Of Two Minds

Teya Rosenberg teaches children’s literature at the University of
Alberta.

Of Two Minds is set in a world where Lenora’s people can make anything
they imagine real, and Coren’s people can read other people’s minds.
Lenora’s and Coren’s parents arrange a marriage between the two
teenagers, an event for which neither teenager is prepared, and which
Lenora particularly resents. She pulls herself (and, by accident, Coren)
into a different world—one that, although she does not realize it at
first, is a product of her imagination. Only by using their powers
together can they extricate themselves from the dangers of Lenora’s
unconscious. In working together, they learn to love each other.

This fantasy has an intriguing premise, but the realization of that
premise is somewhat weak. Of Two Minds explores what would happen if a
headstrong and self-centred teenager could turn her imaginings into
realities, and it shows that the adolescent desire for control and
power, if taken too far, can have disastrous ramifications. The uneven
depiction of the fantasy worlds and of the characters, however, weakens
this story. Neither the “real” world nor the world of Lenora’s
imagination ever really comes to life, and most of the secondary
characters seem to be stereotypes rather than fully realized characters
or even archetypal figures. The development of the relationship between
Lenora and Coren begins promisingly but ultimately is stilted and
unconvincing. This novel has some fun elements, but it is overall a weak
fantasy. Not a first-choice purchase.