I always love the magical elements in Nora Roberts' books.

Thea and Rem spend two weeks with Grammie in Kentucky every summer. They get some time on the farm and their parents get some alone time. Thea awakes from a nightmare that something happened to her parents, runs to Grammie's room and sees Grammie also had the same vision. Thea is able to assist detectives in finding their killer.

The killer is in prison for life. Unfortunately, he shares the same gift as Thea and Grammie, and spends years trying to mess with her playing "mind games".

Ty, Thea's teen crush musician, moves to town with his young son, and a romance blooms. Meanwhile she is still dealing with the mind games.

I loved the romance, the mystery, and all the family elements.

January LaVoy did an amazing job on this audio.

Many thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press for an eARC and MacMillan Audio for an ALC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this earc

This one felt like old Nora Roberts. I’ve been having hard time with the last few books because they were too long and didn’t feel right. But this one reminded again why I’ve been reading Nora’s books for years.

It had the mystery, the romance, the small town setting and the spooky. Always witchy vibes I love so much. It was full of heart and fun. Definitely pick it up.

As usual Nora Roberts wrote a great and unusual story. Many of us feel we have a sixth sense, and in the case of Thea Fox and her grandmother Lucy, both have it for real. The story will make you smile and cry. The plots take you places you fear and struggle through along with Thea. It's struggle and fear plus determination to be the victor, iI's also love and betrayal, all gripping you to keep reading. A story you won't forget immediately after you close the final pages. Thank you NetGalley and St Martin's Press this is my heartfelt opinion.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

I really struggled with how slow this story moved. Especially with how long it was. This is my first book by this author and will probably give her another shot. I enjoyed the characters and their development.

I voluntarily read an advanced copy.

Oh My Goodness!! I laughed, cried, gasped out loud all throughout this book. I don't know where Nora Roberts gets her ideas for her stories because this was an absolutely awesome story! I didn't want to put it down and just wanted to keep reading until I got to the end. I think Thea was my favorite character in the book, not because of her abilities but because of who she is and who she wants to become. She fights for normal as much as possible and I think that's all anyone wants out of life. That she gets her happily ever after is just the icing on the cake. Great summer read on the beach!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. This review is based on an ARC from NetGalley, courtesy of the publisher.

The first half of the book is 2 1/2 stars for me...I don't mind the supernatural elements, but somehow while Thea is a child, the writing style feels simplistic and a little cheesy. Once she's an adult, it feels more like a Nora Robert's novel, and it's 4 1/2 stars for me.

Roberts' romantic supsense books are always an intense read and this might be one of the darker ones I've read yet. I really liked Thea as a main character and her relationship with her family - epseically her grandmother. Their bond was special and only made more so by the gift/curse they both share. The connection between Thea and the killer was tough to read and definitely emphasized the curse part.

Roberts' books are addictive and this was no different. When I picked this one up I fell into Thea's world and was hooked until I finally had to reluctantly put the book down to get some sleep. If you're a fan of Nora Roberts' romantic suspense books you want be disappointed. If you're looking for a fast paced read with likable main characters, solid family and friend relationships, a solid romantic relationship,and a hefty helping of suspense you can't go wrong with this one.

Thea’s childhood is ripped apart one traumatic night when her parents are murdered. Worst of all, her psychic gift allowed her to connect with the murderer and “see” how it happened. Somehow, with her grandmother, Lucy and her brother, Rem, they picked up the pieces of their shattered lives and tried to heal together. But the killer had the same ability as Thea and knew Thea was the one who helped the cops catch him. He’s determined to get revenge and Thea’s just as determined to stop him.

I loved all the characters in this book, especially Lucy and Braydon, who were my favorites. I was very intrigued by the plotline and Thea’s way of dealing with the killer. The author did a fantastic job of crafting a story with such rich details I could visualize it all in my mind.

The best thing about this story, other than the adorable Braydon, were the interpersonal relationships and connections. The love and deep friendships tug at the heartstrings and it’s why I love Nora Roberts’ books.

The ending was a bit anti-climactic but I loved one of the plot twists which was excellent. Mind Games is a rich story with an intriguing plotline and amazing family values and connections.

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I didn’t think I was going to finish this one, but then I got sucked in. This was a lot MORE than just a romance, which is good and bad. Good in that it was more psychological thriller. I don’t generally read those, but I’ve read some NR books with paranormal aspects before and loved them. This one captivated me, but. (That happens a lot in the book. Ending a sentence with a preposition with an implied finish.) Bad in that the romance was slow moving, late to appear in the book, and a bit flat for me. There was so much description for me that I skimmed some. I hate doing that because I feel like I might miss something. The climax was WOW, but the ending short in comparison to the rest. I feel like it could have been a lot shorter and still been as captivating.

This latest book by Nora Roberts is romantic suspense but relying very heavily on the paranormal. When Thea parents are killed, she tragically witnesses their murder. However, Thea is hundreds of miles away and is only a witness to the murder through a psychic connection. Unfortunately, that connection is with the killer, and it seems he also has a psychic connection with her.
What follows is Thea handling not only her newfound psychic ability but also dealing with the repercussions of being connected to a killer. In a true test of mind games who will ultimately win?

Every summer Thea and Rem Fox spend two weeks with their Grammie Lucy, in Kentucky, giving a mini-break to their parents. One day during the two week break, a serial killer targets their mom at the grocery store and follows her home. That night while they are asleep, he breaks in and kills them both. Thea & Grammie both have psychic abilities, though Thea's is stronger. They both see the murder happen and Thea sees the murderer's face and links up with him psychically, because he also has psychic abilities. Through Thea's help, the police are able to capture him and put him in prison. Thea grows up, goes to college, and starts working for a company designing video games. She has a house, a dog, some chickens, but she also has the inmate who killed her parents constantly in her head taunting her and tormenting her. She won't be able to rest until she has defeated him once and for all.

This book was a little different from this author's usual books. I liked Grammie and Thea - they both made for excellent female protaganists. I did think the dialogue was a little clunky. At least that isn't the way we talk around here, but maybe they do in other place...I don't know. I personally had a harder time maintaining interest in this one, maybe because of the subject matter, since it mainly focused on video games & using her psychic abilities. Overall I would give this a solid 4.

It's been a number of years since I have read a Nora Roberts novel, and Mind Games has reminded me of how much I used to enjoy reading her books. This one is a bit creepier than I remember, but as expected, it had me on the edge of my seat and turning pages well into the night as I couldn't wait to see how it would turn out.

The characters are well-developed, with all the flaws and love I could imagine in any real family and community. The supernatural gift that Thea shares with her Grammie and other women in her family felt real and added such terror to the story that I kept waiting for something awful to happen.

Gamers will enjoy Thea's chosen career as a game designer, as well as the way she uses gaming to exact her revenge/control her antagonist. I loved Bray and Bunk's relationship, and also fell a little in love with Ty and Bray, myself.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the digital ARC of Mind Games by Nora Roberts. The opinions in this review are my own.

I was provided both an ebook and an audio ARC of this book via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

I actually really enjoyed this book! This started out as a questionable read for me, as the main character Thea is a child when the villian Ray Riggs enters the storyline. I don't enjoy thrillers where children are involved, but I really liked what the author did with the interactions between Riggs and Thea. I thought it was a creative way for them to interact, while still protecting Thea as a child and as she grows up and she is ready to face him in person. Make no mistake the interactions with Riggs are plenty ugly and at time vulgar, but knowing that he and Thea are never physically in the same space makes for an interesting plotline and easier to stomach when she is younger. There are several scenes where you are going to want to check trigger warnings for especially when Riggs is in the drivers seat or when Thea is describing crime scenes to the detectives. While short, they are disturbing.

I thought the pacing was good in this one. I sometimes find Roberts book to be a tad on the long side and the pace to be slow, but I didn't find that to be the case with this one. This follow Thea and her brother from childhood when tragedy strikes their family on their annual 2 week trip to their grandmothers Kentucky home. Grammie becomes their legal guardian and raises them into successful adults. Both Grammie and Thea have a gift, so this does delve a bit into the paranormal throughout the book as Thea has a connection with the man who killed her parents. She works hard to keep him out, but he is working just as hard to break down her walls. As we follow Thea through adulthood, we see her build a successful career and life, and when she least expects it love enters the picture. I thought all of the characters had good character development and well defined storylines. I loved all the side characters as well and felt they did a good job to support the story. I was invested in Thea and Ty's relationship as their romance developed, and thought they had good chemistry. This is pretty closed door when it comes to the spice, which I prefer. I also loved all the references to home cooked meals. This book should come with a supplemental cookbook for all of the yummy things Thea and Grammie cooked, as well as Grammie's secret recipes to her soaps, candles, and lotions.

Overall I thought this was really entertaining. Sometimes the author's work can feel a bit formulaic, and while that might have been true for this book that formula worked really well for me here. If you are a Nora Roberts fan and like a thriller with a paranormal twist this, I recommend this one!

Mind Games by Nora Roberts is the tale of a young lady with Psychic abilities and the struggle of using it and not using it. Thea is visiting her grandmother when she sees a man called Riggs murder her parents. Of course, she doubts herself until she finds out this ability is passed down in the females of her family. Riggs is a despicable man and has no remorse for the chaos he leaves in the wake of murdering their parents or the hurt he heaps from the previous kills he has done. They will spend the entire book struggling to live and to know how to handle this ability, which, regrettably, Riggs has as well. What I really felt was compelling was these two characters have the same ability, but one chooses to do evil things with it, and the other chooses to hide it at times but, when needed, uses it for good. The way Thea takes back her life against Riggs at the end is epic and the perfect way to play out Mind Games while following all the rules.

3.5 stars

A likeable easy read with some magical realism. The first half of the novel had a lot of detail about Thea’s daily childhood life with her grandma and brother after the murder of her parents and this served to slow the pacing. The second half picked up substantially and it was also when the romantic interest, Tyler, appeared. The main characters were likeable and Tyler’s son was adorable. The Thea and Tyler relationship worked well but it should have occurred earlier in the story. The suspense part of the story was psychological in nature (hence the title, Mind Games) and was interesting. There was a pretty good ending though I thought it would have been more suspenseful.

Overall, this was a pleasant read but, for me, it could have had better pacing and less descriptive writing. Lovers of Nora Roberts will, I think, like this one.

Thanks to the publisher for this complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.

Something about a Nora Roberts novel just always gives me the cozies. The women in my family have been reading Nora forever. I grew up reading her and now I’m getting ARCs and I’m beyond grateful. I really liked this novel. It was different, it was cozy. It went through all the seasons but for some reason it just feels like a summer read. Was it maybe a little longer than needed? Probably. But that’s okay, I still really enjoyed this one!

In Mind Games, Nora Roberts does all the things that I love ~ she creates a cozy and wonderful world that I'd love to visit, with well-developed characters I'd like to know, and adds something terrible that weaves through the lives of these people we're coming to care about. There's some of the supernatural, some romance, and a whole lot of family time, with and without drama. I loved this book and I can't wait for her next one! Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the advance digital copy!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Mind Games
By: Nora Roberts
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Pub Date: 5/21/24

I look forward to Nora’s stand alone each spring!
Every summer begins with a trek to Grammie Lucy’s in Appalachia. Once their parents return to Virginia Thea, 12 and Remington,10 have the time of their lives. Learning all the things she has to teach but when tragedy strikes and their parents are murdered their whole worlds change. Thea comes from a long line of women who have the sight. She watched her parents be murdered and by the grace of god she saw the killer in her parents bedroom mirror. While helping the police she was able to tell them where he was and they were able to arrest them. In her grief she allowed him a connection that he will use to try to torture her for years to come. As she grows up and her life becomes more her own she becomes more comfortable with her gift but that connection to the murder is still there. When a new man shows up with a four year old in tow she knows she’s all in. What she isn’t sure about is how to tell him about her gift. Can she have a family and still protect them from the murder? What if she has a daughter will he be able to reach a descendent just cause she’s Thea’s?
This was a great read. I couldn’t put it down! Now to be patient or as patiently as I can wait for her next book out in November it’s book 2 in The Lost Bride Trilogy. #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #netgalley #booksofinstagram #netgalleyreader #netgalleyarc #netgalleyreviewer #bookworm #bookish #bookaddict #bookreviewer #bibliophile #ireadromance #instabooks #booknerd #arcopies #romancereads #advancereaderscopy #booklover #readersofinsta #igbooks #bookclub #fiction #womensfiction #historicalfiction #contemporaryromance #read #readers #bookaholic

Every summer Thea and her brother travel from Virginia to Kentucky to spend two weeks with their Grammie. During her twelfth summer when Thea and Grammie wake with a start after envisioning something terrible happening to her parents, Thea realizes that her Grammie shares her special kind of sight. After the terrible event, Thea and her brother live permanently in Kentucky where she learns to harness her sight, makes friends, grows up, and builds a career, but is still troubled by the ability to see into others minds and souls including the inmate that forever shattered her world.

A mash up of romance and suspense, the creative process with a dash of paranormal ability creates a wild ride of a story that kept me on the edge of my seat. The story spans over many years with large jumps in time that at first was slight jarring because I was unsure where the book was going, but was required to get to the destination and did not detract from the storyline. The characters were well developed and the pacing was good throughout. I loved the narrator of the audiobook and felt that she did a great job capturing the sentiments of the main characters. For me, this was a truly unique book and that I have never quite read anything similar, which is always a joy.

Mind Games by Nora Roberts was an interesting tale from the get-go. Thea is in KY with her Grandma when her parents back home are murdered. Thea is able to see these events take place thanks to her "gift", passed down among the women of the family. The killer realizes she is in his head, and is able to infiltrate hers, as she grows up, becomes a successful game designer, and forms a relationship with her hunky neighbor. The underlying tension of Thea and Riggs' connection overlays the small town atmosphere, idyllic setting and family life. Nora Roberts is a great storyteller and weaves a tragic and intriguing tale.