Novel Review: Mind Games (Mind Games, #1) by Kiersten White

Genre: YA Supernatural Thriller/Psychological/Romance

Rating (Out of 5): ~4-4.5

Publisher: HarperCollins/Teen

Spoilers?: Some, yes.

Buy it here: Amazon.

Goodreads Synopsis:

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.

Something Specific:

Quotes:

• "And I am so sick of feeling sick all the time." (Hardback, pg. 46) I just liked this quote, how it was said, and the impact it had when it was said.
• "I had forgotten to miss blue. Blue!" (Hardback, pg. 63) I found this interesting, and something that I hadn't thought of before. The fact that you could forget to miss something, and how when you don't have it all the time, like how you rarely ever see color like Annie does, that you could suddenly be reminded and the whole idea could brought back to you.

Review:

A lot of people (at least, a lot of my friends/follows on Goodreads) have not really enjoyed this book. At first, that made me a little wary, even if I was still sure I would enjoy it at least somewhat. But then I realized that most of the people who didn’t like this book, also didn’t like the Paranormalcy series, and thus just wasn't a fan of Kiersten White, and that reassured me a whole lot, because I really liked that series and I love White.

I’d had this book on my list, but wasn’t sure if I was going to get it soon, but then found out than White was going to be having a book signing near me, and thus I had to get it. And I’m really glad that I not only pre-ordered it, but I also read it before going to the signing. Because I really liked this book. Like, a lot.

Sofia (also known as Fia) has perfect instincts and Annie is blind but can see the future. After their parents’ death, they moved into this boarding school, where Annie is learning how to control her power, and Fia is being used to kill people. Then there’s Adam, the good, genius boy who doesn’t quite understand, and James, who’s trying to secretly get a hold on things while his father is trying to use him.

This story is told in alternating points of view, from Fia to Annie, as well as going back and forth from the present to the past. I love it when stories do both of these things—have flashbacks and alternating points of view—so I was excited about this, and I thought it was done really well. I’ve also heard people online say that it was hard to follow, which I didn’t quite understand, because every chapter is clearly labeled. Did they read an ARC of the book, and it wasn’t clearly labeled in those?

I think that both characters had a definite voice, a different pattern of thinking, and I liked that. Annie is rather clear headed, while Fia is fast and repetitive and run-on sentence-like, and the styles work really well for their character. Annie is somewhat labeled as the good girl, which she was in the past, but I didn’t really think of her like that in the present. I honestly think that she could get quite underhanded and devious, in a mastermind kind of way, even if she’s not quite there yet. Fia, on the other hand, is damaged and broken and impulsive and wants to take down the people that are making her do this.

I preferred Fia, all the way. Her chapters had more action, was more interesting, and I just liked her personality more. I didn’t enjoy Annie’s as much, but they always ended up being very interesting, and they gave the inside information that was needed at times. The reader needed to see what was happening on both sides, and that was done really well.

The love interests: Adam and James. I like Adam, and I’m wary of James, but I kind of like James more. Adam is the naïve one, new to what is happening, and he’s tall and a genius. He’s sweet. And usually the one that I’d prefer. But James is the one that’s working in the system, that’s trying to underhand his father, and while I think that he should have done something more by now, and I do think he has the potential to turn really bad, I like him. I find him more interesting and I’m looking forward to finding out more about him. At the beginning of the book, I was all set to really dislike him, too, but then we saw him in a flashback and my feelings changed. Don't get me wrong, though, I do like Adam as well. Just, not as much, I don't think.

It seems like they’re both liking Fia, but I feel like Adam might develop feelings for Annie. I’m not sure how I feel about Adam and Annie being together, mostly because I feel like Annie’s going to turn darker, but I am really leaning toward the side of Fia and James. I can see the potential of Fia and Adam, but at the moment I like her and James more.

Now, the bad guy. We didn’t get to see much of him in this book, just glimpses and hints, and while I know I’m not going to like him, I’m looking forward to finding out more about him. There are a lot of other people within the system that are not-very-good as well, and I’m interested to see what side each of them is going to be on, and what they’re going to do.

There were several moments in this book that I didn’t really see happening, including a couple of deaths, and that really helped excite the book. One of those moments included the ending. It wasn’t expected, and confused me, but now I see what’s happening, and I’m really excited for the next book. It seems like the story is just getting started, and I really want to know what happens next.

This was a really fast read, especially since it’s rather short, and it’s really exciting. At this point, I just really want the next book, and am upset that I have to wait about a year for it.

Manga Review: Happy Cafe, Volume 7, by Kou Matsuzuki

4.5 of 5 Stars

Publisher: Tokyopop

Goodreads Synopsis:

Shindo meets an old acquaintance of his mother's and memories come to the forefront. Uru tries to cheer him up and they end up hugging, causing them to act awkward afterward. Meanwhile, Mitsuka and Ichiro form an unholy alliance to prevent Uru and Shindo from realizing that they might be in love with each other - but it may be too late!

Review:

This series is so cute. It's definitely shojo, and is also very funny. I will be missing this series a lot, like the others.

It's about Uru, who's a high school student but looks like an elementary/junior high student. She lives on her own, giving her mother and step-father time to themselves, and she starts working at Cafe Bonheur. She works with Shindo and Ichiro, and later Shindo's (adoptive) father. We also meet Ichiro's family, more often his little brother than the others. And there's another cafe, which we see quite a bit. There parents are fun, but we see Sou Abekawa and his older brother, and their little sister Sakura most.

Uru is super strong and sweet, and always tries to help anyone whenever she can, and very funny, and oblivious. (It seems like most main characters are sweet and trying to help, but she's has her own character to it. Like she'll do poses somewhat randomly, and she makes lots of jokes.) Shindo runs the cafe, and he makes most of the food. He's the tall, stoic character, tries to stay away from people, but he's very nice, and it's obvious how he feels about Uru. And then Ichiro is very quiet, and he falls asleep a lot and can only wake up by eating food. He almost always has a straight face, but he can be very protective and possessive of Uru. And his little brother is very much like him, only a bit more stand offish.

The Abekawa's are fun. Sou likes Uru, and since he's closer to her in age, (as they are both still in high school, while Ichiro and Shindo are out of it,) they get pushed together a lot. But Uru is very oblivious, and good at ruining the mood. His older brother teases him a lot about it. Sou is just alright to me, and I mostly want more attention to fall of Shindo and Uru. But I still like him, and he has a southern type of accent, which is fun.

All of the familes, Uru's and the Abekawa's and Ichiro's and Shindo's, are very close. They care about their kids a lot, and they fawn over them. It's very cute, even if there isn't a lot of variety, and all families aren't realistically like that. And the little kids are adorable. There's Ichiro's little brother, Sou's little sister Sakura, and Tsucchi's little twin brother and sister, who are all in the same class in elementary school.

Anyway, in this volume... the first chapter focuses on Tsucchi and Sayaka, friends of Uru's from school. We don't see a lot of her school time, so I have a hard time remembering her other friends sometimes, but they do have character. Uru is trying to get them to make up, since they broke up, and she does get them to make up. And then she gets pushed into a room with Sou. And Shindo is walking around and bumps into Sou's father, who knows Shindo's mother.

Oh, the school is having a festival, and Uru's class is doing a cafe, (thought I should mention this). The next chapter: Shindo's father is lost. Then we see Uru's class, where Ichiro and the kids are all asleep, and they've just gotten a letter telling them to close the cafe. They supposedly know who it's from, but then it goes to Uru and Sou still locked in the classroom. He confesses to her to find that she's asleep, and then Shindo finds them. The next chapter focuses on them being free and punishing who did it to them, and they're all talking and thanking and all that in the classroom. The chapter ends with Shindo thinking about his mother, who abandoned him.

They're back at the cafe now, where Shindo's father thinks something is wrong with him, which there is, because he keeps thinking about his mother. There's a fun moment when some of the Abekawa's drop by. Then Shindo's father, Ichiro, and Uru decide that they have to cheer him up and Uru gets to do it. (Shindo's father and Ichiro talk a lot about Uru and Shindo, conversing over it and deciding things. And while Shindo's father is Team Shindo, Ichiro is Team Ichiro. It's odd how it works out, but it does.) And then she talks to him, and he talks to her, and she cries, and he holds her, and then they freak out. There aren't a lot of cute, lovey dovey moments in this series, as it focuses more on the comedy, but it's very nice when they happen.

But then Mitsuka, a friend of Uru's, comes over. She and Ichiro work together to make Uru and Shindo think differently, so that Shindo thinks of Uru like an fluffy animal, and Uru thinks of him as a big brother. This is very bad of them, as I want them to think of each other as much more than that, and they were so close!

And then there's an extra chapter about Arimoto and Aizawa, friends of Uru. Aizawa like Arimoto, but she only thinks of him as a rival. He wants to win her over, but she's very adamant that he is against her. They're cute, and we don't see a lot of them, but I hope that things work out.

As with the others, I hope that someone picks it up. It was so cute and funny, and I loved every volume as I read them and was following it as it was released. This isn't a terrible cliffhanger ending, but there's obviously more stuff going on with Shindo to be explored, and that isn't, can't be, the end for Uru and Shindo. I just want more.