Vacant

Mindspace Investigations, Book 4

By: Alex Hughes

Narrated by: Daniel Thomas May

Nothing ruins a romantic evening like a brawl with lowlifes - especially when one of them later turns up dead and my date, Detective Isabella Cherabino, is the number one suspect. My history with the Atlanta PD on both sides of the law makes me an unreliable witness, so while Cherabino is suspended, I'm paying my bills by taking an FBI gig. I've been hired to play telepathic bodyguard for Tommy, the 10-year-old son of a superior court judge in Savannah presiding over the murder trial of a mob-connected mogul. After an attempt on the kid's life, the Feds believe he's been targeted by the businessman's "associates".Turns out, Tommy's a nascent telepath, so I'm trying to help him get a handle on his Ability. But it doesn't take a mind reader to see that there's something going on with this kids parents that's stressing him out more than a death threat...

©2014 Alexandra Hughes (P)2014 Audible Inc.

Leaves you hanging

This is the last novel in the series apparently. There are some Novellas also, but this novel leaves everything hanging: his relationship, his situation with the bad guy, his situation with the guild, his addiction, etc. It’s been six years since this book came out, and I was hoping by now the author would have done at least one more book to tie all the loose ends up, but nope. Very disappointing.

Excellent! Good plot and superb narration!

What did you love best about Vacant?

I loved Daniel Thomas May's performance as always. His portrayal of Adam Ward's character like when he faces his problems and weaknesses with such strength and determination to overcome them that make me cheer for him when he succeeds! I like the ending when he and his love decide their future.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Vacant?

When he saved Tommy from his kidnapper.

What about Daniel Thomas May’s performance did you like?

I like Daniel Thomas May's performance. His voice is so soothing and calm. His portrayal of all the different characters are so easy to follow. He was superb in C J Cherryh's "Foreigner" series and I collect every book of that series. I will also be collecting this series for my library as well.

Any additional comments?

I am so glad that I did not listen to the review given by somebody who criticized the book. I purchased it despite the review because I like Danial Thomas May's narration and I was not disappointed. The book was well written and I will be looking forward to the next book which hopefully will be soon.

Another good ride

This book is slightly different. Adam is more on his own and has to fight his inner demons. Can't wait till the next one comes out

Interesting character.

Would you consider the audio edition of Vacant to be better than the print version?

I have not read the print version, so I can't really compare directly. I love audiobooks when the narrator is good. I enjoy Daniel Thomas May's performance very much. I always know which of the characters he voices is speaking.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The main character, Adam Ward, is my favorite. Sometimes I like him and sometimes I am aggravated with him. He is a walking contradiction at times. He is very intelligent but somewhat immature emotionally. It is the emotional aspect of his character that seems to get him into trouble. He makes some really dumb decisions at times, but recovers and learns from them. He takes responsibility for his actions, though, and does have ethics even though, at the height of his addiction, he violated many of them.

Which scene was your favorite?

The scene in the motel room where Adam finds a vial of the drug he is addicted to was my favorite.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

In this motel scene where he finds the drug that was left as a trap for him, he struggles with the desire to use the drug versus the desire to remain clean. It is a mark of his progress in character development that the struggles to stay clean have become shorter as he realizes he has more desire to keep the good things in his life than he wants to use the drug, although he will always have the cravings.

Any additional comments?

Adam is also better able to lessen some of his dependence on others and to function more independently. He handles his own money now and is not so dependent on Cherabino as a work partner and he is working better with others. He fell a long way from his Guild Professor status and was emotionally and intellectually damaged by the drug, but is slowly crawling out of the pit. He has made a lot of progress compared to where he was in Book One.

An OK listen. Didn't read previous installments..

Disclaimer: Vacant by Alex Hughes is the first book I have read in the Mindspace Investigation Series. **Unintentional spoilers may be contained in this review.

Vacant by Alex Hughes might have settled better with me, if I would have not listened to it. However, that totally could go the other way. Why am I not sure? It is simple. This is one of those "on the line" books for me. It borders being good and not-so good. When this happens, I normally start thinking way too hard about where or what didn't work for me.

Too many loose ends untied left me feeling slightly confused and disappointed. Even though I know this is part of a series and some things are expected to be unresolved, it felt like they were exclusive this particular installment and were just left unnecessarily open. If you are going to attempt to this series, I would certainly recommend NOT doing what I did here by starting with this book. Starting at the beginning of this series would likely be the way to go.

I am pretty sad that Vacant didn't work for me. It really has so many elements that I love - edgy characters, high-tech world, and great conflict. It just didn't seem to all pull together and work for me.

Audiobook thoughts: Vacant is narrated by Daniel May Thomas. Since I have not read any other books by this author or in this series I cannot tell if my main complaints were actually narrator issues or writing/narrating interpretations. One prime example of this would be the choppiness of the (mostly) inner thoughts of Adam. This made for a bumpy reading that felt like it needed a little caffeine to speed things up and a nice polish to iron out the wrinkles.

As good as the previous.

This is a fun series. Looking forward to the next but I don't like novellas so I think I'll pass on the short stories.

Disappointing 4th book

This was the 4th book in the series and it was my least favorite - by quite a margin, actually. It almost feels like it was a different author. I guess sometimes characters should just be left alone after a couple revisits...

The plot was weak and the character motivations are not really very strong. I think if you hadn't read any of the other books and picked this one up, you'd be like... how did he even get into this situation - the choices he makes are not believable. I kept wondering if a rational person would make the same decisions, and decided they probably wouldn't.

And the rehashing/repeating of his past as an addict was tiresome. I assume it was continually mentioned because it was supposed to be the source of the motivation for the choices he made? Anyway, it didn't work... his "addiction" doesn't ring true, so any decisions he makes because of it also don't ring true.

Never a let down!

Another winner in the mind space series. Hughes ties up previous foreshadowing and introduces new characters and villains in an enjoyable way. Looking forward to Adam's next adventure!

There were moments . . .

I liked this story. Adam always feels guilty about everything that goes wrong within his circle of life. Cherabino continues to be an "all about me" kind of girl. When you get past those two things, it is a story you will want to finish. Daniel May does an excellent job narrating this book. Love how he portrays Adam.

Self doubt and whining.

I'm sorry but this book just did not have the same qualities the the other books had. The main characters' self doubt and inactivity combined with his whining made me want to just stop listening. He wasn't very good at anything including his "gift." The relationship factor was also missing in this story.