Man On

I haven’t read many soccer books so I was pretty excited to jump into Liz Crowe’s Black Jack Gentlemen series. We start off with Nicco Garza, the bad boy of the European leagues. He has a bit of a sex addiction so his impulse control is a little on the shaky side and his previous relationships have crashed and burned. At 29 years old, he’s not exactly a “star” anymore. Parker is a college sports star whose family thinks he should be a doctor and marry his sweetheart. These two collide in a big way when they get signed to the new Detroit expansion club to play soccer.

“Nicco rolled his eyes but his gut burned. He knew he had to stop all the fantasizing before it went any further. Parker had a full life ahead of him. An amazing young talent, who’d doubtless soon have the soccer world at his feet— what could Nicco offer him?”

I enjoyed this book. Sometimes I didn’t understand why Nicco or Parker didn’t communicate more and deal with their attraction in a mature way, but then we wouldn’t have the delicious angst in this story, would we? Several moments I felt like we took one step forward and two steps backwards. If you like MM, there is a good pay off in the end and it definitely makes this story worth reading.

Favorite Quotes:

“He felt strong but weak at the same time. Sure of himself, yet gut-churning terrified. All of which buoyed him, and made him even more positive about his decision.”

“Men, boys, there wasn’t much difference especially among pro athletes. They worked hard and played harder, spending their money on fast moving things that made a lot of noise, looked nice, and made them fell important. Rafe stopped, realizing he could be describing their automobiles as well as their wives and girlfriends.”

“The little kid at the grown up part sensation burned a hole in his gut.”

“The young man oozed vulnerability, but it combined with a sort of innate strength just under the surface.”

“‘I’ve been bad, yes. But now, I’m completely good. With you. Badness over.’ He raised a dark eyebrow. ‘Well other than the badness I’m about to get into with you.’”

My Review:

Liz Crowe tells unusual stories in a compelling way. She has a knack for presenting conflicting information in a way that makes sense. She also has a remarkable skill for putting a feeling or sense into words that had previously been just under my skin or a mist across my brain. She has mad skills, and I am in awe. Her characters are madly complicated and typically unlikable, yet she forces me to look beneath the surface and care about them nonetheless. In addition, she also manages to squeeze my cold heart while doing so. I have now read a few of her insightful and richly detailed books and have come to the conclusion that her dastardly characters are the story, the rest is just what happens. She never fails in her mission to enlighten, entertain, and satisfy, regardless of the subject matter, trope, or genre. I am kicking my reading calendar and TBR to the curb for now and diving in for more Liz, she has become my guilty pleasure.

What a fantastic book! Liz Crowe, you are an amazing author. Parker Rollings wanted to play soccer. He didn't want to quit and go to med school like his parents wanted. He also didn't want to marry Christie like they wanted. He always suspected he was gay. After his parents disowned him he accepted Rafael Inez's offer to play for the Detroit Black Jack Gentlemens expansion soccer team. The first time Parker laid eyes on team bad boy Nicolas Garza, the sparks flew. The only thing Parker didn't expect was Nicco's addiction and how far Nico would go to push him away.

Great storyline. The further I read into Nicco's issues and the reasons for it all, the more I wanted to wrap my arms around him and tell him it would be okay. There was a depth to the story that I wasn't expecting and that's what made it a five star read for me. I can't wait for the next book in the blackjack gentleman series

Received a copy in exchange for an honest review.

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Shannan – ☆☆☆
Nicolas (Nicco) Garza comes to America to play soccer for the Black Jack Gentlemen. He's been forced into retirement after being a star in Europe. The love of his life, Leandro, died in a plane crash. His wild ways are exposed by his now ex-wife. It has his agent and his team giving up on him. He's signed to the Black Jacks in their first season in hopes of drawing attention. They know he's the bad boy of the game but they are willing to take the chance. Nicco doesn't care if he's with a woman, a man, or a combination of the two as long as he has a good time and gets off. That's the high he's after.

Parker Rollings's life was planned out for him by his parents, graduate college head to medical school, marry his college sweetheart. Parker follows along with the plan until he just can't anymore, it isn't who he is. He's young, confused, and naive. He gives up everything he knows to sign with the Black Jacks. Nicco has him questioning everything he thought he knew.

Man On was a good read, but I hated the jumping in time that happened. I wish there was more of that inner story that was skipped. I know the author used it to move the story along in time but I found the story lacking when this happened, but I enjoyed the author's voice. I look forward to reading the next two books in the Black Jack Gentlemen series.

Rachael – ☆☆☆☆
I don't think I've read a book about soccer players before and this one was a good one to start on.

Nicco and Parker have a unique chemistry that really shines through in their interactions. I would say that both are bisexual, although they are more portrayed as gay. Both have been married to women and randomly hook up with women, but in the end they only want to be together and only have real feelings toward each other.

While the plot was pretty good, I had issues with so many time jumps in the book that weren't always so clearly stated and felt like we were missing so much that happened to create these feelings and situations that ALL of the characters were in.

Also, I had issues with Ashley calling Nicco at the end of the book when it didn't make sense as to WHY she would call him over Parker.

The sex scenes were fast and almost unnecessary as they weren't hot and didn't really add anything to the book in my opinion (and we all know I love the sex scenes normally).

All in all, I can't wait to read more of this series and see which other characters we get to meet.

Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆
This is one really hot, enjoyable and addictive start to a series read. I know a fair amount about football (European style), and the bad behaviour of the players such as Nicco, isn't really a surprise – but is fascinating to see from the inside. For Parker, the US educated player, things in his repressed world have been somewhat different than for Nicco – but those differences force them both to reevaluate what is important to them.

I have the rest of the series on my Kindle, and can't wait to get to them. I enjoy sports series, and as always the first one tends to have a world building element and settle down in the future books. I also look forward to seeing the story of the leads being references in later story-lines.

Man On, the first book in the series, introduces us to the team, and also the main characters for the book, Parker and Nicco. Nicco is the bad boy of Soccer, and found his way onto the Black Jacks because it had become his only option if he wanted to continue the game. But What Nicco really needs is to figure out his life and work on himself. Parker gave up everything in his life to continue with his dream, to be a pro-soccer player. He's also coming to terms with other things in his life.

Parker and Nicco had a lot of struggles, both individually and together. Their story wasn't always easy, but it was real, and it showed a lot of changes and growth for both of them. There were also a few twists, I did not see coming which added an alternative angle to the overall story and made it richer.

My Thoughts about the Black Jack Gentlemen series: Man On, book one – this M/M story grabbed a hold of me from page one and never let go! Nicco is the 29 year old veteran soccer bad boy and Parker is fresh from college graduation. We see these 2 very different men from very different backgrounds learn to live with and like themselves while fighting an attraction to each other. Nicco feels that he would not be good for Parker because Parker is young and naïve and is still fighting his sexual identity. Parker has always been a yes-man and a pleaser and this rebellion (ditching med school to play soccer) is the first time that he’s taken something for himself and disregarded others feelings while he did it. This author writes a story that she led us through at a steady and believable pace. These 2 men did not take their feelings for each other lightly. They did not act rashly or disregard how a relationship between the 2 of them would affect the team and their pro sport images… There was a lot of story fit into 134 pages and I hung on every word! Am I the only one who love love LOVES a three years later epilogue??!! It’s amazing how gratifying a “three years later” epilogue can be and how gut wrenching and heart stopping a “three years later” part 2 in a book can be. How can books in the same series be so incredibly different and yet all tied together? For me the first book is a page turner m/m book, the second book, Red Card, is about a love lost that literally tore my heart from my chest and pulverized it into the ground… I ugly cried… snot-running, boohoo cried!! I wanted to take Metin and wrap him in bubble wrap and protect him from the world that had treated him so so badly! I think the authors note on the book description explains things best, Red Card is “A saga of family dynamics and gender politics that cuts across cultures and circumstance, Red Card illustrates the human capacity for forgiveness through the life of one man as he attempts to rebuild his shattered existence.” Shut Out is book 3 and it takes a look into the bdsm world and shows two people who are scarred from their pasts but they are trying to find a future together. Sophie and Brody are destined to be together. The road to get there was tough but oh so sweet when it finally happens! And finally book 4, Hat Trick, is another saga along the lines of book 2 that was written in the vein of gut-wrenching realism that made me want to go into the pages of the book and thump Declan in the head and rip the hair off of Cassandra’s head! Good grief this author knows how to take her characters, and by default the reader, through the halls of hell before she even thinks to give them/us a HEA… To me a good book/series is one that makes you feel and cheer and cry… this series is all that and more! Now excuse me while I embrace my book hangover and try to recover from the ‘feels’!
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This is the first in the blackjack gentlemen series and what a terrific start. We have Nicco who comes to the team from Europe after his ex-wife outs him as gay/bi. Than there is Parker who is so far in the closet and denial that Narnia isn’t even in the stratosphere of where he is because its to close to reality. Parker is trying to be his Parents dream person. He has already disappointed them by doing professional athletics so he doesn’t want to disappoint them further. These two meet on the pitch and wow. He have attraction undeniable attraction but also a kind of hate and serious competitive juices going on.

As they get to know each other, they see beyond the field, the scars and find the man. the man that each of them want to have come out and the man they want to be with. Parker poor Parker. He’s a great character and so so struggling with his identity. He wants to be with Nicco and he is a sweet considerate guy but he is battling so many demons. He is in his own form of denial of being gay. He is trying not to disappoint his parents further and he just wants to play ball without distractions. Nicco is comfortable with himself and knows what he wants. He wants Parker. They do have a sweet steamy beginning. But we do have some issues along the way and mainly it is parker’s denial. I am not sure how Nicco gets to where Parker is hiding because beyond Narnia is a dangerous place. Dangerous enough to put this adorable couple in the no go zone and in the you are in for a bumpy ride so he better be the one zone. I think Nicco realizes that Parker is the one early on. They argue, they respect each other and they support each other. they are competitive on the field and steam up the pages off. They understand each other and am able to talk to each other with no barriers. It is only the hangup of Parker and his fear of coming out. As he struggles with himself and who he loves you will feel for him but also want to smack him because along the way he begins to unintentionally hurt Nicco’s feelings.

A beautiful, fun steamy story of two men who start out not really liking each other but end up loving one another in the end. Of a young man fighting himself about his sexuality and growing up to not only find himself, his confidence in who he is but also love. And a man who gets a second chance and embraces that and himself wholly. when these two are together it is amazing. A great beginning to what should be a fun flirty and interesting series.