The Changeover: A Supernatural Romance

Reader reviewed by Wiesteria

SUMMARY: Laura Chant is someone who is more sensitive to magic and supernatural energy than normal people. So, when her brother Jacko fell ill, she knows it isnt sickness, but rather, possession. Desperate to get rid of the evil plaguing her sibling, she goes and asked for help from Sorry Carlisle, a boy from school who was a witch.

Although the concept of this book might not sound too exciting, it is an excellent read and I highly recommend it. This is a kind of story that you will always remember. I read The Changeover quite awhile ago, but there are still times when a scene from it would pop into my mind for no reason at all. This is beautifully written with memorable characters.

Reader reviewed by Katya

This book is the one I'd always give as an example of the saying 'don't judge a book by it's cover'.. Even though I've seen three or four different editions of it, every one of them has had the most hideous cover. DON'T LET IT PUT YOU OFF!

The story itself is excellent, and although magic plays a key part in it, it's more about growing up and accepting who you are and who you want to be. The line about thunder 'munching' round the sky is one that has stuck with me since I first read the book, three or four years ago now.

It's brilliant; don't hesitate to buy it if you see it, because it's out of print and pretty hard to find. Hey, you might even make some money selling on on Ebay after you've read it!

Reader reviewed by janine

This happens to be one of my favorate books! I think it is sooo cool. The author, Margeret Mahy, did a wonderful job on this book.

This book is about a girl named Laura Chant who is what witches call a sensitive. That means she knows when something bad is going to happen but she doesn't know what, when, or how to stop it. Soon her little brother Jacko gets terribly sick and she asks her neighbors who she believes to be witches.

It's a really good book. Unfortuneately it's out-of-print so you have to get a used copy or borrow it from the library.

Reader reviewed by Zoë Marriott

I love this book. I read it for the first time when I was eight, and I fell so in love with the story and characters that I walked around in a daze for months. A lot of time has passed since then, but I still love this book just as much.

Laura Chant, the fourteen year old heroine of this lyrical story, is a 'halfway house' - a normal girl who is sensitive to the currents in the world around her and can see through people's surfaces to what's really underneath. But she has lived happily with her mother and little brother Jacko since her parents divorced - and the only thing that disturbs the peace of her existance is Sorrensen (Sorry) Carlisle, a prefect in her school whom she is sure she recognises as something like a witch. Sorry recognises what she is too, and they exchange charged glances across the playground for a year, but neither makes the first move.

Then Laura's happy life is shattered when her brother falls ill with a mysterious disease which slowly but surely begins to kill him. Laura's mother and the doctors don't know what's wrong - but Laura does. Jacko has been possessed by Carmody Braque, an evil little man lurking in the shadows, who is literally feeding on the brilliance of Jacko's young life.

Laura's only hope is to go to Sorry to ask for his help, and that of his mother and grandmother. Laura relies on the strong attraction between her and Sorry to keep her safe. But Sorry and his strange family have their own agenda, and the help they give may cost Laura more than she bargained for....

This is story is one of the finest ever written for young adults, and should be part of any girl's collection.