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nerdylibrarian's review against another edition
3.0
I sped through this pretty fast. It was entertaining and I enjoyed the characters. Sadly, this book suffers greatly from bad editing. There were paragraphs that were nearly incomprehensible due to grammar mistakes and repeating lines of the same dialogue, as well as continuity issues. It was disappointing, because were it not for the editing issues I would have rated this much higher.
wetdryvac's review against another edition
5.0
Excellent fun, and less fluff than I was expecting in a lot of regards.
egalligan's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
sara_of_the_fae's review against another edition
5.0
This feels like a crossover between Rose by Holly Webb and Miss Peregrines home for peculiar children, with the added flare of the politics of high society and social standing! Can't wait to read the rest of the series!
rette's review against another edition
5.0
Excellent book!! I loved every minute of this story and can't wait to read more!!
tchien's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
a_ab's review against another edition
3.0
This was nice and fun, but a bit too much like a gender reversed Harry Potter. There are notable influences from other sources too, which interfered with my enjoyment of the story - it seemed too obviously frankensteined from elements of popular books. Normally that isn't a real problem, when done well, but here the seams were showing too much. I also felt like the author missed opportunities to spin and explore the borrowed elements to make the borrowing justified.
Most characters felt rather flat, too. I am hoping that this is the consequence of either the first-book-in-a-series plight (too much set up and too many character introductions need to happen in first books - not enough space to give depth) or of the fact that we are seeing this world and the characters from the perspective of a very young, sheltered and not very well socially adjusted girl. I wonder whether the next book solves or exacerbates this problem.
It's entertaining enough for me to consider reading the second book in the series, but I don't see myself excreting much effort to make it happen.
Most characters felt rather flat, too. I am hoping that this is the consequence of either the first-book-in-a-series plight (too much set up and too many character introductions need to happen in first books - not enough space to give depth) or of the fact that we are seeing this world and the characters from the perspective of a very young, sheltered and not very well socially adjusted girl. I wonder whether the next book solves or exacerbates this problem.
It's entertaining enough for me to consider reading the second book in the series, but I don't see myself excreting much effort to make it happen.
myendlessshelf's review against another edition
4.0
I thoroughly enjoyed this book! I was immediately intrigued by the synopsis and so, when the ARC came through via NetGalley I jumped straight in. This is my first book by Molly Harper, so I wasn't sure what to expect but I immediately fell in love with her writing style and was hooked straight away.
This book gave me such strong Charmed vibes!! The only way I can describe this book is sort of Charmed meets The Worst Witch, Harry Potter and Mean Girls! I love the mixture of themes and subplots that were woven into this story.
Admittedly, I did identify the villain quite early on and it almost felt like I was in the audience at a pantomime at times, just wanting to shout at Cassandra/Sarah, "They're behind you!" But, despite this, I didn't enjoy the story any less.
I actually also bought the Audiobook from Audible (so that I could listen whilst painting my nails - I have to do this at least once a year otherwise my girl card is really going to get taken away) and listened to parts of it in between reading the eARC. The narration by Amanda Ronconi was really great (despite the less than stellar English accent) and helped to skim over some of the editing inaccuracies (see below), I loved the voice she gave to Cassandra/Sarah.
Changeling has great pace, a fun magical plot and great characters. I particularly love the various relationship dynamics, especially Cassie and Own who I absolutely love together. Their sarcastic, playful, and teasing relationship drew most of my smiles and is definitely something I want more of from this series.
All of the characters are individual, with unique personalities and voices. They were great to discover, especially as new layers were revealed about most of the main characters as the book progresses
The only reason that this book has a slightly lower than 5-star rating is because of the editing of the eBook. I'd highly recommend that the editors give this book another once-over because of the spelling mistakes and a few occasions where a sentence or more is repeated.
However, that didn't prevent me from loving Changeling and I can't wait for book 2! I need to find out what happens next!
Changeling is a magical story filled with passionate, strong, and courageous women, true friendships, a dash of budding romance, bullies, magical surprises, adorable animal companions and a villainous plot!
This book gave me such strong Charmed vibes!! The only way I can describe this book is sort of Charmed meets The Worst Witch, Harry Potter and Mean Girls! I love the mixture of themes and subplots that were woven into this story.
Admittedly, I did identify the villain quite early on and it almost felt like I was in the audience at a pantomime at times, just wanting to shout at Cassandra/Sarah, "They're behind you!" But, despite this, I didn't enjoy the story any less.
I actually also bought the Audiobook from Audible (so that I could listen whilst painting my nails - I have to do this at least once a year otherwise my girl card is really going to get taken away) and listened to parts of it in between reading the eARC. The narration by Amanda Ronconi was really great (despite the less than stellar English accent) and helped to skim over some of the editing inaccuracies (see below), I loved the voice she gave to Cassandra/Sarah.
Changeling has great pace, a fun magical plot and great characters. I particularly love the various relationship dynamics, especially Cassie and Own who I absolutely love together. Their sarcastic, playful, and teasing relationship drew most of my smiles and is definitely something I want more of from this series.
All of the characters are individual, with unique personalities and voices. They were great to discover, especially as new layers were revealed about most of the main characters as the book progresses
The only reason that this book has a slightly lower than 5-star rating is because of the editing of the eBook. I'd highly recommend that the editors give this book another once-over because of the spelling mistakes and a few occasions where a sentence or more is repeated.
However, that didn't prevent me from loving Changeling and I can't wait for book 2! I need to find out what happens next!
Changeling is a magical story filled with passionate, strong, and courageous women, true friendships, a dash of budding romance, bullies, magical surprises, adorable animal companions and a villainous plot!
marynolanpleckham's review against another edition
3.5
A cute YA witchy story - a little bit Pretty Woman and a little bit The Succession. It's predictable and a bit formulaic, but a fun world and a good story.