This is a good read!!! Kept me on the edge!!

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Wonderful story about a college student caught up in a web of deceit and betrayal all in the name of science. Ben Ashurst agrees to let his emotions be monitered by his tutor in order to pattern brain waves. The only problem is, the tutor is determined to put Ben through ALL possible emotions, love, lust, despair, anger, depression, all without Ben's knowledge. Great, great read!

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"Cutting-edge science and the logic of game theory combine to form an utterly original, spellbinding novel of suspense."

"A tale of intrigue and intimate game playing.....'The Mind Game' will keep the reader anticipating and guessing each new move." -----Booklist

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Amazon.co.uk Review
Heartbreak, betrayal, blind animal terror--emotions are events in the brain and the uniqueness of our feelings is one of the things that makes us human; Hector Macdonald's debut thriller The Mind Game is a virtuoso exploration of those emotions. Oxford student Ben finds himself caught up in a whirlwind of happenstance--he is seduced by Cara at a party and Jenny, who loves him, cripples herself attempting suicide; he is asked to participate in an experiment by a don he hero-worships and finds himself shipped off to a Kenyan resort with Cara, a large expense account and sensors picking up his every feeling; he is framed for drugs charges and flung into a hell-hole jail. Ben discovers that there is no fact of which he can be sure, and almost no one whom he can entirely trust--and he swears vengeance on those who have tricked, corrupted and betrayed him. Macdonald's novel is a twisted maze of ambiguous motives and hidden meanings; it is an impressive display of virtuoso plotting and vivid local colour. It is also an intelligent and inventive display of the author's readings in evolutionary psychology and his concerned musings on where science may lead us. --Roz Kaveney --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Synopsis
Mandanzi, Africa. Paradise on earth. Ben knows that nothing this good comes free. But he's prepared to pay the price. What seems on the surface to be a passionate holiday with his lover is, in fact, the first crucial stage of some ground-breaking research. Ben and his renowned Oxford professor are on the brink of developing a cure for that most disturbing illness - sickness of the mind. Lying on the beach with the bewitching Cara, Ben finds it easy to forget the real purpose of his trip to Africa. Until paradise turns to hell, and suddenly he realises that all the rules he thought he was playing by no longer apply.

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Unabridged Edition, 6 cassettes

Being a fan of the Mystery/Thriller genre of audiobooks (I commute over 100 miles a day) I'm comforatble with most writers' styles. However, this one, presented a whole new aspect of "storytelling" to the listener.

This audio was produced in the first person perspective vice the normal third person presentation. What you gain from this diversion is a feeling that a new portal has been opened in a deft and intelligent manner. Rather intriguing really, as it allows the listeners to get into the main character's head as the mind games unfold and explode.

The locales and settings vary widely - from the stoic halls of Oxford to the sunny African beaches, Silicon Valley, and the dark recesses of the mind.

The main character, Ben Ashurst was content living a peaceful life as a student at Oxford University until he meets a famous investigator who offers him a chance to participate in research - as a human guinea pig - with a basis in the question "What if emotions could be quantified and qualified?" What he never expected was that his trip to Kenya would end in a nightmare.

With more twists and turns than a country road in Vermont, "The Mind Game" explores the human capacity to understand fear, deceit, and the search for truth amid very complex relationships.

Don't be scared off by my rather clinical review - in actuality, this book is a fast paced and memorable listen (or read).

Thanks for lookin'

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Unabridged. Great suspense novel

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