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    The Murder Complex
    The Murder Complex
    The Murder Complex
    Audiobook8 hours

    The Murder Complex

    Written by Lindsay Cummings

    Narrated by Caitlin Davies and Josh Hurley

    3.5/5

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    About this audiobook

    An action-packed, blood-soaked, futuristic debut thriller—set in a world where the murder rate is higher than the birthrate—by Lindsay Cummings, co-author (with Sasha Alsberg) of the New York Times #1 Bestseller Zenith. ""Legend meets La Femme Nikita in this dark and dangerous bloody thriller. The nonstop action of The Murder Complex kept us guessing at every twist and turn. It's a must for fans of action-packed dystopians like The Hunger Games and Divergent.""—Justine Magazine

    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.

    Editor's Note

    Dark dystopian…

    Lindsay Cummings’s debut definitely deserves to be towards the top of the list of darkest dystopians. The brisk pacing of the short chapters alternating points of view keeps the suspense high and the body count even higher.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins
    Release dateJun 10, 2014
    ISBN9780062324832
    Author

    Lindsay Cummings

    Lindsay Cummings is a book blogger and the author of the teen series the Murder Complex. She lives in Texas with two German shepherds, one wolf cub who isn't very smart, a horse named Dan the Man, and a husband named Josh. She eats too many hot Cheetos and can't stop dyeing her hair crazy colors.

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    Reviews for The Murder Complex

    3.5/5

    19 ratings6 reviews

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    • 3/5
      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 is it part of a terrifying strategy? And will Zephyr keep Meadow from discovering the haunting truth about her family?

      The Murder Complex tried really hard to be different. In the end, it was still set in a city closed off from the rest of the world and run by a strict government. Sound familiar? It sure felt familiar. The only real difference is the murder complex itself. The murder complex idea is really interesting and has potential, it just fell a bit flat. Hopefully it will improve in the next book.

      I'm going to come right out and say it: Meadow is a psychopath. A few fries short of a happy meal. First off, the chick kills with absolutely no remorse. None. Yeah, I get its all to help her family. I get it. But still, I feel like she was overly ruthless. Once you start to get over Meadow's brutality, you realize she's also completely bipolar. One chapter she is threatining to kill Zephyr, the next she's all up on him; holding his hand, kissing him, or using his as a human pillow. It was not only irritating, but it also makes Meadow that much harder to understand. Another agravating trait Meadow flaunts is her on and off bursts of self sacrafice. It's on and off with her. She's either sacraficing herself left and right, or seriously contemplates killing all of her companions. Meadow is just a completely on-and-off character and its annoying and barely tolerable.

      All in all, I hated Meadow and was completely indifferent about Zephyr, and there were really know other substantial characters for me to pass jugement on. The general plot was good, but needs work. Hopefully it will be improved in the next book. I'm looking forward to book two but I'm hoping for some redemption and hopefully some better character portrayal. The Murder Complex has real promise, but needs some overall TLC.
    • 2/5
      DisclaimerI received a free electronic Advanced Reader's Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review by the publisher. I was not compensated for this review in anyway.

      The release date for this book is quite far away, so my full review won't be posted until closer to the release date, but I've had a few people politely ask me why The Murder Complex, a highly anticipated title, only received 2 stars, so I decided to do a very brief mini-review.

      Here's the thing: If you had asked me to rate this book at the 50% mark, it would have been at least 4 stars. Cummings keeps the pace up the entire time and this book races by. This book also has a dual POV, and unlike other books that I feel failed in this regards, the split POV really WORKS for The Murder Complex. Meadow and Zephyr have distinct voices, and that takes talent.

      Unfortunately, the halfway point is where problems started to occur. One big one was that the story just didn't feel original anymore. It felt like a Hunger Games Divergent The Maze Runner smashed together, and the novelty wore off. Another big one was the anti-science vibe I got. This has been a problem in similar books before, but it still disappointed me. Of course science can be used for evil things, but I would like a little bit more nuance, and I think teen readers could really use that. How did the world get to be so bad? Science(that was supposed to be good). How did the world go from bad to worse? EVIL SCIENTIST! And the final problem for now: at the halfway point, there's suppose to be a big reveal about the world that I just couldn't fathom or make out the logic of as well.

      This is a very brief overview of course, and my full review will go up in June, but I think it highlights what I liked and what I ultimately found problematic about the book. I think a lot of readers will still really like this book--it is still a really fast-paced adventure story--but there were just too many elements that left me sighing for this one to fall on the positive side.
    • 4/5
      Once I started reading The Murder Complex, I couldn’t stop. It’s full of action, romance, secrets, and conspiracy. Everything I could possibly want in a book.

      I can’t imagine what led Cummings to write this novel, but I’m so glad she did. We have a dual point of view from Meadow and Zephyr. I love Meadow. She’s badass, and doesn’t take crap from anyone. She also learns to follow her instincts. There are so many truths she has to uncover it’s unreal. Some of the situations she gets herself in are scary. I couldn’t imagine having to live the way she does and have to fight for what’s mine. I also love Zephyr. He’s caring, which is odd since he’s an assassin and all that. But he wants to take care of the world, pretty much. I love how the two meet. And there were times I wondered if it was forced or if they met naturally.

      The Murder Complex is action packed. There’s a situation around every corner. And it’s not hard to believe in this new society that people live in. I wouldn’t want to be tracked as closely as they are. The population is also starving. They have ration credits they can use, and I can’t see having to turn away people, or give them barely any food. I’m definitely not cut out for this world. Some of the plot twists I never saw coming. I always think that’s a plus!

      The Murder Complex is a captivating dystopian that I hope others enjoy as much as I did.
    • 4/5
      Review courtesy of Dark Faerie TalesQuick & Dirty: The Murder Complex is intense, dark, and very engaging, but lacks in the romance aspect.Opening Sentence: It is the key to survival, the key to life.The Review:Meadow lives controlled. Nothing she does or says isn’t heard by the harsh government that rules over this dystopian landscape. Human populations are growing fast, with no food and shelter for them, and in order to survive the people of the Shallows listen. But Meadow is about to learn something that changes her life and other’s lives — forever.Before I say anything else, I have a complaint. Meadow? What kind of name is that for a trained killer? It says on the cover she is trained to survive, but honestly this girl murders without any doubts. I don’t know, it might have been a cute name if it fitted her personality, looks, even if there was a story behind it, but sadly there was not. I’ll give you this; it was definitely unique. Zephyr is a good name, and I do think it fits him.This novel had some obvious flaws, other than the name. I’ll get to those later, though, and tell you now that this was incredibly engaging. I read during lunch, after school, and into the night, finishing in a day. When I thought it was getting boring, something new would pop up and I’d be compelled to turn the page. Anyway, that’s the happy stuff, but unluckily, I did have a problem with the romance aspect. I look for a relationship that develops slowly and surely, but with this, for Meadow, one day it’s bam! I’m in love with you. For Zephyr, it was simply the same thing, except way before Meadow. The change was so sudden, to unexpected, and it was like a switch was thrown.Peri, Meadow’s little sister, was adorable. She represented the loving, compassionate side of Meadow sometimes hidden by her ruthless methods. Koi was a great character too, just not as sweet and lovable as Peri, Koi being the brother. If you liked Prim from The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, come join me in celebrating Peri’s pure, angelic personality. To do that, you’ll have to read the book first!This book, while very exciting and action filled, had a fast developing love story and a lot of gore. Considering that Meadow one chapter thinks of breaking someone’s neck as “a satisfying crunch” you see my point. This is not for the fainthearted. It resembles the Hunger Games in a lot of ways, but not too much as to be a copy. Looking back on it, I am glad that I read this story and I will remember it pleasantly, but that whole Meadow/Zephyr love story was not my favorite. I’m really excited for this book to come out because I know people will love it, though!Notable Scene:I focus on my work.That is, until the Wards come in.I look up and see their faces. Filthy. Sunken cheeks.The line moves forward enough for the Initiative officers to close the doors behind the first group. The sunlight disappears. I look up.There,standing at the back of the line, is a boy.Zephyr.FTC Advisory: Greenwillow Books/HarperCollins provided me with a copy of The Murder Complex. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.
    • 5/5
      Beauty.
      That's all I have to say.
    • 3/5
      The Murder Complex is everything the synopsis promised. Lindsey Cummings has written a gory, thrilling story with a gripping world. The characters are very different and intriguing. I had a few problems, but, overall, I absolutely loved reading The Murder Complex!

      Firstly, let me talk about the characters. Meadow and Zephyr, our two protagonists, are unique, very complex, and, understandably harsh and guarded. However, I feel like both of them have a different, perhaps softer, side, at least for Zephyr. Meadow, however, was my favorite of the two. Also, their interactions were interesting . My only complaint about the characters is the fact I never felt the special understanding or connection I crave while reading books.

      The action and pace of this book was incredible. I was never bored because, frankly, there was never a dull moment. The book is filled of fights, shocking realizations, and other adventurous events. The world was absolutely terrrifing and dark. *shivers*

      Often, I felt confused about the story, especially in the beginning. But I pushed through and was rewarded with awesome characters and action. Also, the writing in this book captivated me, and seemed to fit the dark tone of the book. The chapters and sentences were short, but very powerful. I really enjoyed this style.

      Overall, I can’t wait for book two and I need to get my hands on The Fear Trials, the prequel to The Murder Complex. Also, I just found out a few seconds ago (Literally. Thank you Goodreads!) that Cummings has a middle grade series coming soon that sounds amazing!

      3.5/5 Stars