Reviewed by Annika
SERIES: In the Mind #1
AUTHOR: Alice Winters
NARRATOR: Joel Leslie
PUBLISHER: Tantor Audio
LENGTH: 9 hours, 24 minutes
RELEASE DATE: December 31, 2019
BLURB:
Seneca is the complete package. He’s smart, sexy, and confident, much to Chevy’s annoyance. They’ve worked with each other for two years, and even though Chevy might secretly find his partner charming and attractive, playful harassment is all they have.
Chevy was born with a unique gift that allows him to go into the memories of others. As detective, he uses this ability to find peace for victims who have been hurt or attacked. He delves into their memories and can pick out minute details that will help them put the criminal behind bars.
But neither Chevy nor Seneca are prepared when they are asked to go into the mind of a serial killer in hopes of finding survivors. They are even more unprepared for the monsters they find inside the man’s mind. Drawn into a memory where it’s hard to figure out where the truth exists, they realize that there may be more to the serial killer than they originally thought. The dark world draws the two men together in a way they never dreamed.
It will take everything Chevy and Seneca can give to stop the darkness that could consume their minds. As the two are forced to face what is keeping them apart, together they realize that there’s more to the mind and heart than either of them know.
REVIEW:
Alice Winters takes to a world where some people have gifts. Chevy and Seneca are two of them. Chevy is able to go into the minds of others and witness their strongest memory, happy and horrible ones. Seneca is able to mimic the talents of the last person he touched. The two work together with law-enforcement to seek justice for victims and put the criminals behind lock and key. That is until another agency seeks their help rescuing the victims of a serial killer. A serial killer with talents of his own that will turn both Chevy and Seneca inside and out.
Within the Mind was different – in a good way. I think. It was a book that kept you on your toes, I know it kept me on mine. Constantly trying to figure out what was real, what was a game – were they still trapped inside someone’s mind, playing games with them? I mean how could they know they were out? It was a mind warp for sure, and I had a blast. At least I think I do, maybe I was tricked in thinking so… Either way, it was a fun trip.
I quite enjoyed this world, it will mess with your head just a bit. I kind of wished it was more explored and explained though, as there are things that are still unclear. I’m not looking for some huge information dump, but it would be nice to know who they worked for. How did the world react to people with talents?, What other talents existed? Why and by who was Chevy watched when growing up? There were small stuff and bigger stuff that I wanted to know more about. In the end though, I still very much enjoyed the listen.
I really liked Seneca and Chevy together. I loved the banter between them. Though, be prepared that it’s non-stop and at times really OTT. I also love the fact that when we met them they already had a history together, they knew each other. They weren’t new and their feelings weren’t new, but their subsequent developing relationship was. We were there for the changes, the progression, those tentative first steps. And I loved it.
Joel Leslie really delivered on this book. Especially the banter was on point. I saw Chevy and Seneca bantering before me, exchanging one barb after the other. He captured each character just right, brought them to life and made the listener connect with them. And it wasn’t only the main characters, but the secondary ones as well. He made you feel like you knew them and wanted to spend more time with them. Then there was this creepy feeling this book gave that he also made you feel, whenever Chevy and Seneca were trapped inside the mind or being chased by the man with many faces – and his creepy voice! Spot on.
There was one part that I find particularly telling in regards to Leslie’s talent, (minor spoilers to this particular event ahead). It was when Chevy spent time with his sister. It was the usual deal, the hellos, catching up and spending time together. At a particular point, I was so anxious to know more, what happened next, and I found myself back in that car and the hellos, repeating it all over again. I’m not going to lie to you. I was a smidgeon irritated. I mean here was this huge chunk of plot being repeated again. It wasn’t a minor slip with a word or a sentence. It was minutes! I also questioned the editor’s talent.
Then I had to eat some crow, mentally adding my apologies to both Leslie and editor I’d just cursed out. Because it wasn’t a repeating chunk of text, it was a repeating memory for Chevy. And the fact that Leslie narrated them so consistently, possibly identically is really telling about what kind of talent he has. He nails it time and again, and I can’t wait to learn more.
BUY LINKS:
[…] Read More » […]