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A review by isabelwillems
Changers, Book One: Drew by Allison Glock-Cooper, T. Cooper
4.0
This book was an easy, enjoyable read. The characters were fun and the high school was actually, for the most part, realistic (except for some dialogue, but that’s to be expected). I only really have two criticisms, and one of them doesn’t matter depending on what you want from this book.
This is the serious criticism. I really didn’t like the usage of the sexual assault scene. I thought it would lead to some huge revelation for Drew, maybe convince her to take the case to the police and eventually to court as a part of causing the widespread good change that Changers are supposed to be a part of. Instead, it’s just used as a plot point to reveal and then break up her almost-relationship with Chris. Sexual assault is much too serious a thing to be anything other than a huge, life-changing event, and to be fair, the authors understand that in some capacity. It’s shown through Chris’ trauma from when he was groped as a girl. I didn’t like it in this case, though, especially since from how they described it, Drew was legitimately raped, but then the incident was later referred to as attempted rape. It made for a heart wrenching and then very quickly confusing read. It didn’t need to be described in such graphic detail if it wasn’t going to be hugely pivotal for the main character - and I would argue that even then, sexual assault never has to be described in detail.
Now, onto the more light-hearted criticism: the plot holes. If you are reading this book just to relax and have a good time, then they won’t matter. If plot holes piss you off whatsoever, forget you ever found this book. I’ll just list the major ones here, even though there are about a million plot holes, all centered around the Changer race/organization.
- If there is a group dedicated to “outing” Changers, then why have they gained literally no traction? They’re radical enough that you’d think at least a couple news stories would be floating around talking about these crazy people who claim to be Changers. But they’ve literally done nothing!
- What have Changers actually done for humanity? I figured that since they’re dedicated to positive change, they’d throw something in like, “Oh, Abe Lincoln was a Changer!” or “We’re to thank for the legalization of gay marriage!” or SOMETHING like that. But they literally never state their accomplishments, and it seems like much more of an individual growth thing. Like, “I’m a better person because I’m a Changer. But world hunger is still a thing!”
- Is the Changer magic completely uncontrollable? I don’t think it is, since they said that identities can be “recycled.” But then how are Changers chosen? How is the magic influenced? Did they just mean that names and backstories are recycled? EXPLAIN THE MAGIC SYSTEM.
- “The first day of high school” is the worst benchmark ever. Schools start on different days, some kids are homeschooled or online schooled (although if their parents are Changers they might not allow this), high school wasn’t a thing for thousands of years...should I keep going?
From these criticisms, it might seem like I hated the book. I really didn’t. It was, like I said, easy and enjoyable, hence the high rating. I just wanted to throw those critiques out there because they were my only two valid criticisms of the book. I actually plan on finding the rest of the series!
This is the serious criticism. I really didn’t like the usage of the sexual assault scene. I thought it would lead to some huge revelation for Drew, maybe convince her to take the case to the police and eventually to court as a part of causing the widespread good change that Changers are supposed to be a part of. Instead, it’s just used as a plot point to reveal and then break up her almost-relationship with Chris. Sexual assault is much too serious a thing to be anything other than a huge, life-changing event, and to be fair, the authors understand that in some capacity. It’s shown through Chris’ trauma from when he was groped as a girl. I didn’t like it in this case, though, especially since from how they described it, Drew was legitimately raped, but then the incident was later referred to as attempted rape. It made for a heart wrenching and then very quickly confusing read. It didn’t need to be described in such graphic detail if it wasn’t going to be hugely pivotal for the main character - and I would argue that even then, sexual assault never has to be described in detail.
Now, onto the more light-hearted criticism: the plot holes. If you are reading this book just to relax and have a good time, then they won’t matter. If plot holes piss you off whatsoever, forget you ever found this book. I’ll just list the major ones here, even though there are about a million plot holes, all centered around the Changer race/organization.
- If there is a group dedicated to “outing” Changers, then why have they gained literally no traction? They’re radical enough that you’d think at least a couple news stories would be floating around talking about these crazy people who claim to be Changers. But they’ve literally done nothing!
- What have Changers actually done for humanity? I figured that since they’re dedicated to positive change, they’d throw something in like, “Oh, Abe Lincoln was a Changer!” or “We’re to thank for the legalization of gay marriage!” or SOMETHING like that. But they literally never state their accomplishments, and it seems like much more of an individual growth thing. Like, “I’m a better person because I’m a Changer. But world hunger is still a thing!”
- Is the Changer magic completely uncontrollable? I don’t think it is, since they said that identities can be “recycled.” But then how are Changers chosen? How is the magic influenced? Did they just mean that names and backstories are recycled? EXPLAIN THE MAGIC SYSTEM.
- “The first day of high school” is the worst benchmark ever. Schools start on different days, some kids are homeschooled or online schooled (although if their parents are Changers they might not allow this), high school wasn’t a thing for thousands of years...should I keep going?
From these criticisms, it might seem like I hated the book. I really didn’t. It was, like I said, easy and enjoyable, hence the high rating. I just wanted to throw those critiques out there because they were my only two valid criticisms of the book. I actually plan on finding the rest of the series!