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.
***
"Count to three. Relax your mind. Now survive."
Oh this gotta be one of the best debut novels here. Back in 2013 I thought The Murder Complex might be good, and I was right! Action-packed and blood-soaked aren't even enough to describe the book. It's practically crazy and extremely brutal. The synopsis is right. It IS compelling. I'm so glad I read it.
Off to a thrilling start, which is something rarely seen in debut novels nowadays (I'm sorry but this is the truth). Meadow is trained to survive by her father and she needs to survive in order to help taking care of the whole family. But she doesn't know the real reason behind all the training. Zephyr is a Ward --- a nobody --- except he always find himself killing people he doesn't want to kill. And all that leads something hidden. Something brutal. The Murder Complex. In order to take it down, they've to go through a series of obstacles and face the consequences when the MC is destroyed.
Since it's a debut novel, I figure I have to go through the basics first. Character, plot, all the stuff. I especially love Meadow. She's very respectable. Fierce, determined, brave, logical and quite self-sacrificing. It's hard not to like this girl, especially when she can fight like a badass. Zephyr is her opposite in a way. Not that I don't like him. In fact he's soft and really cute. He wants to do the right thing for himself, people around him and Meadow. But... well, like Meadow said, sometimes (though not often), he's being a baby about stressful situations. I can feel that he will become more mature in the following books. But Zephyr is good enough in this book. Talan doesn't show up in The Murder Complex a lot of times, which is kind of a damn shame, because I really like her. Why? Well here it is: (Beware little spoilers)
I slide her rations through the slot but she doesn't take them. "Don't even think about trying to take him from me, Skinny," she says. "Trust me, you're not his type." -- Meadow and Talan
"She'll come around." Talan says to me. She is gnawing on her rations like a wild dog. "I gave her good reason to want you."
"What are you talking about? What did you say to her?"
Talan shrugs, and kicks and old can across the street. It disappears in an instant, caught up in the current of shuffling feet. "I made her think you weren't free. Every girl wants what she can't have." -- Zephyr and Talan
Bravo, Talan. Bravo. Now you get it.
Well, here comes the plot. And it's nothing short of amazing and ferocious. It's good enough with a nice, bloody start and all. But as the plot develops, it just gets better and better. The foundation of the MC, the secret of Zephyr that he doesn't even aware of, the link between the MC and Meadow... the links between characters are fascinating. And it ends with a breath-taking cliffhanger, which leaves me wanting for more. Now I regret reading this book in January when it'll not be released until June, because now I have to wait 5 more months than I supposed to for the next book! The wait is excruciating! The book is just so good it's practically un-put-down-able. Trust me, this is not something I say for every book.
The Murder Complex is an awesome debut about a world where no one is safe and can die in an instant on the streets without even remotely understanding why. It's the perfect book about survival, danger and choice. I have a feeling the series is just going to get better and better.
Rating: 8.5/10
I slide her rations through the slot but she doesn't take them. "Don't even think about trying to take him from me, Skinny," she says. "Trust me, you're not his type." -- Meadow and Talan
"She'll come around." Talan says to me. She is gnawing on her rations like a wild dog. "I gave her good reason to want you."
"What are you talking about? What did you say to her?"
Talan shrugs, and kicks and old can across the street. It disappears in an instant, caught up in the current of shuffling feet. "I made her think you weren't free. Every girl wants what she can't have." -- Zephyr and Talan
Bravo, Talan. Bravo. Now you get it.
Well, here comes the plot. And it's nothing short of amazing and ferocious. It's good enough with a nice, bloody start and all. But as the plot develops, it just gets better and better. The foundation of the MC, the secret of Zephyr that he doesn't even aware of, the link between the MC and Meadow... the links between characters are fascinating. And it ends with a breath-taking cliffhanger, which leaves me wanting for more. Now I regret reading this book in January when it'll not be released until June, because now I have to wait 5 more months than I supposed to for the next book! The wait is excruciating! The book is just so good it's practically un-put-down-able. Trust me, this is not something I say for every book.
The Murder Complex is an awesome debut about a world where no one is safe and can die in an instant on the streets without even remotely understanding why. It's the perfect book about survival, danger and choice. I have a feeling the series is just going to get better and better.
Rating: 8.5/10
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