Title/Author:
Mind Games by Kiersten White
Publisher: Harper Teen
Publication Date: February 19, 2013
Age Group: Teen/Young Adult
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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.
This book is, indeed, a stunning departure from Kiersten White's previous writing. We are introduced to sisters Sofia (Fia) and Annabelle (Annie) when they are young, at the funeral of their parents. We get to know them, and the strong and tumultuous bond that they share, through chapters that alternate between not only each of their points-of-view but time as well.
Each of the girls has a very distinctive voice and each of the them is carrying their own burdens and guilt relating to their bittersweet history with one another and the school they attend, The Keane school, run by the elusive and enigmatic Mr. Keane. Neither of them wants to be there but until they can both escape together, safely, they are trapped, pawns in a game neither of them can understand fully.
We get to see the intricately woven threads of the bond holding the girls together in their flashbacks, along with the ever-shifting dynamics of their relationship. In the present, Fia grapples with the person she has had become in order to keep her sister safe and tries to keep her feelings for her 'manager', Mr. Keane's son James, in check because she knows that he has motives of his own.
James was one of my
favorite characters. He is a very well-developed character with a painful past and an ambiguous agenda and I couldn't help but root for him even as he was breaking Fia's heart (and his own). I loved James because he felt so very three dimensional, struggling to break free of his own personal demons and hindered by his (in my opinion) very real feelings for Fia (who can be a bit of hellion, it must be said).
Annie, Fia, and James are all intrinsically tied together, and I loved the story, the writing, and the beautifully drawn and fully fleshed out characters. I can't wait for the second installment of this series.
I would definitely recommend that you pick this book up! Familial obligations, heartache, romance, dancing, psychics, and plenty of action. Win!
Want a quote? Sure you do!!
"I lost her the minute I brought her here with me. And if he can salvage something of who she used to be, no matter what his game is, I have to let him. I wont waste this time. I'm going to figure out what, exactly, is going on here. Because if I understand the what, I can understand the why, and if I understand those I can figure out the way to get us both free to a better future."
