Customer Reviews

Crossing the Centerline

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

After an accident killed his fiancée, put him in the hospital for months, permanently injured his right leg and ending his career in law enforcement, all Carl wants to do is become a charter boat captain. But someone wants him dead and he has no idea why. When his ex-partner from the sheriff's department is almost killed on Carl's boat by someone thinking he is Carl, Michael McCaffery decides someone at the department needs to be taking the threats seriously.

Carl, Michael, Carl's Internet-savvy mother, and a group of assorted friends begin to try to find out why someone is so determined to kill Carl. It has to be something he knew or saw before his accident-or was the wreck an accident or the first attempt on Carl's life?

Crossing the Centerline is the first book of a planned six book series by new author, Allan E. Ansorge. The characters are very likable as well as fun-and the plot is diabolical. The dialog and flow of the story is a little rough but if you can overlook that, it is a very good story. I'm hoping with the next book the author will find his rhythm and the next book will be smoother. There are plenty of good secondary characters, with secrets hinted at in this story, to fill up more books with interesting and intriguing mysteries.

In this mystery, Carl and his friends must try to piece together what Carl may know that makes him a target for a murderer. But of course the bad guys are not sitting around waiting for them to figure it out, and the risk and attempts escalate. Also there is a little bit of romantic interest developing between some of the characters to add more complexity and human interest.

I liked Crossing the Centerline and will be watching for the next book!

Reviewed by Stephanie Boyd

I absolutely LOVED the book Crossing the Centerline by the brilliant author ALLAN ANSORGE. I would recommend it to anyone who wants to read a fantastic story with vibrant characters, a storyline so vivid you're glued to your chair until you read the last page, and the feeling like you just spent a couple hours with family.

I'm not usually a mystery "who done it" kind of reader, but I met Allan at a local booksigning here in Florida and he is such a warm and friendly, genuine guy that I had to move outside my regular box and read his book. Afterwards I felt like I knew each and every character personally and for a book outside my usual genre, I read it cover to cover in one sitting. So many books I've read recently that once finished I shook my head and wondered why I had bothered to read it, or I just scanned half of it because it was too wordy - NOT THIS BOOK! Crossing the Centerline is a great read, highly entertaining, and totally worth the time!

The only downfall to this book was that it ended! I have an uncontrollable addiction to read Allan's second book, which just so happens to have just recently been released, Crossing the Stateline (thank goodness!). I am awaiting my copy of the newest best seller on pins and needles!!!

While this was a fun read with interesting and entertaining characters, I wish some of the relationships were further developed as they involved some of my favorite characters. Maybe in the next book? The epilogue left me scratching my head, but the rest of the book was enjoyable. I'd recommend it to anyone who likes a good character driven book.

I bought this book based on the multiple 5 star reviews. Really? Six 5 star reviews, are you folks friends and family. I haven't ever written a review before but feel the need to balance this out. Though the story does move quickly and is entertaining. everything is just too neat. Everybody has the time to help, has the right knowledge, expertise, and connections. The characters were all just too nice; no frailties, no darkness. Most books in this genre require you suspend disbelief at some point so the story works, this one asks too many times. This is not a bad book, but its' characters are more Hardy Boys than Harry Bosch.

This book was very much like a plot outline with dialog added. Very lacking in description and characterization. I finished it, but won't pick up the author's next book in the series.

Witty, smart, entertaining, and a great mystery to boot. Love the complexity of the characters, and how everything is not spelled out for the reader. I'm looking forward to reading more from this author!

This is a great who-dun-it, with perfect pacing and enough action to keep you turning the pages into the wee hours of the night. But it's the characters that really stand out and stay with you long after the story has been told. I felt like I was part of one of the best Friends episodes. Carl, Sharon, Mike, Maggie...I want buddies like that! Give us another one soon, Allan.

I stopped reading this book after only 13%, as I just couldn't stand the boring way the author wrote. The story and characters are not all bad, but the writing is so poor that the characters are truly flat and leave you completely unmoved. How could a gun-toting, foul-mouthed, computer-savvy senior citizen be so incredibly one-dimensional? Who was trying to kill one of the characters - I say it was one of the poor schmucks who paid the .99 cents for the book!

Ansorge's characters dance across the page. Their antics and theatrics make them as welcome (and uncomfortable) to be with as family members at a reunion. What to do? You gotta love 'em.

When these guys grab a quick bite to eat, as they check in with each other to swap clues at 6:00, I open my fridge and share the moment. Leftover Chinese, yum!

A fun book with twists and turns, it takes you for a great ride!

Sorry, but I didn't think much of it because:
1) It was boring. Little going on at any given time.
2) Most sentences had at least 3 peoples names. Like; Tom smiled at Dick while Harry laughed. This went on and on, confusing the scene.
3) Everyone in this city was working on the case except the police.
4) The mother character was unbelievable. She could do anything. No limits yet she lived in an assisted living building?
5) The characters ate all the time. Everything was done in the diner except the murder. They must have all been overwieght. One can't think that because the author didn't describe them well. Food and eating everywhere!
6) There was little difference between the characters. It's as if they all blended into one person with no one in charge. I lost track of who was who early on.