Perfect Lies (Mind Games, #2)

by Kiersten White

The wickedly smart sequel to Sister Assassin - a tale of two sisters trapped in a web of deceit.

First they made me kill.
Then leave behind the one person I love.
Now I'm getting even.

Annie and Fia have battled to survive within the sinister Keane Foundation for years, using their powers to defend each other. Now the sisters have allies; friends who might help them escape.

But Annie's visions of the future are never certain and Fia's flawless instincts can't always tell her who to trust. With only each other truly to rely on, their extraordinary gifts may not be enough to save them...

• ISBN10: 0062135856
• ISBN13: 9780062135858
• Publish Date: 17 February 2015 (first published 30 January 2014)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Imprint: Collins
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 256
• Language: English

Reviews

[Linda]

*I received a free ARC of Perfect Lies from Harper Collins UK, Children's via Netgalley in exchange of an honest review*

I only have one word. A single word for now: AMAZEBALLS!

This and all my other reviews are originally posted on my blog (un)Conventional Bookviews

[ladygrey]

I liked this book and I didn't. 

I really like Fia and her instincts. I think it's unique and interesting and great story material. I liked James and Cole and Eden and especially Pixie. But I really wanted more depth in the character development but there just wasn't enough book for that. 

Annie just annoyed me. I get that she's literally blind but Kiersten White also made her figuratively blind. And naive. And obtuse. And it's just annoying. 

It doesn't help that the entire first two thirds of the book feels wrong wrong wrong. There's reasons for that - which adds to my like/ugh balance. It feels wrong because Fia is choosing the wrong choice. So it's effective writing. Bravo. But that doesn't make it fun to read.

And it's effective because even with Fia's random free association and instability it feels like she's always in control. Tight, constant control. Which feels so tiring. I just wanted her to be able to let her guard town for a moment. To be away from the Feelers and Seers and be honest with James and at peace. For just a moment before she has to pick that control back up. 

It's also effective because Annie gets to save Fia the way Fia saved Annie in the last book. The progress and turn of the story totally works. And Annie gets to figure out that Fia isn't the only one who can change the future. 

But I really didn't like how James turned out. I liked him and I liked him and Fia together. It seemed kind of lame and plot convenient for him to try to turn into his father at the end. I did like the idea of him and Annie having to work together to try to figure out what to do with the school but I think it could have been achieved better. 

I still think it's a fun world and I still (mostly) like the characters. I just think there could have been a smidgeon more and it would have been a lot more interesting.

 

ETA: I remembered not liking this book as much and now that I reread it, i remember why. The fun of the first book is Fia’s i stinct and watching blaze a trail of right and wrong wrong wrong while flirting with James. Breaking her instinct isn't any fun. Watching her play the victim who goes along with everything she’s told to do without thinking or choosing or fighting isn't fun. Annie is also super annoying because it’s like she has the worst instincts ever as a counterbalance to her sister. She is without a doubt wrong wrong wrong but not by choice and that's annoying to read. And the whole ending after Annie did something good and changed the future was suddenly convenient and not foreshadowed well enough to come off as solid or satisfying. And I didnt like the turn in James’ character because it also didn't feel well established enough to be anything more than a disappointing plot twist. 

[violetpeanut]

Maybe 3.5 stars. This was really good and it was a fast read but it didn't really leave me wanting more and I felt that the plot was much weaker than the first book. For much of the book not much happens except Annie and Fia missing each other. What this book did a great job of was developing it's characters. Fia's slow spiral into depression and craziness, Annie's developing independence and learning how she can be the strong one.

Overall I emjoyed it but wasn't blown away like I was with the first one.

[celinenyx]

I read Perfect Lies immediately after Mind Games and it's basically more of the same (which is not a bad thing).

After the happenings of Mind Games Fia and Annie will have to battle to be completely free from the Keane Foundation. However, how do you do this when they have Seers that get visions every time you form a plan?

My thoughts when reading Perfect Lies were basically like this:
"What's going on? What's happening? Oh my god, no. Did they just... What's happening? WHAT'S HAPPENING?!"

There are two time lines, one following Fia in the "week before" and one following Annie that starts "four months before". If that makes any sense. We basically see Fia in the few days running up to the climax of the book, and we see Annie fill in the gaps between the climax and the end of Mind Games. This also means that at first when you're reading Fia's parts she's way further along in the story, which creates a lot of suspense because she alludes to some happenings, and you're like "WHAT? DID THIS HAPPEN?". A complicating factor is that Fia is even more broken than before, and even within the confines of her mind, she lies.

Perfect Lies packs a lot of emotional punches and toys with your thoughts, just like its prequel. It's a short book, and that format works perfectly for it. If we had to spend 500 pages in Fia's head I think we all would go crazy along with her. Instead we just get short flashes. There are some secondary characters introduced that I really liked, and there is a bit more romance than in the first book. The romance was surprisingly sweet and cute without being unrealistic. The sisters aren't exactly in the position to date like normal people, and both their romantic interests reflected that.

The ending of Perfect Lies was perfect. Not too overtly optimistic, which wouldn't fit with the tone of the books, but it wasn't too dark either. The Mind Games books are great fast-paced thrillers with an interesting writing style.