Mind Games by Stephanie Black

Mind Games by Stephanie Black
My rating: 4.5 of 5 stars
Source: Received from publisher to review.
Genre: Suspense

Book Description:  Psychologist Natalie Marsh’s dream is now reality: her mental health services clinic has opened and is housed in an elegant, newly renovated nineteenth-century building. Unfortunately, not everyone is happy with the clinic’s presence, including Heather Osbourne, a troubled young woman who wholly objects to the occupation of the building. Heather has spent years wandering the halls of the abandoned structure, convinced she’s communing with her ancestor’s ghost. When Natalie thwarts Heather’s attempt to leap from a window, the shaken psychologist soon realizes Heather’s failed jump is merely one piece of a disturbing puzzle. Greed and deceit are weaving a web around Natalie, and someone will stop at nothing—not even murder—to get what they want. Stretched to her breaking point, Natalie struggles to learn the truth, but only one thing is clear: nothing is as it seems.



My thoughts: It took me a while to find the time to sit down and read this book. I started it once, set it aside, and then started it at a later date.

At first, I was a little confused, trying to sort out the different characters. The reader is quickly introduced to about 90% of them in the first few pages. The book opens at a party celebrating the opening of new building. One of the offices is a mental health clinic. There are some who are opposed to it being in the building. They don't want to interact with people who are not mentally healthy. It seemed like a lot of information was presented in a short period of time.

Fortunately, my confusion didn't last long and I was able to dig into the story. I am very glad that I did. The book is definitely about "mind games". The question is who is controlling the games? There are many suspects who have a motive. There are two murders, one is known from the start who did it, but there is a second murder that is tied to the first. Stephanie Black does an amazing job at casting doubt on the characters, but not letting the reader know until the very end who the villain is.

If it wasn't for the start, this would have been a 5 star book for me. I enjoyed it! There is non-graphic violence, and mild kissing.

Online Purchase Links:

Amazon * Barnes & Noble * Deseret Book

About the Author: (Taken from Deseret Book)  STEPHANIE BLACK has loved books since she was old enough to grab the pages, and has enjoyed creating make-believe adventures since she and her sisters were inventing long Barbie games filled with intrigue and danger or running around pretending to be detectives. She is a three-time Whitney Award winner for Best Mystery/Suspense, most recently for Cold as Ice (2010). Stephanie was born in Utah and has lived in various places, including Arizona, Massachusetts, New York, and Limerick, Ireland. She currently lives in northern California and enjoys spending time with her husband Brian and their five children. She is a fan of chocolate, cheesecake, and her husband’s homemade bread.