Book Review: The Eye of Minds

The eye of Minds, by James Dashner, written in 2013.

I'll start by saying that James Dashner has done it again. From one wildly popular series to the next, (the Maze Runner being the most well known) he can't seem to do anything wrong. It was because of this that I headed into this book with a sense of foreboding - it's a general pattern that after an author's smash hit series, the next books to come will be decidedly less thrilling. However, I can assure you that this book is just as good, if not better, than Maze Runner.

It takes place far into the future, in a world where virtual reality has become so advanced, it's almost hard to tell between reality and "Lifeblood", the game. The only difference is that players know that no matter what, they will always wake up safe and sound in the real world. However, when a master coder starts corrupting Lifeblood, and gamers are found brain dead at their homes, everyone can sense something's going to happen. The lines between reality and lifeblood are being erased, making it a very dangerous game indeed.

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Fast paced, well written and creepy, this book has it all. Unlike many "Virtual Reality Goes Wrong" novels, this one actually makes a good read - the plot's plausible and the characters are flawed. However, I'd have liked the main character to be a little more... interesting. I found he was virtually indistinguishable from the hero in Maze Runner - a young man with strong morals, a sharp sense of humour and natural leadership skills. Furthermore, his friends could have been better developed: I felt that they fitted the "classic sidekick" mould a little too well.

That being said, Dashner has great powers of description - there were several chilling scenes, written in such a way as to give me shivers up my spine. One scene in particular, towards the end of the novel, was truly chilling - if you've read the book, you'll know which one I mean. Finally, it had a well-executed twist at the end, a feature I always admire in books like these.

As for appropriateness content, there wasn't anything explicit, although a few swear words were employed every now and then.

So, on the whole, whilst not perfect, this book was an awesome addition to the YA Sci-fi genre. I'd really recommend you to give it a read.