Duffy Dombrowski - a tough-talking, no-nonsense social worker from a small town in upstate New York - may not suffer fools kindly, but he also isn't your typical sort of caseworker. When he isn't counseling chronic sex addicts and frequent drug users, people can usually find him crooning Elvis tunes, getting 'bombed' with his friends, or challenging ex-Olympians in the boxing ring. Actually, for a man who absolutely dreads doing any type of paperwork, Duffy lives for his extracurricular activities - particularly his time spent in the ring as a part-time professional boxer. As a matter of fact, those extracurricular activities tend to get in the way of his career more often than not.

When a schizophrenic, crack-addicted prostitute named Walanda comes to Duffy and asks him for help, he can hardly deny her. He solemnly pledges to take care of her basset hound, Allah-King, and to find her missing stepdaughter, Shondeneisha. While Duffy isn't quite sure how much of Walanda's fantastic story to actually believe: that she believes her stepdaughter Shony has been kidnapped, and that someone actually wants Walanda herself dead; he can certainly recognize a troubled mind when he sees one, so is determined to help ease her worries if he possibly can.

However, when Walanda's prediction tragically comes true and she is murdered, Duffy begins to believe that she may have been telling the truth about other things as well. In order to assuage his own guilt about doubting Walanda's story, Duffy promises himself that he will find Shondeneisha as soon as possible. But how can a not-so-social social worker who moonlights as an underdog boxer possibly hope to save the girl and solve a murder with only the help of a semi-housebroken, fully disobedient basset hound and four drunk friends at his disposal?

I have to say right from the beginning that I probably wouldn't have chosen to read this book for myself, considering that I've never been all that interested in learning the particulars of the sport of boxing. Yet, I will also say that this book was still surprisingly good, in my opinion. There was a thread of sarcastic humor running throughout the story which I enjoyed, and the mystery was very intricate and intriguing to me. While this is perhaps not the typical kind of mystery that I usually read, it was still a very interesting mystery to read for its genre; I would give this book a definite B+! ( )

Hard to believe that book about a boxer can be so much fun, but this one is! The main character is honorable and works to do the right thing. Oh, and the dog is a big bonus to the story! Highly recommended for all mystery fans. ( )

A fun and lighthearted crime novel. At first I thought I wouldn't get into it, not being a boxing fan, but that was a minor theme in the book and I liked the Basset on the cover. I was a bit put off by all the booze the main character consumed and then drove around town, but then again, it is only fiction, hopefully. ( )

Duffy Dombrowski is an Irish-Polish-American part-time boxer, full-time social worker. At least for the time being he's a full-time social worker. His boss, the "Michelin Woman," has her heart set on firing Duffy, and she's just waiting for him to give her the excuse to do so.

When Kelley, Duffy's cop buddy, calls him to help with an arrest of one of Duffy's clients, the fun begins. Walanda is a schizophrenic, drug abuser and as she is being hauled off by Kelley, she's pleading with Duffy to do two things. First, save her stepdaughter who's been kidnapped by the "Webster" and second, take care of her Muslim basset hound, Allah-King. Duffy agrees to both requests and they both lead him into a mess of trouble, especially after Walanda is murdered in jail.

In the most basic terms I can use, ON THE ROPES is plain and simply FUN...FUN, FUN, FUN! What else would you expect with a cast of characters that includes a Muslim basset hound, an old Jewish man who has "enough money to air condition hell," and the Fearsome Foursome who reminded me of a cross between a male version of the Golden Girls and the crew who hung out at the bar on Cheers? The characters that inhabit this book are colorful and unique, emphasizing what I believe was a major theme in Schreck's book - everyone is special and has a purpose, regardless of society's prejudices.

For some reason, in this book I became acutely aware of the power of a stereotypical character. Schreck has stereotypes in this book, especially his ex-girlfriends, but he balances those stereotypes with more dimensional characters. The reader can't help but remember that stereotypes exist for a reason. I don't think a stereotype would work as a protagonist, and Duffy is anything but a stereotype. Schreck does an outstanding job of making stereotypes work effectively in this novel.

Schreck's protagonist, Duffy Dombroski, is constantly managing to step into trouble, despite his good intentions. There were a few times that I, as a female, was taken aback by his testosterone-laden comments, but I also realized that those comments were probably spot on for boxing, locker-room talk. And Schreck should know, since he is a professional boxing judge. What was striking about Duffy, besides his wonderful wit, was his sincerity and devotion. I have to admit that I also appreciated his love of Elvis.

And of course there's Al, the Muslim basset hound. Al provides comic relief at all the right times, as any dog owner will appreciate. Al chews up Duffy's remote control and unless he manually changes the channel, the TV is stuck eternally on the Lifetime channel. Oh the irony! It's wonderful.

The characters really drive the plot in this book. It's a great plot, but if the reader is unable to engage with the characters, I don't think the plot is quite as strong. The plot is also very heavy, so the characters and their humor help the reader manage that weight and see hope. All in all, Schreck did an outstanding job of balancing the seriousness of his content with the lightness of the humor as well as the dynamics of the characters. The entire book works like a well-oiled machine.

As I was moving closer to the end of the novel I became very frustrated with interruptions in my reading. I simply wanted to keep reading. This is a book that you'll find hard to put down until you've reached the final page. And when you do put it down, I would be willing to bet you'll put it down with, at minimum, a sly grin on your face.

Just an outstanding debut! ( )