Murray McDonald: Scion

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Fast action sometimes unbelievable escapism
This is an over-the-top fast-action global and political conspiracy with scores of assassins on the side of the goodies and the baddies. If you like such escapism then this is a great page-turner for you. If you like a bit of a reality check then this may be too far fetched for you.

Scott (no surname, no passport) is wrongly arrested in the UK for rape. Scott grew up as a shipwrecked orphan on a small island near Borneo, not knowing the identity of both of his parents.  He is now nearly 25 years old (a key age in the plot) and has become a highly connected and dangerous undercover international government assassin.  What he doesn't realise is that his whole life is closely connected to one of the biggest power grabbing conspiracies on the globe.

I enjoyed "Divide and Conquer" and "Critical Error" but felt that the plot in this book was not only a bit over-the-top but there were so many different characters (especially on the baddie side) that it was hard to keep track of them. The action was frequently too unreal with the baddies being able to do so many things and influence so many people at the drop of a hat. On the other hand when the goodies got stuck into the baddies, less than half a dozen of them were able to take down dozens of well organised and highly dangerous baddies. Probably one of the best parts of the plot was the twist in the tale right at the end that I didn't anticipate.

This is one of the hardest books to rate. My head says that it should be 2.5 stars, my heart says that it should be 3.5 stars, and I know that thriller junkies would give it 4+ stars. On balance I settled on 3 stars.

Murray McDonald: Divide & Conquer

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Enjoyable and fast paced escapism
This is well written, page-turning escapism which grabs the attention and never lets go. The plot is complex and far fetched but made for good and entertaining reading.

Sean Fox, an ex CIA operative, returns from several years in Afghanistan as an independent contractor looking forward to some well deserved R and R. He is detained at the airport because official records show that he was visciously killed by a Mexican drug cartel 3 months before. Even more surprising, he learns that he is survived by a wife and small son who he has never met.

The son is kidnapped and very quickly Sean is fighting the Mexican cartel to release the son and protect the wife. Not only does he have to deal with the cruel and powerful Mexicans, but his return has triggered actons by intelligence agencies in both the U.S. and Russia. Before long Sean's struggle becomes an international one that will affect the future of the major world powers.

One reviewer pointed out some mistakes in US English usage but they were minor and didn't detract from the impact of the story.

Murray McDonald writes exciting thrillers. I enjoyed Critical Error and look forward to reading Scion.

Murray McDonald: Critical Error

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Surprisingly good page-turning thriller
I really enjoyed this fast paced, page turning thriller by Murray McDonald. The action, sometimes very violent, is non-stop, the plot is most devious, and the ending is unexpected, almost unbelievable but extremely satisfying.

The story involves a retired CIA assassin whose his own family is slaughtered in a bungled attempt on his life. His brother, a leading candidate in an upcoming US presidential election, is also a target of a group of rich and powerful businessmen with major influence over the President and Vice President. Mix this with a beautiful and dangerous female Mossad agent, Palestinian terrorists, stolen nuclear bombs, and an Israeli government trying to stop the bombs being set off in their homeland and in the US and you have a very explosive mixture.

I loved the book and give it 5 stars because it was so audacious and well written. My only bad mark is for editing - how could the editor miss 15 occurrences of "Whitehouse" in a book which features a US President?