Book Revew: The Murder Complex by Lindsay Cummings

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Title: The Murder Complex

Author: Lindsay Cummings
Genre: Young Adult
Publisher: Harper Collins
Publication Date: 10th June 2014
ISBN: 9780062220011
Stand Alone/Series: First book in the Murder Complex series
Pages: 398 pages
First Lines: It is the key to survival, the key to life.  My father's old dagger.

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Synopsis:  An action-packed, blood-soaked, futuristic debut thriller set in a world where the murder rate is higher than the birthrate. For fans of Moira Young’s Dust Lands series, La Femme Nikita, and the movie Hanna.

Meadow Woodson, a fifteen-year-old girl who has been trained by her father to fight, to kill, and to survive in any situation, lives with her family on a houseboat in Florida. The state is controlled by The Murder Complex, an organization that tracks the population with precision.

The plot starts to thicken when Meadow meets Zephyr James, who is—although he doesn’t know it—one of the MC’s programmed assassins. Is their meeting a coincidence? Destiny? Or part of a terrifying strategy? And will Zephyr keep Meadow from discovering the haunting truth about her family?

Action-packed, blood-soaked, and chilling, this is a dark and compelling debut novel by Lindsay Cummings.

My Thoughts:
I stumbled across Lindsay Cummings' Instagram some time ago and have been following her pics and promotion but hadn't had the chance to pick up any of her books. It was after watching one of her Youtube videos on help for writers that I realized I hadn't read anything of hers so I picked up The Murder Complex.

I had read the first paragraph in the synopsis and it had won me over to reading this so I purchased a kindle version and off I went. As you can tell it was a bit of a surprise when Meadow and Zephyr meet because I had no idea he was a programmed assassin as the synopsis had stated so it was a a big surprise. Because I was thinking this is great they'll get together... :)

I liked the world that Lindsay has created: The Shallows. Don't get me wrong, it's not a place I'd personally live in but it came alive and felt real and believable. The only thing I did think of was that the perimeter reminded me of many other dystopians that had walls keeping them in. The story needed it, but I guess I hate to say it but felt it was bordering on cliche.

The characters were an interesting mix. Meadow, a girl who would do anything to keep her family safe, including kill. Trained in combat and always on her guard, Meadow quickly became my favourite when I was reading her chapters.

Zephyr is a bit of a complicated one. He's a ward of the government and lives with all the other orphans on the reserve, and up until a certain point, I'd believed him to be fairly innocent in the story. It's not what you think though and I did really like Zephyr as a character in the book also.

Talan, Zephyrs friend and fellow ward was another one I felt I needed to mention. She's mouthy and rebellious and a great addition to TMC cast.

If you are looking for a gripping read that is a bit gory I suggest giving this one a try. I'm already itching to read the sequel to this so that's saying something.

Hope you all enjoy!


Fave Lines:  Sometimes we have to give up little pieces of our humanity so that we can keep living.
(There are too many favourite lines to list here!)
Book received from:  Purchased (Kindle)
Authors Website:  Lindsay Cummings

Book Review: Honeymoon by James Patterson

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Title: Honeymoon

Author: James Patterson and Howard Rougan
Genre: Mystery / Fiction / Thriller / Suspense
Publisher: Headline Publishing Group
Publication Date: 1st January 2007
ISBN: 9780755387151
Stand Alone/Series: Honeymoon #1
Pages:  393 pages
First Lines: Things aren't always as they appear.  One minute, I'm totally fine.

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Synopsis:  
Don't give away the ending ... don't give away the beginning.

How does it feel to be desired by every man and envied by every woman? Wonderful. This is the life Nora Sinclair has dreamed about, the life she's worked hard for, the life she will never give up.

She doesn't just attract men, she enthralls them. So why is FBI agent John O'Hara interested in Nora Sinclair? Mysterious things happen to people around her, especially the men. And there is something dangerous about Nora, something that lures O'Hara at the same time that it fills him with fear.

Is something dark hidden in the gaps of her past? As O'Hara spends more and more time getting to know her, is he pursuing justice? Or his own fatal obsession?

My Thoughts: 
If it weren't for the fact I was doing James Patterson's Masterclass I probably would never have picked this book up.  I'd heard mixed reviews on the author and his very quick turnaround times for books so I didn't really have any interest.  But since one of the things that would help with the course was to read this, I gave it a go.  If you are interested in James Pattersons Masterclass you can by clicking here.

This is a murder mystery novel so there isn't alot I can talk about without giving away too much but the story revolves around a woman who is alluring and beautiful and an interior decorator.  She has everything going for her and so when she leaves her husband to go see a client, and that client turns out to be another man she is involved with, things get pretty interesting.

While we get to read from a few different view points I definitely liked the main character O'Hara and the predicament he ends up in.  He's a very relatable character with good strong morals that are definitely tested.

If you like a good mystery, certainly give this a go.  I found it to be a real page turner.  The chapters are short and engaging and I can't wait to read the next book Second Honeymoon!

Happy reading!

Book received from:  Purchased from Amazon