
Mastermind
A Theo Cray and Jessica Blackwood Thriller (Theo Cray and Jessica Blackwood, Book 1)
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Narrated by:
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Jennifer O'Donnell
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Will Damron
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By:
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Andrew Mayne
About this listen
Dr. Theo Cray and FBI agent Jessica Blackwood confront a cataclysmic conspiracy in a pulse-quickening thriller by the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of The Naturalist.
A mysterious electrical storm plunges Manhattan into darkness. As a strange, smothering fog rolls in, all communication crashes. In the blink of an eye, the island seems to vanish into a void.
FBI special agent Jessica Blackwood and brilliant scientist Dr. Theo Cray know this isn’t a freak accident. It’s a sinister sleight of hand. Their greatest adversary, a serial killer and cultist known as the Warlock, has escaped during a prison transfer in New York. A depraved master of manipulation, he promised the end of days. He’s making good on it.
One by one, cities across the globe are erupting in chaos as they disappear into the same black holes. Even for two ingenious trackers like Jessica and Theo, there’s still so much to learn about the pattern to the Warlock’s madness. The voids are just a warm-up for something bigger. To discover it - to stop it - Jessica and Theo must descend into the darkest of shadows - and minds.
©2021 by Andrew Mayne. (P)2021 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.Listeners also enjoyed...
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Critic reviews
“A passionate and thorough storyteller…Thriller fans will be well rewarded.”—Publishers Weekly
Overall as a mystery thriller, it was okay. Considering the reveal, honestly felt like it could be more theatrical?
Voices are great for their main characters, but not so great for others.
And while looking back at it, I see the hints of growing relationship, I don't like the chemistry. Feels more male fantasy
Fun, but disappointing
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Chilling Possibilities
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I have - on Kindle - the entire separate series for both Jessica Blackwell (plus short stories) and Dr. Theo Cray, in addition to this title featuring them both. I very much enjoy all three series, as far as they've gone as of this writing. Consequently, when I saw the pre-order for The Final Equinox on Audible while looking at new releases, I immediately did just that. Then I realized I didn't have the first title (this one) on Audible, and got this as well, before remembering that I was reading them in Kindle rather than listening.
The story is intricate and well thought out as one might expect from Mayne and these characters. Knowledge of their individual story lines is not necessary to enjoy this book, although I would suggest that knowing more about Jessica might be beneficial to a deeper enjoyment of this book given her level of prominence in this story over Theo's.
After reading these characters for so long, I found Jessica's voice pretty much aligned with how I heard her in my own mind, though the delivery was a bit different. Nothing too jarring though. Theo's voice, however, sounded nothing like how I've heard him inwardly as I've read. I enjoy Will's narration in other works, and I respect the voicing he gave to Theo here; it just didn't sync up as well as I would have liked. That made for some mental gymnastics initially and any time I restarted the book after some time away, even just a few hours. Eugene's voice, too, was a bit off for me, but given how infrequently he speaks, it wasn't too disconcerting. Jillian's voice, brief as it appeared, was pretty close to what I had imagined. Heywood - not quite as much.
Overall, I think both narrators did an excellent job with the material. I do plan to get The Final Equinox in Kindle, but having listened to this first book of the joint series now, I may keep this series as a dual Kindle/Audible venture and maintain the other two in Kindle alone. It's nice to have the option of listening to them done well while engaged in other tasks. Mayne's background as a magician and illusionist informs his writing beautifully, and although some of his earlier work is a bit rough around the edges, I have really enjoyed the Jessica Blackwood, Dr. Theo Cray, and joint adventure series. I continue to look forward to any new releases in any of these series, and am contemplating starting some of his others soon. (Perhaps starting them from scratch in Audible to prevent the mental double-takes I had here. 🙂)
Highly recommended.
My "oops" = interesting listen
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Excellent Story & Performance
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This book is full of unexpected twists that made it hard to put down. I can't wait to read the next book in this new series.
Also, the Audible version features the familiar voice talent, Will Damron, as the quirky Dr. Theo Cray and an equally talented voice performance by Jennifer O'Donnell, as the brilliant agent Jessica Blackwood
Excellent
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It really sucks!
Ending Sucks!
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Mastermind indeed
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as always Mr Mayne's books are unusual
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I'm not a huge fan of the dual narrators, though both, individually, were solid.
Recommended for people who can suppress their critical thinking skills enough to enjoy the ride.
Fun Suspense
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Nicely done with the two narrators, liked that part.
Cartoon villain plot
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