great White Hope" fight held in Reno, Nevada on Independence Day, 1910 between Jack Johnson and James J. Jeffries. Generously illustrated with vintage photos and cartoons, the book tells a fascinating story, from the start ( when novelist Jack London challenged Jeffries to wipe the smile off Johnson's face) to its conclusion, a country awash in race riots when Johnson was victorious.How the fight was put together, the training camps, wild and wooly Reno, and the fight itself, every aspect of the contest is examined. It's an unflattering but candid view of America in 1910 and how this event galvanized the nation.