It's been a while since I've read a Nora Roberts novel. Her writing is as wonderful as I remember. In this novel, a tragedy leads to a wonderful new beginning for a young girl and her brother. The story weaves together family, a deep love for nature and the land we live upon, and learning to accept the gifts God gives us. And of course there is romance. I found this book absolutely riveting and read it from cover to cover in a day and a half. Enjoy!

As a child, her favorite part of the summer are the two weeks Thea and her brother Rem spend at their Grammie's home in Kentucky. They get to collect eggs from the chickens and take care of the other animals she keeps and they just get to be kids. This year would be different. This year her life would be forever changed.

Late one night both she and her Grammie woke from the same horrid dream. Only it wasn't a dream. Like many of the women in her mother's line, Thea can see things. And that night she connected with the mind of a killer. And with her help, he'll spend the rest of his life in jail. But the connection they share doesn't fade. Thea can hear his twisted thoughts and feel his rabid need for vengeance against the person who put him in the cage.

Nora Roberts has once again gifted us an intriguing story that is everything we've come to expect from her writing. What makes this story most interesting is the fact that most of the action, most of the suspense occurs mind to mind between Thea and the man who forever changed her life. Thea will need all wits to stay one step ahead of the twisted voice in head.

This is a novel full of emotion and suspense, driven by interesting, well developed characters I read teary eyed through most of the Part I, as the story moved from joy and happiness to sorrow and grief and slowly into healing. All of this while just under the surface lies the danger and suspense that drives the rest of the story.

Nora Roberts never disappoints, and her new thriller/romance is original and page-turning. It starts slowly with a horrible tragedy, which has many ramifications throughout the years. We follow Thea from 12-years old to adulthood, and eventually she finds an unexpected and surprising love with Ty, but nothing along the journey is easy. This novel celebrates family love, appreciation of one's roots, and a willingness to accept psychic "special" gifts that cannot be explained. Highly recommended.

Nora Roberts is always a must-read for me. This story had an interesting plot covering many years of this family's life, and the way they rebuild their lives after a horrifying incident. Thea's special talents drive the plot and ultimately assist in her battle of good vs. evil.

Mind Games by Nora Roberts is a somewhat suspenseful, partial romance novel set in the hills of Appalachia. I finished this one in two days, I couldn't put it down.

Thea and Rem are visiting Lucy Lannigan, or Grammie, for their annual two weeks when Thea and Rem's parents are murdered. With their gift of sight, Thea and Lucy see what happens in their dreams. But Thea's sight is stronger, and she's able to help the police put Ray Riggs away for more than just the murder of her parents. Now, the kids are living with Grammie full-time, and they learn how hard work and caring for others makes for a more happy and connected community.

Even though Thea and Rem are grown up, Redbud Hollow is their home, and Thea creates her own life there. But Ray Riggs is determined to break Thea down. Ever since the night she connected to Ray's mind and helplessly watched as he killed her parents, they've been playing cat and mouse games with each other's minds. Ray has nothing better to do with his time than try to break through Thea's locked mind, and he's getting closer to his goal.

A novel of close-knit family, a community who helps each other, and a romance that Thea didn't see coming. I'm not really sure what genre to put this in. It's not really thriller, mystery, or suspense, but it's also not a full-on romance. However, once you get past the childhood chapters, the pace does quicken. I finished this in record time because I couldn't put it down, there were no good stopping points. The writing was great, making me cry at more than one point. All of the characters were exceptionally well-developed, I fully believe that these could be real people.

All in all, this was a great novel if you enjoy Nora Roberts' books. If you like a strong female protagonist, family who looks out for each other, and tight friendships with some paranormal mind-reading thrown in, then definitely give this one a try!

Thank you to @StMartinsPress and @NetGalley for a digital copy for review consideration. All opinions are honest and my own.

I couldn’t get into the story just as I thought. Not disappointed but need more depth, I think. I can't remember when was the last time when I read a book in which the whole plot was 100% equal to what was written in the blurb and nothing more. There was no surprise there, no resolution to any of the plot threads and the whole story was blatantly predictable and painfully dull.

Thank you for allowing me to read this book as an ARC!
Wow, where to begin. Nora Roberts does not disappoint with this book and its storyline. The reader gets a little bit of everything: suspense, drama, romance, familystory,. The characters are likeable except of course the evil murderer. The story is welll written and descriptive. It is easy to feel as if the reader is right there and can picture everything in front of him ot her.
While I loved this book, at times it felt a little longer than needed. Some parts just felt a little too much and not necessary for the story.
Nora Roberts is definitely talented when this story is unlike any other story idea prior. Great job! 4 🌟

More of a suspenseful romance than romantic suspense…

Mind Games, by Nora Roberts, is only the second “official” Nora Roberts book that I’ve read, although I’ve read many of the Eve Dallas/In Death mysteries that she has published using her pen name, JD Robb. So I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but whatever I expected, this wasn’t it. It’s really really good, like 5-stars good, but not what I thought it would be. Instead, Mind Games is a tightly crafted thriller that made me cry, and then have hope, and then do both at the same time. And finally, at the end, I felt almost as if I’d been through the whole thing myself – which I suppose is simply the mark of a really well written book.

Going back to those expectations, though, I had imagined there would be stronger romantic elements, and less suspense. Don’t get me wrong – the romantic elements are there, and I especially liked [minor spoiler] at the end, in the final scene, when Tyler is so supportive of the strong woman that Thea has become. But to me the story is carried much more by the interactions between Thea and her parents’ killer, Ray, than by the romance, or even by the relationship between Thea and Grammie. Which means it’s heavy on the suspense side.

Since this is only my second Nora Roberts book, I don’t have a feel for what frequent Nora Roberts readers typically are looking for. But what I can say is that this was an emotionally engaging, sharply paced, and well-written book, although not a traditional romance. And finally, my thanks to St Martins Press and Net Galley for the review copy.

Nora Roberts best book in years. Here you get the full Nora: a strong independent heroine, a good hearted hero, and good supporting characters. This is also one of the most intense novels Roberts has ever written. Mind Games is an example of what has made Roberts one of the bestselling authors in the world.

A woman with psychic abilities shares an unwilling mental bond with a vicious murderer and must find a way to break it to avoid becoming his next victim.

Thea was just a child when she had a psychic episode where she witnessed a life altering event. After single-handedly bringing a killer, Ray Riggs, to justice with the help of her psychic knowledge, she hopes to live a normal life. Unfortunately, Riggs shares her abilities and has forged a connection with her that she can block but is unable to break. As she grows into adulthood and settles into a quiet life in the mountains of Kentucky, the toll Riggs is taking on her physical and mental health begins to worsen. She reaches a breaking point and decides to take matters into her own hands when Riggs threatens to ruin her future with the man she loves.

Roberts is the OG, known for her captivating romantic mysteries, but this one missed the mark for me. There was extensive discussion of video game plots and action sequences that quickly lost my interest. The romance was adequate, but lacked some of the intrigue and spice of her other works. While the plot was solid and the romance was enjoyable, ultimately Roberts lost me with the video game dreamscapes. ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (3.5/5)

The story was good but there was not much substance to the writing. The characters were not believable. Characters were not well developed and it was very predictable

I’ve been a Nora Roberts reader for years & love her books! However, this is probably my least favorite one. As I’m not a big fan of paranormal storylines, this was an okay read for me. The story started off a bit slow & I wasn’t really connecting with the characters. Overall, it was okay for me, but I’m in the minority on this one. I definitely suggest reading it if this is your genre. 3.5 stars, rounded up to 4.

Nora Roberts' books are always magical, right?

Every summer, Thea and Rem enjoy two weeks with Grammie on her Kentucky farm. It's a fun getaway and a break for their parents. But one night, Thea has a scary dream that something bad has happened to her parents. She's shocked when Grammie says she had the same scary dream. Thea helps the police find the killer.

The bad guy ends up in jail forever, but here's a surprise - he has the same weird gift as Thea and Grammie. He uses this to play mind games with Thea for years.

Just when things are hard, Thea's old crush, the cool musician Ty, moves to town with his cute son. As they get to know each other again, they fall in love. All this time, Thea is still dealing with the mind games from the jailed bad guy.

I really loved the mix of love, mystery, and family in this story.

Thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thea and Rem look forward to their visits with Grammie every summer. One of those visits will change their lives forever. One night Thea is forced into a nightmare as she watches her parents' murders as if she were in the room. She uses her gift to put the man behind bars. But she is never truly free from him. Eventually, she must fight to be truly free from him.

And this book right here is just one of the many reasons why Nora Roberts is such an esteemed author!

Mind Games is a blend of several genres. It's a mystery, thriller, family drama and romance. The characters were multi-faceted and real. There was so much emotion in this book - - both heartbreak and joy - - and as a reader, I can honestly say that I felt it. Also, there were some frightening moments when one of the characters was confronted by a someone extremely dangerous and that really put me on pins and needles. This book was just put together so well. It spans over a period of fifteen years and the way it's written and the pieces you get from each time period are just enough but not too much detail.

I would encourage readers to not read too many reviews - - go in as blind as you can. Obvious.y you'll have the general idea of the storyline but don't read too much. Let it unfold for you naturally. It really is much more powerful that way.

AUDIOBOOK REVIEW: Let me just say that I found this narrator to be very gifted. She did the entire story on her own and was able to lend her voice to all the characters in a way that didn't sound forced or fake. It was effortless and natural. Also, I found the audiobook to be such a nice and easy flow that it made the story very easy to listen to and I was quickly immersed in it.

Thank you to NetGalley for early copies of both the ebook and audiobook.

"Mind Games" vividly captures the life of Thea in the Appalachian Mountains. Over 15 years, we witness her journey from the aftermath of her parents' murder, navigating through her friendships, family ties, and personal growth. Thea's resilience shines as she battles the psychological torment of the killer who shattered her world. Through her story, we feel her grief, joy, sorrow, and strength.

Nora Roberts masterfully weaves a narrative rich in love, loss, and personal development, chronicling Thea's transformation from a troubled teenager to a hopeful young woman. As always, Roberts delivers a compelling and emotionally resonant tale.

The Foxes take a trip to Kentucky every summer leaving their two children with their Grammie for two weeks. This year is just like every year until Thea and her Grammie Lucy wake up to a horrible realization the kids parents have been murdered. The kids will now be living with their Grammie and she will be raising them. Thea saw who murdered her parents and helped the police identify the guy who killed him. Thea's gift has always been a part of her and now she knows the killer has the same gift. He wants to kill Thea for what she has done to him and the two play a cat and mouse game throughout the years. Will he make good on his promise to kill Thea or will.she take out her own revenge in the end. This was definitely a read that took me on a rollercoaster ride of emotions.

✨𝗤𝘂𝗶𝗰𝗸 𝗧𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀✨
• psychic link
• woman game developer
• single father
• serial killer vs victims child
• takes place over long period of time
🌶️🌶️

✨ 𝗢𝗡𝗘 𝗟𝗜𝗡𝗘 𝗥𝗘𝗩𝗜𝗘𝗪 ✨
After psychically witnessing a tragedy, Thea Fox tries to continue living her life as normally as possible, but the inmate who altered her life refuses to let her go.

✨ 𝗥𝗘𝗩𝗜𝗘𝗪 ✨
I thought the book started off strong, but gradually got a little boring. The psychic aspect of the story had a great part at the beginning, but I just felt like watching Thea grow and her subsequent adulthood was rushed and bland. I expected way more spice than what we got

This book was meant to be a coming of age story with suspense, mystery, romance, and magical realism stirred in a deep pot of Appalachian mysticism. It definitely started at a high point but it didn’t carry out to the end for me.

I recommend this to Nora Roberts fans and also to anyone who wants a little magic in there romantic suspense-lite books.

I love Nora Roberts writing, in fact I have read over 30 of her books throughout my life. For those of you who love thrillers/suspense you will really enjoy this book. For me this thriller impacted me so much that I had to put it down several times because it was too intense for my psyche. The authors interaction between Thea and the killer still sticks in my memory weeks after I finished reading it. Honestly, I waited a long time to review this book because I was torn on how brilliant it was and how scared I got from it because the book did play “Mind Games” with me.

With that being said, this book is memorable in the relationship and love areas as well but above all this book is a love story. The heartwarming family dynamics between Thea, her brother and Grammie set the main feeling for the book. There is loss, survival, learning how to be strong, opening up to trust, and learning how to take back personal power. This book has every emotion you could ever hope for.

For me the introduction of the new defensive neighbor Ty and his young son, Bray is where I fell in love with the book. They took the thriller edge down a notch and helped me finish this book that left me on edge.

Being romantic at heart and always enjoying a good love story where love helps create change, this book was deeply satisfying.

I enjoyed this book and gave it 4.5 STARS.

The last time I had such a visceral reaction to a scene in a book was when I read *the book that shall not be named* Unlike that book, Mind Games didn't build me up just to tear me apart at the very end- it tore me up in the beginning and allowed me to heal over the remainder of the book. But damn, did I do some ugly crying there at the start.

The writing is very simplistic, but the story is intriguing, engaging, and captivating. You'll fall in love with the characters, while all the while waiting for the other shoe to drop. Ms. Roberts takes not just the characters, but the readers, on one heck of a journey, and I'm so glad I stuck it out.