I must admit that I'm a bit rusty when it comes to video games -- I mean, the last game I really remember playing was Pepper's Adventures in Time when I was about 7 years old -- and the biggest task I had in that game was to get the booze out of Ben Franklin's hand so that he could get take his kite out in the storm and discovered electricity. Even so, I'm always drawn towards these type of techie-light type stories, especially when it's from the YA genre (which I always hope will give my non-techie brain a bit more of a chance to catch up with the times). 
 I hadn't read anything yet by James Dashner when I found this little gem on the NEW RELEASES shelf, but the cover was incredible enough to get me intrigued -- and then, of course, the description on the back of the book had me totally hooked. I must warn readers, though, to tread very lightly if you decide to read reviews on other sites before finishing this novel -- as I had the misfortune of running into a plot twist spoiler, although there was luckily still another twist that surprised me, so in the end nothing was totally ruined for me. 
 Anyways, THE EYE OF MINDS is the first in a series, The Mortality Doctrine, and I really think this is an EXCELLENT set up, and I can't WAIT for book two. But backing up a bit, this is the story of an intense virtual world of highly advanced computer games all encompassed in VirtNet, which delivers a TOTAL mind and body experience that feels deceptively real -- giving gamers the thrill of adventure and risk without the worries of actual death and destruction (although, gamers can customize the level of sensory reality they experience by spending more on their coffins, devices in which they reside while their minds and bodies soak in the VirtNet). Michael is a teenage prodigy and is notably one of the most successful gamers and hackers in all of VirtuNet, which is how he is recruited by the company to investigate a startling new advancement. An expert gamer, named Kaine, has discovered a way to sever the protection that prevents virtual death from leading to death in real life, which means that certain gamers are having their entire mental capacities erased, leaving them emotionally and mentally void, often to the point that they become brain dead in the physical world as well. And then there's something called the Mortality Doctrine -- which is so horrific and mysterious that Michael must risk his own life to discover it, before Kain forever changes both the physical and virtual worlds in ways that nobody could have predicted. 
 But how strong is the divide between the virtual and the physical? And, will Michael lose everything once he immerses himself in the most dangerous virtual world ever known to 'exist'? 
 I loved the way that THE EYES OF MIND was just SO fast paced and exciting, quickly propelled by short chapters, exciting plot twists, and a believable protagonist that ME, a total non-gaming booknerd, totally immersed in a story of virtual reality that blew my mind right up until the last page. Now, granted, I can't speak for serious gamers or those who are far more familiar with the genre than I, myself, may be -- but I do think that anyone who loves thrilling YA novels with a bit of mental intrigue should definitely check out THE EYE OF MINDS -- but be ready -- you will be VERY impatient for book two, which should be released in late 2014!