This book has a really unique premise

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for this review copy

Another absolute banger of a book from Kate Dylan. I loved Mindwalker and so I was excited to jump into Mindbreaker and it was everything I'd hoped for. Fast-paced, great story, brilliant characters: highly recommended.

Full disclosure: I know the author. We have mutual friends and I have been supporting her career since the start. Also: this book rocks so hard. I knew she could do it, but Kate Dylan has absolutely SMASHED it out of the park. So happy to see it!!

I love the way that Mindwalker and Mindbreaker both explore the morality around technology and this book in particular does a really good job of looking at AI and enhanced technological intelligence whilst also keeping it so rooted in what it means to be human. I loved the story and the characters as well as the cameos of the characters from Mindwalker. Kate Dylan is definitely one of my favourite authors!

I am marking this as a DNF solely because when I started reading it, I enjoyed it but it didn’t pull me in enough for me to want to finish it right then and there. More than a year has passed, my arc has expired and I currently have no way of accessing this book to finish reading it and reviewing it. I plan on buying a physical copy at some point and when I do, I will write up a full review once I have finished the book.

Mindbreaker is exactly what I had hoped it would be; the second in the Mindwalker YA series, set in the same world but not a sequel, per-se, we are back in this futuristic high-tech world, sown through with a current of religion and rebellion. I really enjoyed Indra, the main character, and her arc; saving your own life by going against everything you believe in is a brilliantly thought-provoking concept, and there are plenty of other ethical and political questions for the reader as the novel unfolds, which were woven in well.
A big thumbs up from me.

This was a great follow up to Mindwalker. I liked it only very slightly less, so it still gets a 4 star from me! Again this book is fast-paced and action packed. However, if you don't like constantly running from something then this isn't for you. Indra, our main character, is a bit naive due to her very sheltered upbringing, so that can lead to some stupid, rash decisions. However, I feel she has great character growth and means well, so is fun to watch deal with and learn from all those decisiom. Like the first book in this series, it tackles corruption of tech companies. Mindbreaker also looks at humanity, family, and religion. Where this book let me down a bit was the romantic relationship. I didn't feel we had enough time to develop it in a way that made it make sense. Instead I was just like sure you guys could be together. That being said, it is nice to see a sapphic relationship. I highly recommend this book! I think it could be read as a standalone, but you would get a lot more context of the world and side characters by reading Mindwalker first as there are plenty of references to Syntax's Mindwalker program and we see a good amount of our gang from the first book!

This book was amazing . The characters development was amazing . I loved it and the Sifi aspect of all future tech I loved it

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC of this book!

I am very late to this review, but I wanted to read Mindwalker first and didn't get to it until recently. This could absolutely be read as a standalone, but since it is set in the same world and has some recurring characters, I was glad I read Mindwalker prior.

I enjoyed this book immensely! The post-apocalyptic dystopian world is done very well and I loved how Indra lived her life in an anti-tech religious cult until she needed technology to save her life. The story is action-packed, the characters are fantastic, and this is a great book (as is book #1) to spark conversation about the opportunities and challenges presented by technology. Mindbreaker also grapples with what it means to be human and how far people will go to save those they love, which are excellent conversation starters for teen readers.

Many thanks to Netgalley, Hodder & Stoughton/ Hodder & Stoughton Audio and the author for the ARC/ ALC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

When I finished Mindwalker, the yearning I felt for that world was to be honest weird, like it’s a post-apocalyptic world but the character were so likeable and brave and the found family was so good, I couldn't not wish for a second book. And Lo and behold, Kate Dylan did not disappoint.

Mindbreaker follows the story of Indra who was raised in an anti-tech cult but was always curious about tech which leads to her escape her cult for a bit to dapple in some tech. One such excursion leads her becoming so ill that there is no way she can survive without the help of tech. However her mother and the cult would rather let her die than accept any tech. When Glindell a tech company comes with deal to provide her with an artificial body in exchange for her consciousness and identity being preserved, essentially keeping her alive in essence, her dad takes her, quits the cult and accepts the offer.

Once the process is complete however Indra feels like she is missing a lot of time, there are a lot unexplained glitches and loss of memory. Indra has no option but to escape the clutches of the company with the help of a research assistant Tian who 'works on her'. The rest of the journey has a bit of Mockingjay, some Superhero shit sprinkle in some amazing tech and edge of seat action, also queer, did I mention that - this book is very QUEER!!!! Indra was way more reckless than Sil who does appear in this book!!!! SCREAMMMM!!

I love how both this book and Mindwalker plot and story and premise looks both impossible in reality yet very very very possible in near future reality. The aspect of this scares me. Anyways I enjoyed this book immensely even though Mindwalker remains my Number 1. The narrator was absolutely brilliant and

I hope Kate continues to give us more stories set in this universe with badass female characters who question everything and maintains their own reality in spite of how life has treated them.

I loved being back in this high tech world after how much I adored Mindwalker.

It’s such a wonderful blend of the possibilities, both scary and wonderful that technology could lead to, while also delving into how that impacts humanity.

I adored Mindwalker so much and therefore I was super excited to get to this. Kate’s writing has always captured me.
I haven’t finished this and I’m not sure if I will (although I have a gorgeous SE copies) but simply because my reading vibes have changed.

I didn’t enjoy this book as much as the first, although I appreciate the publishers giving me access to the arc.

I have devoured this book in one sitting. Once I was pulled in, I couldn’t put it down. I was desperate to find out what was going on. Also, I didn’t want this books to end.

Everything about this book has been brilliant. I absolutely loved getting between the covers of this. This was everything I hoped for and so much more. This is a book which should be on everyone’s radar.

I absolutely recommend this book to other readers.

I absolutely adored Mindwalker, so when I found out that there was another book coming in the same universe, I knew I had to read it asap. I think I actually liked Mindbreaker slightly more, because I found the cult storyline so compelling, and the manipulative way that Glindell technologies uses her. I loved the way that Mindwalker was tied into this book, and they're a perfectly matched pair. I really hope we get more in this universe, because Kate Dylan is exceptionally talented and these storylines are so well developed in a realistic world.

I'm sorry but this was a DNF for me. I couldn't get into the story, and the writing felt quite choppy.

I’m the first one to admit that I don’t read much, if any, sci-fi but when Mindwalker came out…I devoured it and couldn’t wait to see what Dylan would come up with next! So of course I HAD to pick up Mindbreaker ASAP! This is set in the same world as Mindwalker and we do get to see some familiar faces as a result, which I was very excited about! BUT we also get new characters as well!

I have to be honest, I didn’t love this one quite as much as the previous book. I loved getting to go back to the world of Mindwalker, and this one still explores a lot of the same themes regarding the tech and how it’s being used. It genuinely continues to terrify me with how plausible it all is as well which just makes the issues ones that I could realistically see springing up because I just KNOW that the tech would be used in questionable ways like it is in the book, if it really existed!

We’re also once again treated to the smooth, slick writing and excellently written fight scenes as well as gasp inducing twists. I do really appreciate that Dylan includes a lot of awesome tech in these books, without making the descriptions and explanations for how it all works overly complicated, it’s all very easy to understand and yet while the writing is quite concise, Dylan still creates a certain atmosphere with her words and it’s not at the expense of the world building.

While I do think you can read this without having read Mindwalker, I think Mindbreaker is even better if you already have the pre-existing knowledge of the world and certain characters from Mindwalker, like this delves into the world even deeper and adds some extra layers to it!

Our main character is Indra and much like with Sil, I could really empathise with her and root for her right from the start, though I did find her to be a little frustrating sometimes when she would act recklessly. HOWEVER, I do fully acknowledge that some of that probably stems from me already knowing and being familiar with Sil and co, and thus their intentions, whereas Indra is probably right to distrust them but…come on, blowing up the place?! I wanted to scream!

I loved her platonic friendship with Nyx, and I absolutely ADORED her romance with Tian! Not only is it sapphic, but it’s wonderfully slowburn too and I feel like both Indra and Tian had journeys to go on within this book regarding their beliefs etc. I also loved that Dylan didn’t just copy and paste her characters from Mindwalker, like Indra is very different from Sil and I appreciated that as I feel like it let you come at the world from a different angle and see it all through a different lens!

As much as I enjoyed Mindbreaker, I didn’t enjoy it quite as much as I enjoyed Mindwalker. I think this is partially because of the frustrations I had with Indra a few times, and as much as I loved the cast I felt like there could have been a bit more depth to them as well! While I did find Mindbreaker every bit as gripping as Mindwalker, it has a different vibe to it, in my mind! Don’t get me wrong, terrible things happened to Sil, but I feel like Indra really went through the wringer and it was a bit more heart wrenching and brutal at times. Because of this and the journey Indra goes on, I feel like there was more focus on social commentary in this and it was a lot more overt than in Mindwalker, which I felt slowed down the pace just a touch!

All in all though, it was another intriguing and gripping read with plenty of twists and memorable characters, and this is coming from someone who very rarely reads sci-fi! I find Dylan’s writing to be much more accessible and engaging than many other sci-fi titles I’ve tried in the past and I’m looking forward to seeing what comes next!

The second instalment in the world of tech giants and robot soldiers. I thoroughly enjoyed this follow up to Mindwalker and eagerly await more (I hope there are more!)

“Tina hasn’t stopped talking since she exploded into my life the day I woke up looking like the worlds most terrifying deathbot”

This story centres around Indra, living with her religious cult invoked family, who are anti-tech. When Indra becomes terminally ill, the options are death or sign her life over to Glindell (one of Synex rivals). As the story unfolds, in a similar manner to Mindwalker, memory gaps and inconsistencies start to appear. Could it be that a big tech company have secrets and hidden agendas? Full of action, suspense and some recurring characters from book 1, I devoured Mindbreaker!

Very similar vibe to Mindbreaker. Cyberpunk, Deus Ex and Total recall, with a bit self exploration that before. Another recommended read for sci-fans. Thanks to Netgalley and Hodderscape for the e-arc.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book. Unfortunately I requested this before I started the first one, and after DNF'ing that one, I am afraid that I will not be continuing with this series.

The writing wasn't working for me. The repetitive sentences and underdeveloped characters left me feeling extremely bored. I am sure that this series will work for some (which is apparent by the really high rating on Goodreads) but I just can't see this picking up and me actually enjoying it.

I loved this book! I don't read a lot of sci-fi but I really enjoyed the way technology is used in this one. Indra is dealing with a new body that's malfunctioning, with mysterious dreams that feel almost like memories. It was fun to see characters who I loved in Mindwalker make an appearance and help to uncover the mystery of these dreams. There was a romance which of course I loved and was written well to fit with the main plot. I really recommend these if you're looking for something a bit different with a great story!