Review: The Boxer by Jan Irving

The Boxer (The Contenders #2) by Jan Irving
Loose-Id

Short Novella: 121pgs

5 Pants Off

Blurb:
Former boxer Dane Connelly faces losing it all, everything he fought for in The Janitor. He's hiding problems with his fight-damaged eyesight from his uptown lover, Noel Atherton. How can he be a man for him if he can't see to fight or to paint? And now the vicious killer Narone, who almost broke him in the ring, is out on parole, looking for payback. Dane is desperate to protect the man he loves. 

 But Noel has had enough of sleeping alone in their empty bed, aching for Dane, so he devises various exotic scenarios to seduce him, giving his lover the sexual domination he needs. He knows Dane is not being upfront with him, and after being patient for months he's growing alarmed something is really wrong. Now Noel has to use his body and his heart to fight for his beloved boxer.

Review:
What can I say that I haven’t said already, I freaking love Dane and Noel. These two definitely have a part of my heart, I just love them together and will never tire of reading about them. I have gone back to simply read over The Janitor numerous of times, and no one is as surprised as me by how much I love them. I bought the Janitor by mistake and I am so happy I did, it was one of the best mistakes of my life.

Noel and Dane are back and I don’t know if I should say better than ever, cus there are a few problems that arise. I can say that they still love each other wholeheartedly, and they are still burning hot. The dynamic of their relationship is so sexy. We have the brawny and strong Dane, the slight and sophisticated Noel, and who is in charge makes things just so sexy.

I think this series is all about healing, these are two far from perfect characters who come alive for each other. They say opposites attract, and for this series it is true. Noel is the intellect and the over thinker, Dane is the voice of reason, he is a pure soul and the world is just too mean for him. Some might describe Dane as being stupid or maybe retarded. I say far from it, he is smart in his own rights, he doesn’t need big words and first rate education. He gets his point across by being honest and keeping it simple. He is no pretender, Dane my man is contender.

An old enemy is back and it creates tension for the couple, a distance I never saw coming. It was beautiful to watch them find their way back to each other. After all the bullshit they been through, they both deserved an awesome HEA.

My opinion is a little bias cus I think these guys are great and I have no bad words for them. So what is the writing is simple, teachers always said to me KISS (keep it simple stupid), sounds bad but you get my drift. There is nothing to wrap your head around just a very beautiful story about finding love is the most unlikely place, and the most unlikely person.

 I am gonna end this with a few lines from the sexiest scene in this book.

“You want it straight up?” Dane’s voice was dark, gravelly, sexy. In contrast, Noel’s voice was a thread as he admitted, “I want to be fucked. Fuck me. Take me like a stranger.” 

I died a little at that part but made it back to read the rest. I effin love these guys and will continue to randomly pick up their story and read it over.

5 Pants Off

The Hired Man

The Hired Man by Jan Irving
Dreamspinner Press

Novel: 274pages

4.5 out of 5

Blurb:
Reverend Ian Kenyon knows the harsh sting of life and how a man can suffer a loss of faith. The death of his wife and newborn son shook him to his foundations, and he's been drifting ever since. Bryn Morgan has returned home from prison to the only family he has, an abusive father who abandoned him to the law when Bryn was unjustly accused of rape. Still poor, lost, and shunned, Bryn searches for work, any work that will allow him to survive.

Reluctantly moved by Bryn's plight, Ian hires the young man to work on his farm despite Bryn's prickly, defensive nature. Soon Ian fears his growing feelings of grace and compassion might be something else, something more... heated. Whatever the cause, he knows they are impossible to pursue, because Heaven only knows what would happen if a man of God began to have forbidden feelings for his hired man.

Review:
What can I say I loved it. Jan Irving is now on my automatic buy list, liked her work from when I read The Janitor and this one was no disappointment. My first historical M/M loving, and that just makes it all the more enjoyable. Lets just say I will be reading this genre in the future.

Reverend Ian Kenyon is having it hard, slowly drifting through life without actually seeing it. Suffering years after from the loss of his wife and young son, he feels like an imposter going around and preaching the word of God to his townfolks, when he has lost his faith. How horrible is that he has lived to serve him and in the end all that he loved was taken away. He has lost his faith and sees no way that he will redeem it. Until Bryn Morgan returns to town and he finds him sitting on his doorstep.

Bryn knows what a hard life is, he has lived it. Growing up with an abusive father, dirt poor, the town thinking he's trash and to later be charged with a crime he did not commit. After spending four years in prison he is back and just as lonely and unwanted as when he left. He thinks of one person that might be able to help him, and thats the Reverend. What he never expected was to find complete acceptance and love with the man.

Man this book was a beautiful romance, so sweet and yet laced with pain. You get a glimpse of life for Bryn when he was in prison, and a person who had to face something like that should be covered and cloaked in bitterness; yet Bryn is compassionate and able to see the beauty in everything. By no way is he a pushover, but a fighter who just wants to be loved. What Ian suffered broke my damn heart, for him to get through that speaks highly of his character. He is suffering, but he is also caring and has a deeply rooted dominant and protective nature. The chemistry between both Ian and Bryn was just downright perfection.
Yet as sweet as it was both characters had a lot to overcome, and had to reach an acceptance for their budding relationship.

The writing was a little hard to understand at times, I dont know if it was faulty editing or it was just the speak at the time. That was one of the small problems with the book, the other was just some unusual encounters between the lead male characters and other people in the book. I felt that all those little interludes was unnecessary and instead of adding drama it took away from the book. Otherwise a solid read, with interesting characters and sexy dialogue which I truly enjoyed. The love scenes were few and not overly explicit but I find that made them extra sexy. This Hired Man was a good investment. 
 

4 1/2 Pants Off

Go Ahead Take Those Pants Off

BDSM Week Book #5: The Janitor

The Janitor (The Contenders #1) by Jan Irving
Loose-Id

Novel: 171pages

4 out of 5

Blurb:
I’m a naturally optimistic type of person, you know? Yeah, I think good things will happen, only they usually don’t. Take Noel: even though he’s educated and rich and he don’t think he’s even gay, I want to belong to him. I want him to take me completely---Dane Connelly

Dane Connelly is a gay janitor and boxer with a soft heart and a simple outlook--he wants to meet the right man, someone who will look past his macho sport and put him in the place of a submissive. He wants to fall in love and belong to his partner.

On the surface, Noel Atherton, an intellectual, shy, and sexually repressed university graduate student with a crippled leg, could not be the dominant lover that Dane longs for. But after their first meeting, when Dane disables the fire alarm in the library and lights a cigarette, Noel is drawn from his shell. Soon, Noel needs to touch Dane, exploring his sexuality for the first time. And both learn that looks can be deceiving.

However, Noel's controlling father is appalled by the relationship and quietly arranges to get Dane out of the way and punish him for daring to love a man so far above his station.

Review:
I enjoyed this book so much that I find myself going every few days to bask in the pure love of the main men.

Dane is a boxer, scarred and considered not very smart because of the way he looks and talks. His appearance says strong and tough but never was there a man more gentle and fragile. He is a just a poor man searching for someone to love and to have someone love him in return. Working as a janitor at a local university he meets the man he is destined to love, but Noel is way out of his league. A rich and smart man he could never grow to love a boxer as scarred and unintelligent as he is.

Noel has no idea whether he is gay or straight, having no sexual experience since an accident left him disabled with a busted leg. Any form of sexual excitement leaves his leg hurting and his ego small. He can't help but being drawn to the beautiful Dane his innocence and his pure heart,but how can one so beautiful be attracted to a cripple?

This story is just so sweet and I love the role reversal, makes for an interesting love scene. There's something sexy when a strong and masculine character becomes submissive to his less masculine partner. This story is about innocence and prejudices that people tend to have for someone who doesn't quite fit the mold. Dane and Noel will have a lot to overcome but the way they love each other is just so sweet. This will show you that not always do you need to be book smart or rich, to come out on top.

This book has a light BDSM theme, a little spanking, dirty talk, and the unexpected daddy play (not creepy at all). I think the uniqueness lies with the switch in power with this couple, very sexy it all was. One of my all time favourite reads!

4 Pants Off

Go Ahead Take Those Pants Off

*Previously Reviewed in April 2010*