Initial Impressions 1/24/16: 3 stars 
 This was much different than I expected! I think with the mention of "hacker", I had expected a lot more of the thriller aspect from a hacker vs the authorities kind of story and... well, I guess that was the story but it was largely taking place in a sci-fi world instead of in a realistic fiction setting. I think I was hoping for more of a feel like the movie The Net (90s Sandra Bullock at her finest) where the main character essentially gets replaced by a new person using their identity but this is the case of Brandon ACTUALLY getting replaced in the real world by a double that looks exactly like him, only "better". 
 I enjoyed the relationships in the book and I especially loved how Brandon's relationships evolved. The book ended with a lot of hope for him to patch things up with his family and to start something new/continue with a love interest. I also really enjoyed his friendship while he was in "The Program" with a fellow hacker and prisoner. 
 The world of The Program was not too difficult to get a grasp on and yet sometimes the logistics of it were confusing. Maybe that's just me! I also think I wasn't as interested in it as I had hoped so that didn't really help my desire to understand the ins and outs. 
 Overall, it was a decent read but I found myself a little disappointed that I wasn't more thrilled. I was hoping for much more of a thriller aspect -- even in a sci-fi concept -- and it was more just "what the heck is going on" than the feeling of suspense for me. 
 Full review as originally posted HERE on The Book Addict's Guide 2/10/16: DUPLICITY was a really interesting concept and really unlike nearly anything else that I've read before! As a synopsis avoider, I mostly remembered that main character Brandon was a hacker and that he was somehow being replaced by a "double" but really wasn't entirely sure what all of that meant! The more I got into the book, the more I realized how much more sci-fi it was than I had anticipated and how unique this book truly was! Regardless of what the content was, I knew I wanted to listen to the audiobook because MacLeod Andrews, one of my all-time favorite voice actors, narrated this one so thank you to Brilliance Audio for sending me a copy to listen to/review! 
 I think the main thing that stuck out for me in DUPLICITY was the creativity of the concept of "The Program" (we'll get to that one later) and Brandon's double. I actually went into this expecting much more contemporary thriller than sci-fi thriller (I was thinking something along the lines of The Net where Sandra Bullock is essentially "replaced" in the real world by someone stealing her identity after she stumbles upon a conspiracy) so I was kind of surprised to see how much more this leaned to a science-fiction aspect. Once I got a grip on that, it was really interesting to see how this world and concept was laid out and what exactly this meant for Brandon. It was quite creative and a really interesting idea! I sometimes had a hard time really understanding the ins and outs of The Program and the true details of how it functioned but that could also just be some computer things going over my head. I know computer basics but nothing really on such a technical level! 
 DUPLICITY was a fun concept but didn't quite pan out for me. The whole Brandon duplicate and the idea of traveling from the real world to The Program's system seemed a bit unrealistic for me and I couldn't quite grasp that as a real concept. It really was explained through science so I appreciated that and that it wasn't just "magic with mirrors" but it did feel off until we got to that explanation which didn't quite feel fully satisfying. I also felt like the set-up to even get to that point took a while. There was a lot of time in Brandon's normal world as "Other Brandon" slowly started changing things but for some reason that transition before the "change" seemed to take a while for me. I really just wasn't as engaged as I had hoped and that may be because my expectations were a bit too different from what the book turned out to be. 
 I did really enjoy getting to know Brandon and witness his changes as he goes through this whole ordeal. Brandon starts off as a surly and slightly rebellious teen and I really enjoyed that his whole personality wasn't lost as the book progressed. Obviously in any book, you want to see that surly teen grow up a little bit and start to respect his family and friends a bit more, along with really learning a lesson and even respecting and appreciating their own life more so it's no spoiler to say that Brandon does go through some changes by the book's end. What I loved was that he doesn't turn into "Other Brandon" who's overly responsible to the point of sucking up and who ends up being super preppy when normal Brandon opts for leather bands, punk rock tees, and tattoos. He grows up in his own way to be a bit of a better person but doesn't abandon his own likes for conformity so I really appreciate that. 
 The supporting cast wasn't as dynamic for me, though. I suppose we don't spend as much time with them but you don't really get to see anyone's personality aside from a stereotype: workaholic parents, super-sweet popular girl, annoying ex-girlfriend, etc. The only other personality we really do get to know aside from Brandon is his new friend Seb who he meets once inside "the system". I loved their friendship, even though Brandon was incredibly reluctant at first, and how they really ended up working together and getting along. 
 DUPLICITY was quite a mixed bag for me and sadly I just wasn't as engaged throughout as I had hoped I would be. I think the hacker/computer/sci-fi aspect threw me a bit and things took a more surreal turn than I really anticipated. I feel like I didn't quite get there with my connection to the book but it was really such an interesting and unique concept, something that I really haven't read anywhere else! 
 AUDIOBOOK IMPRESSIONS 
 MacLeod Andrews was the narrator for this book and one of the main reasons why I requested it! I absolutely adore his voice and his narration and he can really bring any character to life. It's funny -- after you listen to someone's narrations of so many books, you'd think you wouldn't be able to separate a voice from a character. In some ways, you do tend to hear the same voices for some characters because there are only so many voices a human can do but it's the way that they portray a character that really brings them to life -- It is voice acting. MacLeod Andrews always does an amazing job at bringing personality to each character and really making me feel like I'm IN the story. I become so invested because the character sounds so invested and his narration really just pulls me into the books. I always recommend his narration no matter the book because he just does a fantastic job!