Thursday 17 November 2016

Review: The Murder Game by Julie Apple



The Murder Game - Catherine McKenzie writing as Julie Apple

The Murder Game by Julie Apple

My Rating:

I would like to thank Lawsome Books for providing me with an advanced reading copy of this book.

The Murder Game is a book written by Catherine McKenzie released under the pseudonym of Julie Apple. Julie - for anyone unfamiliar with McKenzie's other works - is the protagonist in McKenzie's previous book, Fractured, who after writing her first book (The Murder Game) is forced to move across the country in order to escape a stalker that has been terrorizing her family since its publication.

I thoroughly enjoyed Fractured and couldn't put it down, so I was keen to move onto the book behind the story. I think I was expecting The Murder Game to be as gripping as Fractured, but it just didn't grab me in the same way. Don't get me wrong, it was enjoyable and it held my interest, but I didn't get the same sense of urgency that I did with Fractured.

I enjoyed getting to know the story behind the story, but I can't say too much as I want to avoid spoilers for both this book and for Fractured. I will say though that it gave me a better understanding of certain things that happened in Fractured, but it is also a decent book in its own right. I do feel the plot seemed too simplistic in parts. I also struggled with the believability at times, especially with regards to the conflict of interest in trying the case, and I didn't warm to the characters as much as I did in her other book. I don't feel they were as appealing or fleshed out in the same way.

All in all, it was a quick and entertaining read, but I much preferred Fractured.



Reviews also posted to my blog: Scarlet's Web
Facebook | Twitter | G+ | BookLikes


3 comments:

  1. Are Fractured and The Murder Game the same book series or are they completely different books??

    ReplyDelete
  2. They are separate books but they compliment each other. The Murder Game is a book written by the main character in Fractured. So although they sort of go together, they are completely different.

    I originally would have said read Fractured first so you can then read the book (The Murder Game) behind the story of Fractured, but Fractured is a much better book in my opinion and I wish I had read The Murder Game first and then moved onto Fractured. It really doesn't matter to be honest what order you read them or even if you read them both. They each stand on their own.

    ReplyDelete