Crossing The Whitewash

I really enjoyed this book which was totally different from anything I've read lately. I was initially attracted to this sports title after reading First & Goal (Queen of the League Book 1). Whilst both are set against a backdrop of sport that is where the similarity ends.

Gary a West Ham fan dreams of becoming a professional footballer, but when he finally escapes the London council estate of his youth it is for the greener Welsh pastures where he hides behind a new identity as Gareth a sports journalist with the Welsh Tribune.

The author an old pro is a skilled writer and showcases his talent well in a timely thriller with a good mix of three dimensional characters against a backdrop of the Rugby World Cup. The plot is simple but well executed. Two separate storylines run through the book; Two worlds separated by the severn bridge, chalk and cheese with the softness and warmth of the Welsh valleys contrasting sharply with the violence of gang oriented council estates in outer London. Unavoidably both worlds come together in the last chapters forming the climax with a few surprises thrown in.

The book is a mixed bag containing both fun fiction with some adorably funny scenes set in Wales which made laugh out loud and other extremely violent scenes mostly London based which made me cringe. I definitely preferred the part of the story set in Wales and the richness of the welsh characters which contrasted well with the violent Londoners and at times gangster caricatures. I really enjoyed reading about the Legend, Shakey and the tag team wrestling.

Recommended reading.

When I got this book I thought it was going to be a lot of rugby with a bit of a thriller thrown in how wrong I was.
Gary Marshall, at 13, is a typical lad and very bright for his age. He loves his bike, his family and football, especially West Ham, but when he is going home after doing his paper round, a gang of lads decide they would like to relieve him of his bike. Petrified, but not wanting to give it up, he really doesn't know what to do. Arnie Doles steps in. He goes to the same school as Gary and is the same age but they don't hang around together, though Gary has seen him watching him at school. The only thing Arnie loves is his dog Stevo. Arnie's family aren't without money but it is well known that it hasn't been earned legally. His dad is always in and out of prison and at the moment is serving time for armed robbery. Arnie and his dog wipe the floor with the lads and from then on Gary and Arnie are best mates. Something that Gary will regret more than once in his life. The Boxer Boys have arrived. This novel is an absolute gem.It has everything that anyone could ever want in a book. The story begins in 1996 to 2015 and follows the life of Gary. There is violence in the book that makes you read with just one eye open. A love story. Drugs, tragedy, murder, rape and football hooligans but there is also comedy that makes you laugh so much.
When the story moves to Wales it moves to rugby too. Gary needs a new start and changes his name to Gareth. It is in Wales that he discovers what real friends are. The character of The Legend is totally legend, he is brilliant. The author Nick Rippington can certainly tell one hell of a story. The book flows and rages like a Welsh mountain river to an end I never saw coming. Absolutely loved it. Thank you to Netgalley and Cabrilon Books for allowing me to read and review this book. It was a pleasure.

Having read some good reviews, I looked forward to reading this. To start with the somewhat gory gangland setting in London proved to be a real hook to draw the reader in. the friendship between Gary and Arnie became firmly established, only to be cruelly destroyed. Very much a crime thriller.

Then came the switch to a South Wales setting for the newly named Gareth, as a young journalist. Is this a crime thriller, not any more, the genre switches to humour. I can't resist a quote: 'To say the family had a reputation for trouble was like saying King Henry VIII was partial to wedding cake.'

Inevitably the lives of London Gary, Arnie and South Wales Gareth must be drawn together again. I will avoid spoiling the plot, suffice to say that many loose ends, some expected and some out of the blue, are tied before the story ends.

My thanks to Netgalley and Cabrilon Books for a copy of this book in exchange for a review.

When I read this book's description, I expected the focus to be mainly sports, specifically Rugby and Football but it's so much more and the storyline had me glued to the pages.

It's 1996 and Gary is 13 years old. He is a bright lad with good future prospects. He has already set his goal of where he wants to be when he is older. He works hard towards this goal with the encouragement and support of his father and his peers.

Arnie is of similar age to Gary but they don't really interact with each other, that is until Gary is threatened by a group of boys and Arnie comes to the rescue. Although they live in the same environment, their family lives and personalities couldn't be more different. They become very close friends from then on and Arnie decides to name his gang the Boxer Boys.

When disaster strikes Gary's family life, he is devastated as this is the last thing he would have expected. Arnie persuades him to go on a night out to cheer him up but unfortunately the sequence of events leads to disaster which in turn shatters Gary's dreams.

The boys' journey continues to the present day and there are many twists and turns along the way. There is fun and laughter, drug dealing along with other crimes. I didn't like the violence so much but as part of the story, it only highlights the reasons for the behaviour of some of the characters.

There is a love story amongst the chaos and the revelations of what were well kept secrets come as a shock to all parties.

I would fully recommend this book to those who like a good thriller, full of drama, action, suspense and laughter.

I received this ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Gary Marshall was on track to becoming a footballer. One fateful night was the spark that changed everything for him and his family. He met a young boy named Arnie, a local boy from a well known hoodlum family. Together they started a gang The Boxer Boys. Gary goes out fit one night and comes back broken, physically and mentally. His dreams crushed his attitude altered he and his gang lash out and the consequences must be paid.
Years later Gary has changed his name, moved away, disconnected from his family and friends, hidden from all who knew him. he starts this new life in a quirky wonderful town in Wales with some fantastic characters who happen to be rugby players. Here in this semi crazy place he develops connections with few of them, even if he doesn't want too. When his past comes looking for him and his truth comes out what will these trusting people do with him?
World Cup Rugby, that was what made me pick this book up. I'm crazy for the sport. I'd never heard of the author, and I'm not really a thriller reader. The beginning was a bit slow going I had some language issues. Yes, this was in English but it was in British English which took me a few chapters to adjust into. I'm an American and our English is well it's different. Once I got the lingo figured out, and I'm so glad the author didn't water it down, the lingo made it so real and gritty. This was a gritty dirty tale, he did not grow up in the upper neighborhood. I fell for Gary, he was strong, pitiful, scared, angry, honest, a liar, a realistic person with real problems who made bad choices. It was the Welsh Rugby Father and Son duo that stole the show for me. I think they are my two favorite characters I've met this year. I loved this story, I wanted more when it ended. I am a fan of Mr. Rippington and will be reading his next books. Please bring the Welsh boys back !

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Amazon:http://www.amazon.com/Crossing-Whitewash-Rugby-World-Thriller/dp/1514362171/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1443148790&sr=1-1&keywords=crossing+the+whitewash

I know of few books that are grounded thrillers that also celebrate Rugby Union. A good insight into petty gang based violence and some of the issues facing young men growing up in Inner City England.
Also a wonderful companion to the Rugby World Cup. The passion and pride of Welsh Rugby is well written and captures the joy and comaraderie of this team sport in Wales.
It is a familiar story of two young men growing up and being confronted with circumstances that stretch and break their friendship.
However, it is about family and ultimately the different relationships between a Father and his son. Gary Marshall is one of 4 four such relationships and he interacts with the other 3 pairings for good and ill.
Ultimately it is a book that demonstrates this author's writing ability and I would urge anyone who likes a good book to read this excellent novel.

First and foremost, a large thank you to NetGalley, Nick Rippington, and Cabrilon Books for providing me with a copy of this book, which allows me to provide you with this review.

In my first experience with a Rippington piece, and from what I can decipher, the author's first foray into the realm of fiction. With a vast amount of experience on the topic, I hoped for something not only filled with accurate details, but that could flow smoothly from the author's mind to the printed page. Gary Marshall had dreams as a child, including playing for his favourite football club. After a skirmish on his way home from school, he encounters Arnold Dolan, who becomes his best mate and protector. Little does Marshall know that Dolan has a crew of less than stellar misfits, who, after taking him under their wing, begin a life of teenage bedlam. One night, Marshall meets a fate worse than death for him, a crippling injury that leaves him unable to play football ever again. It is only now that things take a turn for the worse, as Dolan and Marshall encounter a young man and get into a skirmish that leaves one dead, one incarcerated, and a third on the lam. Meet Gareth Prince, journalist extraordinaire, and new identity of Gary Marshall. Prince is hiding from his past and those who could track him down and sully his reputation. He's moved to Cardiff and is taken on as a rugby reporter, though knows nothing of the sport. With the help of a young intern and Welsh rugby legend, Prince begins spinning tales ahead of the Rugby World Cup. However, unable to sever all ties with home, Prince reaches out as Dolan is released from prison, with a score to settle and a secret to reveal. The rest is a jam-packed story set against a huge sporting event and peppered with significant drama. Rippington tells an interesting story, which curious readers might want to investigate.

With no knowledge of Rippington or his abilities, I entered this novel blind. I remained that way, grasping for the storyline throughout the early stages of the book, trying to get my feet under me. However, the momentum picked up as Marshall became Prince and the story's characters became more relatable soon thereafter. With a few storylines running in parallel, Rippington tells the story of a has-been sports star and his handling of a collection of shattered dreams, as well as a man who knows nothing of the land in which he lives or the metaphoric language everyone speaks. Rippington's journalistic capabilities shine through here and he is able to develop characters who shine in headline and fleshed-out ways. A great first effort and, looking back, even that opening section has merit and fits nicely with the overall storyline.

Kudos, Mr. Rippington for this intriguing look into Wales, its passion for rugby, and the mysteries of a hidden past.

Overall a good read. I struggled at first with some of the "UK jargon" bit eventually caught on, good story about the development of a unique friendship that ends. Eventually the two main characters which mckearly moved in different directions ones are united agin in a hostile situation. For me, the best part of the book was the end when the two guys meet up after being away from each other for several years. The book is violent, funny, and for the most part kept my interest. Definitely worth reading.

Regular readers of my blog will no doubt have figured out by now that I am most definitely Welsh, but what they probably don't know is that I am a massive rugby fan, and I love the World Cup, its such an exciting tournament - I digress...

Upon its opening Crossing the Whitewash appears to be a novel about gangland London, Gary Marshall is saved from bullies, by the renowned Arnie Dolan. The pair become largely inseparable until a tragic accident changes everything for Gary.

The pair remain in touch until an incident after a football match sends them their separate ways. Fast forward several years and we meet (the now) Gareth Prince (Gary Marshall) at a job interview for a Wales' best selling Sunday Sports paper. Now a reasonably successful reporter, Gareth is determined to hold down a decent job and make a new life for himself in Wales.

Unfortunately Gareth knows next to nothing about rugby, which is pretty much a cardinal sin in Wales. Luckily with the help of the work experience boy, his Father and an ex-Welsh Rugby international known simply as 'The Legend' Gareth begins to find his feet in Wales, and is drawn in by the passion and pride of the nation for their national sport.

But as much as Gareth wants to break away from his previous life, there are people from his past that are not so keen to make the break, and when they come looking for him, the novel takes on a more sinister angle.

I don't want to give too much away, but if you love a good thriller, a decent game of rugby, or just a good old fashioned sports novel, then this is one for you....

A Ripping good debut with tons of thrills and laughs along the way. A story of a young man, his best friend and how a serious of choices dramatically pave their very different futures. Set during the backdrop to the rugby world cup, Ex-hopeful cockey footballer Gareth is a fish out of water tasked with reporting on the upcoming world cup in Cardiff. Although with a little comic help from The Legend and The Bards, can he meet the task before the past catches up with him, building to a dramatic and violent climax.

Good solid story but just a little predictable. An easy read but not one I could really recommend.

Great characters share in an energetic story that links both football and rugby. But it's not just sport - the characters are very real, with difficult pasts which makes for a great story.

Well paced story full of action, sport and violence, and comes together fantastically. I did skim read some of the rugby bits but still enjoyed the book. Well written and easy to read.

Gary Marshall was quite a good football player and he was also in a gang with some schoolfreinds who called themselves The Boxer Boys. They had got him out of a fight so he felt obliged to join them even though they seemed to get him in no end of trouble. On one of these 'adventures' Gary found himself no longer able to play football and had a permanent limp, to cheer him up Arnie the leader took them to a football match but once again there was 'trouble' which ended when someone got badly hurt. Gary took the opportunity to move away and avoid the gang he took up sports reporting and he was in the middle of the Rugby world Cup when his life took a different direction. Just when he thought he had adjusted well to the Welsh way of life and had made a path for himself in Wales it seems his past is not quite finished with him. This book has it all mystery, murder and love. There were even some lighthearted moments which made me smile. It is a great book and has something for everyone I will look out for more by Nick Ripington.

It wasn't for me. Fair enough, the blurb said that it might not be, and it wasn't. Too grim, too violent, too much swearing.

So I won't publish a bad review about it, because the blurb was honest about the book and what to expect; but I won't do a good one either because I didn't like the book.

But I thought it was a shame because I liked the premise of a sporting-related thriller.

I give this book 5 stars, found it hard to put down, not normally my type of story to do with sport but this is so much more. Gary Marshall had high hopes of being a professional footballer he comes from a tough part of London, he finds himself drawn into the wrong crowd and eventually ends up in Wales, lots of twists and turns, funny as well.

It is more 4.5 stars.

Usually, i don't really enjoy sport related books, but this one surprised me and i enjoyed it very much.
The story is about two friends, Gary Marshall a rising football star and Arnie Dolan a rising gangster.
A strong bond connects them ever since they first meet, when they were both 13 years old, and this destructive relationship continues until everything goes wrong, and then, they meet again in a Wales during the World Rugby Cup...

I liked the story, the characters both in London and in Wales, they were very different, intense and very interesting. The events and twists were also captivating, especially the final, the big revelation! I found the coincidences, though, very convenient, maybe more convenient than necessary, but interesting.

There was one thing i did not like about this book, and this was the use of a lot of swearing, the language was probably appropriate for the setting, but it was too much and that made me a bit uncomfortable.

Over all the book was good and i would recommend it..