Book: Mind Games by Kiersten White

Published 2012 by|Pages:

Source: E-book|Nook Store

Series: Mind Games #1

Genre: YA Paranormal Thriller

Goodreads|Kiersten White’s Website

Summary: Fia was born with flawless instincts. Her first impulse, her gut feeling, is always exactly right. Her sister, Annie, is blind to the world around her—except when her mind is gripped by strange visions of the future. 

Trapped in a school that uses girls with extraordinary powers as tools for corporate espionage, Annie and Fia are forced to choose over and over between using their abilities in twisted, unthinkable ways…or risking each other’s lives by refusing to obey.

In a stunning departure from her New York Times bestselling Paranormalcy trilogy, Kiersten White delivers a slick, edgy, heartstoppingly intense psychological thriller about two sisters determined to protect each other—no matter the cost.

When I saw that Kiersten White had a new book coming out, I knew I had to read it.  I liked Mind Games, but not as much as I expected.

I absolutely LOVE that there’s this school that uses girls who have these amazing abilities for corporate espionage and that there’s this corporation who has their hands in, like, everything.  And these powers are intriguing- I just wish we knew more about this school and powers and what people can do with them.

Fia and Annie have a really interesting relationship- Annie is the only one who can “see” Fia, which makes it easier for Fia to do what she’s told.  And if Annie doesn’t do what she’s told, especially in regards to Fia…well, let’s just say they’re in a very interesting situation.  What I find really intriguing is that they aren’t twins.  I know this might be a little random, but I’m glad they’re not twins.  Actually, I think them wanting to protect each other and keep each other safe is a lot more effective because they’re not twins.

Both Annie and Fia narrate the book, and I’m not sure how I feel about it.  It’s just…how the book was set up in terms of time didn’t work for me.  You have the past, which takes place over 2 or 3 years.  And then you have the present time, which takes place over the course of the week.  So, Mia gets 2 chapters- 1 for the past, and 1 for the present, and then it’ll switch to Annie for a couple chapters, 1 for the past, 1 for the present.  And it switches back and forth like that for the entire book.

In all honesty, the timeline was weird.  It really felt like 2 very different stories that didn’t quite work together, and I think that very much colored my thoughts on Annie and Fia as narrators- to the point that I spent more time paying attention to the timeline than I should have.  There were a lot of pieces, and for the most part, they work together fairly well.  I get understanding their past helps understand what’s currently going on, and the present makes a lot more sense when you understand how they got to that point.  And it is a thriller, with spies and whatnot, so I like that you have to piece things together, and don’t completely know what’s going on.

Mind Games does have White’s trademark humor, and there were a few times I couldn’t help but giggle.  It’s definitely different than her Paranormalcy series, but I’m intrigued enough to keep reading.

Final Thoughts:

I did like Mind Games, and even though jumping between past and present didn’t work for me, I’m intrigued enough to see what happens next.  Mind Games gets 3 stars.