Being inside the mind of a boy is every teen girl's dream. It's
the perfect solution to finally understand what they are thinking
and why they do what they do. In INSIDE THE MIND OF GIDEON RAYBURN,
a female narrator (whose identity remains a mystery until the end
of the novel) wakes up one morning and hears the thoughts of Gideon
Rayburn echoing around her head. And there's nothing she can do but
listen and learn.

INSIDE THE MIND OF GIDEON RAYBURN takes place at a fancy New
England prep school, and Gideon is a new kid from Virginia who
feels like a fish out of water. The other students are all rich and
good looking and from exotic places. Gideon is only there because
his father got him in on "a favor." In an attempt to bond with his
two roommates, Nick and Cullen, Gideon tells them a story about his
girlfriend, a yellow thong, and nearly losing his virginity.

Hearing the story, Nick and Cullen come up with "the bet" involving
the sassy Molly McGarry and a Halloween deadline. Gideon gets to
know Molly especially when they share a Spanish class project and
starts to like the feisty girl who hails from "the McGarry's of
Buffalo, New York," a not-so-exotic place either.

Gideon finds himself distracted from "the bet" and pleasing his
roommates when the sexy Pilar Benitz-Jones begins paying attention
to him. Molly might be cute and sassy, but if Gideon could snag
Pilar, it would be "legendary."

INSIDE THE MIND OF GIDEON RAYBURN puts a twist on the typical prep
school novel with the mysterious narrator hearing Gideon's thoughts
and telling the story through these thoughts. This device leads to
many elements of humor, especially when the narrator makes fun of
Gideon for his thoughts about girls. When Gideon stares at Madison
Sprague's "short hair in pigtails," the narrator says, "Gid thinks
they look cute, because he's a guy and doesn't know to be annoyed
by the whole 'I'm so pretty I don't care what I look like'
aesthetic."

Readers will grow to like this narrator --- especially when she
starts falling for Gideon and the book becomes a page-turner to
find out the identity of the mysterious narrator. Unfortunately, it
almost overshadows the story about Gideon and the end felt a bit
unsatisfying to this reader.

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