Changeling was a really fun and cute read. I've enjoyed Molly Harper's previous books and was excited to check out her venture into the young adult genre. I had a blast reading it! It's a fairly quick read that kept my attention the whole way through.

Sarah/Cassandra was a great character. Her whole life is turned upside down when it's discovered that she has magic. She goes through a lot in the process – some good, some bad, but her attitude and resolve remained steady and I admired her strength through it all.

The world building and magic system was interesting. I've seen Changeling compared to Harry Potter multiple times and while I can kinda see the similarities, it's definitely it's own story and is different in a lot of ways. It's a really great read that I believe young adults and grown ups alike will enjoy. I'm really excited to find out what happens in the sequel!

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley and voluntarily reviewed it. All thoughts and comments are my honest opinion.

NUMBER OF HEARTS: 4
FYI: This is a Young Adult book and therefore doesn’t have as much snark and sassiness as all of Molly’s past books. But this is a great book for your kids to read to introduce them to the amazing talents that are Molly Harper and Amanda Ronconi.

Changeling was a great start to Molly Harper’s newest series. I don’t normally ready YA books anymore but I wanted to read this because I love Molly and Amanda! Changeling follows young Sarah Smith as she tries to comes to grips with her new found magic!
I had the joy of listening to Changeling narrated by the amazing Amanda Ronconi. I will tell you that I had to look at my audible a couple times as the story started. I was expecting the the soothing southern voice of books of past. The “English” version of Amanda was a bit of a shock! But I still loved it! I loved to hear something different from Amanda!!!

This book is perfect for your youngsters that are looking for a new series to start!!

Can’t wait to see what is next in this series.


Disclaimer:
I purchased this audiobook and this review is my own opinion and not a paid review.
I also received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley & INscribe Digital in exchange for an honest review. This review is my own opinion and not a paid review.

I really enjoyed this book! I'm a big fan of Molly Harper and was interested to see what her YA book would be like. This book was Mean Girls at boarding school and, oh yeah, there's magic. The first chapter throws you into this new world (w/ new terms) without any explanation which was disconcerting but the explanations come fairly quickly. I'm really looking forward to reading more books in this series.

Molly Harper’s Changeling is the start of a supernatural series in which the world’s magic community reacted negatively to non-magic holders inventing the steam engine. Foreseeing the day that magic users would be outnumbered and over powered, they removed governments from power and enslaved all non-magic users. Born to non-magic parents, Sarah Smith finds out one fateful day that her own powers had been suppressed throughout her life. Thrown suddenly into magical society under the name Cassandra Reed, she must navigate learning magic, mean girls at the top all-girl's magic school, and someone trying to raise the dead 

Pretty early on in reading, I decided I’m a huge fan and I can’t wait for the next book to come out. I’m so grateful to INscribe Digital for giving me a chance to read this book. Changeling is very much what could’ve happened if the magic community in Harry Potter had twisted things around. Full of steampunk-magic imagery, Harper lays out this new world deftly, while navigating Sarah/Cassandra’s story.  

Sarah, herself, is a well-developed protagonist. With strengths and weaknesses that make her fully relatable, while still being a strong female lead for a supernatural series. One of my favorite moments was one in which she stood strong in the face of adversity, but collapsed once out of the worst, in the way that anyone who experiences high stress levels would recognize. I felt myself in that moment, and was all the happier to see her face challenges head on. 

Behind Sarah is a strong cast of interesting characters. From intimidating mentors to intense mean girls, Harper gives each enough attention creating a main ensemble of characters that are strong and well developed. Very few of her characters are two-dimensional, and those that are don’t contribute hugely to the plot. However, even background characters are given a surprising amount of attention without taking away from the story itself, allowing for future growth of the world in the upcoming books. 

My one complaint now is – Where's the hardback edition for purchase?? I would love to add that to my bookshelf. Changeling is currently available in ebook, paperback and audio via most major book retailers. 

Review will be posted 10/8 - links will be added at this time. Feel free to use review material in the meantime.

I received an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This book was amazing!! You will fall in love with the main character. A great YA novel and can't wait for the next book.

This was thoroughly delightful. Okay, yes - people are bound to draw comparisons with Harry Potter, but JK Rowling herself was not the first to write about a school for wizards. I enjoyed the dry, witty voice of the narrator and all the political/social machinations and drawing-room comedy.

This was such a fun adventure!
When Sarah Smith, housemaid to a magical Guardian household nearly knocks over a priceless vase, her world is completely turned upside down. Instead of the vase shattering, Sarah sets the vase spinning in midair. Only Sarah doesn't have magic powers. She is part of the Snipes, the non-magical working class of servants and caretakers. In order to avoid a complete scandal, Mrs. Winters, the intimidating matriarch of the Winter household invents a new identity for Sarah, a distant cousin named Cassandra Reed.
Now Cassandra must prove herself to be a haughty, well educated lady of the upper class. Sent to Miss Castwell’s Institute for the Magical Instruction of Young Ladies, Cassandra must hone her powers, avoid dancing at all cost, survive the social complexities of the upper class, and learn where her magical powers came from.
Full of witty dialogue and strong female characters, Changeling is a fun look at friendship and the power of kindness.

Changeling tells the story of Sarah Smith (aka Cassandra Reed), and how she goes from being a mere non-magic human to a powerful witch. There are plenty parallels between Changeling and Harry Potter (going from normal to witch/wizard, being the chosen one, saving the world as we know it…). Just like Harry Potter, this is a book is a quick easy read for a young audience. What I particularly like about this story is the dystopian society angle, as well as the abundance of strong female characters. Well, actually it’s an abundance of all kinds of female characters, and I was able to find a little bit of myself in most of the characters.

The book needs editing. It’s not only the usual now vs no kind of error. At one point there was a whole duplicated paragraph and the timeline is weird. Things are said to happen tomorrow or at the end of the week, and then an extra day or week goes by. Also someone does two things which must have been done for exactly the same reason but there are two different explanations. It made no sense. The story reads like someone sent an old version of the book to the printers. I would have given the book 4 if it had been properly edited.

Even though I’m not happy with the editing of the book, I truly enjoyed the story enough to continue reading the series. I believe it has tons of potentials and I want to see what the author decides to do. It’s my first book from Molly Harper, but it looks like she has plenty of fans who believe in her talent.

I received this book from INscribe Digital via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

Changeling is what happens when you combine the Red Queen and Harry Potter in a Victorian setting. This is a story of what could have happened if the Pure Bloods took over. If the Snipes/Muggles were subdued for their own good. After hundreds of years of “guided” servitude, nature throws a wrench - a snipe with a magical powers - into the mix.

Our main character, Sarah Smith, has been frail her whole life (due to magic suppressants) when at the age of 14 her magic breaks free to the horror of the magic family she serves. To hide the embarrassment, the Winters fake Sarah’s death and create a new identity for her tied with the family. Now Cassandra, Sarah is sent to a boarding school for girls (not unlike Hogwarts) to train in the magical arts. She meets two friends here and the trio must stop the undead from rising while juggling dances, etiquette, boys and a magical heirloom first used in 100+ years.

This was a fun read. A YA book full of magic that wasn’t reliant on adolescent romance but instead focused on character growth and adventure to move the story. The trio reminded me a lot of Harry, Ron and Hermione. There is even a petty rich Malfoy-esq character. All the parallels aside this was a great read.

5 stars to a great beginning - I look forward to more books in the Changeling series!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the E-Arc copy of this novel.
I really enjoyed Changeling. The main character is easy to get attached to and just like Ms. Harper's other series the characters make her novels fun! Changeling is a solid start to apparently a new young adult series.

Following a young sickly girl named Sarah, "Changeling" is a book about finding your footing in an ever changing magical world. Ever since she was a baby, her mother has given her pills to keep her condition at bay. What exactly that condition is, though, they're not sure. All they know is that the meds that she takes keep her frail and kind of worn down constantly.

Living with her parents and older sister, Mary, Sarah spends all of her time, like other snipes, or non magical humans, being slaves to their guardians. The world they live in has been taken over by people with magical powers, and the non magical beings have been pushed down into a slave race. It's not a fair life, but it's their life, and who are they to stand up for themselves? Not that they have any energy too anyways, from being so worn down all the time doing all the cooking and cleaning for their rude guardian families. That is, until one day Sarah accidentally knocks over a vase while cleaning, and levitates it into the air before it shatters.

That is the day everything changes. She learns that her meds are really magic suppressors, and that because of her powers, her family has been scared of not only her, but what would happen if someone found out. Snipe's aren't supposed to have powers, after all. Her guardian family, the Winters, have a different idea though. They choose to adopt Sarah, changing her name to Cassandra Reed, and playing it off as their distant cousin. Her family is forced to fake her death and cut their ties with her, not only because it's dangerous for them, but because it's dangerous for the guardians that watch over them as well.

Honestly I expected more out of this book. Although it's an easy read and it's very interesting, not much went on through the story. Most of it is just Cassandra/Sarah reforming herself and adjusting to her new life as someone with magic in an academy that teaches only magical beings. I would say that not a lot of action happens until the last twenty percent of the book. That being said, I still enjoyed reading this book. I liked the world that the author has built in this story, that one day magical beings just took over the world and enslaved the snipes, it's something I haven't read about before. The characters were interesting, and face a lot of real problems that most teenagers face, such as bullies, school social events, as well as other things like her magic, and keeping up the ruse that she's someone she's not.

If you like slow paced books about the every day life of a young girl, this is the book for you. Although I will check out the next book in the series if I get a chance to, I have much higher hopes for it than this one.

Thanks for reading!
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Harper, Molly. Changeling. INscribe Digital, 2018.

Cassandra Reed is a new student at Miss Castwells, a finishing school and magic school for young ladies of high society. Before she came to Miss Castwells, though, she was Sarah, a non-magical snipe who was fated to serve her benefactors for the rest of her life. Because she has magic, though, Sarah has become Cassandra and must learn quickly to act and speak as a person of high parentage. She soon finds, though, that things are much more complicated than they seem.

It is very rare for me to begin reading a book and then discover that I like it so much I want to slow down so I can savor the story. This is one of those books. Cassandra has to navigate the social game of teen girls, which is complicated enough, but is also hiding the secret of her true family. Also, she's trying to learn magic. And she's become a Translator, a rare person chosen by an ancient tome to be one who can translate the text so that the information can benefit society, so now she's even more in the public eye than ever. This story was filled with court intrigue, magic, villains, love letters, action scenes, a jealous older sister - it's got a little bit of everything a person could want in a story. I'm glad to see that it's only the first in the series, because I am excited to read the second one when it comes out. Recommended.

Recommended for: teens
Red Flags: minor fantasy violence (a zombie-like creature chases a character, etc.)
Overall Rating: 5/5 stars

Read-Alikes: Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger

I received a complimentary copy of this book through Netgalley for the purpose of review.

Another lovely Molly Harper book! Certainly a departure from her supernatural and/or southern romance series. Changeling is best described as Jane Austen/Bronte sisters meets Hogwarts for middle school age and up.

Sarah has lived her whole life in the Warren, serving a magical family, the Winters, as all non-magical “Snipes” are bound by magical Guardian law to do. That is, until one day, Sarah accidentally levitates Mrs. Winter’s favorite vase in the parlor. Oops! But Snipes aren’t supposed to have magical powers…and the existence of a magical Snipe threatens the world order dictated during the Guardians’ Restoration years ago. If she wants to keep her family safe and protect herself, Sarah must figure out how to fit into posh Guardian society as 'Cassandra Reed', master her newfound magical powers and discover the truth about how an ordinary girl can become magical. Of course, she can't just be magical! Sarah soon discovers she's the fated 'translator' but no pressure.

Fans of Harper will enjoy this tale, the humor and the magical whimsy.

This book is a page turner full of humorous delights!

Oftentimes, while browsing through NetGalley, I stop and read a description based solely on the book's cover.

Such was the case with Changeling. There are plenty of pretty covers, but this one was unique. And the description is almost custom written for me. Oppressed impoverished sickly young girl deus ex machina'ed into a life of luxury because of actual magic and then sent to boarding school? I could not hit that request button fast enough.

And I was not disappointed. Though this kind of book has become pretty common in the twenty years since Harry Potter, I did not find the story derivative.

The rule system for magic in Guardian society is complex and leans heavily on science, which I liked. I also found it interesting that the magical beings were the oppressors because they were afraid of the intelligence and ingenuity of their magicless counterparts.

I thought that Cassandra was a great protagonist. She's headstrong and cheeky, with just enough self-doubt and anxiety to remind us that she's fourteen and floundering in an unfamiliar world. She also struggles with ordinary teenage issues as she tries to navigate where she belongs in the social structure of what is essentially a high school.

I had a sneaking suspicion about who the villain was, but I had no idea why--sort of like when you're watching an episode of Law and Order and you think to yourself,  'That guy definitely did it,' but that's as far as you got.

The clues were subtly placed throughout the story, but I didn't put it all together until Cassandra did, and that's how I like plot resolutions to go.

This was a quick, pleasant read and I'm looking forward to seeing more in the next book. 4.5/5 stars, and I would not be surprised if book #2 was even better.

Thank you to INscribe Digital for an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are mine.

There are a lot of parallels that could be drawn just between this book and Harry Potter that are far from stopping at the common magical schools. Themes such as family prestige, or the issue of "purity" are present, animal buddies also make an appearance, and the protagonist is someone with a certain fame to carry who has yet to prove worthy of it, obtained after an uncontrollable event that left an actual sign on the person. Oh and she just found she has magical powers. Sounds familiar? The rest of the characters are quite tropey as well, but the book might redeem itself in the future of the series through a better development and exploration of the actants. So far, however, it didn't shine on that aspect.

There was a tad too much swooning, fighting and getting ridiculously jealous over boys for my taste, but I digged the banter shared by two characters so at least there's that to slightly compensate. The coincidences and clichés, the way everything seemed to unfold smoothly, and the writing errors in need of editing were also quite abundant, while the building of the world, of unique moments, sincere emotion, tension, or of the personalities of the characters were on the other side of the scale. Not the kind of mix you wish for in stories.

It's true that this book doesn't bring much freshness to the genre, but it remains an enjoyable, fun story that I read in one sitting thanks to its ability to keep me engaged without recquiring much work to be done on my part.

Fabulous book! Thoroughly enjoyed it. Characters were interesting and intelligent. Cant wait for more in this series!

I really enjoyed this story! I have read all of Molly Harper’s books and throughly enjoyed everyone and this one is no different! I loved the Harry Potterish feel and loved the characters! I can’t wait for the next book in the series!

Review: CHANGELING by Molly Harper (Society and Sorcery #1)

A perfectly delightful YA Paranormal which easily maintained my interest throughout, CHANGELING is the story of Sarah Smith. A fourteen-year-old younger daughter of a servant family living in the slums. All "Snipes" (short for "guttersnipes") are indentured servants to Coven Guardian families. In this alternate Victorian England, ruled by Guardians (not Royal Family nor Parliament), the Restoration was not the return of King Charles II, but the ascension to rule of the magic-users--Covent Guardians.

But now the winds of change are blowing. Sarah, Snipe, was born with magic, but given suppression medicine by her parents. A random use of magic outs her to the Guardian family she serves, and soon she is reconfigured as a niece, and sent to magical boarding school.