Review: Great historical fiction with a paranormal twist
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 04 23, 2014
The Mind’s Eye is a paranormal historical romance for young adults. The story’s heroine, Kit Cavendish, is evacuated from London to a village in North Wales with her brother. Kit is one of the oldest evacuees as she has a long-term illness that has her stuck in a wheelchair. Although Kit may be physically stuck in a wheelchair, her mind has the extraordinary power to put itself into the minds of others. This leads her to the mind of Henri in Oslo. They develop an emotional bond as Kit guides him through the Nazi occupation of his city.This is a well-written and well-thought-out story. Despite Kit’s paranormal abilities, the story is very believable. I liked the way the paranormal abilities were tied in with the war. The way in which this was done by the author made the ability seem possible, especially as we learn of Mam’s father’s experiences from the Great War. But there is so much more than the war going on in this story. Kit’s struggle with learning to walk and her frustrations therewith were so authentic that I wasn’t surprised to learn that the author also suffered from medical conditions. The growth that she undergoes as she learns to walk as well as control her abilities is a pleasure to read.I loved the Ty Gwyn family. There was always something going on at that farm to keep the reader interested. Although the secrets that Kit learns about the family aren’t that shocking (especially for the time period), they help to contribute to the well-roundedness of the story. The only character I did not like was Kit’s mom. I didn’t understand the actions that she took and the secrets that she kept from Kit.  Maybe we will learn more about this in the next installment of the series, but until then I’m not liking mom and dad and I’m not yet willing to forgive them. Don’t despair that there is another book in the series, this novel has a clear ending with just a hint of what’s to come.I recommend this book to lovers of the paranormal that want to get their history geek on.