Madness (Madness Chronicles, #1) by M.L. Banner

Madness (Madness Chronicles, #1) Reviews

• 
  David

  4.5 stars for this one, which is a great start to another trilogy! My full review can be read here --->
  https://wp.me/p5t5Tf-1yD
• 
  Michael Keller

  The nightmare spread from the land to the sea as animals turned vicious, attacking and eating everything and everyone in sight!
  
  Ted and T.J. Williams barely made it aboard the Regal European's cruise ship Intrepid. They had booked passage on the cruise from Malaga, Spain back to the U.S. After Mt. Etna erupted spewing ash over Europe cancelling flights in or out. On their way to the ship, Ted and T.J. witnessed what could only be described as a scene from Hitchcock's "The Birds". A furious attack by seagulls drove tourists running, some wounded and bleeding. This was an inauspicious beginning to their cruise.
  
  The action builds as more is learned about animal attacks around the world. The characters are full and vibrant, well established and warm. I can't wait to read part two!
• 
  Karina Halt

  This is a great post-apocalyptic horror story, I have to say it really scared me! It's a very different take on the zombie genre. Begins by animals going mad attaching humans and everything goes downhill from there! Recommended!
• 
  Christian

  Took me way, way too long to read this but I’m glad I did. A post apocalyptic type of tale about a parasitic infection turning animals into vicious killers with mankind on the menu. The real strength of this novel is the description and development, both in plot and more so the characters. Despite all the crazy action happening, I felt fully invested in the story and the characters. Without giving away spoilers there was one chapter within the novel that I felt was wholly and truly unnecessary in every which way, but I’m choosing to blank that chapter out of my mind.
• 
  Lucinda

  Reminiscent of 'Zoo' in which the animals go crazy, but that main action happens upon a cruise ship. I liked it enough to want to read the next book in the series, as it is a trilogy.
• 
  Kim

  Fresh point of view on the rage virus
  
  Well developed characters. I found myself talking to them. Telling OMG! Don't do that ! I totally recommend this book.
• 
  Wendy

  An innovative thrill-ride “Madness” begins as Ted and TJ Williams’ flight is diverted because of a volcanic eruption only to face an attack by seagulls, and a “rolling cloud of rats” before they finally reach their cruise ship in a Spanish port. The plot heats up as their vacation cruise to celebrate their 20th Anniversary turns into a nightmare as the dogs pampered in the Regal Pet Spa on board the ship and an infected Barbary ape sneaking on in Gibraltar turn vicious, attacking crew and passengers alike.
  
  Life on the cruise turns unpredictable and dangerous as the Captain of the Intrepid struggles to make sense of an apocalyptic horror that’s not only reigning havoc on his ship but spreading globally, turning to former scientist and writer Ted Williams for insight. But the animal attacks are only one hot spot as another volcano erupts sending a tsunami headed towards the cruise liner.
  
  Fast-paced and action-packed intensity and suspense quickly escalate as Ted’s book “Madness” seems to vibrate with similarities to the events unfolding on the ship and the Captain needs the writer’s help to understand the apocalyptic nightmare evolving. Into this terrifying landscape M.L. Banner weaves a minor secondary plot as FBI agent TJ Williams and the ship’s staff captain investigate a serial killer who murders her wealthy husbands when they become boring. Although lesser in importance it does offer an alarming plot twist at the end.
  
  With shades of James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge’s novel Zoo, the plot is frightening in its realism. Told from multiple perspectives, the violence is sporadically undercut with dark humor like Eloise Carmichael’s misreading of her toy poodle’s aggression, feeding him an anxiety pill as well as touching moments like the crew member’s recovery of his missing ferret Taufan, and the Williams rescue of the old woman who wanted to see the tsunami. Skilfully written, the plot keeps you on the edge of your seat from beginning to an end that promises an even more frightening sequel.
  
  Bringing the plot to life are multiple intriguing and compelling characters like Ted Williams a practical and methodical thinker plagued by nightmares and panic attacks who’s married to TJ (Theresa Jean) an athletic and tough FBI agent who’s haunted by a fear of animals. Jörgen Christiansen is the respected and competent Captain of the Intrepid while Eloise Carmichael is a snobby, greedy and vain woman who loves her toy poodle and marries old men to increase her wealth.
  
  I thoroughly enjoyed “Madness”, an apocalyptic plot with memorable characters that I suspect will build in dark tension and power as the story continues.
• 
  BookLoversLife

  Ted and TJ Williams are on the way to their cruise ship when their flight is diverted due to a Volcanic eruption. While they are waiting for another form of transportation they witness some birds attaching people. They put it down to a freak accident and secure a car to take them to the port, but with rumours and news of other attacks, they realise that something might be happening. On the ship, the dogs aboard are starting to act weird and things escalate quickly. With evidence mounting, Ted knows that things are only going to get worse.
  
  This was terrifyingly real!! As the author says at the start "FACT: There's a real-life parasite that rewires mammals brains for extreme aggressive behavior…" The author portrays the events of this in such a way that you could see this happening.... well most of it anyway. It was hard to put it down because I had to see what would happen next.
  
  I really liked both Ted and TJ. TJ has a real fear of animals because her partner was attacked by a dog and she froze up. The thoughts of any animal attack leaves her terrified and I can relate to that. I wouldn't say I'm terrified of dogs, but I do have a fear of them. Ted is a scientist and author and wrote a book about animals turning rabid because of a parasite. He also studied the parasite and knows all there is to know about it, it's why the Captain of the ship turns to him when things get bad.
  
  The plot was fast paced, well written and action packed. The science was well told and easy to follow and I had no problem believing it. I loved the twist the author added to the book. I don't want to say what because it will spoil it but it was a unique way to get there. I'm really looking forward to the next one to see where the story goes.
  
  In all, this was a great read and a fantastic start to whats sure to be a brilliant series.
  
  Gary Tiedemann was clear, easy to follow and had plenty of different voices and tones for the characters. He was able to bring the atmosphere to life and gave a brilliant performance.
  
  I was given this audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. This in no way affected nor influenced my thoughts.
• 
  Megan

  A Fresh Take on Apocalyptic Events!
  
  I have to say, it is rare to find a totally fresh approach to the how's and why's when it comes to the start of an apocalyptic event. M.L. Banner had provided not only a truly viable scenario, but surrounds it with a great locale, attention to detail, and the absolute must have of any well written series - great characters! Each person who plays a part in the book, despite their eventual status of live or die, is finely created to make their mark. From the main characters Ted and T.J., a married couple joining the cruise to promote Ted's writing career, to the Captain who is a big fan of Ted's novels, all the way down to a ship's crew member named Paulo... they all remain with you after the last page is read.
  
  What begins in book one with animal attacks starts to bloom into a much larger, interconnected, global crisis, and possibly world ending series of events. I'm ready to find out more in book two, and I hope you jump on for the ride! There's a copy waiting for you... and there is more than enough room on the boat...
• 
  Valerie

  I received a copy of this book as an advanced-release for review purposes. I really liked the premise of the story, although I found a couple of the characters a little confusing. In particular, TJ's character didn't seem consistent -- which I know humans are not consistent -- but I just didn't really get to know or understand her or her motivations. The end of the first book cleared some of the mystery up, so maybe as the story progresses, I'll get a better understanding of the whole character.
  
  I'm not sure who proofread the advanced copy, but hopefully, the print copy has been better proofread. I know this is nitpicky, but I am really put off by misspelled words and inconsistent spellings of names (e.g. I found Jorgen Christiansson, Captain Christiansen, and so forth; Zeeka, Zeka; and Bonaventure also in more than one form).
  
  I like how Mr. Banner put the title of the book into the story as written by the protagonist, Ted Bonaventure. Clever! And the phrase, "apocalyptic mind kicks in" -- have to love that! My mind does the same thing on any given day because I'm obsessed with the theme!
  
  Overall, I liked the story and am looking forward to reading the other books. I do recommend this to anyone who likes end of the world stories, intrigue, and unintentional heroes.
• 
  Johnny

  Book one
  
  Some of the reviews said they dropped this series or the author entirely due to a rape scene in the book.
  While it was rape, the wife was passed out while the husband supposedly had sex with her. It was not graphic or detailed, just eluded to.
  However for those that have dropped the series or just find it offensive I have a question for you, have any of you ever awoken your partner with an act of sex of any kind? If so then by definition, you have committed rape. A person asleep can not willingly consent to sex. Just wanted to point that out to the judgemental people out there.
  This book is very interesting and reads like a comedy of errors. If someone can break a rule of leave a post they seem to do so at the worst possible time. This allows things to slide from had straight into nightmare mode.
  Don't worry though, this usually leads to that person's death, along with others of course.
  I recommend this book and will be grabbing book two.
• 
  Teresa Rollen

  I thought this book was just ok. This is an apocalyptic story where animals become very aggressive because of some kind of parasite. The majority of this book takes place on a cruise ship. The main thing that I liked about the book was seeing how the parasite affected the animals. However, I didn’t really care about any of the characters. and I thought the story jumped around too much. The book is available on Kindle Unlimited, and some people might like this book better than I did. I used a credit for the Audiobook and wished I had just read it and saved the credit. However, the ending of the book does kinda make me want to read the next book in the series to see what happens.
• 
  Andre Damrill

  Madness
  
  I am sorry. This book could have been great if it did not jump around so much. This sounds like story but I can't follow what is going on. The story is hard to follow which makes for an uncomfortable reading experience. If this story was rewritten maybe it would be great, I just couldn't get far enough into it to find out. I hope this author continues because I think he maybe a good author with time.
• 
  Tammy Bulcao

  Suspenseful!
  
  I enjoyed this story. It was suspenseful, horrific and a little gruesome. Just the way a good horror-thriller should be.
  There was also a mystery element added which increased the excitement. I loved the multiple POV’s as well as the way the chapters were written.
  The narration was very good. Gary Tiedemann is very talented as there were several accents in this story.
  This is book 1 in this series and the adventure does continue.
  I recommend this book.
  
  Sisters Spotlight 💜
• 
  Nollaig Kelly

  loved it
  
  a volcano erupts and something changes animals into vicious little feckers
  
  people on a cruise think they have gotten away from the madness; but as it happens no they haven't
  
  the virus starts to affect humans too turning them into zombie like creatures and it's up to the ships crew and remaining passengers to survive if they can
• 
  Chrystal Roe

  Excellent
  
  This is one scary journey. What was supposed to be a relaxing vacation turns deadly. This story is so well written I forgot I wasn't really there. I can't wait to read the rest of the series
• 
  Jamie Mcclimon

  great book
  
  I really enjoyed this book. It was a pretty fast read once I got into it. Before I knew it I was almost done. I wish there was more to read, but it ended like some movies do.... leaving you wanting more. I would/will check out this author, see what else looks good.