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3.05 AVERAGE
3.05 AVERAGE
sunrey's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I mean it's a story,the background is a mess and the characters are relatively shallow, but it's alright
zoozanne's review against another edition
3.0
Wow! This book is not what I expected, and I’m angry about that because the publisher did the author, Tomi Oyemakinde, dirty. The book blurb does not accurately portray what this book is about. You know how we say, even complain, that we saw the whole movie in the trailer? There’s a reason for this. There are studies indicating that people want to know exactly what a movie is about before they see it, yet they’re not going to remember all the details from the trailer when they watch the movie. I believe this applies to books, as well. I don’t want to invest hours reading a book only to find out I’ve been misled by the description into reading something that’s not appealing to me. What I find deceptive is that I was led to believe The Changing Man is a YA thriller mystery, yet it took a sudden hard turn and is actually middle-grade-esque sci-fi fantasy horror. Perhaps the publishers are trying to preserve a perceived shock value of the plot twist, but I think that’s possible while still accurately describing the book. For example, the book flap says “As more questions arise, Ife has no choice but to team up with Ben and Bijal to investigate.” It could simply say “…to investigate mysterious and otherworldly forces.” Something! Anything!
Now that I’m done ranting, what I liked about The Changing Man is Oyemakinde’s fresh voice. The storyline is very creative and will easily appeal to a young audience. He combines a mysterious and haunting tone with a playfulness that keeps the book from being too dark. The second half of the book very much felt like I was watching a movie. I enjoyed the final page of the book and the hint at more to come.
Now that I’m done ranting, what I liked about The Changing Man is Oyemakinde’s fresh voice. The storyline is very creative and will easily appeal to a young audience. He combines a mysterious and haunting tone with a playfulness that keeps the book from being too dark. The second half of the book very much felt like I was watching a movie. I enjoyed the final page of the book and the hint at more to come.
neavevmcc_'s review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
tense
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? Yes
4.5
teegy's review against another edition
Firstly, I’d like to thank NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this upcoming book.
I’m disappointed with this book. I could not get along with it at all. I read the prologue and felt a little cringed out; it’s too pre-teen for me. I hate text-speech; I’m not a fan of it shown in written context and the dialogue for the characters was too childish for my liking. It was very much a high-school read with school crushes and antics and the language used from the narrator but also the characters. My preference is clearly for faster paced mystery novels and I went into it with high expectations. I may come back to this at a later date but for now I’ve left it at that.
In the few chapters I read, the characters weren’t as developed as I would have liked. They lacked personality and were childish - the beginning is set in a secondary school for the “elite” and tagged as a Young Adult book however I feel as though it relates more to a middle-grade rating.
With that being said, the storyline is a good premise. I like the idea of a teen-detective discovering the disappearance of a fellow student; it’s giving me A Good Girls Guide to Murder vibes and I love it. I thought this would be a creepy thriller/mystery book and I was so excited to read it, but after 4 chapters it just wasn’t gripping me and I’m sad to say I did DNF it.
Another positive note: I LOVE the cover! This is right up my alley and looks like something I’d enjoy reading, hence the high expectations. The orange and black compliments one another so well and it’s giving me Halloween vibes!
I’m disappointed with this book. I could not get along with it at all. I read the prologue and felt a little cringed out; it’s too pre-teen for me. I hate text-speech; I’m not a fan of it shown in written context and the dialogue for the characters was too childish for my liking. It was very much a high-school read with school crushes and antics and the language used from the narrator but also the characters. My preference is clearly for faster paced mystery novels and I went into it with high expectations. I may come back to this at a later date but for now I’ve left it at that.
In the few chapters I read, the characters weren’t as developed as I would have liked. They lacked personality and were childish - the beginning is set in a secondary school for the “elite” and tagged as a Young Adult book however I feel as though it relates more to a middle-grade rating.
With that being said, the storyline is a good premise. I like the idea of a teen-detective discovering the disappearance of a fellow student; it’s giving me A Good Girls Guide to Murder vibes and I love it. I thought this would be a creepy thriller/mystery book and I was so excited to read it, but after 4 chapters it just wasn’t gripping me and I’m sad to say I did DNF it.
Another positive note: I LOVE the cover! This is right up my alley and looks like something I’d enjoy reading, hence the high expectations. The orange and black compliments one another so well and it’s giving me Halloween vibes!
goreimm's review against another edition
3.0
Closer to 2.8 - it was interesting but I wasn't a fan of the ending.
tossmetothesea's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
stinas_fav_books's review against another edition
4.0
Okay, full disclosure coming. I used to love scary/horror/creepy books. They were my favorite. I, unfortunately, stopped reading them several years ago as I felt they were all starting to "run together". The same plot, the same overall "feel", and I didn't find them as intriguing as I once did. Well, I decided this year that I was going to give new authors of scary/horror/creepy books a chance, and WOW am I glad I did! The character building, along with the build-up of the plot in this book was spot on. I had to continue reading and did not want to put it down. The mystery that continued throughout this book was the best I have read in a while. And let's talk about the setting for a minute. For me, the setting is very important when writing a book of this genre as it sets the mood and lines up the plot and this setting was top-notch. Thank you to the author for restoring my love for this genre!
readingsusan's review against another edition
3.0
This was a creepy and chilling YA horror book. I enjoyed it. The ending played out in my mind like a movie. It was a little too rambly at times and I really disliked the random religious stuff thrown in but if you like a manageable horror check this one out.
lyssa_lee's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5