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Tucker Mystery #4
Hacked
An online controversy threatens to take Tucker offline for good. #TuckerGate
Aloysius Tucker vows vengeance when a hacker terrorizes his ten-year-old cousin, Maria. Promising Maria that he’ll unmask the hacker and get an apology, Tucker goes online to get justice. But the resulting flame war turns deadly when the hacker is murdered. Now more hackers, the whole Twitterverse, and a relentless bounty hunter agree on one thing: Tucker is the killer and must be stopped.
His inbox filled with death threats, Tucker battles Anonymous, Chinese spies, and his own self-destructive rage while chasing a murderer the online community has named the HackMaster. Can Tucker build a case against the killer and clear his name before the death threats come true?
Aloysius Tucker vows vengeance when a hacker terrorizes his ten-year-old cousin, Maria. Promising Maria that he’ll unmask the hacker and get an apology, Tucker goes online to get justice. But the resulting flame war turns deadly when the hacker is murdered. Now more hackers, the whole Twitterverse, and a relentless bounty hunter agree on one thing: Tucker is the killer and must be stopped.
His inbox filled with death threats, Tucker battles Anonymous, Chinese spies, and his own self-destructive rage while chasing a murderer the online community has named the HackMaster. Can Tucker build a case against the killer and clear his name before the death threats come true?
352 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2017
5 people are currently reading
52 people want to read
About the author
Ray Daniel
27 books33 followersRay Daniel is the award-winning author of Boston-based crime fiction. His short stories “Give Me a Dollar” won a 2014 Derringer Award for short fiction and “Driving Miss Rachel” was chosen as a 2013 distinguished short story by Otto Penzler, editor of The Best American Mystery Stories 2013.
Hacked is his fourth novel.
For more information, visit him online at raydanielmystery.com and follow him on Twitter @raydanielmystry.
Hacked is his fourth novel.
For more information, visit him online at raydanielmystery.com and follow him on Twitter @raydanielmystry.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
June 9, 2017
I have just finished Hacked. It took me about five and a half hours of straight reading. Tucker is up to his old mischief again. Someone has life ruined his ten year-old cousin on Facebook and Tucker is angry.
Being a Tucker novel, you can bet there are beautiful women, steamy sex, and lots of booze. You can bet there is a deranged killer. What’s new here is the anger. The anger that internet users, through Facebook, Twitter, and similar outlets, can vent without fear of reprisal so long as they can hid behind a screen-name; the anger that results when family members are hurt by cyber-bullying. And the anger that wells up when we feel our own impotence to control these crazy situations.
Family has always been important in the Tucker universe, but in this outing, it feels more personal, like the reader is sitting in the kitchen with Tucker and his family and taking part in the discussion. Tucker is struggling with a new family dynamic caused by circumstances in the previous novel. The anger, and hurt, and frustration, and love, and joy that are natural parts of a marriage hit Tucker pretty much full in the face, and he finds that much of what he does to help his cousin and her wife just exacerbates an already fraught situation.
With few exceptions, everyone is angry at Tucker. His family, the internet, the Boston cops, the FBI, and a US Senator. People are dying and Tucker is accused. To clear his (mostly) good name he needs to find the killer. In his usual thoughtless manner, he uses his prodigious hacking skills to anger the hackers of the internet, but also to eventually figure out what is really going on and why.
This installment is superior to the already excellent Tucker books that we have already read. Daniel’s ability to create tension and to evoke emotion in the reader have only improved. I recommend this highly. Also, change your passwords.
Being a Tucker novel, you can bet there are beautiful women, steamy sex, and lots of booze. You can bet there is a deranged killer. What’s new here is the anger. The anger that internet users, through Facebook, Twitter, and similar outlets, can vent without fear of reprisal so long as they can hid behind a screen-name; the anger that results when family members are hurt by cyber-bullying. And the anger that wells up when we feel our own impotence to control these crazy situations.
Family has always been important in the Tucker universe, but in this outing, it feels more personal, like the reader is sitting in the kitchen with Tucker and his family and taking part in the discussion. Tucker is struggling with a new family dynamic caused by circumstances in the previous novel. The anger, and hurt, and frustration, and love, and joy that are natural parts of a marriage hit Tucker pretty much full in the face, and he finds that much of what he does to help his cousin and her wife just exacerbates an already fraught situation.
With few exceptions, everyone is angry at Tucker. His family, the internet, the Boston cops, the FBI, and a US Senator. People are dying and Tucker is accused. To clear his (mostly) good name he needs to find the killer. In his usual thoughtless manner, he uses his prodigious hacking skills to anger the hackers of the internet, but also to eventually figure out what is really going on and why.
This installment is superior to the already excellent Tucker books that we have already read. Daniel’s ability to create tension and to evoke emotion in the reader have only improved. I recommend this highly. Also, change your passwords.
July 31, 2017
Like protagonist Tucker’s favorite beverages, this series only improves with age. Hacked is the fourth outing for author Ray Daniel’s computer whiz, and is the best one so far.
The story starts with Tucker cleaning up his ten-year-old niece’s hacked Facebook page and musing about the nature of rage. He vows revenge on the anonymous hacker, but before you can say “inadequate password strength,” he finds himself up against a foe he thought he knew: the Internet and its sanctimonious, faceless fury. In short, hackers are being murdered, and the online world decides Tucker is the killer. This being a Tucker novel, family is involved in all its Technicolor dysfunction. Everything is personal, and soon our hero is literally running for his life, fleeing killers while trying to save the next victim from being, well, hacked.
Ray Daniel’s writing is marvelously smooth, and the narrative shifts seamlessly from tension to violence to humor. Our favorite characters are back from earlier in the series, including cranky but effective lawyer Carole Quinn and Israeli assassin/Tucker BFF Jael, who in my mind is played by Gal Gadot. Also costarring is the city of Boston. Daniel’s love of his hometown is evident in the way he employs it not as mere backdrop but as active participant in the story line. No spoilers here, but the Boston Marathon scene absolutely rocks.
Tucker is Boston’s most sympathetic and erudite crime-solver since Robert B. Paker’s Spenser, and we are lucky to have him.
The story starts with Tucker cleaning up his ten-year-old niece’s hacked Facebook page and musing about the nature of rage. He vows revenge on the anonymous hacker, but before you can say “inadequate password strength,” he finds himself up against a foe he thought he knew: the Internet and its sanctimonious, faceless fury. In short, hackers are being murdered, and the online world decides Tucker is the killer. This being a Tucker novel, family is involved in all its Technicolor dysfunction. Everything is personal, and soon our hero is literally running for his life, fleeing killers while trying to save the next victim from being, well, hacked.
Ray Daniel’s writing is marvelously smooth, and the narrative shifts seamlessly from tension to violence to humor. Our favorite characters are back from earlier in the series, including cranky but effective lawyer Carole Quinn and Israeli assassin/Tucker BFF Jael, who in my mind is played by Gal Gadot. Also costarring is the city of Boston. Daniel’s love of his hometown is evident in the way he employs it not as mere backdrop but as active participant in the story line. No spoilers here, but the Boston Marathon scene absolutely rocks.
Tucker is Boston’s most sympathetic and erudite crime-solver since Robert B. Paker’s Spenser, and we are lucky to have him.
December 24, 2018
I've read the 9ther Tucker books, and usually enjoy the other characters and the stories. Tucker himself has always been mildly annoying to me--he's immature and rarely thinks about the consequences of his actions before or afterwards--even when they've gotten people killed. I got through about 50 pages of this and gave up on him. His cousin is hacked, and he is gung ho to make the suspected perpetrator pay. No proof, mind you--there's a kid he profiled who had motive, but he really doesn't have any proof he did it. The motive being that his cousin bullied the suspect's brother,as well as others, on multiple occasions. Does Tucker care? Nope, he takes his cousin for treats and undermines the guardian's attempts at parenting because he's the cool uncle and too busy trying to dox 20-year-old for picking on his cousin. Her bullying is handwave as, "Well, she's had a hard time." The guardians and his friends have already asked him to leave the doxxing alone, but Tucker's got a case of the "You can't tell me what to do, Mom!"s. Inevitably, it's going to spiral, people will die, and Tucker will be blamed, but I can't bring myself to sympathize or care. He calls people asshat, and then wonders where his niece gets it from when he finds she does the same--that pretty much sums up his character right there.
DNF
DNF
Read
May 8, 2018I finished it but it really wasn't for me. I do think many others would enjoy it however.
April 12, 2017
Hacked (Tucker Mystery #4), by Ray Daniel
What would you do if a close family member suffered an online life ruin? I might say you would try to find out who did it, right? And what would you do if this “hunt” led you into murder scenes, divorce of family members and other unpleasant situations, having you as the center of the turmoil?
51Qvoxa8DmL._AC_AA218_This is what happened to Tucker when Maria, his niece, got “life ruined” online. After finding out that Maria’s Facebook account had been hacked, he decided to take over a personal investigation to find out who had done it and make this person apologize online – if not, he would expose the identity of this bully (a serious threat for any hacker).
Tucker was able to find out who did it almost instantaneously, and right after he contacted the hacker and convinced him to apologize in a video in order to have his ID preserved, this hacker is found decapitated. From this event on, Tucker’s life becomes a mess, and he sees himself in the middle of more serious investigations, including the FBI.
It is a fast-read; NetGalley kindly gave me this copy, and I need to say you cannot stop turning the pages, because the story is well constructed and well written. I myself knew who the killer was way before the end, but anyway I recommend it. Now I need to read the other 3 Tucker Mystery books J
Hope you all have a lovely Easter, and please read this book, you will not regret it.
Also, please check my blog for more reviews and a bit more about myself: mypapertrips.wordpress.com
What would you do if a close family member suffered an online life ruin? I might say you would try to find out who did it, right? And what would you do if this “hunt” led you into murder scenes, divorce of family members and other unpleasant situations, having you as the center of the turmoil?
51Qvoxa8DmL._AC_AA218_This is what happened to Tucker when Maria, his niece, got “life ruined” online. After finding out that Maria’s Facebook account had been hacked, he decided to take over a personal investigation to find out who had done it and make this person apologize online – if not, he would expose the identity of this bully (a serious threat for any hacker).
Tucker was able to find out who did it almost instantaneously, and right after he contacted the hacker and convinced him to apologize in a video in order to have his ID preserved, this hacker is found decapitated. From this event on, Tucker’s life becomes a mess, and he sees himself in the middle of more serious investigations, including the FBI.
It is a fast-read; NetGalley kindly gave me this copy, and I need to say you cannot stop turning the pages, because the story is well constructed and well written. I myself knew who the killer was way before the end, but anyway I recommend it. Now I need to read the other 3 Tucker Mystery books J
Hope you all have a lovely Easter, and please read this book, you will not regret it.
Also, please check my blog for more reviews and a bit more about myself: mypapertrips.wordpress.com
January 28, 2017
Hacked is packed with thrills, and even though it’s part of a series, it reads great as a standalone. This is a book of righteous online indignation leading to lethal offline consequences. The author does a great job of making an exciting and dangerous situation plausible.
Most of the characters are well-developed and interesting. Maria, the victim of the online bully, has her own secrets. Tucker’s a master hacker, but he’s just as susceptible to the pull of internet drama as everyone else. The bullies that go after Maria are punks online, but real people with families and lives offline. And, well, CapnMerica doesn’t quite fit the well-developed criteria, but he was incredibly interesting.
Even the villain, the HackMaster, is more than anyone could guess. I found the outcome surprising, but logical. I had an inkling of suspicion about midway through, but there were several candidates for that suspicion. I didn’t ultimately figure it out until just about the same time as Tucker did.
Overall, I loved this story. While it’s pegged as a mystery, it has its fair share of thrills, too. I’d recommend this to folks who love mysteries and thrillers, particularly if they dig stories about hackers.
I picked up the advance review copy of this book from NetGalley.
Most of the characters are well-developed and interesting. Maria, the victim of the online bully, has her own secrets. Tucker’s a master hacker, but he’s just as susceptible to the pull of internet drama as everyone else. The bullies that go after Maria are punks online, but real people with families and lives offline. And, well, CapnMerica doesn’t quite fit the well-developed criteria, but he was incredibly interesting.
Even the villain, the HackMaster, is more than anyone could guess. I found the outcome surprising, but logical. I had an inkling of suspicion about midway through, but there were several candidates for that suspicion. I didn’t ultimately figure it out until just about the same time as Tucker did.
Overall, I loved this story. While it’s pegged as a mystery, it has its fair share of thrills, too. I’d recommend this to folks who love mysteries and thrillers, particularly if they dig stories about hackers.
I picked up the advance review copy of this book from NetGalley.
April 30, 2017
Hacked by Ray Daniel is the forth book in the Tucker Mystery Series that is scheduled to be released on June 8, 2017 by Midnight Ink. This book is an adult mystery, thriller. I found this book very interesting! This is the first book I read in the series and even though it is the forth book it reads well as a standalone. The author writes about very thrilling and heart racing situations that will leave you speechless. This is a book of righteous online indignation leading to lethal offline consequences. All of the characters are well thought out with very interesting stories of their own. The character that stands out for me is Maria. She is a victim of the online bulling. This is where her life collides with Tucker. He is a master hacker. Someone who can do the impossible. but also loves his far share of the drama. The bullies that go after Maria are punks online, but real people with families and lives offline. This is where things get even more exciting. I really enjoyed reading this book and highly recommend it
July 23, 2017
Tucker vows vengeance when someone life ruins his 10-year cousin Maria on Facebook. Promising that he will get an apology from the Internet bully, Tucker finds himself in an online war that goes deadly after the hacker is murdered and Tucker is accused of being the killer. With death threats filling his inbox, Tucker battles PwnSec, Anonymous, the whole Twitterverse and his own self-destructive rage to clear his name. A subplot involves a US Senator asking the FBI and Tucker for help in stopping a sex video from being released online.
This was a thrilling, fun read, and another great entry in the Tucker mystery series.
I received this book for free from Netgalley and Midnight Ink in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
This was a thrilling, fun read, and another great entry in the Tucker mystery series.
I received this book for free from Netgalley and Midnight Ink in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
July 6, 2017
Aloysius Tucker is a white-hat hacker, well, really more of a dingy gray hat. His wife was murdered and his cousin, Sal, was murdered and now Tucker, his cousin, Adriana, her wife, Catherine, and Sal's daughter, Maria, are trying to create a new normal. When Maria is bullied on Facebook, Tucker decides to get even with the troll and get an apology for Maria. But, Tucker is arrested, standing over the headless body of said troll, and things spiral downhill quickly. Don't read this book if you think Facebook and Twitter are the evil spawn of the Internet age; it will only confirm your prejudices.
January 13, 2017
This book is very current and makes for really fast reading. Tucker is a great lead character - smart, passionate, impulsive and in his own way, old school chivalrous. Subject matter is the content of various news clips nowadays. I highly recommend this as reading material for upper middle school and high school.
ETA: I forgot to mention, great humor throughout! Some dude-speak, geek-speak and millenial-speak. I laughed several times at the irony of the hacker personalities vs. their real personalities. Tucker is a regular dude, sometimes a frat boy, sometimes a spark of genius.
ETA: I forgot to mention, great humor throughout! Some dude-speak, geek-speak and millenial-speak. I laughed several times at the irony of the hacker personalities vs. their real personalities. Tucker is a regular dude, sometimes a frat boy, sometimes a spark of genius.
April 13, 2017
This is a cracking good novel and a brilliant addition to the Tucker mystery series. I have an affinity for Tucker, because I came this close to being named Aloysius! In this current adventure travel along with Tucker as the internet explodes and comes after him with a vengeance. Hackers, Chinese spies, Facebook, Twitter, the Boston Marathon and an old woman in a wheelchair provide Tucker with enough twists and turns, (literally and figuratively) to keep him busy for a lifetime. When this book is released, you must get it!
June 30, 2017
Another Tucker outing, another good read. Tucker gives in to Internet counter-rage when trolls get personal, and he finds out how low humanity can sink. Of course he gets in over his head, and things get even more personal, and then violent. Tucker is accused of murder, and people are after him. Good thing he has a few friends left, because he's going to need them. The book is a good primer on what a swamp many social media sites have become. If you were thinking of letting your pre-teens go on Facebook, read this first. A solid addition to the Tucker line.
September 18, 2017
DNF
I got to review this book from Netgalley for an honest opinion.
I enjoyed this book. The pace wasn't as slow as I thought it would be, and the characters got some development along the way instead of being flat. I enjoyed how Tucker knows about hacking and that he would do anything to give justice to his niece.
I got to review this book from Netgalley for an honest opinion.
I enjoyed this book. The pace wasn't as slow as I thought it would be, and the characters got some development along the way instead of being flat. I enjoyed how Tucker knows about hacking and that he would do anything to give justice to his niece.
Read
July 28, 2017PW
Read
October 21, 2017Interesting. Ray Daniel is one of my favorite authors.
Want to read
January 6, 2019Synopsis: Aloysius Tucker vows vengeance when a hacker terrorizes his ten-year-old cousin Maria.
July 7, 2019
Time for the fourth book -- hope there are more coming! The last one for now. Another good read. Hope Tucker is lucky enough to survive another book -- this one was pretty threatening.
January 6, 2020
I quit on this one after about 30 pages. Nobody is that stupid and impulsive, are they? Not if they hope to be a sympathetic character worthy of my high school lit. teachers.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews