Change of Heart

Great idea but...

I want to start off by saying that despite all the flaws this book has, I did enjoy it. It had a nice idea of a story and the sex scenes were very well put together. However, this does not excuse the flaws.

Fist things first, the narrator was not fantastic. He reminded me of Fozzy from the Muppets in some cases. The voices he used for the different characters were just... off. I could not in any way take Logan seriously because he was given this deep unrealistic voice that sounded like he was trying to cover up the fact that he smoked.

Second, the point of Jin being this super special snowflake and was ultra rare, was DRIVEN HOME EVERY OTHER SENTENCE! I swear by the middle of the book I was sick to death of hearing about how this kid was a reah. I know the main plot point of this book was him being a reah, but we get it after the first twelve times. The next 108 times of driving this home is stupid. It's like the author thought we wouldn't remember or something. The reah point is not the only thing driven home. Points are beaten to death over and over again, until their effectiveness is gone.

Third, the way the gay subject is brought up just bothers me. This might be because I'm a lesbian and have studied sexuality just a little bit, but Logan just becoming gay is not realistic. I'm a little disappointed in the author for not taken the time to understand and research male sexuality. And yes, I get it. This book was meant for the boylove/yaoi girl crowed but that's not an excuse for lazy writing. Logan could have every well have been straight and Jin was his one exception. Why couldn't he be bisexual? And the idea that it was a specific obstacle for Jin was really pointless with all the sex they had, not to mention that they keep saying that Logan and Jin can feel each other's emotions, because he's a reah!

Over all, the weak points of the book were a bit too much for me to give this any higher then two stars. I could have been a lot better.

19 of 21 people found this review helpful

Great story

I really enjoyed this story and would like to see much more like it. I liked the timbre of the narrator's voice, however I felt he read most of this much too fast. Some of the action scenes called for excitement and fast reading, however it sounded like he just wanted to get the reading over with unfortunately. For that reason only, I did not give the full 5 star rating.

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

I should have read it.

First and for most, this is a pure unadulterated FLUFF. It's a hot story about two guys getting in on against a background of supernatural fun. It even means to raise the complex issue of the nature of sexuality and the specter of homophobia and family expectations. However, that being said, this story is FLUFF! If you want more than that a more complicated look at these issues - go look elsewhere. But if you want a bit of hot, guilty little pleasure - have at.

My one MAJOR issue with this is the reader. He's not bad but he reads these really hot sex as if he was stating a list of facts. Still, he's not bad. I'd give a listen to the free preview and decide whether he bugs you or not. If you anything like me, you'll be a little annoyed at first and then get used to it.

8 of 9 people found this review helpful

In a hurry much?

The narrator reads this book like he has somewhere more important to be in 6 hours. It's hurried, impersonal and as such I just couldn't get into this book. A DNF for me I'm afraid.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Repetitive with absurd voices

Repetitive statements and actions Mar an otherwise pleasant story. The main character is rendered well but two other important characters are portrayed with the voices from Sesame Street.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Fascinating and Unique Shifter World

Jin is a werepanther who was exiled from his tribe for being a gay Reah. A reah is a mate to a semel, which is the leader of a tribe of werepanthers. They are usually female.

Logan church is the Semel of his tribe and when he meets Jin he knows they’re meant to be mates even though he has never been with a man and his family considers mating with a man an abomination.

There is a lot of drama surrounding this mating. Jin doesn’t trust Logan’s affections are more than his pheromones forcing his hand. Logan’s family doesn’t want Logan to forsake a woman as a mate for a man, no matter how special that man may be. The other tribes want Jin for their own. Jin’s tribe wants him killed. Lots of drama.

In the end there will be bloodshed and tears, but we get a HEA.

**

Mary’s shifter universe is not like any other out there. It’s rich, complex, and wonderful.

Jin is a character who you love, but also want to strangle. He’s constantly in trouble and he give Logan the run of his life.

What I loved about this book (and the series) is that there are so many other stories involved in this one. We get to see Logan and Jin’s love story primarily, but we also get to see Jin’s personal growth as he comes into his full powers. He actually gets to give the ultimate “fuck you” to the other tribes in the world as he becomes the most powerful cat of all.

Jin and Logan are very like Sam and Jory. Jin does all this stuff that gets him into trouble and Logan has a hard time adjusting to all the wildness that is Jin. But, like Sam, Logan can’t help but be captivated and like Jory, Jin needs someone to keep him grounded.

Then we get Crane and his story, Logan’s friend Yuri and his story and those of several other secondary characters.

If you haven’t yet explored Logan and Jin’s world – you absolutely must!

Highly recommended to all shifter fans and those of Epic Dramas.

Audio

Sean Crisden took on a daunting task with this series! First, Mary has given us an entire new world with many strange names and customs and pronunciations. Second, OMG there are about a million “main” characters in the series and they all play important roles – both male and female! Third, these books are LONG and very involved.

I think, as the series grew, Sean’s comfort with the words and the characters improved, but he’s still WONDERFUL right from the start! I didn’t love the voice he chose for Crane, but it grew on me and I think he improved it as he went along. (It sounds kind of like a muppet when I first heard it!) I also think Logan was a bit cartoonish at the first, but got normalized as the series progresses.

What impressed me the most was the absolute width and breadth of all the characters Sean is able to pull out and switch back and forth from without any difficulty! He’s told me in interviews that he doesn’t stop and start with each new character but instead just reads each linearly and switches his voice as he goes! Impressive!

If you’re a Mary fan you’ve undoubtedly read this series, if you haven’t listened I highly encourage you to because it adds this other element, another way to appreciate her series, that is truly remarkable. If you’ve not read this series, but you’re a shifter romance fan, you’ve got to give this a try! It’s unique, very complex and Sean Crisden absolutely does it right!

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

I love this series

If you could sum up Change of Heart in three words, what would they be?

I loved this series. I am not into all the shifting stuff, but I fell in love with this series! I love the characters, love Jin and fall in love with all the characters as the series continue

What other book might you compare Change of Heart to and why?

The warder series, by Mary Calmes and Wake me Up by Cardeno C. (mates series)

What does Sean Crisden bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The voices, one of my favorite narrators

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Always

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Interesting reaction

Would you consider the audio edition of Change of Heart to be better than the print version?

Wouldn't know. I haven't seen the print version.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I think I liked Caine a lot. Just didn't like the goofy voice he was portrayed with. But I am a sucker for loyal best friends.

Have you listened to any of Sean Crisden’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Not sure.

Any additional comments?

Since I listened to the audio version of this book and am wondering how much that affected my experience.

It was a good book. I heard many people say they cried. It takes a lot to make me cry, and I admit, I was sad. It leaves me wondering if, had I read it myself and the voices in my head as I read were my own, I might have felt the trauma more deeply. As it was, one thing I was not in love with was the odd voice the reader used to portray Caine. To my ear, he sounded a little too goofy, and I had a hard time taking him seriously.

But I did enjoy the book, and I will definitely read the other two in the series, so thank you, Mary, for a great read

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

great book great author! Funny narator?

Okay I really enjoy this writer and like the book. The narrator? His main character is okay but the best friend Crane? He sounds like a Muppet!! The voices actually make the humor funnier but I admit I have not gotten to a sex scene yet. Not sure if I will be able to listen! I have already read it in ebook form so I know the story but I will say if you have an extra credit go ahead and listen. If you do not, read the book first!
*ribbit*

6 of 8 people found this review helpful

Cheesy narration and redundant writing

First, the narrator....The voice that he chooses to do for the best friend of the main protagonist is sooo very ludicrous. Why would he choose that voice? It's like a joke voice. As many other reviewers have mentioned, it is like a Fozzy the bear or Kermit the frog voice. It makes it very hard to take the book seriously. Almost all of the voices besides the main character's are cartoonish, but the best friend's voice is the worst.

Second, the author. I'm sure many people don't care if an author spends lots and lots of time expounding on the minutia of their world building, and explaining every detail of their abitrary fantasy world to you. I prefer a style that shows instead of tells, and I don't enjoy having to learn a whole new language to know what the book is referring to at any given point. There are many lectures inserted in between dialogue and action, explaining all of the ins and outs and heirarchy of the werepanther societies, and I found it extremely boring and unappealing. Some of the scenes, such as when Logan brings Jin home to his tribe and the tribe members protest against a male mate, are filled with repetitive and boring arguments. The conversation repeats itself over and over, with the family members saying "you cannot take a male as a mate!" again and again. In real life, people are often boring and stupid, and will insistently repeat the same arguments sometimes. But I do expect my entertainment to be edited and to move along at a rate faster than real life.

Insta-love is often a part of shifter romances and makes sense to a certain extent because of the fated partners trope that is part of shifter romances. So I didn't mind their instant romantic relationship and I think it makes a reasonable amount of sense within the shifter universes.

If most of the superfluous world building and hierarchy explanations were removed, this book would be way more interesting and entertaining and it would be easier to get into the flow of the drama and plot. Both the writing and narration are so very cheesy...but there are some redeeming qualities like the sexy scenes, some of the action, and the romance

1 of 1 people found this review helpful