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The Complex
One family joins another for a short holiday in a mysterious house haunted by technology – set in a non-specified countryside location in the near future. Because of complicated interrelationships and certain characters' agendas, it’s not really most people’s idea of a holiday.
288 pages, Paperback
First published August 15, 2019
4 people are currently reading
70 people want to read
About the author
Michael Walters
2 books5 followersMichael Walters was born in Port Talbot, South Wales, in 1973. He studied astrophysics at the University of Kent, then spent a year training to be a journalist before becoming a computer programmer. In his spare time, he studied creative writing, first at the Open University, then completing an MA in Creative Writing with Manchester Metropolitan University. He is currently a software developer and lives with his wife and two children in North Yorkshire.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
September 8, 2019
Well. That was weird.
Blake Crouch meets Jeff Vandermeer, with a splash of Philip K Dick.
If you're looking for answers and resolutions, this ain't the book for you. But it is a fast-paced, creepy, deeply weird book about technology and a stark warning about where we're heading as a society.
There is far too much squeezed in and, just like when I read Annihilation, I have absolutely no fucking idea what happened.
But it's great fun and when Walters gets it right he is very, very good. The tension he creates at certain key points in the book is spectacular.
Blake Crouch meets Jeff Vandermeer, with a splash of Philip K Dick.
If you're looking for answers and resolutions, this ain't the book for you. But it is a fast-paced, creepy, deeply weird book about technology and a stark warning about where we're heading as a society.
There is far too much squeezed in and, just like when I read Annihilation, I have absolutely no fucking idea what happened.
But it's great fun and when Walters gets it right he is very, very good. The tension he creates at certain key points in the book is spectacular.
April 26, 2020
Wow. I fucking knew I should have gone with my gut and DNFd this book early on. It's absolutely a case of false expectations on my part but it was also just a huge ass slow burn of a novel that didn't even go anywhere.
Someone somewhere wrote that they thought it was fast paced but holy mother of god what on earth had they been reading before they picked up this one for that to have been the case?!?
The book is just one big gigantic tease. Every time you think ok, I've read enough, this book sucks, nothing is happening, why I am reading this, Walters does something or alludes to something that is juuuuust strange enough to make you think, hmmm... ok, maybe I'll stick around to see where that goes, and then 50 pages later you're back to asking yourself why the heck you are still reading it because nothing. is. fucking. getting. answered. and oh yeah, still nothing. is. happening.
And it's the weirdest thing because those 50 pages move pretty quickly. So maybe THAT's what the reviewer meant when they said it was fast paced? Maybe they didn't mean fast-paced with ACTION but fast paced meaning it's just super easy to read and the words kind of wizz by and you're half way through before you really notice it?
This was the. most. unsatisfying. book I've read so far this year.
Someone somewhere wrote that they thought it was fast paced but holy mother of god what on earth had they been reading before they picked up this one for that to have been the case?!?
The book is just one big gigantic tease. Every time you think ok, I've read enough, this book sucks, nothing is happening, why I am reading this, Walters does something or alludes to something that is juuuuust strange enough to make you think, hmmm... ok, maybe I'll stick around to see where that goes, and then 50 pages later you're back to asking yourself why the heck you are still reading it because nothing. is. fucking. getting. answered. and oh yeah, still nothing. is. happening.
And it's the weirdest thing because those 50 pages move pretty quickly. So maybe THAT's what the reviewer meant when they said it was fast paced? Maybe they didn't mean fast-paced with ACTION but fast paced meaning it's just super easy to read and the words kind of wizz by and you're half way through before you really notice it?
This was the. most. unsatisfying. book I've read so far this year.
October 3, 2019
An unsettling novel which taps into a range of human emotions, The Complex is a surprisingly thrilling book. Analysing the darker side of technology is a popular novel theme, however The Complex doesn’t ever feel tired or repetitive; instead, it manages to hand over a great deal of trust to the reader, finishing with an ambiguous, faded ending that is cinematic in every sense. Walters has developed a unique and thoughtful idea, transforming it into an accomplished novel that will hook even sceptics of sci-fi fiction.
At first glance – the reading of the blurb and the initial few pages – I feared that Walters had produced another ‘technology-fearing’ novel which, while they can be enjoyable, often focus too much on the world building and brush forward through any meaningful, developed, plot points. Thankfully, I was proven wrong. While Walter’s idea isn’t exactly unique in that sense, he does approach the idea with a refreshing set of skills. He doesn’t compromise on the language, or spend pages and pages explaining this near-future environment. In The Complex, the blend of reality and virtual-reality function as a backdrop for something much more important – the trust between human beings, and the reliance we have on each other for basic, meaningful interaction. While nearly all the characters turn to things like medications and technology as a means of escapism, The Complex highlights the downfall of making these as a necessity – something which hits close to home for modern readers. Even Leo, arguably one of the most oblivious characters and a pretty ‘normal’ guy, is preoccupied with reconnecting to the ‘grid’ during the first couple of days of the trip, placing his life in danger by doing so. And actually, this is a simple obsession that many of us consider daily – for example, how often, when arriving in a new place, do we ask for the Wi-Fi password, or check that we have phone signal? We may initially scoff at Leo’s preoccupation with the ‘grid’, and indeed scream at the pages for him to realise what is happening around him, however his needs aren’t that far away from our own.
A lot of trust is placed on the reader in The Complex. Unlike some sci-fi attempts, Walters doesn’t waste any time going over the ins and outs of this near-future world; we know that there has been a War, we understand that big technology co-operations have been pushing for ‘robots’ to take-over society, and we know that the fascination with virtual reality, and tapping into this state of the subconscious being, is an ongoing fascination for our characters and possibly the rest of the society. There are cars which speak to our characters, the ‘grid’ that keeps everything functioning, and genetically enhanced fruit and fully robotic, lifelike limbs are part of the present. Yet all these nuggets are revealed to us slowly and methodically, slipping into the story where appropriate and aiding the advancement of the plot. Therefore, responsibility is given to reader to figure out and visualise the world themselves, and to also determine what is happening to the characters when they arrive at this eerie complex. While we do receive a considerable amount of backstory for almost of the characters – again, in an effortless and meaningful way – what is actually happening to them, in the present, is often open for interpretation. What is the complex? Very little is revealed about who owns it, why they have chosen to come here specifically, and just what the deal with the creepy gatehouse at the entrance is. As for the ending, that takes on a cinematic feel, what with the image of mother and son escaping back into ‘reality’ (or is it?), leaving the chaos behind. But what has actually happened, and what will happen to them and the remaining characters, whose fates still seemingly hang in the balance? If you prefer a novel with concrete answers, The Complex isn’t for you, but if – like me – you like to be left guessing and speculating, The Complex is a highly enjoyable and thrilling read, which leaves virtually every loose end untied.
It isn’t just the act of guesswork that Walters uses to draw in his readers, though. We are also captivated by the brutality and beauty of the language used in the novel, which is never overshadowed by the world-building or heavy plot arc. In fact, The Complex’s imagery takes centre stage, as we are captivated by the darkness of Walters’ words and the way they form these fantastic images. I particularly loved the way that the juxtaposition between the sleekness of the modern world, and the decay of humanity, was portrayed. We had ‘slop’ being served in a crisp, clean kitchen. Characters traipsing their dusty, bloody and dishevelled bodies over the floors of the picturesque house. Rooms were messy and dark after just a couple of days of their inhabitants being there – the dysfunction and chaos oozing from every corner of the ‘perfect house’. The way in which Walters describes the fruit/vegetable garden and nature is unsettling too. The characters are amazed and thrilled by the plumpness of all the food, yet my spine tingled when a tomato was described as bursting when being bitten into. It was almost too perfect, too pure, that it became unnatural and grotesque. The thought of the characters dining on it was sickening. The stag scene as well is possibly my favourite scene in the novel – the image of the blood, guts, fur and flesh, sliding down the huge windows stayed with me for the remainder of the novel. It unfolds with such a horrific elegance that really brings the moment – the shaking glass, the sinister indifference of Gaby, the disturbing excited reaction of Art – to life.
The Complex is one of those books which will no doubt leave you questioning what it was that you just read, but always in the fantastic sense. It takes a skilled writer to choose such a complex and developed theme for a book, yet not have it dominate over the superb writing and unique plot. The whole book is eerily dreamlike, or perhaps Walters is trying to convey that bizarre feeling you get when you remove yourself from virtual reality and step back into the real-world. It certainly felt like I was reading the whole thing through a screen of some sorts, yet the cinematic qualities only enhanced the books greatness.
At first glance – the reading of the blurb and the initial few pages – I feared that Walters had produced another ‘technology-fearing’ novel which, while they can be enjoyable, often focus too much on the world building and brush forward through any meaningful, developed, plot points. Thankfully, I was proven wrong. While Walter’s idea isn’t exactly unique in that sense, he does approach the idea with a refreshing set of skills. He doesn’t compromise on the language, or spend pages and pages explaining this near-future environment. In The Complex, the blend of reality and virtual-reality function as a backdrop for something much more important – the trust between human beings, and the reliance we have on each other for basic, meaningful interaction. While nearly all the characters turn to things like medications and technology as a means of escapism, The Complex highlights the downfall of making these as a necessity – something which hits close to home for modern readers. Even Leo, arguably one of the most oblivious characters and a pretty ‘normal’ guy, is preoccupied with reconnecting to the ‘grid’ during the first couple of days of the trip, placing his life in danger by doing so. And actually, this is a simple obsession that many of us consider daily – for example, how often, when arriving in a new place, do we ask for the Wi-Fi password, or check that we have phone signal? We may initially scoff at Leo’s preoccupation with the ‘grid’, and indeed scream at the pages for him to realise what is happening around him, however his needs aren’t that far away from our own.
A lot of trust is placed on the reader in The Complex. Unlike some sci-fi attempts, Walters doesn’t waste any time going over the ins and outs of this near-future world; we know that there has been a War, we understand that big technology co-operations have been pushing for ‘robots’ to take-over society, and we know that the fascination with virtual reality, and tapping into this state of the subconscious being, is an ongoing fascination for our characters and possibly the rest of the society. There are cars which speak to our characters, the ‘grid’ that keeps everything functioning, and genetically enhanced fruit and fully robotic, lifelike limbs are part of the present. Yet all these nuggets are revealed to us slowly and methodically, slipping into the story where appropriate and aiding the advancement of the plot. Therefore, responsibility is given to reader to figure out and visualise the world themselves, and to also determine what is happening to the characters when they arrive at this eerie complex. While we do receive a considerable amount of backstory for almost of the characters – again, in an effortless and meaningful way – what is actually happening to them, in the present, is often open for interpretation. What is the complex? Very little is revealed about who owns it, why they have chosen to come here specifically, and just what the deal with the creepy gatehouse at the entrance is. As for the ending, that takes on a cinematic feel, what with the image of mother and son escaping back into ‘reality’ (or is it?), leaving the chaos behind. But what has actually happened, and what will happen to them and the remaining characters, whose fates still seemingly hang in the balance? If you prefer a novel with concrete answers, The Complex isn’t for you, but if – like me – you like to be left guessing and speculating, The Complex is a highly enjoyable and thrilling read, which leaves virtually every loose end untied.
It isn’t just the act of guesswork that Walters uses to draw in his readers, though. We are also captivated by the brutality and beauty of the language used in the novel, which is never overshadowed by the world-building or heavy plot arc. In fact, The Complex’s imagery takes centre stage, as we are captivated by the darkness of Walters’ words and the way they form these fantastic images. I particularly loved the way that the juxtaposition between the sleekness of the modern world, and the decay of humanity, was portrayed. We had ‘slop’ being served in a crisp, clean kitchen. Characters traipsing their dusty, bloody and dishevelled bodies over the floors of the picturesque house. Rooms were messy and dark after just a couple of days of their inhabitants being there – the dysfunction and chaos oozing from every corner of the ‘perfect house’. The way in which Walters describes the fruit/vegetable garden and nature is unsettling too. The characters are amazed and thrilled by the plumpness of all the food, yet my spine tingled when a tomato was described as bursting when being bitten into. It was almost too perfect, too pure, that it became unnatural and grotesque. The thought of the characters dining on it was sickening. The stag scene as well is possibly my favourite scene in the novel – the image of the blood, guts, fur and flesh, sliding down the huge windows stayed with me for the remainder of the novel. It unfolds with such a horrific elegance that really brings the moment – the shaking glass, the sinister indifference of Gaby, the disturbing excited reaction of Art – to life.
The Complex is one of those books which will no doubt leave you questioning what it was that you just read, but always in the fantastic sense. It takes a skilled writer to choose such a complex and developed theme for a book, yet not have it dominate over the superb writing and unique plot. The whole book is eerily dreamlike, or perhaps Walters is trying to convey that bizarre feeling you get when you remove yourself from virtual reality and step back into the real-world. It certainly felt like I was reading the whole thing through a screen of some sorts, yet the cinematic qualities only enhanced the books greatness.
August 14, 2019
The Complex, by Michael Walters, is set in the near future. Technology has being harnessed to carry out many tasks. AI that we already know of has been further developed. There has been a war although few details of this are provided. What is clear is that the structure of the world portrayed has subtly changed.
Two couples and their teenage children are to spend a week together at a luxurious if remote retreat. Awe at the beautiful location and scale of the place is soon overtaken by concern over an occasional malevolence. Although it is still spring, the fruit and vegetables in the extensive gardens are ripening. The place is off grid and appears to harbour its own climate.
The story opens in a self driving car as Gabrielle and Leo Hunter leave the Areas accompanied by their son, Stefan, for a week’s holiday. The family have been under stress since the death of Gabrielle’s father. One of her clients, Art Fisher, has invited the family to join him, along with his wife and daughter, at a place he has access to in the mountains. Although wary, Gabrielle has agreed. As all will soon find out, Art can be persuasive.
Stefan and Art’s daughter, Fleur, are both preparing for their Finals after which they must decide on their future careers. Art has plans for Fleur to join him at the influential Fisher Industries. She has other ideas that she is pursuing in secret. Stefan is considering harnessing his tennis skills to turn professional. He has little interest in the studying his parents wish him to engage in during their week away.
Despite the glorious views and sunshine, the house in which the two families stay is a shadowy presence that increasingly gets inside the residents’ heads. Vivid dreams are recounted in which their backstories merge with the present. Gabrielle is taking medication and regularly needs to sleep, something Art encourages. Leo is disturbed by his faltering short term memory, struggling to differentiate between the fantasies he indulges in featuring Art’s wife, Polly, and the reality of their interactions. While the adults struggle to navigate a situation that is turning to quicksand, the children explore a virtual reality game. There is a need to interpret what is happening in the physical world and how this is affected by episodes playing out in each of their heads.
As the pernicious house gives up its secrets certain answers are provided. Readers must also immerse themselves in the labyrinth of connections and speculations. Control is being fought for in a game where the objectives and conditions of participation are unclear.
There are shades in the writing of David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest, although The Complex is much more accessible and compelling. The questioning of developments brought to mind the first season of Dark which I have recently been watching on Netflix.
Well paced and skilfully constructed this twisty and disturbing story had me questioning the virulence of technology we all too easily accept. It is a layered and deliciously unsettling read.
Two couples and their teenage children are to spend a week together at a luxurious if remote retreat. Awe at the beautiful location and scale of the place is soon overtaken by concern over an occasional malevolence. Although it is still spring, the fruit and vegetables in the extensive gardens are ripening. The place is off grid and appears to harbour its own climate.
The story opens in a self driving car as Gabrielle and Leo Hunter leave the Areas accompanied by their son, Stefan, for a week’s holiday. The family have been under stress since the death of Gabrielle’s father. One of her clients, Art Fisher, has invited the family to join him, along with his wife and daughter, at a place he has access to in the mountains. Although wary, Gabrielle has agreed. As all will soon find out, Art can be persuasive.
Stefan and Art’s daughter, Fleur, are both preparing for their Finals after which they must decide on their future careers. Art has plans for Fleur to join him at the influential Fisher Industries. She has other ideas that she is pursuing in secret. Stefan is considering harnessing his tennis skills to turn professional. He has little interest in the studying his parents wish him to engage in during their week away.
Despite the glorious views and sunshine, the house in which the two families stay is a shadowy presence that increasingly gets inside the residents’ heads. Vivid dreams are recounted in which their backstories merge with the present. Gabrielle is taking medication and regularly needs to sleep, something Art encourages. Leo is disturbed by his faltering short term memory, struggling to differentiate between the fantasies he indulges in featuring Art’s wife, Polly, and the reality of their interactions. While the adults struggle to navigate a situation that is turning to quicksand, the children explore a virtual reality game. There is a need to interpret what is happening in the physical world and how this is affected by episodes playing out in each of their heads.
As the pernicious house gives up its secrets certain answers are provided. Readers must also immerse themselves in the labyrinth of connections and speculations. Control is being fought for in a game where the objectives and conditions of participation are unclear.
There are shades in the writing of David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest, although The Complex is much more accessible and compelling. The questioning of developments brought to mind the first season of Dark which I have recently been watching on Netflix.
Well paced and skilfully constructed this twisty and disturbing story had me questioning the virulence of technology we all too easily accept. It is a layered and deliciously unsettling read.
October 12, 2019
3.5 stars is my proper rating. Two families, one holiday which is about to get really dark after they find a deer which has been shot. As the title suggests this is quite complex, from the beginning there are dark undertones which make you think something’s not right. Technology plays its part, but you’re unsure how it all fits in.
August 26, 2019
Warning. You may find yourself irretrievably immersed in this seemingly luxury getaway.
As in The Martian Chronicles, it is possible to see the background setting – futuristic and postwar – as entirely secondary, only meant as a stage for highlighting human (self)alienation.
The story plays with the reader's sense of reality in a skillful way, sharing similarities with the movie Inception – save for the fact the movie is not half as skillful.
The holiday location is a character in itself, dark and mysterious as well as plentiful – it giveth and taketh away. An analogy could be drawn with the house in Fightclub – as a reflection of the meandres and many facets of people's personalities.
Many doors and keys lead the characters even further astray than they think they were at the start.
Ripening – the vegetable garden, the wine, people – and gaming – solitaire, tennis, VR, people – are recurring and very intriguing themes.
Like a persistant tune, a good book will stick and keep nagging my understanding of it.
It is a page turner which won't just fade away as soon as you finish the last page.
As in The Martian Chronicles, it is possible to see the background setting – futuristic and postwar – as entirely secondary, only meant as a stage for highlighting human (self)alienation.
The story plays with the reader's sense of reality in a skillful way, sharing similarities with the movie Inception – save for the fact the movie is not half as skillful.
The holiday location is a character in itself, dark and mysterious as well as plentiful – it giveth and taketh away. An analogy could be drawn with the house in Fightclub – as a reflection of the meandres and many facets of people's personalities.
Many doors and keys lead the characters even further astray than they think they were at the start.
Ripening – the vegetable garden, the wine, people – and gaming – solitaire, tennis, VR, people – are recurring and very intriguing themes.
Like a persistant tune, a good book will stick and keep nagging my understanding of it.
It is a page turner which won't just fade away as soon as you finish the last page.
March 16, 2020
This is one of those novels where you close the book and hug it to your chest while you digest what you've just read. (Or is it just me who does that?)
It's a gentle opening, setting you off on a path of normal family tensions. And yet you're soon yanked sideways into an unsettling dystopian world where nothing is quite as it seems, everyone is holding onto secrets, and memories and the present are swirled together.
I have a feeling it's a book I'll need to read again, to appreciate everything it has to offer.
It's a gentle opening, setting you off on a path of normal family tensions. And yet you're soon yanked sideways into an unsettling dystopian world where nothing is quite as it seems, everyone is holding onto secrets, and memories and the present are swirled together.
I have a feeling it's a book I'll need to read again, to appreciate everything it has to offer.
November 3, 2020
interesting idea, but I found the story was all over the place. I don't need to have a resolution in a story. I like when we are left to imagine or think about it, but there were so many questions here for me, or areas that seemed questionable. How could Gabriel's husband not know what had happened to her at work when she'd been suspended? The son I can understand but wouldn't he have seen some hint in the news, but I wondered why those people were brought together, why Gabriela would have chosen to do so given the history.
August 2, 2020
A gripping novel, I read it in two sittings. Set in a not too distant future where everything is connected to 'the grid' there's a consistent level of discomfort running through every page. Something is not quite right in this modern masterpiece of a house and its surroundings, and in the relationships of the six people who are staying there. In this, his debut novel, Walters does a great job of heightening the tension and drawing the reader in, and keeping us there.
September 27, 2019
An unknown author to me but the cover caught my eye and the story looked intriguing. I'm glad I took a chance on it! As stated by another reader quite reminiscent of early McEwen, also reminded me of the type of British SF published in the 1970's by the likes of Christopher Priest or D.G. Compton. Ambiguous and enjoyable...
February 13, 2020
Tense!
March 10, 2023
Gripping, but so many questions unanswered
January 1, 2025
Had to give up eventually. I was about halfway through and a character said 'the week is going fast' . To risk sounding like a pantomime; oh no it isn't! It's flippin' crawling by.
First let me add that I respect anyone who can put together a novel and this one has a great standard of writing. I don't want to disrespect anyone who writes in any way. Any criticism I may make us purely based on personal taste and others will rightly disagree. That said, this book is not for me!
We have a group of smug, self-absorbed characters on holiday together (at least they haven't ruined any normal people's holidays) talking endlessly about posh food and decor while nothing... absolutely nothing happens. No doubt there's meant to be all kinds of undercurrents but I just wanted all these insufferable bores to just go away and sort it out. I mean, who needs to read descriptions of tennis for God's sake? And it such detail! Or a character making tea?! She swirled the spoon in her cup, then looked up still swirling before looking back down at the tea revolving in the cup even if she stopped swirling, which she didn't. Would you like tea, dear? Tea? he asked quizzically. Yes I'm having a cup she told him. I could have tea, I suppose. I'll get another cup she said. Or maybe I won't bother with the tea, he added. She went back to swirling the tea which had barely slowed down since she stopped swirling it.
If that's your kind of read, you'll love this. I prefer to stay awake.
First let me add that I respect anyone who can put together a novel and this one has a great standard of writing. I don't want to disrespect anyone who writes in any way. Any criticism I may make us purely based on personal taste and others will rightly disagree. That said, this book is not for me!
We have a group of smug, self-absorbed characters on holiday together (at least they haven't ruined any normal people's holidays) talking endlessly about posh food and decor while nothing... absolutely nothing happens. No doubt there's meant to be all kinds of undercurrents but I just wanted all these insufferable bores to just go away and sort it out. I mean, who needs to read descriptions of tennis for God's sake? And it such detail! Or a character making tea?! She swirled the spoon in her cup, then looked up still swirling before looking back down at the tea revolving in the cup even if she stopped swirling, which she didn't. Would you like tea, dear? Tea? he asked quizzically. Yes I'm having a cup she told him. I could have tea, I suppose. I'll get another cup she said. Or maybe I won't bother with the tea, he added. She went back to swirling the tea which had barely slowed down since she stopped swirling it.
If that's your kind of read, you'll love this. I prefer to stay awake.
February 28, 2023
What. Did. I. Just. Read…
May 24, 2025
Read this book in a day to find explanations for all the mad shit that happened, but none of it was explained. Interesting tactic to write a book full of mysterious, weird things, and instead of resolving them, leaving them open to interpretation, as if that's a good thing (plenty of reviews seem to love this).
Surely that's just very easy to do because anyone can come up with crazy shit, but answering questions and bringing a sense of resolution/ending to a story is the hard bit. Annoying, but it was quite scary and did make me feel weird, so I'll give it a generous 3.
Surely that's just very easy to do because anyone can come up with crazy shit, but answering questions and bringing a sense of resolution/ending to a story is the hard bit. Annoying, but it was quite scary and did make me feel weird, so I'll give it a generous 3.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews