H.A.L.F.: The Deep Beneath

By: Natalie Wright

Narrated by: Andrew Tell

Length: 8 hrs and 46 mins

Publisher's summary

H.A.L.F. 9 has taken his first breath of desert air and his first steps in the human world. Created to be a weapon, he proved too powerful for his makers, hidden from humans and sedated. H.A.L.F. 9 has escaped the underground lab he called home, and the sedation has worn off. He has never been more alive. More powerful. Or more deadly.

Erika Holt longs to ride her motorcycle east until pavement gives way to shore. She bides her time until graduation when she'll escape the trailer she shares with her alcoholic mother and memories of her dead father. But a typical night in the desert with friends thrusts Erika into a situation more dangerous than she ever imagined.

Circumstances push the two together, and each must make a fateful choice. Will Erika help H.A.L.F. 9 despite her "don't get involved" rule? And will H.A.L.F. 9 let Erika live even though he was trained to kill?

The two may need to forget their rules and training if either is to survive the dangers of the deep beneath them.

©2015 Natalie Wright (P)2015 Natalie Wright

An Amazing New Young Adult Series

* I received a free copy of this audiobook from AudioBookBlast in exchange for an honest review.

H.A.L.F. 9 has finally escaped his lifelong cell and has breathed in the desert air for the first time. He was created as a weapon, but he exceeded his creator's wildest imaginings of his power and has spent his entire 17 years of life sedated and hidden away from humans.

But now that H.A.L.F. 9 has escaped the underground lab and the sedation has worn off, he realizes just what he has been missing and just how powerful he really is.

Erika Holt can't wait to graduate high school and get the heck out of her small hometown. Ever since her beloved father died when Erika was only twelve years old, it had been up to Erika to take care of her alcoholic mother. She is sick of it and upon graduation she plans to hop on her motorcycle and drive as far East as it is possible to go.

Erika does not drink alcohol. She knows that most of the high school seniors do, but living with an alcoholic has put her off alcohol for good. She was supposed to attend a party with her best friends: Ian and Jack, but Erika convinces them to head out into the desert instead.

Erika had no idea that deciding to head into the desert on that particular night would end up changing her life forever.

Erika and H.A.L.F. 9 have a fateful run-in in the desert and somehow their fates and their very lives end up inextricably linked together.

This audiobook is a terrific Young Adult tale. It is the first book in a series.

H.A.L.F. 9 is a terrific character. The author could have taken him in any direction she wanted. She writes his confusion with what the real world is really like brilliantly. He may be super-smart from a purely intellectual point of view, but learning from books and only approved websites has left him severely socially handicapped.

The narration of this audiobook was EXCELLENT. It was clear right from the beginning that this narrator is a professional. I'm not sure what else to say about it because, quite frankly, it could not have been any better. The narrator was able to draw me into the story right away and allowed me to follow along without ever having to wonder if I had missed anything.

My favorite character in this book has to Dr. Randall. Despite the fact that he is the co-founder of the HALF program, he is a good man with a good heart who wants to do the right thing.

Dr. Lily Sturgess is the perfect villain. She is condescending to her subordinates. She is devious. She believes that her intellect is superior to everyone else. Basically, she is a bully who has power and that power is more important to her than anything else.

Dr. Dolan is the grandfatherly figure that listeners cannot help but be drawn to.

I rate this young adult audiobook as 5 out of 5 stars. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Alien hybrids! In the Desert!

Jack, Erika, and Ian have been good friends since childhood and headed out to the desert outside of their small Arizona town to blow off some steam. They got far more than they bargained for! Before long, they are swept up in an alien-human hybrid science experiment that has some very determined people wanting to keep it quiet.

The action is well paced with a little comedy and some important conversations between characters. Erika was my favorite character; she has drive, is very easy to relate to, and gets stuff done that is plot-relevant. She’s also still a believable teen and makes realistic mistakes.

Tex, also known as H.A.L.F. 9, is also fun. He’s doing his best to figure out his world, abilities, and who are his allies versus enemies. Since he’s a living experiment brought up in a super secret desert facility, his limited experience makes him a little naive (understandably). I also like he has one big weakness – H2O. Yep, even the smallest amount of moisture can limit his abilities.

Jack and Ian provide some comedic relief here and there. Now I do have one quibble with this story and it involves these two guys. One of them is Erika’s boyfriend and the other has been Friend-Zoned and definitely wants to be something more. So we have this potential love triangle in the making and I’m not big on love triangles where there’s competition for one person’s affection. Then there’s Tex who has some feelings stirring for Erika and he’s not sure what they are nor what to do with them. So it could end up being a love quadrangle…. and that’s just silly. If Erika was the only female character in the story, then this would be a huge turn off for me. Luckily, we have some other ladies.

Commander Sturgis is a villain I love to hate. She’s driven, intelligent, condescending, ruthless, and a little petty. This H.A.L.F. project is her baby and her backers are eager to see what kind of living weapon she has wrought with this alien DNA. There’s also Electo, another alien DNA experiment. She has that potential to be a villain that later redeems herself. A very interesting character!

The plot ramps up and up to the point where Erika and her friends may well lose their lives. Things do indeed look grim for them but they keep their wits and pull together. I was definitely on the edge of my seat for the last two hours of the story. The end does leave us on a cliffhanger but Book 2 and Book 3 are already out so I can continue the story right away. 4/5 stars.

I received a free copy of this book.

The Narration: Andrew Tell did a really good job with this book. His voice for Erika was believably feminine and his voices for Jack and Ian sounded like teen boys. He also had a distinct voice for Tex with proper, careful grammar and all. I loved his angry Sturgis and his creepy Electo. 5/5 stars.

Okay

BOOK REVIEW.....
Young adult fiction is not normally on my to read and review list however, this sounded good, But this book was only just okay to me. Wright has crafted an intriguing tale with characters that were interesting. It's just the story itself that fell flat to me.

AUDIO REVIEW......
I found the narrator to be good at reading the book as well as giving the characters life and voice.

"I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review via AudiobookBlast dot com".
L.

Great story

I’m already starting book 2. Soooo much was packed in to this story.
I think I know why what happened to Jack at the end of the story but I guess I’ll find out soon enough.
I really wanted Electo to come around but maybe eventually she will. The characters are well written and I’m loving this series.
Narration by Andrew Tell was excellent as always.


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

Really Great Listen!

Narration - Andrew Tell - Really Good
I honestly can't say much about his narration. He was such a good story teller, that I didn't notice his narration (which is the mark of a great narrator). Great voice, good pace, no annoying character voices, it all was just a smoothly told story. Very nice!

The book was really interesting. I don't read/listen to much Psy-Fi, but I really enjoyed this book.
HALF.9 is a hybrid human/alien who escapes from the underground environment where he's been kept for the past 17 years. He runs into three teenagers out in the desert and rescues them from some pretty bad guys then rescues them again from one of his creators and their adventure begins.

The book has POV chapters all told in third person AND it ends on a cliffy!

Really Great Listen!

I was given this audiobook free of charge from audiobookblast in exchange for an unbiased review

Good read

I enjoyed this first book very much. It is a good read but could have been better. The narration was very well done. I'm looking forward to the rest of the series.

I received a free copy of this book for a potential review.

Great story but narrator obviously was not from AZ

What did you love best about H.A.L.F.: The Deep Beneath?

Being set in the great state of Arizona.

Any additional comments?

I lost interest in the book toward the end and it almost felt like a chore, it seemed as if their was a lot of repetition in the book; ie: smells, fight, reminding us that half 9 will die from water... I also noticed being from Phoenix AZ a few inconsistencies, a few that stood out: at one point they were driving on the I10 north of Phoenix which is impossible because it runs east and west not North to South, It should be the I17 that runs north of phoenix, also cholla cactus is pronounced like choyya cactus. Other than that the ending got stale and repetitive and the love triangle got to annoying. I don't see my self investing into another book of the half series.

This audiobook was provided by the author/narrator/publisher free of charge in exchange for an unbiased review via AudiobookBlast dot com

Sci-Fi Adventure

I agreed to review all three books in this series. I didn't know what to expect when starting, but after this book, I can't wait for the next two. This was a great sci-fi adventure. I'd definitely recommend this book to just about anyone. I was surprised at how good it was. The author could easily match some of the bestseller authors we all know.

Narration was great for this book. I hope it's the same narrator for the rest of the series.

I requested and received a free copy of this audiobook from the author, publisher, or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review. I was NOT required to write a positive review and this reflects my honest opinion of the work.

Great Book!! Should be a movie or TV show

This is a great book you start to fall in love with halfs almost from the start. The writer envelops you into the world of the HALFs and it is a story unlike others I have read. Great Premise and if you like SciFi with a little "magic" this book will scratch that itch.

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

Human/Alien breeding program, 1 escapes!!!

H.A.L.F.: The Deep Beneath
By: Natalie Wright
Narrated by: Andrew Tell
I have had this book for a long time and I am so mad at myself for waiting to read it! It is so amazing!
It is about a human/alien hybid breeding program by the government, and one of their specimens, HALF 9, escapes. 9 meets teens and trouble, they each help each other. The story gets crazier and very suspense filled as they try to get 9 to his 'cousins' that are trying to pick him up. 9 finds out he has a 'sister', HALF 10, along the way too but her personality is nothing as kind as his.
The narrator is just wonderful! He does the gruff voices and the squeaky alien voices perfectly! (Every voice in between too!) Perfect narrator for this book!