Mind Games by Nora Roberts [Review]

Mind Games by Nora Roberts
Format: ebook
Source: provided through NetGalley
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Date read: January 30, 2024

Purchase Links: Hardcover | Kindle

Nora Roberts
| Website | Amazon |

Synopsis (Goodreads):

As they do each June, the Foxes have driven the winding roads of Appalachia to drop off their children for a two-week stay at their grandmother’s. Here, twelve-year-old Thea can run free and breathe in the smells of pine and fresh bread and Grammie’s handmade candles. But as her parents head back to suburban Virginia, they have no idea they’re about to cross paths with a ticking time bomb.

Back in Kentucky, Thea and her grandmother Lucy both awaken from the same nightmare. And though the two have never discussed the special kind of sight they share, they know as soon as their tearful eyes meet that something terrible has happened.

The kids will be staying with Grammie now in Redbud Hollow, and thanks to Thea’s vision, their parents’ killer will spend his life in supermax. Over time, Thea will make friends, build a career, find love. But that ability to see into minds and souls still lurks within her, and though Grammie calls it a gift, it feels more like a curse—because the inmate who shattered her childhood has the same ability. Thea can hear his twisted thoughts and witness his evil acts from miles away. He knows it, and hungers for vengeance. A long, silent battle will be waged between them—and eventually bring them face to face, and head to head…

Thoughts on Mind Games: MAN, this was a STORY. It started with the fateful summer Thea was twelve and took us through the ups and downs of everything that came after. From dealing with the aftermath of her parents' murder to learning to harness her special gift to falling in love and finding her place in the world, Thea grew into a strong woman with a boundless heart and a willingness to use her ability to help others.

No lie, twelve-year-old Thea's grief was a punch to the chest. The awful circumstances of that terrible night cut her and it was her grandmother's unwavering support and love (along with the support of the other members of that half of the family) that got her through the pain. Although Thea chose her own path when it came to telling what she saw, she told it with grace and dignity and convinced the people who needed to be convinced and that helped put her parents' killer behind bars.

It doesn't end there, though. Thea continues to help when she needs to help and she always, always keeps an eye on the man who sliced her family down the middle. (Which maybe isn't a good thing, but she deals with her grief the only way she knows how as a child and that's by making sure the bad guy is firmly behind bars.)

Throw in some romance (single dad swoonage dialed up to ELEVEN) (and also YESSSS to teenage crushes turning into something more), strong family and community ties, a little heartache, a sprinkling of knowing when the knowing is needed, and a kiddo that brings the cute whenever he shows up and you have a whole lot good stuff going on here. Grammie and Redbud Hollow took the Fox siblings in when they needed them most and BOY did I love it.