ENTRADA BOOK REVIEWS

Changed

By Jean Booth

Pages: 188 ISBN: 9781948540957 Publisher: BHC Press Date Reviewed: December 20, 2020 Release Date: October 31, 2019     Available at:

Changed by Jean Booth is the second book in the Origins of the Supernaturals series, picking up where Choices left off. The fantasy fiction novel promises to keep readers eagerly turning the pages. Changed is a darker story but it also comes with the vibrant characters and exciting backgrounds readers familiar with the series have come to expect from author Jean Booth.

Natasha has returned home to her sister and niece, but the choices she made in Atlantis have changed everything. Her appetite is ferocious and impossible to hide. As her sister worries about the changes she sees in Natasha, readers also learn that she's hiding secrets. It's her sister's secret that finally pushes Natasha to seek help with her change. It's becoming too dangerous on her own, especially now that she's cut off from her soul mate, Raif.

To get help with her transformation, Natasha goes to Stephan for help. Not only is he the most powerful Supernatural on earth, but he's also a vampire which brings a unique set of challenges. As she spends more time with Stephan, Natasha finds herself falling in love with him. She is still mated to Raif, but will she ever see him again.

As she learns more about the sacrifices she'll have to make to save Atlantis, Natasha begins to wonder if all of the pain and loss is worth it. Unlike the first installment in the series that was light and romantic, Changed is a darker book that takes readers deeper into what it means to become a Supernatural.

The world Jean Booth created in the first novel is beautifully expanded in Changed. Readers are also introduced to exciting new characters and their supernatural abilities. Even though the passionate romance you followed in Choices is gone from the second novel, you'll still enjoy the tension between Stephan and Natasha. Readers may hope that Raif will eventually renter Natasha's life, but the author has done a nice job of setting the stage for a possible romantic replacement. It's something to look forwards to in the third book.

You won't find the same upbeat tone in the second novel. Instead, it deals with betrayal, murder, infidelity, anger, and ultimately sacrifice. It shows how the "change" not only affects Natasha physically but also emotionally. The book's darker tone captures Natasha's feelings and inner turmoil as she learns to deal with what and who she is becoming. Change is difficult and Jean Booth makes this clear in Natasha's follow-up story to Choice.

"I had eight hours to stay numb before I would be back at Stephan's. He was the only person I could think of that could help me now. The absurdity of the fact that I was now depending on a vampire for assistance was not lost on me."