The day Finn Maguire discovers his dad bludgeoned to death in a pool of blood, his dreary life is turned upside down. Prime suspect in his father’s murder, Finn must race against time to clear his name and find out who hated his dad enough to kill him.
Scouring the sordid, brutal London underworld for answers, exposing dark family secrets, and facing danger at every turn, Finn is about to learn that it’s the people you trust who can hit you the hardest. . .
Crusher is this year’s most talked-about debut thriller.
Crusher
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Book Description
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Editorial Reviews
From School Library Journal
Gr 9 Up-After high-school dropout Finn Maguire comes home to find his starving-writer father (really his stepfather) bludgeoned to death at the dining room table, he makes it his mission to find the killer. Meanwhile, his lack of cooperation with authorities has some members of the police force pegging Finn as the suspect. Leonard introduces numerous characters as possible suspects, causing the story to take many twists and turns that leave readers guessing the identity of the murderer until the very end. Finn frequently finds himself engaged in battle with villains as he pursues leads into his father's death with a vengeance, carrying a feeling of suspense throughout the novel. Some of the British slang may throw American readers off, but overall the language discrepancies do not take away from the fast-paced story line.-Nicole Knott, Watertown High School, CTα(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review
"One of my favourite authors is Simon Kernick whose books I can devour in a single sitting. I would put the amazing Niall Leonard in the same category because CRUSHER was just as gripping and pulse-pounding and gave me sweaty palms from start to finish... If you enjoy crime novels then you'll love CRUSHER, which is one of the best young adult novels within this genre I've ever read." A Dream of Books blog "I was addicted to this from the first chapter... The storyline is compelling, peppered with so many twists and turns that you will question everything, and has an amazingly explosive ending that you will not be expecting. CRUSHER is a fabulous debut from Niall Leonard that is definitely not to be missed!" FictionFascination blog "I thoroughly enjoyed this young adult debut thriller by Niall Leonard... Finn Maguire is an extremely well-drawn and empathetic character." Raven Crime Reads blog "Finn is beautifully observed - a teenage boy in a world of trouble who is brave and persistent but who also inhabits a taciturn emotional landscape that readers will engage with... There are some fantastic action scenes, including a truly great escape and a visceral fight... The plot is cleverly worked-through with all sorts of twists and turns and paced for breathlessness and page-turning. CRUSHER has all the ingredients of a great YA thriller - accessibility, character, plot, action, pacing." The Bookbag "This thriller travels at a gripping pace" Publishers Weekly
--This text refers to an alternate
Hardcover
edition.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
CRUSHER was so obviously a generic thriller title that I paid it little attention. Imagine my surprise when it was relevant to the story in multiple ways. It's one of the many ways CRUSHER was a pleasant surprise. It landed on my porch not too long ago, but caught my attention because it had been overnighted. That's not usual for an unsolicited review copy.
The included letter started by talking about Niall Leonard's wife, E L James (FIFTY SHADES OF GREY) and mentioned he'd just written CRUSHER last November. That made me a touch wary, concerned that CRUSHER had been rushed into production due to Leonard's association with infamy. And, okay, I still assumed that happened, but CRUSHER can stand on its own merits.
Quick note: I read the UK text. I don't know if the US version will be any different, but generally references to salad on sandwiches and such is changed. Now back to the review.
Finn Maguire doesn't have much hope for the future. He works in fast food without much hope of advancement since he dropped out of high school. He can't read well due to dyslexia and a lack of academic encouragement. He lives in squalor with his father, an out-of-work actor who talks about becoming a screenwriter but never manages to sell any of his work. Coming home from work one day, Finn finds his father murdered. The police suspect Finn, leading him to start his own investigation.
Soon, Finn is mixed up with the biggest gangster around and getting by day-by-day now includes not getting killed himself. I really liked Finn's character. He's determined and clever, absolutely terrific at improvising, but he's not that smart. He's got a strong moral center too. He'll defend himself and he'll lie to get to the truth, but he's not the kind of guy who leaves a trail of collateral damage. He doesn't like letting people he doesn't like get hurt if he knows he can stop it.
I love a good crime drama, and that's exactly what CRUSHER is. It's sordid and filled with characters you can't trust and utterly absorbing. I loved following Finn's quest to catch his father's killer. Fantastically, he isn't a great detective. He's brilliant on stumbling onto trouble and pretty lucky he took all those boxing lessons, but he doesn't yet have an instinct for putting the pieces together. He can still make it work.
I think I read CRUSHER in less than two hours. I ate my breakfast on Saturday, settled down to read, and didn't come up for air until I was done. Few books catch my attention that thoroughly anymore. Mystery fans, thriller fans, boxing fans: check out CRUSHER. It's quite a ride.
The included letter started by talking about Niall Leonard's wife, E L James (FIFTY SHADES OF GREY) and mentioned he'd just written CRUSHER last November. That made me a touch wary, concerned that CRUSHER had been rushed into production due to Leonard's association with infamy. And, okay, I still assumed that happened, but CRUSHER can stand on its own merits.
Quick note: I read the UK text. I don't know if the US version will be any different, but generally references to salad on sandwiches and such is changed. Now back to the review.
Finn Maguire doesn't have much hope for the future. He works in fast food without much hope of advancement since he dropped out of high school. He can't read well due to dyslexia and a lack of academic encouragement. He lives in squalor with his father, an out-of-work actor who talks about becoming a screenwriter but never manages to sell any of his work. Coming home from work one day, Finn finds his father murdered. The police suspect Finn, leading him to start his own investigation.
Soon, Finn is mixed up with the biggest gangster around and getting by day-by-day now includes not getting killed himself. I really liked Finn's character. He's determined and clever, absolutely terrific at improvising, but he's not that smart. He's got a strong moral center too. He'll defend himself and he'll lie to get to the truth, but he's not the kind of guy who leaves a trail of collateral damage. He doesn't like letting people he doesn't like get hurt if he knows he can stop it.
I love a good crime drama, and that's exactly what CRUSHER is. It's sordid and filled with characters you can't trust and utterly absorbing. I loved following Finn's quest to catch his father's killer. Fantastically, he isn't a great detective. He's brilliant on stumbling onto trouble and pretty lucky he took all those boxing lessons, but he doesn't yet have an instinct for putting the pieces together. He can still make it work.
I think I read CRUSHER in less than two hours. I ate my breakfast on Saturday, settled down to read, and didn't come up for air until I was done. Few books catch my attention that thoroughly anymore. Mystery fans, thriller fans, boxing fans: check out CRUSHER. It's quite a ride.
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By Kris
Format:Hardcover
When I'm told to expect a thriller, I expect lots of action, suspense, and, well, thrills. The tone I got from this book was bland. It seems as though Finn is supposed to be a cool, analytical guy. He doesn't sure much emotion when he comes across grotesque scenes or kills a guy in self-defense, and he doesn't seem to have much feelings about his dad (official title: stepfather). Despite being a total amateur at sleuthing and the great dangers involved, Finn suddenly decides to find his dad's murderer.
Yes, Finn rightly doesn't trust the officer in charge of the case of his dad's murder and decides to pursue the mystery himself, but I would have expected him to die while poking into the affairs of organized crime. If it weren't for his boxing training, other street smarts (of unidentified origin), and sheer luck, Finn would be dead. Finn's work is sloppy, the crime chase a disappointment. Rather than digging up clues, most of the time it seems as though Finn is just trying to make ends meet. It's purely coincidental that he's able to stumble upon crimes along his way to finding the identity of the ones behind his dad's murder. His work is sloppy, and I doubt people involved in real organized crime would be so careless as to left an amateur like him work his way into their midst. I must say. There were some pretty intense fight things; however, these were so descriptive and hard to follow that they ended up going over my head while other parts of the novel were so languid and slow-paced, seemingly going nowhere, that they bored me.
Some of the things that Finn says doesn't add up either. First, he claims that he's the one who has been taking care of him and his dad, but he doesn't know what to do about finances. He doesn't show much emotion upon finding his dad's body, but then he thinks about him fondly in death. Sure, he might be in shock half the time with all the crazy things happening around him, but if he's as intelligent as he seems to be, his words ought to make sense. In addition, despite being the intelligent guy that he is, Finn uses his dyslexia as a crutch, blaming his inability to do well on it. His dyslexia only impairs his ability to read, not his ability to talk or think or act as a functioning member of society.
If you've been following my reviews for a while, you'll know how I go on about characters. While many elements going into the making of a novel, characters are one of the most in contributing to my overall enjoyment of a novel. If I can't relate to them, I can't relate to the story. The characters in this book are poorly developed. Not only was I unable to get to know them on a personal level and develop sympathy for them, many of them make infrequent appearances. This wouldn't have bothered me so much except that when they do turn up again, they do something unexpected, something that doesn't match what we've been given of their characters thus far.
I did get a pleasant surprise with where the plot took me. It wasn't as straightforward and languid as it seemed to be. In fact, I wouldn't have thought to connect some of the pieces together, and I certainly wasn't expecting the end to take me where it did. If the plot threads were better connected and the characters better developed, the writing more fluid, better detailed and less bland, this book might have been more interesting. This is what earned it that 2 star and made it an okay read. Is it a book that I would recommend, however? No. There are better YA crime/thrillers out there that I would recommend over this one.
Yes, Finn rightly doesn't trust the officer in charge of the case of his dad's murder and decides to pursue the mystery himself, but I would have expected him to die while poking into the affairs of organized crime. If it weren't for his boxing training, other street smarts (of unidentified origin), and sheer luck, Finn would be dead. Finn's work is sloppy, the crime chase a disappointment. Rather than digging up clues, most of the time it seems as though Finn is just trying to make ends meet. It's purely coincidental that he's able to stumble upon crimes along his way to finding the identity of the ones behind his dad's murder. His work is sloppy, and I doubt people involved in real organized crime would be so careless as to left an amateur like him work his way into their midst. I must say. There were some pretty intense fight things; however, these were so descriptive and hard to follow that they ended up going over my head while other parts of the novel were so languid and slow-paced, seemingly going nowhere, that they bored me.
Some of the things that Finn says doesn't add up either. First, he claims that he's the one who has been taking care of him and his dad, but he doesn't know what to do about finances. He doesn't show much emotion upon finding his dad's body, but then he thinks about him fondly in death. Sure, he might be in shock half the time with all the crazy things happening around him, but if he's as intelligent as he seems to be, his words ought to make sense. In addition, despite being the intelligent guy that he is, Finn uses his dyslexia as a crutch, blaming his inability to do well on it. His dyslexia only impairs his ability to read, not his ability to talk or think or act as a functioning member of society.
If you've been following my reviews for a while, you'll know how I go on about characters. While many elements going into the making of a novel, characters are one of the most in contributing to my overall enjoyment of a novel. If I can't relate to them, I can't relate to the story. The characters in this book are poorly developed. Not only was I unable to get to know them on a personal level and develop sympathy for them, many of them make infrequent appearances. This wouldn't have bothered me so much except that when they do turn up again, they do something unexpected, something that doesn't match what we've been given of their characters thus far.
I did get a pleasant surprise with where the plot took me. It wasn't as straightforward and languid as it seemed to be. In fact, I wouldn't have thought to connect some of the pieces together, and I certainly wasn't expecting the end to take me where it did. If the plot threads were better connected and the characters better developed, the writing more fluid, better detailed and less bland, this book might have been more interesting. This is what earned it that 2 star and made it an okay read. Is it a book that I would recommend, however? No. There are better YA crime/thrillers out there that I would recommend over this one.
Format:Audio CD
This review is about the audiobook from Listening Library. The Amazing Audiobooks committee for the Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA) arm of the American Library Association (ALA) has awarded this particular audiobook a Top Ten designation for their 2013 list. "Prime suspect in the murder of his father, Finn Maguire is forced to overcome his own failings as he tumbles along the trail of clues to save himself. Fast-paced and gritty, Weyman's narration highlights the emotional aspect of Finn's by-the-seat-of-his-pants investigation."
Through Weyman's voice the text is elevated to more than just a thriller as the listener can hear Finn's desperate moves toward maturity and vindication through the narrative. The committee of nine librarians who listened to thousands of hours of audiobooks for a year to come up with an exclusive list of "amazing" titles thinks this one is of the best of the best for the year.
Through Weyman's voice the text is elevated to more than just a thriller as the listener can hear Finn's desperate moves toward maturity and vindication through the narrative. The committee of nine librarians who listened to thousands of hours of audiobooks for a year to come up with an exclusive list of "amazing" titles thinks this one is of the best of the best for the year.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
A good first book
I enjoyed this book. It was fast paced, and a surprising ending. My only issue is that there was a few times that I needed to look up words in my kindle dictionary. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Jeremysnana
5.0 out of 5 stars
Crusher
Loved it!!!!!!!!! Great book from this author! Love the character. I didn't expect it to end the way it did. I couldn't put it down.
Published 4 months ago by Linda
3.0 out of 5 stars
interesting
I bought this book because his wife is E.L James, of "Fifty Shades of Grey" fame. I figured I would give this new author a shot. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Victoria
4.0 out of 5 stars
Compelling story and characters
Loved this story. I was glued to my seat as I read - couldn't wait to find out more. The author did a great job creating characters I either wanted to read more about, or never... Read more
Published 5 months ago by RT
4.0 out of 5 stars
nice surprise
this was a pretty darn good mystery. i wasn't expecting much and just got it out of curiosity as to who on earth would be married to ELJames. Read more
Published 6 months ago by poodles2
5.0 out of 5 stars
Exciting and dramatic chase through London
I loved this book. So nice to have a story written in London by an author who lives there! Using classic UK terminology, I enjoyed the action from start to finish laid out like a... Read more
Published 6 months ago by L. Ness
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good debut
Crusher is Niall Leonard's debut novel.
Finn Maguire returns home from his dead end job at a fast food place to find his house dark. Read more
Finn Maguire returns home from his dead end job at a fast food place to find his house dark. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Luanne Ollivier
5.0 out of 5 stars
Page turning thriller
Even though I'm not in the target YA audience for this book I thoroughly enjoyed this thriller. The London setting was real and gritty, certainly not the London seen by tourists. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Scout
4.0 out of 5 stars
Crusher
I read many mystery books. This one has a different twist. Set in London, the protagonist is a teen who returns home from work to find his father murdered and himself the prime... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Betsy Ross
5.0 out of 5 stars
"Trust Nobody"
As a long term lover of crime thrillers, none of which would fall under the YA category, I felt a slight trepidation with this being my first venture into the world of crime as... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Bee Stevens
