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Boxer Boys #3
Dying Seconds
Killer, rapist, drug dealer and all-round bad boy Arnie Dolan is back – and this time he’s in a wheelchair.
Ousted from his gang, it looks like his time at the top of the criminal underworld is over... but if you think that, you don’t know Arnie.
Meanwhile, things are looking much brighter for his former best mate Gareth Prince. The sports reporter has landed a promotion on his newspaper, the Sunday Tribune Despatch, scooped a major award and moved in with girlfriend Anjie and son Max. A life free from Arnie seems to be just what the doctor ordered.
That is until tragedy strikes to rock both their worlds. Thrust back together, they form an uneasy truce in an effort to find the person responsible for a shocking murder.
But soon they encounter hostility both home and abroad as the Brexit debate rages and hooligans go on the rampage in Marseille.
And as the mystery deepens it leads them to question everything they thought they knew...
Ousted from his gang, it looks like his time at the top of the criminal underworld is over... but if you think that, you don’t know Arnie.
Meanwhile, things are looking much brighter for his former best mate Gareth Prince. The sports reporter has landed a promotion on his newspaper, the Sunday Tribune Despatch, scooped a major award and moved in with girlfriend Anjie and son Max. A life free from Arnie seems to be just what the doctor ordered.
That is until tragedy strikes to rock both their worlds. Thrust back together, they form an uneasy truce in an effort to find the person responsible for a shocking murder.
But soon they encounter hostility both home and abroad as the Brexit debate rages and hooligans go on the rampage in Marseille.
And as the mystery deepens it leads them to question everything they thought they knew...
359 pages, Paperback
Published December 14, 2018
17 people are currently reading
18 people want to read
About the author
Nick Rippington
9 books57 followersNick Rippington is the award-winning author of gangland and psychological thrillers.
The first novel in his Boxer Boys series Crossing the Whitewash received an honourable mention in the genre category in the Writer's Digest 2016 self-published eBook awards. Judges describing it as "Evocative, unique, unfailingly precise and often humorous".
The prequel Spark Out was released in July 2017 at the Books Go Social Dublin Writers' Conference, winning a readers' award from Chill With A Book. Readers felt it was "compelling" with an "unexpected twist".
The next book in the series Dying Seconds topped the Amazon Chart for Contemporary Urban Fiction giveaways with 350 downloads in two days and the fourth book in the seris was Bare Lies.
The Boxer Boys Collection containing the first three books is available as a digital box-set and hit the top 20 in the Contemporary Urban Fiction category for paid-for titles.
In a departure from the genre, Nick released the psychological thriller Rabette Run which was followed by a successful blog tour in April 2020.
In March 2024 a Boxer Boys spin-off The Jagged Scar , focusing on London's Soho district in the 1970s, was released on digital and in paperback.
A former Welsh sports editor of the News of the World, Nick now works on the Daily Star sports desk. He is married to Liz and has two daughters. He lives in Suffolk.
The first novel in his Boxer Boys series Crossing the Whitewash received an honourable mention in the genre category in the Writer's Digest 2016 self-published eBook awards. Judges describing it as "Evocative, unique, unfailingly precise and often humorous".
The prequel Spark Out was released in July 2017 at the Books Go Social Dublin Writers' Conference, winning a readers' award from Chill With A Book. Readers felt it was "compelling" with an "unexpected twist".
The next book in the series Dying Seconds topped the Amazon Chart for Contemporary Urban Fiction giveaways with 350 downloads in two days and the fourth book in the seris was Bare Lies.
The Boxer Boys Collection containing the first three books is available as a digital box-set and hit the top 20 in the Contemporary Urban Fiction category for paid-for titles.
In a departure from the genre, Nick released the psychological thriller Rabette Run which was followed by a successful blog tour in April 2020.
In March 2024 a Boxer Boys spin-off The Jagged Scar , focusing on London's Soho district in the 1970s, was released on digital and in paperback.
A former Welsh sports editor of the News of the World, Nick now works on the Daily Star sports desk. He is married to Liz and has two daughters. He lives in Suffolk.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
December 13, 2018
Dying Seconds, the third and possibly final novel in the Boxer Boys series by award-winning, self-publishing phenomenon Nick Rippington, is a stonker of a gangland thriller. Gritty, intense and impossible to put down, this is certainly not for the faint-hearted or those distressed by graphic violence. Arnie Dolan, former gang-leader and an altogether despicable human being, is back is business, although this time is a little different to most. He must strike an uneasy truce with an old enemy in order to solve a heinous murder that affects them both. Although this is a sequel to the first book, Crossing the Whitewash, to experience Arnie and nemesis Gareth Prince's evolution and growth as characters you really need to start at the beginning and read in chronological order.
The 1996 time setting which was wonderfully nostalgic in the first novel is now updated and the events here take place in 2016. The sense of time and place are both fantastic, references to current events help with that, just as they did in previous instalments. The characters are larger than life, demand your attention and truly come alive on the page, and although this is a criminal world most of us will have never experienced ourselves, I felt they characters remained believable and authentic. It has an excellent array of ingredients that added up to a very tasty urban thriller - emotion, humorous moments, an exciting plot, mesmerising characters and a satisfying climax. I am under the impression that this may be the last in the series which saddens me, but if there was a follow-up I would definitely pick it up on the strength of Dying Seconds.
Many thanks to Cabrilon Books for an ARC.
The 1996 time setting which was wonderfully nostalgic in the first novel is now updated and the events here take place in 2016. The sense of time and place are both fantastic, references to current events help with that, just as they did in previous instalments. The characters are larger than life, demand your attention and truly come alive on the page, and although this is a criminal world most of us will have never experienced ourselves, I felt they characters remained believable and authentic. It has an excellent array of ingredients that added up to a very tasty urban thriller - emotion, humorous moments, an exciting plot, mesmerising characters and a satisfying climax. I am under the impression that this may be the last in the series which saddens me, but if there was a follow-up I would definitely pick it up on the strength of Dying Seconds.
Many thanks to Cabrilon Books for an ARC.
September 4, 2019
This is the third book in the Boxer Boys series. I do recommend you read the previous two books.
Bad guy Arnie Dolan is back.
Gary Marshall now known as Gareth Prince is trying again to put his past behind him.
A murder forces these two together to find out who killed Marshall’s father.
There is lots going on in this story yet it kept my attention throughout. This may have been my favourite of the three books.
Bad guy Arnie Dolan is back.
Gary Marshall now known as Gareth Prince is trying again to put his past behind him.
A murder forces these two together to find out who killed Marshall’s father.
There is lots going on in this story yet it kept my attention throughout. This may have been my favourite of the three books.
May 5, 2020
A well written crime story. Different than my usual read and I loved it!
Interesting storyline, captivating, strong characters... It keeps you turning the pages until the end.
I just felt like some back story was missing due to the fact that I haven't read all the books.
ARC received through NetGalley. This is my honest review. All opinions are my own.
Interesting storyline, captivating, strong characters... It keeps you turning the pages until the end.
I just felt like some back story was missing due to the fact that I haven't read all the books.
ARC received through NetGalley. This is my honest review. All opinions are my own.
September 11, 2019
Back again with Gary and Arnie, or should I say Gareth and Arnie. The previous books were extensive in their groundwork and this is brought to a fabulous conclusion in Dying Seconds. It is 2016 and while Garth is dealing with a job in Wales, Rugby and Football matches, Arnie is having to come to terms with his new lifestyle.
He has had his role in the Boxer Boys changed and the families are fracturing with tension and suspicions are running at an all time high.
There is a lot for the two men to deal with and their responsibilities and loyalties have changed. Gareth’s past is brought up to date and he can finally deal with things that have been hanging over him for the past few years.
This is a tense 3rd book and it is where all the threads are finally pulled together and things slot into their proper places. It is a story full of doubt, suspicion and fear and it is full of pace.
He has had his role in the Boxer Boys changed and the families are fracturing with tension and suspicions are running at an all time high.
There is a lot for the two men to deal with and their responsibilities and loyalties have changed. Gareth’s past is brought up to date and he can finally deal with things that have been hanging over him for the past few years.
This is a tense 3rd book and it is where all the threads are finally pulled together and things slot into their proper places. It is a story full of doubt, suspicion and fear and it is full of pace.
September 25, 2019
Beginning with Crossing the Whitewash, it’s 1996 and we are introduced to the Dolan and Marshall families who live on a neglected, hard, London estate
Gary Marshall is a young lad with dreams of playing for West Ham, and Arnie Dolan, a tough, uncompromising lad, who dreams of being a gangland kingpin. Fate brings the 2 together, then forming the basis of ‘the boxer boys’.
After a life changing event, that ends Gary’s dreams, he moves away from Arnie, his best friend and the gang and from London. He heads to Cardiff, changing his name to Gareth Prince, he takes up a position at a Welsh Newspaper as the Rugby reporter.
Years later , Gary and Arnie’s path cross again..
Without giving too much away, as the events of this book are picked up again in book 3, a story of washed up sports stars, of love, of friendship, it’s at times a violent, gritty gangland tale, but the violence fits this story and needs to be there.. we also meet ‘the legend’ that is J.W Owens!
▪️▪️▪️▪️▪️
Spark Out takes us back to Gangland London of the 80’s and also brings the Falkland war into the story, focusing on Arnie Dolan’s gangster father, ‘Big Mo’ Dolan and his ‘friend’ Reg.
This book really fleshed out the how and why, The Dolan boys are the men they are, brought up by their vicious father Mo.
Detailing Big Mo’s struggles to break away from his own fathers rule, trying to support his family while going from small time crook to big time hoodlum. A warehouse break in provides Big Mo, with the means to attempt a big time heist.
More Violence , Armed Robbery, and a brutal protagonist, I enjoyed this one almost as much as the first.
▪️▪️▪️▪️▪️
The final piece of the trilogy, Dying Seconds, It’s now 2016, and Gareth and Arnie return , both with very differing lives, Arnie is now confined to a wheelchair, and Gareth, after a promotion, is settled down and looking forward to reporting on Euro 2016 and the participation of the Welsh national team.
When tragedy hits, a brutal murder, that affects both men’s lives, the pair are forced to collide and call an uneasy truce as they form an uneasy alliance to find the killer.
Filling out more of the other characters back stories, this final book, ties up all the threads, with some cracking twists and turns, this is another fantastic slice of gritty, hardcore storytelling.
A powerful, emotional finale, that I loved, closes this trilogy in great fashion.
▪️▪️▪️▪️▪️
In summary, these 3 tales, are an urban, gritty mix, families, gangs, violence, guns, rugby, football, love stories, murders, friendships and betrayals. Paced so well, I read all 3 books , around about 1200 pages, back to back in around 10 days or so, addictive, funny, touching , brilliant stories.
Highly Recommended
5🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
Gary Marshall is a young lad with dreams of playing for West Ham, and Arnie Dolan, a tough, uncompromising lad, who dreams of being a gangland kingpin. Fate brings the 2 together, then forming the basis of ‘the boxer boys’.
After a life changing event, that ends Gary’s dreams, he moves away from Arnie, his best friend and the gang and from London. He heads to Cardiff, changing his name to Gareth Prince, he takes up a position at a Welsh Newspaper as the Rugby reporter.
Years later , Gary and Arnie’s path cross again..
Without giving too much away, as the events of this book are picked up again in book 3, a story of washed up sports stars, of love, of friendship, it’s at times a violent, gritty gangland tale, but the violence fits this story and needs to be there.. we also meet ‘the legend’ that is J.W Owens!
▪️▪️▪️▪️▪️
Spark Out takes us back to Gangland London of the 80’s and also brings the Falkland war into the story, focusing on Arnie Dolan’s gangster father, ‘Big Mo’ Dolan and his ‘friend’ Reg.
This book really fleshed out the how and why, The Dolan boys are the men they are, brought up by their vicious father Mo.
Detailing Big Mo’s struggles to break away from his own fathers rule, trying to support his family while going from small time crook to big time hoodlum. A warehouse break in provides Big Mo, with the means to attempt a big time heist.
More Violence , Armed Robbery, and a brutal protagonist, I enjoyed this one almost as much as the first.
▪️▪️▪️▪️▪️
The final piece of the trilogy, Dying Seconds, It’s now 2016, and Gareth and Arnie return , both with very differing lives, Arnie is now confined to a wheelchair, and Gareth, after a promotion, is settled down and looking forward to reporting on Euro 2016 and the participation of the Welsh national team.
When tragedy hits, a brutal murder, that affects both men’s lives, the pair are forced to collide and call an uneasy truce as they form an uneasy alliance to find the killer.
Filling out more of the other characters back stories, this final book, ties up all the threads, with some cracking twists and turns, this is another fantastic slice of gritty, hardcore storytelling.
A powerful, emotional finale, that I loved, closes this trilogy in great fashion.
▪️▪️▪️▪️▪️
In summary, these 3 tales, are an urban, gritty mix, families, gangs, violence, guns, rugby, football, love stories, murders, friendships and betrayals. Paced so well, I read all 3 books , around about 1200 pages, back to back in around 10 days or so, addictive, funny, touching , brilliant stories.
Highly Recommended
5🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
January 10, 2022
Book 3, Dying Seconds caught my attention when I read "Killer, rapist, drug dealer and all-round bad boy Arnie Dolan is back – and this time he’s in a wheelchair".
Entertaining and edge of your seat kind of book it was a pleasure to read.
Entertaining and edge of your seat kind of book it was a pleasure to read.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews