Hearing Thoughts

by Anthony Diffley

Daniel Burke is a young New York City Assistant DA currently prosecuting a man for the murder of his wife. Even though her body was never found, there is enough circumstantial evidence to bring him to trial. Danny has his own doubts about whether or not this man is guilty of the crime but he knows because of the oath he took, he must follow through and perform his duty as assistant prosecutor. When the trial is unexpectedly put on hold for a week, he and two of his friends decide to take a short getaway vacation to their cabins up in Lake George. All is going well for him and his friends until he is suddenly and discreetly abducted by an alien vessel from outer space. The aliens are very friendly and peaceful and have come here to test and observe humans. When they feel that the time is right, they will make their presence known to all mankind. While on board, they give Danny the ability to communicate with them via thought transmission or through the ability of hearing their thoughts. He becomes good friends with one of the aliens who in turn gives Danny some good lessons on life. Trouble hits their ship just as they are returning him back to earth and while in the process of removing the thought hearing capability. Danny is safely returned, but he is unintentionally left with the talent to hear other people's thoughts. When he finally realizes he can hear other people's thoughts, he starts to question himself as to how he can put it to good use. Should he use it on his job? For romance? To beat his friends at cards? To know what the world thinks of him? Or more importantly, after having lost his wife on 9/11, use it to help the government stop another terrorist attack? These choices, plus many more, are all at his disposal but will he choose wisely?

208 pages, Paperback

First published March 16, 2015

Reviews

[Rob Slaven · Rating 1 out of 5]

As is often the case I received this book free for the purposes of review but I'm absolutely candid about it below because potential buyers deserve to know what it is they're about to pay money for.

The nutshell on this novel is pretty well summed up by the back cover. Normally I would consider it a spoiler to reveal so much about the plot but since it IS on the back... Essentially, a high-power attorney is kidnapped by aliens and now can hear other people's thoughts. Thus the title. Not exactly massively original really.

In most cases I try to frame a book by its positives and its negatives. In this case though I can't really find anything even remotely positive to say about it. The story is trite and has been already been explored by dozens of other authors. The writing is deplorable and the dialog reminds me of a conversation you might hear in a Dick and Jane novel. I guffawed aloud when grown men started talking about their "tummies" and many of the scenes defy any knowledge of how the adult world works. It reminds me strongly of the videos you see in which a small child describes what they think their parents do all day at work.

In summary, while I always hate to take it to new authors with such vigor I can't be party to anyone actually considering paying money for this. I'd encourage Mr. Diffley to keep at it and try a different idea with a new copy editor because the one you have has failed you terribly.

see my video review for some textual readings and more detailed commentary:

https://youtu.be/Kx_t1ZJl_18

--
Rob Slaven
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[Autumn · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was a decent story. I would highly suggest an editor though to tighten the story and to deal with past/present tense issues. I received a copy of this book for an honest review and my honest opinion is that had I paid money for it, I would have been a bit upset at the quality of the editing/writing. I gave the book two stars because I did enjoy the base plot.

[Danielle Urban · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hearing Thoughts by Anthony Diffley is superb. His writing lures readers straight into his adventurous yet highly entertaining novel. Readers will find themselves totally absorbed into this story. Hearing Thoughts is the most compelling science fiction fantasy novel, I have read.

Anthony Diffley has masterfully woven fantasy, politics, murder and a mystery all in one captivating read. A man's friend is being accused as the murder for his wife's death....however, he doesn't believe his friend committed the crime. But by law, he's required to do his job no matter what. Not long after does something most bizarre happen to him. He soon finds himself abducted by aliens...and returned back home...but now has the ability to hear people's thoughts. This gives the novel so many what if's and suspense that readers will be kept on the edge of their seats reading to find out what happens next.

Decisions are hard enough to make but once you're given a power that nobody else has...more decisions open up...and the possibilities are as numerous as the stars in the night sky. New York City Assistant DA, Daniel Burke, will have to figure how and when to use his new given power. Will he use it for the good or the bad? Overall, I highly recommend this thought-provoking and stunning novel to readers everywhere.

[Abigail · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story starts slowly (the first 4 chapters could probably have been covered in one) but by the middle of the book I was truly ingrigued.

Daniel was an interesting character and I liked to see how he developed throughout the book.

Individual chapters were good reads in themselves and I liked the way in which the author attempted to mix genres. However, the overall plot seemed unoriginal and was too scattered with irrelevant religious overtones.

I think this author shows good promise, but is not quite there yet. My reading was also hampered by frequent typos and grammar mistakes, which I have tried to ignore whilst writing this review.

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

[Cat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mixing Sci-fi with terrorism today is an interesting idea. And Burke is a likeable character who has suffered terribly from 9/11. It is only fitting he would want to make use of otherworldly technology to improve the peace vibe on earth. But should he? Diffley never stumbles as he lays out this fast paced story and leaves it open to a sequel. But he deserves a better proof-reader.