Hall Ways Blog: Vegas Lies ~ Audio Book Blog Tour Review & Giveaway!

VEGAS LIES

(Lies, Book 3)

BY ANDREW CUNNINGHAM

Narrated by Greg Hernandez

Audio Book Length: 5 hours 23 minutes

Released: September 12, 2019

Genre: Mystery, Modern Detective, Romance

Five teenage girls from a small town in Oregon disappear without a trace.

Were they kidnapped, or have the five friends perpetrated a massive hoax? Nine hundred miles away, in Las Vegas, a woman with a dark secret vanishes on her way to meet friends for dinner.

Those friends are Del Honeycutt and best-selling mystery author Sabrina Spencer in Las Vegas for a book convention. As Del and Sabrina investigate their friend's disappearance, they are convinced that she has been abducted, and they begin to uncover the secrets that might have triggered her abduction - secrets that now put Del and Sabrina's lives in jeopardy.

When clues indicate that the five missing girls might also be in Las Vegas, the situation takes a new turn, directly into the unthinkable.

Once again, Del and Sabrina find themselves in deep trouble and marked for death, and they only have a few hours to solve the case, or their friend and the five young girls will be gone forever.

✪✪✪✪

HALL WAYS REVIEW: Audio book review. Vegas Lies is the third book in the Lies series by Andrew Cunningham, and I’ve listened to the audios of all three of the books pretty much back-to-back. In Vegas Lies, as with all of the books so far, readers can count on getting a multi-layered mystery with unexpected plot twists and lots of action. Not only are the stories multi-layered, there are typically multiple plot lines that weave in and out of the books and each story that tie the books together. Vegas Lies stands alone, but I think it will be better enjoyed if read in sequence, as part of the series.

This third book has a ripped-from-the-headlines disturbing premise to grab the reader's attention. While I had a little trouble suspending my disbelief with some aspects, others are horribly feasible. Author Andrew Cunningham initially has this plot piece moving parallel to another, but of course, the two lines start veering towards each other and ultimately, there is a creative connection of the parts.

Readers see more growth from main character Sabrina, and in Vegas Lies, we learn more about an interesting side character from previous books, Mo, who could carry a story on her own. The women in this book take charge and provide the muscle and some of the cleverest problem-solving. Men are mostly depicted as base, crass, and piggish – and not the smartest of creatures. This bordered on being overdone even though logically, the men involved in the crimes would have at least half those characteristics. Main character Del is mostly the exception, but some of his choices and his self-deprecating humor cast him as the weak link in the relationship. I’d like to see more balance between Del and Sabrina if the series continues; right now, though the two clearly are deeply in love and passionate about each other, I am not sure they are an intellectual or physical match for the long term.

The strength of Vegas Lies is in its main characters and the menagerie of secondary characters to love or loathe. The weakness in this book is that the author relies too heavily on summarizing to tell readers who is doing what, where, and why. And the epilogue focuses too much on the characters who won’t likely be returning when readers will surely want more about those who likely would. Faults aside, if another book is forthcoming, I will definitely give it a listen as the promise of intricate and high-interest plots are enticing.

ABOUT THE NARRATION: Greg Hernandez is back to narrate this third book in the series, and he has become the voice of main character Del. He consistently voices all the characters and with each of these books, he is moving further from reading and more into performing. There is a subtle infusion of emotion in his narration, and it fits well with Del’s personality, but it's too subtle for some of the others. His even pacing and delivery allowed me to listen at regular speed, which is always a plus.

Thank you to Audiobookworm Promotions and Mr. Hernandez for providing me an audio download in exchange for my honest opinion – the only kind I give.

I received this audio book as part of my participation in a blog tour with Audiobookworm Promotions. The tour is being sponsored by Greg Hernandez. The gifting of this audio book did not affect my opinion of it.

ANDREW CUNNINGHAM: I'm the author of novels in several genres, including, mystery, thriller, and post-apocalyptic science fiction. Under the name A.R. Cunningham, I've also written the Arthur MacArthur series of mysteries for children.

I was born in England, but have spent most of my life living in the U.S.—including 25 years on Cape Cod before moving to Florida. A former interpreter for the deaf and long-time independent bookseller, I've been a full-time freelance writer and copy editor for many years. A 4th-degree Master Black belt in Tang Soo Do, I finally retired from active training when my body said, "Enough already! Why are you doing this to yourself?" I'm married, with two grown children and two awesome grandsons. My wife and I spend as much time traveling as we can, and are especially fond of cruising the Caribbean.

I have been gratified by the response to my books. When I published Eden Rising back in the spring of 2013, I had no idea what to expect. When I sold my first few copies, I was excited beyond belief that someone was willing to take a chance on it. Numerous books and thousands of copies later, I am still humbled by the emails I get from readers telling me that my books kept them up late into the night.

In October of 2014, Wisdom Spring made me an official Amazon Bestselling author, a thrill I never thought would happen. But it still comes down to being able to bring a few hours of escape to a reader. That's what it's all about for me.

I hope you will try my books. Please feel free to email me with your comments.

Website⎮Twitter⎮Facebook⎮Goodreads⎮Amazon

GREG HERNANDEZ: Author-preferred Narrator of Mysteries & Thrillers

Narrating audio books is highly gratifying. I immerse myself into an author’s story in order to bring it to life for the listener. I’ve enjoyed working with Andrew Cunningham for several years. His books are filled with rich characters, and the stories keep me turning the pages.

I also work as a background actor in movies and TV shows.

For more than 20 years, I worked as a radio news reporter and news writer. I spent half of my broadcasting career at ABC News Radio in the Washington, D.C., bureau. I covered all the federal agencies as well as Congress and the White House. I reported on a wide range of stories during my career, including financial and entertainment industry news.

For nearly 24 years, I worked as a federal government spokesman at three separate agencies—National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), U.S. Mint and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). Connect on Twitter.