Eddie Flynn Book Review : Thirteen + Fifty Fifty by Steve Cavanagh

You know what?

Eddie Flynn is legit the hottest defence lawyer ever.

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1. Thirteen (Eddie Flynn, #4) by Steve Cavanagh

Genre : Thriller, Mystery, Fiction
Page : 356 pages
Published : 30th January 2018

— Blurb —

The serial killer isn’t on trial.

He’s on the jury…

They were Hollywood’s hottest power couple. They had the world at their feet. Now one of them is dead and Hollywood star Robert Solomon is charged with the brutal murder of his beautiful wife.

This is the celebrity murder trial of the century and the defence want one man on their team: con artist turned lawyer Eddie Flynn.

All the evidence points to Robert’s guilt, but as the trial begins a series of sinister incidents in the court room start to raise doubts in Eddie’s mind.

What if there’s more than one actor in the courtroom?

What if the killer isn’t on trial? What if the killer is on the jury?

— Mini Review —

“The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist.”

I have loooong set my eyes on Thirteen. Just look at those blurb! A killer on the jury?! Are you insane?! That’s the most genius plot I’ve ever read and It’s been a long time since I come across a genius thriller. I happen to read this recently and end up loving this book a lot.

This book has a steady plot and I admit, It was even exciting reading the beginning chapters of this book. Things had already been interesting for me. At first, it was quite hard to follow the flow of the story, I do not know if it’s just me or this also happen to other readers as well. But once I am familiar with the characters and case, things are easing up and I find myself loving the book more.

Thirteen is presented with the point of view of our main character– Eddie Flynn and the killer. So yes, we have known the murderer from the very first moment we read the book. The genius part of this book is not who the murderer is but how Eddie work his way through the court, with many brilliant moves and his clever mind. And the revelation after revelation? It blows me away.

If there are any chances Thirteen is going to be adapted into a movie, I’ll be the first person to throw my money on the counter (Well.. it’s not possible to be the first of the first but you know what I mean) It’s just THAT good.

“You don’t need a bomb to win this case. You’ve already got one—I’m the bomb.”

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2. Fifty Fifty (Eddie Flynn, #5) by Steve Cavanagh

Genre : Thriller, Mystery, Fiction
Page : 320 pages
Published : 11th August 2020

— Blurb —

Two sisters on trial for murder. Both accuse each other.
Who do YOU believe?

Alexandra Avellino has just found her father’s mutilated body, and needs the police right away. She believes her sister killed him, and that she is still in the house with a knife.

Sofia Avellino has just found her father’s mutilated body and needs the police right away. She believes her sister, Alexandra did it, and that she is still in the house, locked in the bathroom.

Both women are to go on trial at the same time. A joint trial in front of one jury.

But one of these women is lying. One of them is a murderer. Sitting in a jail cell, about to go on trial with her sister for murder, you might think that this is the last place she expected to be.

You’d be wrong.

— Mini Review —

I pick this up right after finishing Thirteen.

Well.. there’s a lot to say about this book.

I am going to start with NOT REGRETTING and at the same time, REGRETTING about reading this book.

The Not Regretting Part → Just like Thirteen, the story is so good and the story is nothing like Thirteen at all (except for the thrill) which is something I love so much because writers tend to write another plot similar to their bestselling books and Fifty Fifty is not like that at all. It’s a whole BRAND NEW story with the same characters that I come to love with every fibre of my heart.

The Regretting Part (No Spoiler as always♥)→ Okay. This. Is getting ugly. There’s ONE SPECIFIC part that I HATE with every fibre of my heart. Like seriously, my heart can’t take it༼ಢ_ಢ༽ and it’s unfair! It’s shocking and I’m just… crying speechless tears..╥﹏╥  Dear the almighty Steve Cavanagh, please fix this in your next book, Eddie Flynn #6 (which I’m going to buy and read no matter what) and please find a way to somehow CANCEL this heartbreaking scenes ༼ಢ_ಢ༽ I don’t care if you summon a magic wand or dark magic in your next thriller but please, withdraw and fix the scenes╥﹏╥

Anyhow, Fifty Fifty definitely worth your time. This time, it’s readers task and Eddie’s as well as the team to figure it out who is the cold blooded murderer. Fifty Fifty is more unpredictable than Thirteen with much more complicated cases that can render you back and forth accusing both sisters in return.

Also, there are multiple POV’s in this book.

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COMPARISON

Thirteen VS Fifty Fifty

I know a lot of readers read and love Thirteen. As a thriller addict, I personally love Thirteen and notice how genius the book is. It’s thrilling, brutal (but the way they were described won’t make your stomach sink, probably bulging eyes and hanging jaw), eerie, clever and just- Wow.

I immediately love Thirteen (with all the group characters inside) and now, it has become one of my favourite thriller.

Fifty Fifty set your interest at peak with both sisters accusing each other of murder. In terms of pace, this book has it. I finished this book in two days whereas I finished Thirteen in around five or six days. In terms of plot ideas, both have it. Oh. Let’s just faced it, Steve Cavanagh’s plot ideas are ALWAYS interesting. Hooked you right from the blurb.

However, in terms of the whole story, I prefer Thirteen which clearly showcase Eddie as the main character. The spotlight is clearly on Eddie. Meanwhile in Fifty Fifty, if one read without knowing what the book is about, they might think there are two main characters in the book with Eddie slightly winning the spotlight.

However, I might have to say there are richer topic in Fifty Fifty as it heavily portrays on prejudice and woman’s right.

I love Eddie for his brilliance that I read in Thirteen but turns out to be lacking in Fifty Fifty (although he is STILL genius) because in Fifty Fifty, they’re more focused on the sisters and the new characters. I also didn’t know why, but I feel Fifty Fifty is a bit unreal in terms of the murders. And it’s lacking in suspense. Although it truly got me in the halfway. You know, the specific part of my regret. But apart from that one moment of surprise, I personally think the rest are lacking in suspense.

Also, I think I might be in the minority of not liking this whole new multiple point of view thing. I love the old gang and I’m not that welcoming this new troop.

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More About The Series

There are total of five books in the series and one e-book prologue thriller of Eddie Flynn. After reading book#4 and book#5, I have a rough idea about this series and surprisingly, I know a lot about Eddie Flynn with just reading two books of the series.

Can I read it as a standalone?

Yes. Definitely, I bought Thirteen without knowing that it’s actually a series and just realized it a short while before reading the book. And I understand every bits of the story.

Not only I understand, but this book has a way in connecting Eddie with the readers. When you began reading, you are questioning and learning about Eddie and the rest of the characters. But along the way (and I might say in a fast rhythm) I have known all about Eddie’s history and familiar with Eddie.

The case did not connect to one book to the others and the old characters sometimes might appear in a short moment WITH proper and brief introduction to readers.

I love how this series always welcome new readers in, try to make readers comfortable and familiar with the series. Some old characters might appear more often and that also, being properly introduced to readers WITHOUT giving out spoiler about the book or the cases before.

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What’s more interesting about this series, is this series are so good at giving non-spoiler blurb. You can go search the internet or Goodreads about this series, read all the blurb and still find yourself clueless about what’s in the book except for the ideas of what the book might be.

Each book narrates Eddie Flynn’s dangerous act as a defence lawyer who at first, is a conman before making his debut as lawyer. Reading book#4 and book#5, getting familiar with Steve Cavanagh’s style, I’m pretty sure each book is Eddie’s milestone both in his career in defence lawyer and his life journey outside of the court.

Having reading Thirteen and Fifty Fifty, I’m now officially joining in Eddie Flynn’s fandom (Although I don’t think I’ll read the first three books since I’m lazy and it hurts to read Eddie’s struggle in life༼ಢ_ಢ༽ ) But I definitely legit become Eddie Flynn’s (or should I say, Steve Cavanagh) fans now. I’ll bought anything Eddie Flynn’s series related and I’m ready to throw my money away for him (and the cases of course!)

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Eddie Flynn

Like I stated on my second line at the beginning of this post, Eddie Flynn is legit the hottest defence lawyer ever.

I know I’m repeating myself, but I can’t help it. (It’s okay. I know you’ll understand dear fellow readers) It’s Eddie Flynn we’re talking about.

Let’s give Eddie a moment of appreciation shall we?

Eddie is just brilliant. You could find a conman, a detective, a thinker, a genius, a daredevil, a compassionate inside Eddie. I think he’s the most charming character I come across after a bunch of thriller I’ve read. Loving Eddie is not hard and it comes almost naturally. Before I know it, I’m falling hard for this character.

Truth to be told, half of my reason to continue reading Fifty Fifty directly is because of Eddie. Well.. Eddie and his compliance actually. Another half is of course for the thriller. There is one partner of Eddie that I like a lot in Thirteen and I love a lot in Fifty Fifty, but well…. I’m not going to spoil anything here and If you haven’t read the series, I urged you to at least try one of the book (especially Thirteen!)

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The Legal Terms

Another thing that I love about Eddie Flynn series is the legal terms and how things are played in the court. That is one thing. Another thing I really appreciate about this book is how they manage to find the simplest explanation as not to confused those who are not familiar with legal law and court.

Also, there are numbers of official organizations being stated in the book. Some I recognized, some I don’t. Aside from being a fun suspense thrilling read, I learned a lot from the series.

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Overall, it’s a good thriller series. All I want next is for Steve Cavanagh to fix the ‘Regretting’ part that I hate ༼ಢ_ಢ༽ I don’t think I’ll read the series the same way as before anymore because of those parts( and no, I won’t shut up about it ಥ ͜ʖಥ ) The annoying thing is, the thriller is SO good and I can’t make myself drop the series. Seriously, it’s a recommended thriller.

Author : Celine