book review crossing the line

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Crossing the Line Book Review

Crossing the Line: a Fearless Team of Brothers and the Sport that Changed Their Lives Forever by Kareem Rosser is a memoir bursting with hope, hard work and horses. The cover hooked my attention with an image of a little boy in shorts on an Appaloosa, riding with a halter and two mismatched lead ropes for reins.

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When I discovered it was an equestrian memoir (I devour the genre and even wrote my own ) and the rider was a polo player, I pre-ordered a copy immediately. If you’ve been following me on Instagram, you’ll know I started “playing” polo this summer. I took a series of ten lessons and am now scheming to take ten more.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Susan Friedland (@saddleseekshorse)

I listened to the Audible version ( click here for sample audio ), and later purchased the book so I could see pictures. 🙂

Crossing the Line’s Storyline

Kareem Rosser, the star of Crossing the Line , is an unlikely polo player. His family is not from Argentina, Wellington or Santa Barbara–they are from an under-resourced community in West Philadelphia. The urban neighborhood Kareem grew up in had a reputation for poverty and violence, yet there was an oasis of serenity not too far away at the Work to Ride stables. There Kareem fell in love with horses. He found both an outlet for his athleticism and motivation to keep his grades up–so he could ride.

Leslie Hiner, the founder of Work to Ride , starts out as Kareem’s riding instructor who teaches horsemanship and eventually polo. As time progresses, she becomes a mentor and like a family member as she facilitates Kareem’s life with horses.

Leslie’s role resonated with me. I would not have had the means and opportunity to connect with horses were it not for a kind horsewoman who was friends with my parents. I refer to her as my horse riding patron .

Kareem’s story is an important one to be read and pondered. I am not going to overshare here because you really ought to read it for yourself . However my guess is if you are reading this blog, you did not grow up in a troubled neighborhood. I believe it’s important to both listen and learn from people whose life experiences and backgrounds differ from our own. Doing so gives us more empathy and can inform our worldview for the better. Not only that, but you will encounter your own “me too” moments.

You might enjoy The Compton Cowboys Book Review.

I already alluded to the fact I rode borrowed horses, sometimes in a halter and lead when I was a kid. Also, I had an older, caring adult who made horses happen for me. And like Kareem, I have found solace in a stable and a true friend in an equine partner.

This memoir beautifully portrays the role horses play in connecting people to each other. How many amazing people are in your life because you share a horse bond? Furthermore, it demonstrates how horses themselves are powerful healing forces for us mere mortals. Horses give us affection, trust and the ability to be our truest selves without judgment. They listen to our sorrows and hold us up high (literally), allowing us to be bold in a way that endures, even when we are unmounted.

Horses are transformational and the very nature of living with them is hope. I predict you will laugh, cry and enjoy reading Kareem Rosser’s life story. Perhaps you will be inspired to do something, like Leslie, in order to bring the kindness and glory of horses to children who need them. Snag your own copy of Crossing the Line to gallop into an exciting world of polo and its people.

Thank you for reading and tally ho!

Leave a Comment: Have you read Crossing the Line yet? If so, what did you think? Does this story remind you of other equestrian memoirs?

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Crossing the Line: A Fearless Team of Brothers and the Sport That Changed Their Lives Forever

Kareem rosser. st. martin’s, $28.99 (304p) isbn 978-1-25027-086-3.

Reviewed on: 11/09/2020

Genre: Nonfiction

Paperback - 304 pages - 978-1-250-83716-5

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Word of Mouth

Submitting a book for review, write the editor, you are here:, crossing the line.

I know a family with two adult children, a boy and a girl, separated by only a couple of years. The parents have been married for 50-plus years, and have no substance abuse problems. Everyone was raised on Donna Reed and Ozzie and Harriet. The daughter is a sweetheart, married with a couple of ankle biters of her own, a midlevel executive in a mid-sized company. However, the son has been a piece of work since he was two years old. When he was four, he deliberately broke my favorite toy. He continued on a path of self-destruction, thievery and embezzlement --- you name it, he has done, and is doing, it to this very day. Siblings --- same heredity, same environment. One cake rises, the other goes flat. Why?

Clinton McKinzie has been sort of exploring that same territory with the Burns Brothers, Antonio and Roberto. Antonio is a Special Agent for the Wyoming Department of Criminal Investigation, while his brother Roberto has been what might be generously referred to as a renegade, assisting drug mules during dangerous desert transport and happily sampling their wares, always in search of the next artificial rush. The brothers, notwithstanding their differences, are close, sharing a passion that borders on a pathology for climbing. Indeed, the act of climbing is a metaphor that is infused throughout McKinzie's latest novel, a herald of passion, betrayal, trust, cooperation and ever-present danger.

CROSSING THE LINE begins with Antonio Burns on the threshold of some resolution of a number of personal issues. He is in a stable if somewhat uneasy relationship with Rebecca, his intended; he still has his badge and position, even if he is walking on tenterhooks; and his beloved brother Antonio appears to be on the verge of completing a deal that will get him out from under some troubles with the law. All Roberto has to do is help the FBI take down a drug dealer named Jesus Hidalgo, a murderous kingpin who is hiding in plain sight at a fortress-like ranch in the mountains of Wyoming. To do this, he must infiltrate Hidalgo's compound and gather evidence against him.

Roberto, it seems, saved Hidalgo's life during a rock climb several years previously, and the murderous drug dealer in a twisted way regards Roberto as a friend. While Roberto's end of the deal isn't exactly a cakewalk, it doesn't seem to be impossible. In return, Roberto will be granted leniency with respect to several criminal charges that are outstanding against him, do his time in a minimum care facility with an exercise room and a salad bar, and receive some federally sponsored drug rehabilitation treatment.

The Feebs bring Antonio in to help them keep an eye on Roberto. But from the beginning, the setup looks like ... a setup. The FBI agents, a young woman named Mary Chang and a veteran with a mad-on named Tom Cochran, are at odds with the Burns Brothers and each other almost from the gitgo. Also, it turns out that they have a program of their own. When things go sideways for Roberto, Antonio takes matters into his own hands --- unaware that he is doing exactly what was expected of him.

McKinzie does a fine job here of delineating the characters of Roberto and Antonio. While they function on opposite sides of the law, Antonio has a wild, uncontrolled side to him that has earned him --- unjustly --- the unfortunate nickname of "QuickDraw," while there is a fierce but subdued nobility within Roberto. McKinzie leaves a number of significant issues hanging at the conclusion of CROSSING THE LINE, an indication that another novel concerning the Burns Family will be in the offing. Considering the tension that infuses CROSSING THE LINE from beginning to end, McKinzie's next installment will have a built-in audience.

Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub on January 21, 2011

Crossing the Line by Clinton McKinzie

• Publication Date: March 1, 2005
• Genres: Fiction , Thriller
• Mass Market Paperback: 464 pages
• Publisher: Dell
• ISBN-10: 0440240816
• ISBN-13: 9780440240815

Ireland assistant coach Willie Anderson in 1994. Photograph: David Rogers/Allsport

Most sports biographies are written too soon after the final whistle. The rush to cash in on hard-won, short-lived fame means that many such books lack perspective, focusing instead with wearying repetitiveness on the pressures of being a professional sportsperson: the drudgery of training, the constant injuries, the elation and relief of victory, the gnawing self-doubt in defeat.

Anderson's book is different. Written more than 30 years after he won his last cap for Ireland, Crossing The Line is raw, uncompromising, sometimes brutal and always passionate; a perfect distillation of Anderson the player and Anderson the man.

By today's standards Anderson's international career was only moderately successful. Twenty-seven caps was a decent haul in the amateur era, and he was part of the 1985 Triple Crown winning team, but as a player he is best remembered for the challenge to the All Blacks' haka in 1989 in Lansdowne Road, when he led the team in a Walls-of-Limerick style incursion into the heart of opposition territory during the ritual. Asked if he was scared, New Zealand captain Wayne Shelford said Anderson came so close he was afraid the Irish captain was going to kiss him.

Willie Anderson, third left, before Ireland played Wales in 1985. Photograph: Peter Thursfield

But it's the life lived either side of his days in a green jersey that are particularly interesting. Growing up on the family farm in Sixmilecross, Co Tyrone, meant Anderson quickly acquired the hardness and agricultural strength which no amount of weight-training could provide. His father, like many other Protestant farmers at the time, was in the B Specials; "the support act for the RUC," as Anderson calls them, and he remembers as a teenager firing his father's gun in the fields at home. Anderson acknowledges that a fair few of "the B Men" – though not his father – would have enjoyed causing trouble for local Catholics, thereby further dividing an already fractured community.

His family encounter The Troubles when Tommy Irwin, a farmhand who'd worked for the Andersons and babysat young Willie, is shot dead by the IRA; the weapon used is found on one of the eight IRA men killed a year later in the Loughgall ambush. Anderson is raised in the loyalist tradition, attending the local Orange Lodge, and marching as a boy on the 12th July, though his brief courtship of a Catholic girl is ended by his parents, his father fearing the 17-year old Anderson would be shot "by one side or the other".

As a young man Anderson does not come across as a particularly devout Protestant; what he is devoted to is rugby. And drinking. One of the last players of the amateur era, Anderson recalls in loving detail various nights “on the pish”; the fabled Leeson Street nightclub Strings is one of many watering-holes to receive honourable mention.

The stories of partying, of endless sing-songs and booze-fuelled escapades are from another time, a time before the prying eyes of social media saw everything, but one such laddish "prank" goes horribly wrong when the theft of an Argentine flag in 1980 while on tour in Buenos Aires leads to Anderson being detained in prison and then under "hotel arrest" for almost four months as the charge of "disrespecting a national symbol" wends its way through the Argentine justice system.

Intriguingly, Anderson says one unidentified culprit who climbed up on Anderson's shoulders to remove the flag from its government flagpole beseeched Anderson not to name him to the police for fear he'd lose his job; Anderson respects the omerta. Years later he meets Denis Thatcher. "I could have told your Missus there was going to be trouble!" he says, referring to the Falklands war. Denis doesn't see the funny side – and Thatcher is not the only person who struggles to cope with Anderson's acerbic wit and occasionally fiery personality.

After retiring from playing he takes up coaching, and attains a degree of success as assistant to Matt Williams with Leinster and Scotland, and briefly with London Irish. But he fails to achieve his cherished ambition of becoming head coach of Ulster, despite applying three times; one "blazer" assures him before an interview that while he's alive, he'll make sure Anderson never gets the job. Anderson fulminates against this perceived injustice but accepts his reputation for "overstepping the mark" may have counted against him.

Willie Anderson coaching Leinster at a squad training session in Old Belvedere RFC, Dublin. Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill

During his time at Leinster one of the coaching staff begs him not to go drinking with the players, but Anderson cannot resist a "session". A row in Café En Seine after the team lose at home in the 2003 Heineken Cup semi-final ends with Anderson drunkenly pushing one of the squad across the bar. He's candid about the many problems his drinking causes, and after receiving a heartfelt letter from his son pleading with him to stop, he gives it up.

One of the bleaker moments is a road accident in which Anderson accidentally knocks down and kills a local boy he’s previously coached. Anderson is acquitted of any wrongdoing, but the grief and guilt stay with him. He’s especially lucky in his marriage to Heather, whose good-humoured loyalty and support sustain him through his darker days. Loyalty matters to him, a lot.

Honoured to play for Ireland – although standing for the national anthem is "an irritant" – Anderson retains a tribal, atavistic fealty to all things Ulster. He name-checks various Northern rugby icons: Stewart McKinney, David Irwin, Nigel Carr, and even the BBC's Jim Neilly ("a great man to fly the flag for Ulster players during commentaries"). His veneration of Jimmy Davidson ("the greatest rugby man I've ever known") is in striking contrast to his views on other coaches such as Mick Doyle ("nailed-on narcissist") and Clive Woodward ("useless") but Anderson recalls that during Davidson's reign Ulster were unbeaten in the interprovincial championship for almost nine years.

As Ravenhill reverberates again to the Friday night roars, Anderson's voice (ably captured here by Brendan Fanning) will surely be heard. Here's one proud Ulsterman who's never had a problem standing up for himself. John O'Donnell is a Leinster and Ireland supporter. His latest book is Americans Anonymous (Hi-Tone Books), a pictorial and poetic collaboration with photographer Barry Delaney.

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#BookReview Crossing the Line by Bibi Belford @BarbaraBelford @skyponypress

Billy’s family has fallen on hard times, what with his da hospitalized after the war and his ma barely scraping by. But it’s no hardship for him when there’s not enough money to pay the tuition for Nativity of Our Lord, the private Catholic school everyone in his neighborhood attends. Billy’s not big on education.

When he transfers to James Ward, a Chicago public school, he finds out there’s a big difference at public school: the kids aren’t all Irish—in fact, they aren’t even all white. It isn’t long before Billy’s found a new best friend in Foster, another fifth grader who also doesn’t have any money, loves baseball, and just happens to be black.

Billy is pretty sure skin color doesn’t matter. Not when he and Foster are just horsing around, playing baseball, working on the docks of the canal, and building a raft at their secret hideout on Bridgeport’s Bubbly Creek. But in the Red Summer of 1919, it does matter .

Heartfelt, sweeping, and immersive!

Crossing the Line is a moving, fascinating, coming-of-age story set in Chicago during the early 1900s that highlights all the struggles and racial tension of the time and reminds us that even though we’ve come so far, we still have a long way to go.

The writing is sincere and smooth. The characters are concerned, vulnerable and loyal. And the story is an exceptionally compelling tale about life, loss, familial dynamics, friendship, courage, community, discrimination, and racial segregation. 

Overall, Crossing the Line is a well written, exceptionally researched, moving novel by Belford that is a beautiful blend of historical facts, intriguing fiction, and endearing characters.

This novel is available now.

Pick up a copy from your favourite retailer or from one of the following links. 

Thank you to Sky Pony Press for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

About Bibi Belford

Bibi Belford graduated with a B.A. in English from Westmont College and has worked as a playground supervisor for children of migrant workers and was a student teacher in a bilingual classroom before completing her masters in Bilingual Literacy at Northern Illinois University. She currently works as a literacy coach and reading interventionist for an elementary school in Illinois. She is the mother of four grown children and lives in Batavia, Illinois.

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Nick McKenzie’s book on Ben Roberts-Smith is a master class in investigative journalism

The award-winning reporter's book is a testament to tenacious journalism and should be read by every Australian.

Johan Lidberg

Jun 28, 2023

I will forever remember choking on my morning coffee when I read The Age on June 8 2018. Nick McKenzie and Chris Masters’ article detailing the alleged war crimes in Afghanistan of a highly decorated Australian war hero was confronting, to say the least. “This is crazy brave,” I remember thinking. “I really hope they’ve done their homework.”

Unsurprisingly, they had. I say unsurprisingly given Masters comes from the golden age of Australian investigative journalism in the 1980s; his seminal reporting of corruption in Queensland exposed the rot in the Joh Bjelke-Petersen government and eventually brought it down.

The opening of McKenzie’s book, Crossing the Line: The inside story of murder, lies and a fallen hero , makes one reflect on how Australian investigative journalism manages to thrive, making crucial contributions to our liberal democracy and holding societal powers to account.

To list a few of the past decade: McKenzie and team reporting on Melbourne’s Crown Casino; ABC’s Four Corners and Louise Milligan reporting on child abuse in the Catholic Church leading to the royal commission into institutional child abuse; Crikey’s Amber Schultz reporting on the abuse of state guardianship ; Nine’s Adele Ferguson exposing malpractice in the banking and financial sector regarding financial advisory services.

These examples are even more impressive given the severe restrictions on public interest and investigative reportage in Australia, where power elites employ “lawfare” to smother public interest journalism.

However, McKenzie’s and Masters’ reporting efforts on Ben Roberts-Smith go beyond any previous investigative undertaking in Australia. McKenzie’s book, in forensic detail, tells the inside story of the Roberts-Smith reporting project, reflecting the courage required to shed light on the nation-forming myth of the Anzac legend and Australia’s infatuation with war heroes.

To dare to question the reputation of a living war hero is one of the greatest challenges in public interest journalism in Australia. We should all be deeply grateful to McKenzie and Masters for igniting a much-needed, respectful national discourse on our relationship with the Anzac legend. This relationship is far from healthy, as McKenzie’s book so clearly and eloquently illustrates.

Crossing the Line resonates strongly with me. I have deployed twice with UN peacekeeping forces in Cyprus and Lebanon, and although I’ve never witnessed the alleged savagery of Roberts-Smith and some of his colleagues, I have seen his archetypes — the bullying, the lack of empathy, the harm caused to those deployed too many times into theatres of war.

The book outlines in detail how sections of the Australian power elite tried to stop the truth from being reported, including: Brendan Nelson, the former defence minister and former director of the Australian War Memorial; Kerry Stokes, the Seven West Media billionaire who bankrolled Roberts-Smith’s defamation case to the tune of tens of millions for dollars; and, disappointingly, decorated investigative journalist Ross Coulthart, who was allegedly hired as a PR consultant to pressure The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald to not run the stories.

Roberts-Smith’s defenders corralled around him, knowing the Australian Defence Force-instigated Brereton inquiry into alleged war crimes in Afghanistan was ongoing. Surely this should have sparked some doubt in their support for the disgraced war hero, especially given the number of current and former SAS soldiers — including former SAS captain and current Liberal member in the House of Representatives Andrew Hastie — who spoke up about the problematic culture in the SAS.

I know from personal experience how incredibly strong the code of silence is within special forces units. The fact that McKenzie and Masters, from the first article, had numerous SAS sources indicated they were reporting the truth and had done due diligence in ensuring they could back these deeply serious claims.

Whatever happens next to Roberts-Smith (and this case still has a long way to run), the power elite that backed him and tried to stifle the truth should be held to account. Perhaps this will happen with each indictment we are bound to get from the office of the special investigator acting on the Brereton report, which found there was credible evidence of 25 Australian soldiers being involved in 39 murders of Afghans during their deployments to Afghanistan.

The current chair of the Australian War Memorial, Kim Beazley, has a major challenge in how the memorial deals with disgraced war heroes, starting with the life-sized Roberts-Smith portrait and exhibition.

The book is a complete page-turner and a master class in investigative journalism. Tracking down the name of the victim kicked off a cliff and then shot in the Darwan incident is crucial in humanising a killed Afghan civilian. His name was Ali Jan. The section where McKenzie describes his trip to Afghanistan to talk to Jan’s wife, Bibi, is deeply moving.

Echoing McKenzie’s words, we owe an immense debt to the SAS soldiers past and present who stood up and told the truth. They are the real heroes. As Hastie pointed out, they may have saved the SAS.

With McKenzie and Masters (and credit to both Fairfax Ltd and Nine Entertainment for backing the publications), they managed what no other liberal democracy has done to this extent so far: expose the dirty and disgusting underbelly of war, which morally corrupts some of the people we deploy to fight in our name.

McKenzie’s book should be read by every Australian. It will certainly be a set reading in the journalism courses I teach.

About the Author

Contributor

Johan Lidberg is the head of journalism at Monash University. He has a special forces background and has twice served with the United Nations peacekeeping forces in Cyprus and Lebanon. His research is focussed on freedom of information, media accountability and regulation.

• Ben Roberts-Smith
• book reviews
• chris masters
• investigative journalism
• nick mckenzie

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CROSSING THE LINE

From the border town series , vol. 1.

by Malín Alegría ‧ RELEASE DATE: May 1, 2012

A welcome entry into the teen market, especially for Bluford Series fans.

In the first title in the Border Town series, Alegría introduces Fabiola “Fabi” Garza, a Mexican-American teen in the fictitious Texas border town of Dos Rios.

Although her best friend, Georgia Rae, moved away over the summer, Fabi is looking forward to a new school year, since she can finally show her younger sister Alexis the ropes at Dos Rios High. Working as a server in her family’s Mexican restaurant, Fabi is joined by a colorful cast of friends and familia . Against her sister’s advice, Alexis takes up with the popular crowd at school, including football hotshot Dex Andrews. The book quickly takes a darker turn when restaurant employee Chuy is mugged and beaten while covering Fabi’s shift. While her parents and others suspect her cousin Santiago, Fabi believes he is innocent, regardless of his past troubles. Meanwhile, Alexis begins lying to her family to spend more time with Dex and resenting Fabi’s sisterly advice. Overhearing someone bragging at a party about mugging undocumented immigrants, Fabi believes she knows who robbed Chuy. After Santiago ends up in jail, Fabi realizes she has to reveal what she knows. The author sprinkles Spanish words naturally in the text, tackles timely issues without preaching and provides enough light moments to balance the tone.

Pub Date: May 1, 2012

ISBN: 978-0-545-40240-8

Page Count: 192

Publisher: Point/Scholastic

Review Posted Online: March 6, 2012

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 2012

TEENS & YOUNG ADULT SOCIAL THEMES | TEENS & YOUNG ADULT FICTION

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BOOK REVIEW

by Malín Alegría

IF ONLY I HAD TOLD HER

by Laura Nowlin ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 6, 2024

A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind.

In this companion novel to 2013’s If He Had Been With Me , three characters tell their sides of the story.

Finn’s narrative starts three days before his death. He explores the progress of his unrequited love for best friend Autumn up until the day he finally expresses his feelings. Finn’s story ends with his tragic death, which leaves his close friends devastated, unmoored, and uncertain how to go on. Jack’s section follows, offering a heartbreaking look at what it’s like to live with grief. Jack works to overcome the anger he feels toward Sylvie, the girlfriend Finn was breaking up with when he died, and Autumn, the girl he was preparing to build his life around (but whom Jack believed wasn’t good enough for Finn). But when Jack sees how Autumn’s grief matches his own, it changes their understanding of one another. Autumn’s chapters trace her life without Finn as readers follow her struggles with mental health and balancing love and loss. Those who have read the earlier book will better connect with and feel for these characters, particularly since they’ll have a more well-rounded impression of Finn. The pain and anger is well written, and the novel highlights the most troublesome aspects of young adulthood: overconfidence sprinkled with heavy insecurities, fear-fueled decisions, bad communication, and brash judgments. Characters are cued white.

Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024

ISBN: 9781728276229

Page Count: 416

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024

TEENS & YOUNG ADULT SOCIAL THEMES | TEENS & YOUNG ADULT FICTION | TEENS & YOUNG ADULT ROMANCE

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by Laura Nowlin

IF HE HAD BEEN WITH ME

by Laura Nowlin ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 2013

There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.

The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.

Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.

Pub Date: April 1, 2013

ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5

Page Count: 336

Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013

TEENS & YOUNG ADULT ROMANCE | TEENS & YOUNG ADULT SOCIAL THEMES

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Crossing the Line

Category: Romance - Contemporary

Author: joy slaughter.

• Publisher: Flashover Press
• Publication Date: March 10, 2016
• Number of Pages: 358
• ISBN-10: 0578584719
• ISBN-13: 978-0578584713
• ASIN: B07ZBL43J3

Two genuinely flawed and humanly broken characters embark on a journey to healing and love in Joy Slaughter's Crossing the Line , an immersive romance that will have a strong appeal to fans of Sci-Fi and Literary Fiction. Megan Henderson, an EMS worker for Sacred Heart Hospital has a new partner, Nathan Thompson. Nathan is a war veteran who lost his leg in Afghanistan and Megan can't trust that he can handle the job but is surprised to discover that being fitted with a prosthetic doesn't affect him at all. While Megan can't fully trust Nathan, he thinks she is bossy and patronizing. When Nathan notices bruises on her arm, he is worried. Other signs lead Nathan to believe that Megan is being beaten and hurt by her husband. He pushes her to do something about her situation, threatening to report Todd. As they work together, feelings for each other begin to grow, eventually blossoming to an explosive romance. This is a wonderfully crafted humane tale that should burnish the author's reputation as a first-rate storyteller. Slaughter introduces readers to two characters that are complex and incredibly sculpted, each bearing scars from the past. They work in the EMS and the author imbues this world with life, giving readers powerful glimpses of what it feels like to work as an EMS. Apart from Nathan and Megan, there are other fully drawn supporting characters like Megan's abusive husband, Todd. Todd is a police officer and is in a position to coerce his wife to silence. This book offers an exciting journey for readers, from the protagonists’ opposite personalities and distrust for each other to discovering a strong attraction for each other and mutual respect. It is original and bears the marks of stellar literary creation.  Slaughter's Crossing the Line is a deft, balanced, and utterly delightful read with characters that readers will stay with throughout the breezy ride.his shift  

Reviewed By: Franklin Bauer

Reviewed date: october 3, 2022.

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Mending the Line Review: You May Just Get Hooked

Brian Cox and Sinqua Walls cast a worthy creative line in a fly-fishing tale that transcends familiar tropes.

• Mending the Line is a solid study of PTSD and guilt with strong performances from Brian Cox, Sinqua Walls, Wes Studi, and others.
• Beautiful cinematography in Montana sets a warm and relaxing mood for the film.
• While a bit predictable, the film's deep moments and universal themes make it stand out from other melodramas. Its use of fly fishing, too, creates a great allegory.

It’s a bit of a surreal head-scratcher watching the first hour of director Joshua Caldwell’s Mending the Line , mostly because of Brian Cox. That’s not a bad thing at all, and undoubtedly, Cox’s presence works in this film’s favor. But the more you find yourself engaged in this endearing film, you realize several things: Sure, Cox is a sublime actor, but my oh my… it’s hard to shake off Logan Roy, the steely corporate giant Cox brought to life on HBO’s Succession , and a character that will go down as one of television’s finest. Cox is Cox here. Good all around, but that enormous shadow of Logan Roy covers him, especially because Succession’s finale aired just a few weeks ago.

That said, Mending the Line, a film about two unlikely military gents forced together to work things out — bring on the fly-fishing, folks! — somehow generates enough interest to keep you invested until its final scenes. Cox has a good acting partner here with Sinqua Walls. The actor has a commanding presence, and he turned heads in Friday Night Lights and The 15:17 to Paris. Walls will also be seen in T he Blackening. Familiar tropes aside, Mending the Line is worthy of our attention. Here’s why.

Brian Cox and Sinqua Walls Are Sublime

Mending the line.

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• A good study of PTSD, guilt, and antisocial behavior with great performances.
• Visually beautiful and emotionally warm, the film has a pitch perfect and relaxing mood.
• It's a little too sappy and predictable, and doesn't give enough time to certain characters.

Mending the Line also stars Perry Mattfeld ( In the Dark, Shameless ), Patricia Heaton ( Carol’s Second Act ), and Wed Studi. Sinqua Walls plays Colter here, a determined if not fatigued Marine who is ready for one last battle in Afghanistan to end. That doesn’t go as planned, of course. That one last battle turns into a life-and-death situation and in the aftermath, Colter finds himself experiencing painstaking guilt and anger. Immediately, one may recall Jake Gyllenhaal experiencing similar in The Covenant . Other films have tackled this premise, too. What to do?

Related: The Best Movies About PTSD From the Vietnam War

In director Joshua Caldwell’s film , he leans deeply into screenwriter Stephen Camelio’s story, entices with stunning cinematography in Montana from Eve Cohen, and delivers the goods. Camelio wrote Colter as a tough-as-nails career Marine. Imagine the man’s frustration over being injured in battle then having his doctor (Heaton) send him over to another one of her patients, Ike, an elder military gent who is experiencing health concerns of his own. Neither Ike nor Colter want to be paired up, but for some reason their doctor believes Ike’s joy of fly-fishing will temper Colter’s PTSD and help ease Ike’s rattled nerves. Logan Roy fly-fishing? Well, it’s not quite like that, because Cox is an exceptional actor who can lose himself in any role.

Again, here we find a familiar set-up of two unlikely souls coming together who otherwise would have no business ever meeting. It’s dazzling nonetheless because Cox and Walls are so believable in their roles. As is Perry Mattfeld, who plays Lucy, somebody also grieving loss. Colter and Lucy generate a spark, however how that unravels is a refreshing surprise.

Gone Fly-Fishing in Montana

There’s so much happening behind the scenes of Mending the Line that should be noted. Screenwriter Stephen Camelio, who wrote for Field & Stream and EPSN The Magazine, happens to be a fly fisherman, as does Caldwell. Their knowledge of fly-fishing shows here and the scenes in which Ike and Colter hit the stream are some of the finest moments. Think of as a kind of sweet moving meditation of sorts. These images ground the film, balancing Ike and Colter’s personal dilemmas. ' Of course!', we might find ourselves saying to ourselves…. Maybe nature is the best remedy.

Related: Brian Cox's Best Performances, Ranked

Other things stand out in Mending in the Line. Sinqua Walls ( Nanny ) reportedly met and spoke with veterans whose real-life experiences mirrored Colter’s in the film—war, battle, injury, rehabilitation. You see that in Walls’ performance. Truth is, there’s something undoubtedly unique about Walls as an actor. I never felt as if I was watching him. It feels as if we’re experiencing Colter’s powerful journey.

Sobering facts come to mind while watching this film. Recent reports note that up to 22 veterans die by suicide every day. Some reports note that the suicide rate is more than 40. War, veterans, and PTSD all come to mind while watching Mending the Line. And the film’s title, of course, refers to both fly-fishing and psychological care. Camelio weaves all of this into the story with mindfulness and purpose, and the combination of Cox, Walls, and picturesque Montana, make Mending the Line a standout film experience.

Take note, too, of several truly deep moments in the film, particularly when Lucy is reading to Colter or Ike. There’s a sweetness there, with metaphors about life and moving through transition that should strike a universal chord. The filmmakers may cast a familiar creative line in this tale, but you can’t help but get hooked.

Mending the Line , from Blue Fox Entertainment, hit theaters June 9, 2023. It is now available to stream on Netflix through the link below:

Watch Mending the Line