Outside the Line

Christian Petersen who has written countless short stories, but OUTSIDE THE LINE is his first full-length novel. Hopefully, that just means there is more to come from this fresh literary voice.

This book will get lumped into the crime genre, for the main reason that main character Peter Ellis is a probation officer who gets too involved in his newest case. But Peter has been going through some issues — namely, his longtime girlfriend had left him the previous year — so he spends his nights sitting alone in the home they bought together, drinking himself into a stupor.

Enter his latest case: Todd Nolin, a former hockey star who blew his chance when he was in the NHL. Now he is back in the town he grew up in and has major anger issues, to the point his girlfriend, Marina, has gotten a restraining order after he went on a major tear. A neighbor had called the police, and Todd resisted arrest, so he has five charges against him. However, Todd thinks he is in the right, even when told if he even calls Marina, he could be locked up.

All he is concerned with now is to get his clothes and shoes. Peter tries his best to subdue Todd with promises of getting his items for him, but also explaining that he could send Todd back to jail. The story follows Peter as he slowly works his way through his job, still not a permanent member of the staff due to budget constraints. So when his boss explains to him that this is just another case and to just do his job, Peter has been throughly warned.

And that is when Peter slowly gets involved with Todd’s ex. First, he just goes by to pick up Todd’s items. But Peter feels attracted to the woman and continues with his visits, promising he is just a phone call away if trouble arises.

Petersen’s writing flows off the page, as though you are an eyewitness to all the events as they unfold. All the characters are well-developed and well-defined. You truly feel as if you can see what Todd Nolin is like: a former town hero, now a joke, who can’t deal with the fact his chance slipped through his fingers. But it’s Peter Ellis you see develop more. Even with the outcome of the story, you know Peter’s life is going to be changed, mainly for the better. I’m definitely going to track down more of Petersen’s work; it’s a nice surprise to find such a fresh voice. —Bruce Grossman

Buy it at Amazon.

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About Bruce Grossman

Bruce writes the "Bullets, Broads, Blackmail and Bombs" weekly column. He lives in Massachusetts.