Reviewed by Larissa
TITLE: Hacked
SERIES: Licking Thicket: Horn of Glory, Book 3
AUTHOR: Lucy Lennox and May Archer
NARRATOR: Michael Dean
PUBLISHER: Self-published
LENGTH: 11 hours and 14 minutes
RELEASE DATE: August 9, 2022
BLURB:
Well-known computer security infiltration specialist Jasper Huxley has never met a system he can’t hack. Whether his assignment is accessing a highly classified Pentagon server or modifying his little brother’s high school report card, he’s always got a botnet, an exploit, or a little bit of social engineering he can call up to get the job done.
But there are certain things he can’t finesse, no matter how hard he tries.
Beating the infuriatingly adorable and maddeningly handsome Kevin Rogers in the ice mammoth expedition during Horn of Glory’s first annual Horn Master Championship week. (Robbery.)
Accessing stolen cartel data on a device that’s never connected to a network. Pretty sure it’s the fault of a certain busybody gamer who will not be named. (Kev.)
Sharing a house and–worse–a network with Kev. (Gah.)
Being forced to allow a non-trained, non-serious, and irresistible civilian to take part in a critical intel operation. (side-eyes Kev)
Navigating social situations with grace when he continues to run into Kev–and his new gamer “boyfriend”–at society events during the course of a critical mission. (Like any serious relationship starts during a game.)
Keeping Champion Security’s system safe from increasingly sophisticated black hat threats. (Not Kev, but still… annoying.)
In short, when Kevin Rogers is in the picture, the safe and peaceful life Hux has managed to construct for himself gets suddenly and irrevocably… hacked.
(And it’s all Kev’s fault.)
REVIEW:
In Hijacked, the first book in Lucy Lennox and May Archer’s Licking Thicket: Horn of Glory series, we were introduced to Kevin Rogers, Carter Rogers’ younger cousin, who lives in his basement man-cave in Carter and Riggs’ mansion in Licking Thicket. Kev is a tech genius and gamer extraordinaire whose overwhelming enthusiasm about the Horn of Glory game and eagerness to spend time playing it with Carter immediately endeared him to us.
It quickly became obvious that Kev would monopolize the wittiest quips and snarkiest humor in his charged, competitive, verbal sparring with his online (and later offline) nemesis, Jasper Huxley, Champion Security’s computer security infiltration specialist. These two disagree with each other on anything and everything on principle. If Kev said the sky is blue, Hux would say it’s purple just to aggravate Kev. Their primary point of contention in this series centers on the Horn of Glory game itself and all aspects of Champion’s mission to recover the stolen Horn of Glory before a South American drug cartel can. They are hellbent on obtaining it and using it as a gateway for their money laundering, drug smuggling, and other nefarious purposes, and Champion simply can’t let that happen.
Lennox and Archer have carefully cultivated the enemies-to-lovers relationship between Kev and Hux throughout the entire series. I have consistently found their snarky banter and abundant puns to be hysterical. So the arrival of this book three, Hacked, which finally brings their romance to fruition, was long awaited and highly welcome. It doesn’t disappoint either, maximizing the slow-burn, crackling chemistry between Kev and Hux and exploiting their crazy relationship for plenty of double entendres and laughs.
Admittedly, this has not been my favorite of these authors’ series, not because of the writing but because of the premise. The whole video game/drug cartel scenario is OTT – likely intentionally – and the crazy premise supports the inanity of the events and preposterous, albeit amusing, plot and dialogue. Again, I expect this is Lennox and Archer’s design, but it’s a bit of a polarizing choice. Pushing the envelope is a risky endeavor, and I applaud these two esteemed writers for going out on a limb. However, I suspect many readers won’t enjoy this series as much because OTT does not resonate with them, especially when prolonged and particularly when it forms the backbone of a series.
That being said, by employing Michael Dean, Lennox and Archer’s go-to narrator, to vocally perform Hacked, they add an effective balance to the story. Dean is a grounding force. If you’ve listened to any of Lennox or Archer’s other audiobooks, you’ve heard Dean in his element. Hearing him playfully engage with this wild story provides a familiarity that ties the story with the tamer Lennox and Archer titles while fully embodying the Horn of Glory characters.
Dean throws himself wholly into the performance here, and his delivery of Kev and Hux’s dynamic, charged romance, including the banter, innuendos, sexual tension, and steamy scenes, hits the mark. Like book two, Hitched, Hacked is a behemoth of an audiobook, clocking in at over eleven hours of listening time. Dean remains consistent throughout in his skilled delivery. This is his best performance of the series, although less than his best across his extensive catalog of titles. But what comes through loud and clear is that he’s having fun, and that can’t help but bring a smile to the listener’s face.
Overall, Hacked is an audiobook I recommend. You really can’t go wrong with Lennox and Archer’s writing collaborations, especially when paired with Dean’s skilled vocal performances. Notwithstanding my lack of enthusiasm for the premise, I enjoyed the Hacked audiobook, which is the best of the series and a satisfying conclusion to this wild and crazy ride.
RATING: 
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