Teaming up wasn’t Kevin’s idea but if Audrey can help him, he’ll do his best to save her. Mind hacker Kevin comes from a long line of powerful psychics. On a dangerous mission, he almost lost his life thanks to a rogue mind hacker. He suffers greatly because of it and has become a hermit. When Dr. Audrey shows up claiming to help him, he first thinks she’s just another illusion. No, she’s flesh and blood and is stubborn in her willingness to help him. Someone has removed her mind’s blocks and erased part of her memories. But why? To get to him? And why does she seem so familiar? Enlisting the help of his brother, Kevin fights his own self-doubt and his intense attraction to her to do what must be done. Can he do it or will he fail and kill them both?

Dark Waves is an intense paranormal romantic suspense short novella I read in one sitting. While it is helpful to read the previous two books in the series, Amanda Uhl creates enough backstory, so you won’t be lost. There is a tight cast of characters and I connected with them all. I connected most with Audrey, though. I cannot imagine the fear of realizing someone has hacked my mind, removed my mind blocks, and erased some memories. Talk about a violation. The descriptive narration is equally emotional and impressive world-building. With each POV, the reader is linked to every emotion the character is experiencing. The world-building is second to none and introduces the reader to the world of mind hacking. Amanda Uhl continues to impress with an evocative paranormal romantic suspense story, unlike anything I’ve read before. The plot moves at an even pace with a complete story arc in less than one hundred pages. If you’re a paranormal reader, you’ll want to read Dark Waves. I look forward to the next installment in the series. Highly recommend!

Disclaimer: I received a copy from the author in the hopes I'd review it.

My Rating: 5 stars

Audrey Gilbert is a Psychiatrist for the Cognitive Mind Unit (CMU) which are an elite group of psychics. Her patient Jake is a mind hacker and trained to hack minds and could erase and change thoughts, but six months ago he started showing signs of burn out and was sent to her.

She leaves him to take a call. One of her patients had gone rogue and killed a store owner and now she has just been fired since she had released him from care making her culpable in his crime. But they offered to give her back her job if she can convince a former mind hacker to return to CMU.

She is told that Kevin Jorgensen, a former Level 10 mind hacker, is psychotic and warned that he could cause major damage, erase memories, cause brain damage and even death if he doesn't like her. But, with her mother's ongoing healthcare and her sister's college tuition the decision is made for her. She needs a job.

I absolutely loved this book and my only complaint is that is was a novella. I really wanted more of their story. It is very well written and the characters are fully developed and relatable.

This is a physiological romance thriller that grabbed me from page one. It is action-packed, full of emotion and unexpected twists. Highly recommend!

This novella did everything that one should do - it got me hooked, made me want more, and was still a satisfying standalone read.

Audrey is a doctor tasked with helping a very unique group of individuals with gifts. In this "Mind Hacker" world, there's a high probability that the operatives will need her specific help. That's all good and well until something goes wrong that forces her to take an "impossible" case. Said case comes in the form of Kevin, an operative who has gone off the rails and has no desire to return. They have some obvious challenges, but they are overcome (with sexy results, too!). If you're looking for a soft into to this world, you should definitely check this book out. It reminded me that I wanted to dive back in!

This book is part of a series which I haven't read but this wasn't an issue.

This was an interesting read and unlike many novellas the plot didn't suffer for the length. It's well plotted and the characters are interesting.

I received an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Dr. Audrey Gilbert is a paranormal psychiatrist for powerful psychics. She has the ability to see into them and fix what's broken. But one such patient went rogue after she released him from her care and someone died. She's fired because of this but told by her boss that she can get her job back if she finds Kevin Jorgensen, talks him into letting her help him, fixes what's wrong and he comes back to work. Both Kevin and Audrey are part of the U.S. government’s Cognitive Mind Unit and they want him to come back to work. He is a level 10 telepath/psychic, meaning a very strong, talented, psychic/telepath and they want him to come back to work after 5 years and not getting better.

Kevin Jorgensen spots Audrey in the store the day before she is going to meet him and he can hear his name in her mind so he knows she's there for him, he just doesn't know why. His mind is really messed up after his last mission and no one has been able to help him so he's given up trying. He hears and sees things that aren't there but they might be trying to tell him something if he'll only listen.

Kevin feels something for Audrey right away and he's curious about her so he allows her to come in and talk to him. But there's something strange about her and when he realizes that someone has messed with her mind and erased some of her memories, he gets his brother involved who is also a very strong psychic/telepath. Trying to figure out who messed with her mind and why his memories were erased and by whom is where this story takes us. I loved the ride. For a quick novella there was a lot of story in this book.

Audrey is a psychiatrist specialized in broken or burn out soldiers/spys with parapsychic powers. Her brilliant reputation is shaken when one of her former patients kills a random seller. To save her work and continue to help her family, she has to cure Kevin, a powerful telepath turned psychotic. But this job turns even more complicated than she could fear when working with a trained psychic able to tamper with people's mind : not only her feelings grow less an less doctor/patient appropriate but in this world where minds are weapons or playfields, she may need his help as much he needs her.
The story is intriguing, easy to read and cute, the universe seems rich and interesting (spys with mental powers, yes !) but even if the novella is supposed to be a standalone, the length is a little too short to allow a deep understanding of this world. I saw after reading the characters appear in the first novel, so it's probably a good idea to read the other books in the series first.
As an important part of the plot isn't really clarified in the end, I hope to find the explanation in previous or next books.

I received an advance digital review copy from NetGalley and Backlit PR. This is my honest review.

The paranormal and psychic meets romance- yes, please! Pairing the supernatural and romance is my idea of a great read. Author Amanda Uhl is one of my favorite authors in this genre. I had a marvelous time with her first two books, Mind Waves, Mind Hacker Series, Book 1 and Cross Waves, Mind Hacker Series, Book 2.

Dark Waves is the latest in the Mind Hackers collection, and it is a short novella. I would call it an “amuse-bouche”, a little delicious bite to introduce you to the main course of the full Mind Hacker collection. You will meet a fearless paranormal psychiatrist, Dr. Audrey Gilbert and a tormented hacker, Kevin Jorgensen. They are part of the U.S. government’s Cognitive Mind Unit. Kevin had been a telepathic, class 10 hacker as part of the government’s security operations. Five years after a serious situation, Kevin needs help. Can Audrey put his brain back together? And what of the other feelings the two are experiencing for each other?

Dark Waves is a portal into the complete world that Author Uhl has created in the first two books. If you haven’t read this series, Dark Waves will introduce you to the paranormal of CMU and its hackers. Get to know Audrey and Kevin and the small town of Marblehead, OH. You will enjoy the fascinating viewpoint, and the mix of romance, passion and the supernatural. If you have read the first two books, I know you will enjoy getting back to the Mind Hackers.

I obtained an advance digital review copy from NetGalley and Backlit PR. This is my honest review.

Normally I don't read this type of book but decided to give it a try. I was a bit confused with everything going on and couldn't quite get a grasp on the story.

Dr. Audrey Gilbert is a paranormal psychiatrist tasked with “curing” a rogue mind-hacker named Kevin Jorgensen. The two navigate Kevin’s psychic abilities and mental blocks and eventually develop an attraction to each other. Kevin and Audrey discover a nefarious plot and try to work together to discover who is behind the mental games.

I feel like half of the book is missing. There is very little backstory about Dr. Gilbert and almost no “world-building” to describe the mind-hackers or the company for which they work. It appears to be the latest novel in a series, but that isn’t clearly indicated anywhere, so I don’t know what books to go back and read to get more background information. Kevin and Audrey’s relationship went from “I don’t trust you” to “hey, you’re hot” in what felt like three sentences. There are just some huge plot holes. Number one (my biggest complaint): the bad guys are never found! Maybe it will be solved in a later novel? It didn’t really end on a cliffhanger though. Number two (spoiler alert): Kevin and Audrey have a past history together, but none of it is ever described or fleshed out. Number three: Kevin erased many of Audrey’s memories and she just randomly is okay with that? There’s no groveling or dealing with the traumatic loss of memories against her will. I am being very generous with two stars because I felt like it had great potential, but read like a first draft.