I absolutely loved this!
Think Legend (Marie Lu) meets This Mortal Coil (Emily Suvada), and you know you’re in for an awesome ride!
If you like your sci-fi earthbound and packed with dystopian suspense, a side of morals and politics, and plenty of gadgetry, then you’re in for a treat, my friends.
The pacing was perfect and it made this story pretty unputdownable.
One of the things I really loved about it was Sil’s strength and independence as a female protagonist. The weight of the story’s outcome rests firmly on her shoulders and you never doubt for a moment that it’s in the best hands.
You should absolutely read this.
Big love to NetGalley and Hodder and Stroughton for the ARC, and congrats to Kate Dylan for writing such a fantastic story; more than worthy of the five stars I’m giving it.

Mindwalker is a completely wild sci-fi/cyberpunk thriller that follows Sil, a genetically modified teenager with a supercomputer in her mind that allows her to enter and control other people’s brains. At eighteen years old, Sil’s employment and life are both almost up and, in an attempt to die a legend, she finds herself caught up in a scandal, a compromised mission, and a plot to overthrow the company that she’s idolised for as long as she remembers.

I knew before I picked this up that I was going to love it and it absolutely did not disappoint. Mindwalker combines enemies-to-lovers, Marie Lu-level sci-fi world building, a page-turning plot and an incredibly fierce, slightly unhinged female protagonist to create one of the most exciting books I’ve read all year.

The pace didn’t slow down for a second, and whilst the characters were definitely my favourite thing about this book, the plot was an absolute thrill ride. There was a lot of explanation needed due to the amount of futuristic tech in the story, but this was done so well that it was incredibly easy to understand the tech that Syntex was using without wasting a lot of time describing it.

I cannot stress enough how much I loved this book. It reminded me a lot of slightly older dystopian YA, like Divergent and The Hunger Games, but with plenty of modern tropes and elements that made it feel completely new. I’m so excited to read everything Kate Dylan writes from here on in and seriously can’t recommend this one enough!

Urgh this was *so good*. Secret agents who can infiltrate people’s bodies, shadowy corporations, a cyber punk dystopian landscape and the exploration of consent. Bloody brilliant and furious. I want like 8 more.

Mindwalker by Kate Dylan follows Sil, a class of agent called a Walker. With a supercomputer in her brain and an expiry date on the table, Sil’s job is to rescue Syntex field agents when their missions go critical. But this is not your normal extraction.. Sil can meld with their minds, embody them. And she has a perfect record.

That is, until a critical mission goes wrong in the most public way possible, and Sil has to flee. But she soon comes across the rebel faction she thinks is responsible for her failure, and decides to infiltrate them. If she can return to Syntex with the Analog Army on a plate, maybe all will be forgiven.

Dylan deftly weaves a rich world — both the one that Sil thinks she knows, and the truth that she comes to realise. There’s twists and turns, brutal fights and a lil bit of spicy enemies to lovers going on, terrifying technology and choices made. It absolutely slaps.

It’s an extremely cinematic novel — if you love a slick action movie you will be very pleased! It reminds me of the brilliant False Hearts by Laura Lam mixed with Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao, but also is a ride all of its own. All this feels extra impressive for such a slight novel, but that’s part of the power — no words are wasted, no seconds spared; this is taut, gripping and unputdownable.

Don't be mistaken that this is all punches. Mindwalker explores issues of consent, technological advances, the ravaging effects of nuclear war, inequality and corporate dominance. There's a lot inn these pages, and it's an impressive, furious debut.

It’s out in Hardback and ebook on the 1st of September and is the perfect wild ride for a gloomy autumn weekend. Definitely not one to miss!

I loved how the story progresses. I kinda feel Murderbot vibes and Deviant by Jay Kristoff. There are some parts that quite stretch in the story but nonetheless, I didn't see how the ending happened. The revelation is astounding. Knowing that the story is quite generic for the plot but the author manages to make it interesting and engaging.

What an incredible read! It had me on the edge of my seat, second guessing what i thought I knew. Highly unpredictable and highly satisfying. It is so intelligently written, which makes it impossible to put down!

Writing aside, i fell in LOVE with the cover. The vibrant colours really draw the eye! It will take centre stage on my shelf! The blurb doesnt give too much away, but perfectly sets up the story, and is intriguing enough to make you read it straight away!

I absolutely loved this book!
Mindwalker was so much fun to read that I couldn't put it down and I ended up finishing it in a day!
If you are looking for good YA Sci-fi read I would definitely recommend this one!
Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Mindwalker was a gripping read, with well-constructed worldbuilding and a loveable cast. I was gripped right the way through, though especially towards the book's final third, and intrigued by each new development. There are some great twists and turns along the way, and I would happily read more tales set in this world.
However, whilst I enjoyed this book a great deal, there were some little niggles for me. The writing style was very typical YA - this isn't a bad thing at all, but was noticeable to me as I haven't read YA for a while. I perhaps would have appreciated a more intricate writing style. Some of the side characters also could have been fleshed out further - but again, this may just reflect how curious I was to learn more about the world of Mindwalker.
3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

This was fun! It had some flaws, but if you’re looking for something fast-paced, set in a cool world with amazing tech and tons of action, this is definitely that book!

We follow Sil Sarrah, the golden girl for the company she works at- Syntex. As a Walker, she can get into the heads of agents, controlling their bodies to get them out of tough situations.

I think this concept is super unique and really fun to read about. I loved all the tech in this world, including the mod parlors that allows you to change your hair colour, appearance, etc. The world-building was definitely my favourite part of this novel.

Sil is a great main character. I loved being in her head because she doesn’t take crap from anyone. She’s sort of brainwashed by Syntex, but when she realises something’s not right, she is determined to find out more, and move forward. I liked her relationship with her friends, and I hoped to get more out of it.

The romance started off really well, but to be honest it felt really surface level. It was supposed to be an enemies to lovers, and I liked the banter but I just didn’t think Ryder had much of a personality and there was no chemistry between them.

The other characters- Brin and I honestly can’t remember the other girl’s name— were so much more interesting, and I wish we got to know more about them! The most annoying thing in this book by far, however, was the CONSTANT use of a made up ‘curse’ word, which I didn’t mind UNTIL it was repeated by EVERY SINGLE CHARACTER multiple times on almost every page. It was so overdone, that I almost stopped reading because it got so annoying. It could’ve definitely been cut out, because I would’ve loved this book way more! Anyway, this was the downfalll of this book for me, otherwise if you block it out, this makes for aa fun read.

Finally, another aspect that really wasn’t done well, was the villain and their motivations. There were none. Zero. They did it because they could. And those types of villains are the blandest. I didn’t like it.

Overall, this was an engaging read and definitely unique. If you want an entertaining, fast-paced read set in a sci-fi world, pick it up! I would love to see what the author does next!

personally, i've outgrown sci-fi but mindwalker drew me right in. i loved the setting and world building. it was fast paced and plot driven. i wish the characters were a bit more fleshed out. overall, mindwalker was very fun.

An apocalyptic event has wiped out most of the world as people knew it. Tech companies now rule the world, and tech body modifications and implants have become the norm. Eighteen year old Sil Sarrah has embraced the tech modifications to the extreme. Working for the Syntex corporation, she has a super computer embedded in her brain. She IS a super computer, designed to rescue Syntex field agents - by taking over their minds remotely and getting them to safety. She is a Mindwalker, and the best one to date. She has less than a year remaining before the computer grafted to her brain burns out, killing her.

In her ten years working for Syntex, she has a flawless record. Until something goes wrong - and she ends up on the run, fighting for her life and desperate to find a way to prove she is not a traitor. In this search she finds much more than she expected. The resistance takes Sil in, and she starts to realise that her view on the world may not be the only way to view it. That is all I am willing to share, to do the story justice you have to read it!

Mindwalker was a stunning read. It packed as much of a punch to read as Sil does when she is angry! I could not put it down, and stayed up far later than is acceptable when you have work the next day to finish it. There is skillful character building, realistic world development, gripping storyline, and never ending action. The book is so well written. The story in a wasteland of a dystopian world is fresh and exciting, in what can be a tired and worn genre. Every aspect pulls you in, has you wanting to join the resistance. Where can I sign up? Where can I get some of the mods? (I am looking at you rainbow hair!). I say run, don’t walk to read this one. You won’t regret it.

*I received this book from NetGalley for review, but all opinions are my own.

I was really excited to read this, it sounded unique and right up my alley!

Sil Sarrah is a mindwalker, she has tech implanted in her and she takes over people's minds to get them out of trouble. But there's a time limit on her life because of it.

After a mistake, Sil finds herself on the run trying to get answers and hangs with a resistance member, Ryder Stone, who is also on a quest for answers.

Firstly let me say that I nearly stopped reading this book 30% odd in because of 1 thing. The incessant use of 'Christ that..'. It wasn't just a few times it was used, it was sprinkled about like confetti and got right on my wick!

But really that is my only criticism.

There intrigue, drama, action, twists with the story that totally hooked me. There was one bit that did make me pause...and reread....and think. It was how their world got to where it is now. 'Radioactive storms, epidemics, tsunamis, droughts . . . every worst-case scenario in the book started killing us off.' Time to start the bunker prepping!

I'm also a sucker for a leading guy and it appears I am a sucker for Ryder Stone!

'Do not let them rule you. Do not let them own you. Do not surrender control.'

When this book was recommended by Kat Dunn - whose trilogy I had loved - I knew I had to read, and I'm always wanting to read more scifi so seemed like a good plan...

...and I can tell you it really was. In Mindwalker we join Sil as she works for a company saving field agents who have gotten themselves into trouble by Melding with their mind and getting them out of the danger, with the assistance of her trusty AI Jarvis (yes, named for *that* Jarvis). References like that make this scifi feel dystopian as well as makes me love it even more.

Agents such as Sil have a limited life span due to the tech in their head and Sil is determined to go out with a perfect record, until a publicity stunt goes wrong and Sil is left scrambling to reclaim her place in the world, and the company she has dedicated her life to.

Teaming up with a ragtag team of rebels, one of which is exceedingly handsome, in an attempt to clear her name, what could go wrong!

Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read and review an early e-arc of this book. Out first of September and I can't wait for you all to read this!

Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder and Staughton for an e-ARC of this book in exchange fot my honest review!

"It's impossible to ignore an alarm that's going off inside your head. Which is probably why Syntex put it there instead of on my bedside table."

From that very first sentence, Mindwalker had me hooked. Have I been desperately looking for a sci-fi dystopia to sink my teeth into recently? Absolutely I have. Did Mindwalker deliver on that front? Yes, and then some!

We join main character Sil in a futuristic, post-apocalyptic North American hellscape made of toxic ground and neon lights. Huge tech corporations rule over all - they keep the population alive despite the poisonous air they breathe, with their nanites and healing technology. And ruling over all those corporation is Syntex, so insidious that they are above the law - hell, they make the laws. And they also employ Sil as a Walker; she is able to hijack the minds of others and take over their bodies for short bursts of time.

The story is fast-paced and fully immersive from the very beginning, thrown along with Sil as life hurtles at her. Sil herself is a very relatable and easy to love character - she's a little clueless at times, having grown up essentially brainwashed by Syntex, but she makes up for it by being an absolute bad*ss when it comes down to plotting and fighting.

Joined by a cast of other characters who never blend into the background and are themselves memorable and easy to care for (or hate!), Sil carries the story perfectly. And that little twist in the final act? *chef's kiss* Did not see it coming, but then it seemed so obvious! How could I have missed it?

A romance sub-plot rounds it all off nicely into the perfect YA package - and is a nice little escape in a genre saturated with fantasy.

Very excited to read more from this author, and hope we'll be getting a sequel too!

MINDWALKER is the story of Sil, an expert mindwalker with a computer in her head that allows her to take control of the bodies of her spy colleagues to get them out of dangerous situations. She's great at it and can save pretty much anyone even in the direst of circumstances.

The only catch? The computer in Sil's head is going to kill her soon.

The only other catch? She just learned that her employer is using the mindwalking technology to take over people's bodies without their consent.

If Sil doesn't stop them (before the computer in her head kills her), nobody can.

In a nutshell the book is about a bombass heroine who kicks ass and is artfully relatable considering she has a computer in her brain (essentially a death clock) and exists in an eerie technology-laden, near-future we can easily imagine yet fear.

Now, my feelings about this book:
I had high expectations for this book, and I'm super glad to say that I ended up really enjoying it!
I admit that I am really not a sci-fi person and normally i would never even bother picking up a book like this but my GOD does this book grab you and not let you go. it's fast-paced, witty and extremely inventive, making it a perfect binge-read.

I really liked the writing and the characters were all well characterized and unforgettable.
Maybe the plot was a bit predictable, but it has always remained full of action and suspense!

Thank you to NetGalley, Kate Dylan and the publisher Hodder & Stoughton for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Okay so Mindwalker… I’m not entirely sure how to talk about this because I just loved it so much? Along with fantasy, sci-fi is another all-time favourite genre but there aren’t that many that I see and want to read straight away. With Mindwalker though, I’d been following Kate for a while and every new thing I saw about the book made me want to read it as soon as I could (especially any kind of comparisons to Marvel).

Zero disappointment, from the first page we’re introduced to Sil and her Central Intelligence Processor (CIP), which she’s elected to name after one particular AI from Marvel… and she’s hungover, making her reminiscent of a young female Iron Man. Sil is then thrown into a mission pretty much straight away, and we see how those like her (Mindwalkers) are able to get inside the minds of field agents and use their in-brain technology to help them get out of tricky situations.

That’s not the only good technology from Syntex, the story is set in a post-apocalyptic world where lots of nukes had gone off in the past, and Syntex is helping people survive in this world with their technology. If you’ve played any of the Fallout games, they’ll likely give you Vault-Tec vibes… (Thinking about it, my love for Fallout 4 may also be partly why I loved this book to be honest, but instead of deathclaws you get humans being the big bad in this!)

On the surface of things, they have pretty neat technique. But then we’re told how the CIPs have a shelf-life and eventually just… combust in the Mindwalkers’ heads. Not so neat, especially for our main character who’s not got much time left.

Events then happen, leading Sil to be hiding from her own employers and trying to infiltrate a group who has the sole aim of taking down corporate bodies such as Syntax, Analog Army. Think of an Anonymous-like group of people. Within Analog Army though is the super-smug-yet-handsome Ryder, and cue some angst, confusion and kind of enemies-to-lovers. Their interactions are just brilliant throughout and the chemistry between them works so well!

Stillness is the greatest enemy of pain; the second you stop moving, it catches up to you.
Overall, the story is fast-paced throughout and even through that, it’s hard not to form attachments to the majority of characters you meet. Some older themes are covered, so I’d definitely say its for the older age range of young adult (and all the way up to and beyond retirement age), and it is so… genius!

That’s honestly the best way to describe this book, there are twists you don’t see coming and Kate included a scavenger hunt for clues in the preorder items below (everything except the pin and proof in the photo, those were gifted from the lovely publisher!) and… it was amazing. Definitely something to enjoy after reading the book, but it highlighted how much care Kate took with this story and even though my initial reaction to finishing reading it was pretty much ‘Christ-that-was, that was incredible’, I was in even more awe after the scavenger hunt.

Started out good, but got more tedious and less enjoyable as it went on. I had to force myself to finish it.

Mindwalker has everything you would expect in a dystopian cyberpunk book: evil corporations, incredible technology, rebellious teenagers, hacking, rainbow hair. There's nothing wrong with that - the familiarity of the setting allows you to jump straight into the story, and for about the first third I was enjoying the fast pace and the action scenes. But after a while it seemed like that was all the book had to offer, which wasn't enough to make up for the shallow, annoying characters or the very predictable plot.

Thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

*Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for an Earc in exchange for an honest review*

Mindwalker by Kate Dylan is a young adult sci-fi book perfect for fans of the marvel franchise (particularly black widow)and the Legend series by Marie Lu.

"𝙉𝙤𝙗𝙤𝙙𝙮 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙬𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙪𝙥 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙙𝙖𝙮 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙚𝙡𝙨𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙧𝙤𝙡 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙙."


QUICK STATS:
Writing: 3
Plot: 3
Setting: 3.5
Characters: 4
Overall: 3.5


"𝙄 𝙖𝙢 𝙖 𝙨𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙢, 𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙞𝙣 𝙨𝙥𝙖𝙘𝙚. 𝙄 𝙖𝙢 𝙨𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙩, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙙𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙥𝙖𝙞𝙣. 𝙄 𝙖𝙢 𝙖 𝙩𝙤𝙮 𝙧𝙤𝙗𝙤𝙩, 𝙗𝙧𝙤𝙠𝙚𝙣 𝙗𝙚𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙙 𝙧𝙚𝙥𝙖𝙞𝙧."

I really enjoyed this! Mindwalker is a very fun read, mostly light-hearted writing but gets slightly darker towards the end. The writing kind of seemed like it was trying to be funny, but didn't wholly succeed in places.

But the characters are iconic. Sil is everything I want in a character- she's funny, smart, decisive and actually behaves like a normal person. I.e, she's selfish in places and makes her own mistakes but doesn't fill me with a ridiculous amount of second hand embarrassment.

Sil Sarrah is one hell of a success story. As a mindwalker, her duty is to take over field agent's bodies and get them out alive. And she's very, very good at her job. So good, in fact, that she's the poster child for her military-esque organisation that controls the country.
There's just one problem.
Mindwalkers don't live past 19. The tech that enables them to walk corrodes their minds until they succumb to an early death.
When a mission designed to showcase her abilities goes disastrously wrong, sil is forced to flee for her life.
Desperately trying to prove she's no traitor proves harder than she could have imagined, and so, she joins up with the dangerously attractive rebel leader, a double mission. Destroy the faction from within, and prove once and for all where her loyalties lie...

TROPE LIST:
✷ Enemies to lovers
✷ Knife to throat
✷ Forced alliance
✷ Detailed worldbuilding

This was very character driven, as well as being filled with action. Neither of the main characters are explicitly LGBTQ+ but there is a really well written sapphic side couple.
I like the characters a lot, and the plot was well developed however I wasn't a huge fan of the writing style. Obviously, that's completely personal preference and in the long run it doesn't affect my review much.
I would highly recommend this to any fan of sci-fi, it's a really fun addition to the genre.

Mindwalker is a book that I expected a lot from.... And boy oh boy did she DELIVER with FIRST CLASS POST.

As soon as I started reading I got similar vibes to other ya sci fi books that I loved and I loved Sil's POV. Especially as it reflected a bit more depth to her character which I feel is usually missing in a lot of YA.
Moving on!
The way in which Ryder had me in a CHOKEHOLD. THIS MAN. (Miss Kate Dylan I need you to write a spin-off about Ryder's illegal ventures before Sil because I definitely need more Ryder content).
I felt as though Mindwalker was a book that was more of a movie and I enjoyed it a lot (who do I have to ask to get a physical arc because I need to annotate so many things 😂).
My only 'criticism' would be that babygorl needed to be longer I would've read WAY MORE.
Miss Dylan I'm sorry I have to knock off half a star because I wanted MORE (in the sense of a bit more worldbuilding so a spin-off would be possible). (BUT IT WAS EXCELLENT APART FROM THAT)!
Overall 5/5 I just felt wronged by the book ending so 4.5/ stars.

Buckle up! Mindwalker is a total in-your-face thrillride from start to finish. The world Dylan paints is a totally believable one, with power-hungry Syntex corp and the creepy interference and manipulation of people’s lives a completely feasible extension of contemporary corporate greed. Forget your speaker spying on you—this technology literally gets in your head. Sil is a fist-swinging firecracker and Ryder stole my heart. Mindwalker has scratched the action-packed futuristic itch I’d been missing in YA. Read it! You won’t regret it. Thank you Netgalley and Hodder for the early read. Opinions entirely my own.

MINDWALKER is a UKYA scif-fi debut that has been getting a fair bit of hype and was so much fun to read. I was reading it at a very chaotic time, so wasn't able to sit down and just read it (which is what I very much wanted to do) but despite lots of interruptions and long stretches when I couldn't read, it kept me entertained the whole time.

It's a snappy book, fitting a lot in the 311 pages - several twists and turns and revealed corporate secrets. Sil has been effectively brough up by Syntex for the last ten years, so leaving forces her to confront other opinions about the ethical nature of the technology, and the power it allows the corporation to hold. There were also questions about when it was OK to use morally iffy (at the very best) technology and the slippery slope within.

Sil is the sort of character who barrels ahead to do what she thinks is best, and doesn't ask for opinions (other than her super computer.) It means we get some great set pieces of (well-meaning) recklessness in the post-apocalyptic New York City.

The ticking timebomb of the technology in her head, and the way serious action degrades it, adds a great tension rachet to the book. There's so much pressure to find the answers, decide a side, and act before time runs out - but you also know that acting will reduce the time left so there might not be enough.

If you are the sort of reader who likes banter, then this is a book for you. The dialogue is so sharp and snappy, more the clever/witty (and genuinely feels clever rather than thinking it's clever) side than the petty/mean side, which was great as it's the type I prefer. Sil's general voice also made me laugh a few times - her observations were a sarcastic, exasperated mix that worked so well.

I look forward to what Kate Dylan writes next (and I rather hope we get her German books in English now!)