Minder Review

Monday, January 10, 2011

Title: Minder
Author: Kate Kaynak
Publisher: Spencer Hill Press
Published: June 18, 2010
Genre: YA, Sci-Fi
Pages: 264
Source: Author

Sixteen-year-old Maddie Dunn is special, but she needs to figure out how to use her new abilities before somebody else gets hurt. Ganzfield is a secret training facility full of people like her, but it's not exactly a nurturing place.

Every social interaction carries the threat of mind-control. A stray thought can burn a building to the ground.

And people's nightmares don't always stay in their own heads. But it's still better than New Jersey. Especially once she meets the man of her dreams...
Maddie Dunn has enough to deal with without adding special powers to the list, but she doesn’t have a choice. When a dangerous situation leaves three people inexplicably dead and Maddie in desperate need of answers and support, she’s shuttled off to Ganzfield. Designed as a special school for those with gifts like herself, Maddie must learn to harness her newfound powers before something bad happens to the people she cares about. Ganzfield is a great place, and Maddie might have just found the guy of her dreams in the midst of all the chaos around her, but there’s something dark after them, and when a single stray thought can kill, Maddie needs stability…now.

I’ve seen reviews for Minder for a long time now. The concept is one that I love, albeit, perhaps not the most original. A touch X-Men with a hint of Supernatural thrown into the mix, Minder is a story of superhuman powers in otherwise ordinary citizens and their struggle for survival and a normal life. Kate Kaynak has, however, managed to create a new and endearing heroine that has you rooting for her from page one. With a fast-paced plot and plenty of twists and turns to keep you on the edge of your seat, Minder is great for those who love superheroes and the idea that they live among us.

Despite a few flaws, I was impressed with Minder. The idea was put together well, and the story flowed nicely. There were no real plot lags, and I enjoyed the characters, though I found that (at times) Maddie could be a bit too introspective. I don’t always need to read her thoughts to understand what she’s thinking or feeling. I also think that a few parts of the plot could have been fleshed out more. While I appreciated how fast the story got moving, I would have enjoyed a chance to get to know Maddie right off. That said, Kaynak managed to weave character development through the ever-moving plot, which isn’t an easy thing to do.

I think Minder is a great start to the Ganzfield series, and I’m excited to read where the rest of the story takes Maddie and her new friends. I give Minder a 4 out of 5, and I’ll definitely be looking for book two in the series, Adversary. I would recommend Minder to those who enjoy YA, especially those who enjoy science-fiction stories with a touch of romance. This is also great for fans of shows like The Cape, Smallville and X-Men.

I received this book free of charge from the author in exchange for an honest review. This, in no way, affected my opinion or review of this book.

33 comments:

  1. This sounds like a great book! Thanks for the review :)

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  2. The Minder has been on my wishlist for a long time. I have only heard positive things about the book. Thanks for the review!

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  3. Nice review Melissa, I love a character I can root for from page one, that's always important to me:) I've been seeing this book around as well but never thought much of picking it up, but since we seem to like similar things, I think I'll need to give it a try!

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  4. I love that despite your initial thoughts, you dug this one. Great review.

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  5. This one looks awesome, I'll definitely check it out!

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  6. I have this book on my tbr pile. It does seem like an entertaining book. I'll have to move it up especially if it's a fast paced story.

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  7. I'm not so big on sci-fi, but I've seen good reviews for this one!

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  8. I am glad you enjoyed! This is one of my fave series, it only gets better as it goes in my opinion. Plus, Kate is such a sweetie.
    Brandi from Blkosiner’s Book Blog

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  9. It sounds really interesting. I might have to try that one out sometime. I like school setting, especially unusual schools.

    Can I ask, how do you get the coloured box around your text in your posts? I've seen a few bloggers do it and it looks really great. Do you need to use the HTML editor?

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  10. I like the whole premise of mind reading and sci-fi so I think I'll have to check this out! I was a fan of Smallville back in the day so that grabbed my attention too :) Excellent review Melissa!

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  11. I have this one in my TBR this month pile. I'm glad I read your review. I like Supernatural and X-Men, so you've just helped up my motivation. Thanks!

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  12. Great review. This sounds like a really good book. There is so much paranormal out there yet so few superhero novels. I think I'll add this to my TBR pile.

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  13. I really enjoyed Minder and thought Trevor was really sweet. Great review!

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  14. I've never heard of this, but it sounds really exciting! Great review :)

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  15. I've heard a lot about this one, but I never really gave it much thought. I might have to pick it up, because I also really like that concept of book and TV show. Thanks for the review =)

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  16. What an intriguing concept for a book! It sounds like I'd love it--thanks for the review!

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  17. This sounds a lot like a book I recently read, but it seems that Kate tackled the book at a different angle. I've heard such great things about this book, and I actually have it in my hands, but haven't had a chance to read it yet. I should get to it soon. xD Great review ♥

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  18. I've been wondering about this one because I'd really like to try to incorporate a sci-fi book or two into my reading rotation. I'm glad you liked it. :)

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  19. This book does not get enough credit in my opinion. Seriously, I love this series!

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  20. Must have been good if you liked it despite the flaws. A good book should shine through whatever faults there may be :)

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  21. Oh, nice review. It doesn't seem like the flaws bothered you too much. I admit, I didn't pick this one up due to the cover. Oh well.. must wishlist this one now. :)

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  22. Thanks for reviewing this one Melissa because the cover turns me off immediately. I almost can't stand it. LOL!

    I had no idea this book was about superheroes of sorts. Sounds good. I have book two sitting on shelves, I won it! So, I guess I need to get book one soon so I can get in on the mind blowing action. ;)

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  23. You're right: not the most original story, but as long as it's done well, I'm sure I'd enjoy reading it, too. Thanks.

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  24. I enjoyed watching X-Men so I think I'll like Minder. Thanks for the review.

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  25. I've been interested in this book for a long time. Glad you liked it pretty well. Interesting thoughts on being too introspective. Do you think it breaks down to a show not tell problem?

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  26. This book is in my review pile, so I'm so glad to hear that you liked it! It got a lot of votes in my 2010 Readers' Choice Awards too, so I'm really excited to read it!

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  27. I enjoyed Minder and recently got the next two books in the series. It reminded me a lot of X-men and I felt the romance was a tad rushed, but I am anxious to see what happens next.

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  28. I just wanna shout you out for having such an awesome blog and still taking the time out to comment on other people's pages...many other awesome bloggers don't do that :)

    xo,
    Lah

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  29. I'm glad you liked this one Melissa! I just read the second book, Adversary, and the action moves at a rapid pace. Crazy things happen, so I hope you get to read that one too.

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  30. Great review! I wasn't impressed with this one, though I thought it was okay. The relationship between Maddie and Trevor lacked development for me and I just didn't understand it. But Adversary is coming up close in my TBR so hopefully it's better. :) Glad you enjoyed it!

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  31. Great review! I've had this in my TBR pile for a couple months now, and I have to admit I've been a bit weary of it. Though, now with your review, I think I'll be be picking it up sooner than later.

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  32. This is yet another one that I own and haven't read, but after seeing our review I want to move it up in the TBR pile. Thanks!

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