The Other Girl: A Midvale Academy Novel    by Sarah Miller Order:  USA  Can Griffin, 2009 (2009) Hardcover Read an Excerpt     Reviewed by Hilary Williamson Sarah Miller's The Other Girl, a sequel to Inside the Mind of Gideon Rayburn, continues the story of Molly McGarry, a scholarship student at the elite New England prep school, Midvale Academy. In the first book, when Gideon Rayburn arrived as a new student at Midvale, one of the young women he met there discovered she could get inside his mind and see the world through his eyes, an exercise in extreme empathy. The girl, revealed at the end to be Molly, fell for Gideon, who is her boyfriend as The Other Girl opens. Unfortunately Gid still feels attracted to Pilar Benitez-Jones, who flirts with him a lot. When he thinks about 'Pilar in a white bikini' while in bed with Molly, she breaks up with him, without being able to explain why. While Molly's still worrying about how to disconnect from Gid's mind - and get her attention back on her studies which have been suffering badly - she's shocked to find the link transfer from Gid's mind to Pilar's. Researching her problem on the Internet, she receives advice from a mysterious Dr. Whitmeyer who has researched Shared Consciousness. In parallel with all this angst, Molly is encouraged to get involved in ATAT (Academic Tête-à-Tête), a scholarly competition in which she might win a valuable scholarship - her advisor tells her 'there is nothing in this world more foolish than seeing a smart girl throw her life away for love.' Molly does participate in ATAT along with her roommate Edie, and also sorts out their damaged friendship by telling Edie what's been going on. The Other Girl is an engaging read, but what does Molly learn from her experiences (aside from how to please Gid and that Pilar's a lot less secure than she appears on the surface)? She learns that what she really needs to know is not what Gid wants or what Pilar wants, but what she herself wants, a valuable life lesson. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Teens books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews