So Mindwalker! I enjoyed it but I think for me I only really got fully invested in the last 25% which annoyed me as I wanted to love it. As I say though I'm in a bit of a slump reading wise so that will be a factor!

So I'll stick the synopsis in the comments as per just in case you've not seen this book about.

I loved the world building, Dylan just did whatever the hell she wanted and that was great, it was a fast paced sci fi mystery thriller which is what I was hoping for. The tech was also well described, not too heavy - I wanted more of this, especially the missions that Sil did as a Mindwalker - maybe I need a prequel novella?

The characters - Sil was fab, witty and endearing as an MC. Ryder was the best for me though- I wanted more interaction between them as the book only covers like a week of time - fast I say!

I can’t stop thinking about Mindwalker. To be quite honest, it’s rare these days that books stick with me for days after I’ve finished them. But I keep coming back to this one. I’ve thought about the fun world-building in the shower, contemplated character arcs while doing laundry, and kept coming back to the questions Mindwalker asks.

Besides my love of sci-fi, one of the things that attracted me to Mindwalker was that it kept being compared to Marvel movies. I love superheroes so naturally, this made my ears perk up. Did it hold up to that comparison? Overall, I’d say yes! Our main character, Sil Sarrah, is not really a superhero. But in a different story, she absolutely would be. The girl has a supercomputer in her brain that gives her abilities that are arguably superhuman! However, what really makes Mindwalker worthy of the Marvel comparison is the style and pacing. If you love exciting action scenes that are balanced with emotional moments and humour, Mindwalker checks those boxes.
From page one, Kate Dylan delivers a novel that’s fast-paced but never rushed. I listened to the second half of the book in one sitting because I just couldn’t stop! Reading Mindwalker was the equivalent of getting sucked into a videogame for hours on end, a truly engrossing reading experience. Kate Dylan won me over very quickly with her writing style. She perfectly captures a particular brand of sarcasm with a strong character voice. Basically, I immediately fell in love with Sil.

She’s smart, snarky and just a little too cocky for her confidence to be entirely real. There were so many layers to her character, so many beliefs she held about her life and the world she lives in, that made her an interesting character to follow.

I particularly loved reading a sci-fi story from the perspective of someone who, for the majority of the story, is loyal to the Evil Corporation. And it makes sense! Yes, this is a story about resistance, but that hits even harder when we understand how Syntex operates, and why Sil believes in them. We can see the systemic abuse and how deeply unethical a lot of their work is, but we also get to see the good parts of Sil’s experience.

Sil’s character arc and her journey through her own beliefs and ideals are complemented by the characters around her. I loved getting glimpses into other experiences through these side characters. Sil’s experience of her world is incredibly specific and in many ways privileged. Being confronted with characters who are fundamentally against what she has represented her whole life made for interesting points of conflict. Overall, Kate Dylan wonderfully uses the cast of characters around Sil to add depth and nuance to the themes Mindwalker explores.

At its core, Mindwalker is a book about bodily autonomy and consent. And it isn’t a shallow exploration of consent either! It’s woven throughout the book, in big ways and small ones. As a Mindwalker, Sil consented to have a computer installed in her brain. In turn, she can only take over someone’s body with their consent. At least, that’s what she thinks. Mindwalker explores how quickly the lines of consent can become blurry, and how institutions purposefully shift and abuse those lines.

A central question that I kept coming back to while reading was “is consent even possible under these conditions?” When your survival depends on giving up your autonomy, can that ever be consensual?

Mindwalker is an incredibly fun sci-fi novel, the kind that’s propulsive and exciting from page one. It’s fun and engaging and there are so many little world-building tidbits that are exciting to explore. But Mindwalker is also a book that holds space for bigger questions, emerging organically from the story. I find that books with such big and heavy questions are often hard to balance, it’s easy for them to feel too forced. However, this is not a problem for Mindwalker in the slightest. Kate Dylan manages to effortlessly weave together a multitude of plot strands, themes and elements, coming together in a truly well-balanced and expertly crafted story.

Ten years ago, Syntex recruited me. Today, I’m going to let the enemy do the same thing.

What I Liked

I loved the friendship between Sil, Lena and Jondi. How they grew up together as kids with a short life ahead of them, but they didn’t let that stop them from living it to the fullest they could. The Mindwalker program was really interesting and gave me massive Ghost in the Shell/The Host vibes, and I would like an AI like Jarvis please and thank you! (just minus the brain-melting side effects)

The chemistry between Sil and Ryder was steamy yet believable, though the romance did move a little fast for my liking.

The world… oh boy the world! Think cyberpunk dystopia if a company like Google “saved” the world from self destruction. If one tech corporation held the monopoly on food manufacturing, surveillance, AI, mods, and of course, the titular Mindwalker program that allows minds to effectively meld together with the Walker taking the driver’s seat.

What I Didn’t Like

The pacing was a bit up and down for my liking, and the last few chapters felt rushed. The romance also felt a little stilted and forced, and I would have almost preferred it to not have come to fruition, and just had the tension there instead.

There weren’t a lot of likeable characters either, and the ones I did like were barely in the story - Lena, Lin, Jondi… all background characters.

Other Impressions

Overall I really enjoyed the read. It was fast paced and interesting, and the worldbuilding sucked you in. Watching Sil navigate a world she hadn’t really been a part of for many years was fantastic, and the friendship dynamics between the original trio was one of my favourite elements.

Definitely worth the read if you love cyberpunk, dystopia, evil(?) corporations, and resistance fighters falling in love.

“His touch is proof that I was here and real and cared for, that once I join Lena and the rest of the deceased assets on the scrap heap, someone might remember me.”

If you're a fan of this genre (YA) then you'll likely enjoy this. Lots of imagination and the story carries you along. Fans of the genre will like it.

Dylan has created a vivid and remarkable world in Mindwalker. Twisting what we think we know of the dystopian tropes, she dances a wonderful line between the familiar and the unexpected. Sil Sarrah is an easy character to fall in with. Her blind faith is understandable--even if you want to shake her for it!--and never becomes infuriating.

Great entry in the cyberpunk genre and definitely a good one that I enjoyed and had fun reading! Hoping to see more from this author!

Many thanks to Netgalley, Hodder and Stoughton and the author for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was quite the ride. It was truly as the blurb claims a Marvel movie in a YA book form. The story follows the countdown days of the life of 18 year old Sil Sarrah, who is a machine enhanced human, trained to participate in mission which might be tricky and even impossible for a normal human to complete. You ask how? by mind-walking. yeah she literally steps into the body of another person as consciousness and uses that body like a puppeteer. She has been the best of the best with a 100% record for the last 10 years of her career at Syntex corporation and with one year left to literally live, she is determined to die a legend!

But when a critical mission goes south and Sil gets blamed for it. She has to do everything in her power and more to win her employers trust back and possibly live till her determined tech life. This means she has to infiltrate the enemy, by befriending Ryder, the leader of the Analog army who is fighting to bring down the tech giants. With her tech degrading at a much faster rate than expected and away from the only life she knew Sil has to save herself and her friends while Ryder might have other plans for her.

This book!! this book was brilliant, all elements of the story was right in place and it was one hell of a ride. the twists, the turns and the final reveal was perfect and right in place. The side characters were a blast and so was the setting, I enjoyed every bit of it and could not put down my kindle until I found out what happened.

My only 2 grievances were, well fist of all, Insta love (not my Jam), but we were racing against time here folks, so forgiven and second, I wanted much more of the world building, to understand the storms and the particles and the extent of future we travelled to in this book. That said again, this would have impacted the pace of the book. This book had the potential to be made into a duology at the very least.

This book is perfect for anyone looking for a fast paced, action and emotion pack thrilling ride!! Also Jervis!!

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a wonderful novel which I believe would definitely entice readers. Personally, it did take me a while to get into the story and I took a long time to finish, however, if you are interested in the sci fi aspects, this would be a great book to place in your TBR list!

**I was provided with an ARC through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**

Mindwalker is a fun and fantastic YA sci-fi that has jumped right into my favourite reads of the year list!

It’s set in an immersive post apocalyptic cyber punk type world dominated by mega tech companies and follows Sil Sarrah, a Syntex agent whose job as a Mindwalker is to sync minds with field agents and help them out of tricky situations on their missions. Her record has been immaculate even since she joined until a surprise mission goes awry and she’s forced to go on the run, marked as a traitor.
As a way to get back into the good graces of her employers Sil decides to infiltrate the Analog Army, an organisation with a personal vendetta against Syntex. However, as she ventures beyond Syntex walls and comes into confidence with the opposition she comes face to face with more secrets than she expected on both her employers and the wider world around her.

I cannot express enough how enjoyable this book was. There’s a fast paced, gripping plot with such intriguing characters, great moments of action and so many brilliant twists. The various elements of technology that are the central part of the world building are fascinating but never get too overly complicated. What makes all of it even more interesting still is the commentary with regards to ethics and abuse of power that is woven into the narrative.

I absolutely loved following Sil as she was plunged into a real time mission of her own after being used to fighting from behind someone else eyes. Her impulsive yet valiant and honest demeanour make her a character that you instantly root for. She also has a sassy side which brings some great moments of humour to the story too. The friendships are wholesome and there's also an enemies to lovers romance that though it did come around a little fast, had just the right amount of angst and didn’t detract from the main plot. If you’re a fan of enemies to lovers that have that chaotic vibe of one character running into a fire while the other yells at them for being stupid but follows them anyways then you’ll love Sil and Ryder just as much as I did!

If you’re looking for a satisfying scifi adventure that won’t overwork your mind with too much hard science but will keep you on your toes then look no further!
Final Rating – 4.75/5 Stars

Mindwalker has the perfect sci-fi blend of being action packed and fun, the world building is a little mind bending at times, but dont let that get to you as the fun side of this book is what hooks you and then it hit you will the plot and you are too deep to stop reading.

a little hard to read if you are trigged by detailed action but damn if this doesnt get picked up for to me film there is no justice in the world

this is one of those book you want more world building and more of side characters as they are so well written and you just want more and more

WHAT A RIDE
I admit I am a fan of pacy thrilling stories, especially with a little romance thrown in on the side. And MINDWALKER does not disappoint. We meet Sil Sarrah, 18 year old enhance human with a ticking time bomb computer implanted in her brain… and then her world is turned upside down not once but many times over with all the twists and bends in this rollercoaster of a story. The blurb says it reads like a Marvel movie, and it does! Though I thought it was more Fast & Furious does Blade Runner. So. Much. Fun!

Set in a very slight dystopia full of evil corporations and corruption, this is a post apocalyptic cyberpunk action-packed read. It is a fun scifi world full of crazy technology and we follow a snarky heroine through it. It has all the tropes and a snarky love interest to boot. I did find that at some points you will have to suspend your disbelief for the plot, there were some situations where events/constrictions happened purely for the sake of the plot - rather than a logical progression. Like humans have invented nanite technology that can be implanted into your brain to work on cybernetics - BUT some technology will fail after a few years and theres ABSOLUTELY nothing we can do about it lols.

This book was not for me for a few other reasons too but I do think its a great read for its younger YA Audience.

Thank you Netgalley and Hodder and Stoughton for the e-ARC these are my honest reviews and opinions.
This was an amazing I enjoyed every moment an absolute page turner that was worthy of the hype.
This was my first introduction to this author's work so I'm pleased it was a good recommendation, the characters and story unfold smoothly and I enjoyed the interactions between Sil and Ryder.
I was kept on the edge of my seat as I read each page, each chapter pulling me in and keeping me hooked until the very end.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ My rating
Well thought out story with interesting characters and world.

#netgalley #mindwalker #katdylan

thank you to netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for proving me an arc in exchange for an honest review.


Mindwalker is a solid, ya sci fi novel that has it all- fast paced plot, badass female heroine realizing the company she works for isn’t *it*, different characters grudgingly working together for the same goal, a fresh take on how advanced the technology has gotten, a bit of angsty romance that doesn’t take us away from the main plot.

It does fall short on the angsty bit- it was sort of insta love (I think within 2 weeks?) but it was still interesting to see how their story panned out in the end. I liked it, an ending that isn’t completely unsatisfying nor tied up with the typical fairytale happily ever after but open to reader’s own views.

The writing style was easy to read, engaging and Sil Sarrah’s character development through the entire story was very interesting to read. Her brutal honesty to herself was what really drew me to her character.

Besides her, Ryder and Lena, I felt that the other characters were quite one dimensional and hence the “family trope” the author was probably going for, fell flat.

The plot was certainly a nice surprise (I sort of hadn’t expected anything but an average sort of ya story so wasn’t really looking for it). The epic confrontation was very well written and I love it when the reader is kept in dark about the main character’s plan to take down the villain until they’re actually doing it. It’s always a hit! There are some important themes dealt with in the book- elitism and how malicious corporates can be for their own good.

However, there’s some points in the book that were a big NO for me. The fact that female mc slaps her potential love interest. No matter the height of emotions, and whatever he is saying is against her beliefs.. it just felt off. If the context of the situation was different, and they were fighting as in battling on opposite sides maybe I’d been more okay with it. But here is he, revealing truth and being caring towards her, and she slaps him.

Secondly there was this line about a character being smuggled across a border when she was 3 while her parents died because republic of Canada doesn’t take well to its citizens defecting and then “neither does US though we do stop short of shooting them”. The horrors faced by immigrants are a reality and the US is implicit in so many crimes around the world that this just made me angry.

Overall rating: 3/5

Mind Walker

Amazon Summary

Eighteen-year-old Sil Sarrah is determined to die a legend. But with only twelve months left before the supercomputer grafted to her brain kills her, Sil's time is quickly running out.

In the ten years she's been rescuing field agents for the Syntex corporation - by commandeering their minds from afar and leading them to safety - Sil hasn't lost a single life. And she's not about to start now.

But when a critical mission goes south, Sil is forced to flee the very company she once called home.

Desperate to prove she's no traitor, Sil infiltrates the Analog Army, an activist faction working to bring Syntex down. Her plan: to win back her employer's trust by destroying the group from within. Instead, she and the Army's reckless leader, Ryder, uncover a horrifying truth that threatens to undo all the good she's ever done.

With her tech rapidly degrading and her new ally keeping dangerous secrets of his own, Sil must find a way to stop Syntex in order to save her friends, her reputation - and maybe even herself.

My Review

I really love this book! This is a Sci Fy/Fantasy book with a great plot. The world building is ok but its strength is definitely in its characters and plot.

Sil is my favourite character closely followed by Ryder and the book had some great side characters too.

The Plot was fast paced and had me immersed from the start, it feels like a stand alone book but I wish there was a sequel to the story, I didn’t want it to end.

This book truly desires 5 stars.

Not to sound like a genre puritanical but I've been searching for a typical YA sci-fi for a while now—it seems like quite a few are nowadays mixed with fantasy for a broader SFF umbrella, but I digress—and this debut fully delivers. From the futuristic technology and a corporate government to a brewing rebellion and gradual romance, Mindwalker kept me engaged; and the driving force of challenging beliefs and recognising ugly truths about an exploitative system that selectively benefits fits perfectly in what is a cinematic sci-fi thriller. Full review will be posted on 20th September, 2022.

first of all THE COVER!!!!!! I really loved this book, the setting and world building was done so well! I also loved the characters

Sil is a mindwalker for the Syntex corporation. She rescues agents by melding/taking over their minds and has a perfect streak of wins. Her expiration date is looming over her for this tech will basically kill her. When a mission goes sideways she flees Syntex. To prove she isn't a traitor, she infiltrates the Analog Army. This group is trying to bring the corporation down and she will try to destroy them from within. Then she learns a horrifying truth...

The straight-to-the-point, holds no prisoners, but peppered with snarky sass narrative sucks you right in. The plot cruises like a sleek sports car, revving when necessary and when it picks up speed to race, it's exhilarating as hell, while you experience everything. What the h*ll moments make this ride even more memorable and gasp-worthy.

I love books in a future after some sort of cataclysmic event has changed the world. The tech-savvy part of the worldbuilding is done quite well, with everything fitting in organically so they just feel like part of the characters' everyday life. That doesn't mean you don't go wide-eyed with a lot of the gadgets. I mean the main 'attraction' of the Walkers is mind-blowing. And described in a more than satisfactory way. I am so happy that is true, cause presenting this needed to be excellent so the whole of the book didn't fall apart. And the author succeeded. All descriptions hit the writing jackpot emotion-wise and imagery-wise.

Sil's thoughts feel natural in the situation and to the character, simultaneously helping us become acquainted and grow fond of her. Ryder with the arrogant smile. is the poster boy for recklessness. A character that helps the protagonist evolve, change her mindset, her world. Even if they needle each other (you will chuckle a lot) and their relationship starts as one of convenience and personal benefit.

This story is a cautionary tale on Big Brother and the evils of greed. How technology can be a blessing or a devil in disguise. About apparent freedom and true freedom. It also reminds us that nothing can crush hope, that good will prevail. Good people will always fight for what is right.

Espionage, conspiracy and a revolution in the making color this absolutely cinematic and thrilling treasure of a sci-fi story. I loved, loved, loved it so much.

Honestly the first thing that drew me to the book was the comps to Marvel movies, but Kate Dylan does Marvel-esque stories better than Disney ever could and they have set mg expectations above the moon for all future movies in the franchise. The characterization in this book balances out perfectly with the plot so you actually feel connected to the the stiry and not like you're watching cardboard cutouts of characters go through the heros journey again and again for the sake of it.

I had a very good time reading this book. Sil was an amazing character with great humour and sarcasm. The narrator was spot on as well really capturing Sil's voice and bringing life to the piece. I think I would have enjoyed it either way, but I especially enjoyed it as an audiobook.

The world was well built, if slightly depressing. It's sort of post- post-apocalypse. The apocalypse has happened, people survived and the world has been rebuilt. I found it good that it was an apocalypse by bombing the shit out of each other, rather than climate change because if I'm honest, books about climate change have started to scare me.

The mindwalking was really interesting. It really makes you think about consent and the idea that someone could literally take control of your body. Some of the scenes made me really uncomfortable and definitely showed the issues around that sort of thing.

All in all, this was a really good sci fi book.