A Secondhand Life

By: Pamela Crane

Narrated by: Melanie Carey

Length: 8 hrs and 35 mins

Publisher's summary

In a freak collision when she was 12, Mia Germaine faced death and the loss of her father. A heart transplant from a young murder victim saved her life, but not without a price. Twenty years later, chilling nightmares about an unresolved homicide begin to plague Mia. Compelled by these lost memories, she forms a complicated connection to the victim - the girl killed the night of Mia's accident - due to a scientific phenomenon called "organ memory."

Now suffocating beneath the weight of avenging a dead girl and catching a serial killer on the loose dubbed the "Triangle Terror," Mia must dodge her own demons while unimaginable truths torment her - along with a killer set on making her his next victim.

As Mia tries to determine if her dreams are clues or disturbing phantasms, uninvited specters lead her further into danger's path, costing her the one person who can save her from herself. A Secondhand Life weaves a tale of second chances and reclaimed dreams as this taut, refreshing story ensnares and penetrates you.

©2015 Pamela Crane (P)2017 Pamela Crane

Love it

Loved the unique premise of this book and found it compelling and entertaining.

I was voluntarily provided this review copy audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator.

Fantastic!!!

This was a fantastic,suspenseful story that had me guessing until the end. I really enjoyed this story and can't wait to read more by this author!

*This book was given to me for free at my request and I provided this voluntary review.*

Excellent listen

Any additional comments?

What a story! This is a corker of a listen. I really felt for poor Mia and her unresolved issues. Her characterisation is very clever because at times she's annoying and at times she's inspiring and that makes her so believable. I thought I had the ending all figured out, was patting myself on the back with an air of smugness. Pride comes before a fall!! I was NOT expecting that! Ms Crane, you are a sneaky one! The narration by Melanie Carey is excellent. Definitely a 5 star recipient!

It’s a whodunit that leaves you guessing until the

I’ve not read a lot of mystery books in the past. A Secondhand Life is a great mystery book in my opinion. It’s a whodunit that leaves you guessing until the end. Although there were times when I thought I knew who the killer was, I wasn’t really sure until it was revealed.

I never read the first book in the series and although ASL is labeled as the second book in the series, the book seems to have it’s own storyline. There’s no seemingly real dependency on the previous book and it seems to stand on its own. Which is good - I’ve listened to other books in a series without reading the preceding ones and had no clue what was going on. I’m curious why the second book was released on Audible before the first, but I’m sure the author has a master plan.

Beginning, and middle, I quite enjoyed the book.

But the end...

I’m the kind of person that if a mishap is done in the writing, it’s a blemish that I can’t overlook. Call it a bad habit. Call it OCD. Call it just being a pain in the ass. But the ending was kind of strange for me.

[SPOILER]
In the final battle, Mia was stabbed or cut in the throat. It was a serious wound. It was enough to make her get woozy at a certain point, and even stain a towel red quickly. But afterwards, there was no mention of it. It healed miraculously, and even in the ending scene when Mia and Brad were “getting it on” no mention of a scab or stitches or tenderness. Nothing.
[/SPOILER]

Did it ruin the book? Of course not. The ending was great! But it’s like watching a movie and seeing the sound boom come down into the shot. It takes away from it. Cheapens it. Hopefully the author will make sure these prickly barbs are smoothed down for us OCD types in her future works.

Otherwise, she's a brilliant author.

Melanie Carey was a very entertaining performer. I loved the effort she placed into the enunciation of words. Her performance of the killer character was amazing. Her performance of male parts was the best I’ve heard yet.

This audiobook was gifted to me by the author in exchange for an unbiased review.

I didn't see that coming!

Loved the premise of the story and all of the twists and turns held my attention throughout!

Narrator did an excellent job with the characters!

I was given a free review copy of this audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Ehhh. It was OK.

I'm not sure why, but I had trouble with this one. Maybe I just didn't like the author's writing style. The story wasn't awful, but it just didn't hold any real surprises for me. Not really mysterious, not really suspenseful...and the main character was a bit whiney for my taste. The narration of the villain was horrid and trite. Almost cliched. Very one dimensional. I am evil...but I think I'm good, but I know I'm really evil, and I love the killing and the blood and the moment the life drains from them...blahblahblah. Just fell really flat. By the end, I just didn't care anymore and just wanted to finish so I could start something better.

A Thriller That Kept Me Guessing Until the End!

This was the first time I have listened or read one of Pamela Crane's novels and it won't be my last. NO SPOILER REVIEW: The book is about a girl named Mia who receives a heart transplant and has yet to move on from a painful past. Years later she starts to have memories that are not her own and starts to wonder if they are related to the donated heart that beats in her chest. All the while, a serial killer dubbed the "triangle terror" is back on a killing spree going after young girls in her city.

This story reminds me of the theory of "6 degrees of separation" and how multiple lives can unknowingly intersect. The story focuses on a mystery with multiple sub plots that deepens the story and the connection to its characters.

As a breakdown, I would say this story is:
20% romance
80% mystery/thriller/police procedural (the story reads like a police procedural however a civilian is the one investigating and I found this interesting)
100% heart

This story was entertaining and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good mystery.

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Good storyline

This is a very unique story and really pulled me in from the start. Mia was an intriguing character and I couldn’t help but like her. She’s had a rough life! I mean, can you imagine having to go through a heart transplant? Let alone with you’re 12 years old! I can’t even imagine. Twenty years after she’s having visions about young girls being murdered which are eerily similar to real life events. Her visions turn into what seems like memories. Is it possible to have memories from her heart? Give this a listen and see what you think! It’s an extremely interesting thought.

Mia begins a journey to find out what is happening and how the past links with the murders of the present. She befriends her heart donor’s brother, Langdon. They go on the hunt together. This is an extremely original story and very well-written. It was lacking a bit for me. I had a hard time with Mia some… some of her Nancy Drew antics bothered me. However, Pamela Crane wrote a compelling story that will suck you in with its authenticity.

The narrator, Melanie Carey, had a very pleasant voice and was extremely easy to follow. I removed a star because I felt like it was lacking in a bit of feelings. This is a thriller… a psychological suspense and wanted more fear or infliction in her voice. I wanted to feel it! It didn’t get quite there for me. However, that wouldn’t stop me from following this narrator. There are some narrators that have a hard voice to listen to but Carey is not like that. She has a very nice voice and enunciates very clearly.

Narrator leaves a lot to be desired

The narrator has an overt speech pattern with regard to her pronunciation of “L” and “R” that carries through all of the characters’ voices she attempts. This makes the audiobook narration hard to believe and grating after listening to audiobook for a few hours. As well, she mispronounced more than a few common medical terminology. These factors ruined the enjoyment of the audiobook.

great

I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

This was a great book! It kept me guessing all the way to the end. Plenty of twists and turns to keep you interested!