aceartemis7's review against another edition
4.0
This book has a great concept, nice details that makes me like I'm living in the story. It has a smooth flow to it as well since I finished this book in no time at all. However, the last third of the book feels rushed, it seems to take the easy way out, and it leaves an unsatisfying end, but its a conclusion nevertheless. The main character is likeable and very relatable, which makes the story even better and not as outlandish. It feels as if the story isn't finished. I do hope this isn't a oneshot novel.
leah_reads's review against another edition
4.0
4.5/5*
This book made for such an entertaining read. It was thrilling, action packed but also contained humour - brilliant! It begins with our average Joe narrator, Scott Tyler, climbing a pylon in order to impress his friends, particularly a girl named Aubrey Jones. A piece of the pylon snaps off and he begins to fall but in a split second he is on the ground beyond the fence, as if nothing had ever happened. Welcome to Shifterville, Scott. A Shifter is a child - young adult that can change the events which have occurred through changing a decision previously made. Scott found himself wishing he hadn't decided to climb the pylon therefore it hadn't happened. I found myself thinking wow, this would be so great! Shift explores the darker side of being a Shifter and the consequences that can follow from people's decisions. You cannot change the world.
I loved this book. I loved that Scott was such a normal person. No specific skills and despite being a shifter, he continued to struggle through adolescence. This is made all the more difficult by discovering that he is one of the oldest Shifters. He is late to the regime held by the ARES, a government body which helps to 'control' and to 'hone' the skills developed by Shifters. It is believed that once you reach adulthood, you go through endorpy in which you can no longer Shift. These Shifters are either taken on by ARES or are expected to go and live out a normal life. This is where the problem begins within this novel.
The villains created by Curran in this novel is absolutely chilling. The actions of some are grotesque and I couldn't stop turning the pages to discover what would happen next. It guarantees plenty of action and is incredibly fast paced. I loved it! Not only are there villains, but there is also a rebellion. This only added to the action. There were many questions floating through the novel. Who do we trust? Who is responsible for these horrific events? I devoured this book and was so eager to discover what would happen next!
A novel from a male point of view was also refreshing for me. It isn't often that I read from a male point of view (not counting Harry Potter) and it really did make such a nice change. I loved seeing adolescence from a male perspective and it was nice to read about an insecure male figure - something which doesn't happen all that often in Young Adult fiction. I loved that romance wasn't high up at all in this writers to-do list. It made for a much more action packed read. I really cannot wait to sink my teeth into Control.
This book made for such an entertaining read. It was thrilling, action packed but also contained humour - brilliant! It begins with our average Joe narrator, Scott Tyler, climbing a pylon in order to impress his friends, particularly a girl named Aubrey Jones. A piece of the pylon snaps off and he begins to fall but in a split second he is on the ground beyond the fence, as if nothing had ever happened. Welcome to Shifterville, Scott. A Shifter is a child - young adult that can change the events which have occurred through changing a decision previously made. Scott found himself wishing he hadn't decided to climb the pylon therefore it hadn't happened. I found myself thinking wow, this would be so great! Shift explores the darker side of being a Shifter and the consequences that can follow from people's decisions. You cannot change the world.
I loved this book. I loved that Scott was such a normal person. No specific skills and despite being a shifter, he continued to struggle through adolescence. This is made all the more difficult by discovering that he is one of the oldest Shifters. He is late to the regime held by the ARES, a government body which helps to 'control' and to 'hone' the skills developed by Shifters. It is believed that once you reach adulthood, you go through endorpy in which you can no longer Shift. These Shifters are either taken on by ARES or are expected to go and live out a normal life. This is where the problem begins within this novel.
The villains created by Curran in this novel is absolutely chilling. The actions of some are grotesque and I couldn't stop turning the pages to discover what would happen next. It guarantees plenty of action and is incredibly fast paced. I loved it! Not only are there villains, but there is also a rebellion. This only added to the action. There were many questions floating through the novel. Who do we trust? Who is responsible for these horrific events? I devoured this book and was so eager to discover what would happen next!
A novel from a male point of view was also refreshing for me. It isn't often that I read from a male point of view (not counting Harry Potter) and it really did make such a nice change. I loved seeing adolescence from a male perspective and it was nice to read about an insecure male figure - something which doesn't happen all that often in Young Adult fiction. I loved that romance wasn't high up at all in this writers to-do list. It made for a much more action packed read. I really cannot wait to sink my teeth into Control.
hereinthecorner's review against another edition
5.0
Amazing edge of my seat. Read the last page unexpectantly and couldn't believe it was the end
_bookishbella's review against another edition
5.0
WOW. Loved it - it was so different to anything I've ever read before and it was AWESOME. Review to come!
patchworkbunny's review
4.0
Scott’s never been one to show off before so he’s not quite sure why he’s climbing a pylon to impress a girl. When he slips, he really thinks he’s a goner, but instead of breaking all the bones in his body, he comes round lying on the grass with a memory of falling over the fence. Did he climb the pylon or not? Next thing he knows, he’s being dragged off by the girl, Aubrey, and being told off for shifting in public. If he can just avoid being captured by ARES, his knew found gift to change his past decisions is cool, right? Instead, he learns that every shift has consequences…
Shift is like a British, young adult version of The Butterfly Effect with just as chilling effects and served with a side order of humour. Scott’s your average teenage boy, and despite his new found powers, he never really gets past his averageness which makes him a refreshing narrator. He is a little more unusual than the average shifter; he is late to discover his powers and he can remember past realities. He doesn’t come across as the brightest spark, being a little bit gullible and not thinking for himself. Of course the secret organisation has his best interests at heart! Bless him.
I wasn’t entirely convinced by the covert groups of children using their shifting powers to aid the government. Shifters reach entropy when they get into their twenties and their power fades away. So the shifters are all young adults or children, some as young as nine. Was it all a charade? After all, shifting only changes personal decisions and what decisions do children make that would change the world? Maybe I missed something here but it wasn’t clear.
There’s a pretty terrifying villain too and Kim Curran has done a great job in creating a character that gives you the chills. Later on, some of the unpleasant revelations are rushed over but I imagine this is done for the younger audience. Though I must say near the end, it does go a bit James Bond, where one of the bad guys stands around and tells them his dastardly plan in the belief they’ll be dead any minute now…
Shift is like a British, young adult version of The Butterfly Effect with just as chilling effects and served with a side order of humour. Scott’s your average teenage boy, and despite his new found powers, he never really gets past his averageness which makes him a refreshing narrator. He is a little more unusual than the average shifter; he is late to discover his powers and he can remember past realities. He doesn’t come across as the brightest spark, being a little bit gullible and not thinking for himself. Of course the secret organisation has his best interests at heart! Bless him.
I wasn’t entirely convinced by the covert groups of children using their shifting powers to aid the government. Shifters reach entropy when they get into their twenties and their power fades away. So the shifters are all young adults or children, some as young as nine. Was it all a charade? After all, shifting only changes personal decisions and what decisions do children make that would change the world? Maybe I missed something here but it wasn’t clear.
There’s a pretty terrifying villain too and Kim Curran has done a great job in creating a character that gives you the chills. Later on, some of the unpleasant revelations are rushed over but I imagine this is done for the younger audience. Though I must say near the end, it does go a bit James Bond, where one of the bad guys stands around and tells them his dastardly plan in the belief they’ll be dead any minute now…
tregina's review
2.0
While I think the premise had potential, a lot of elements here didn't work for me. The logic of the world doesn't feel entirely thought through, information is imparted clumsily, and I didn't feel I really got to know anyone nor did their relationships to one another—both good and bad—feel narratively earned. A lot of it felt like wish fulfilment fiction.
kribu's review
3.0
Shift was hard for me to get into at first, and I didn't really care for the ending, but the middle part was really pretty good - plenty of action and excitement, not a bad plot, passable characters (I liked Scott, although I never really connected with Aubrey).
I did keep noticing a few awkward commas here and there; I'm not necessarily saying I think I was right and the book was wrong about those commas and their placement, but when I'm noticing commas in a book (and not on re-read at that), then it does mean I'm not fully into it.
Still. This was pretty good, all in all, and at least reasonably different from most supernatural-ish YA fiction out there.
I did keep noticing a few awkward commas here and there; I'm not necessarily saying I think I was right and the book was wrong about those commas and their placement, but when I'm noticing commas in a book (and not on re-read at that), then it does mean I'm not fully into it.
Still. This was pretty good, all in all, and at least reasonably different from most supernatural-ish YA fiction out there.
tsana's review
4.0
Shift by Kim Curran is the author's debut novel and is not to be confused with the other book called Shift (by Em Bailey) that I read and reviewed this year.
The premise of Shift is fairly high-concept: some people have the ability to change decisions they've made in the past and "shift" the world on to the reality in which those decisions were the ones they really made. Of course there are caveats: only children between the ages of pre-teen and 18 or 19 can do it before they grow out of it, they can't influence events they weren't a part of, and they can only change decisions that were consciously made, not automatic, non-thinking reactions. Generally, they only remember the old reality for a few minutes before they assimilate fully into the new reality. The sixteen-year-old main character's — Scott's — extra-special power (apart from being rather powerful) is that he can remember other realities for longer.
And of course, there's a government agency regulating shifters and their training.
Shift was a fun, fast-paced read. There are a lot of explosions and surprisingly competent eleven year olds. The bad guy was truly horrifying (although, a warning for those that care, part of his ickiness is centred about his fatness and lack of personal hygiene) and reminded me a bit of Sylar in early Heroes (the TV show) when we still thought he was all-powerful and ate brains. Also, it's set mostly in London, which is quite refreshing, as was the slang and spelling.
I couldn't help but feel, when I got to the end, that Shift didn't quite deliver on what the blurb and prologue. I was expecting more shifting, more chaos, and more doom (admittedly, not more explosions; those were sufficient). I was reading carefully, noting each time Scott made a subtle conscious decision in the narrative, and the only time he actually shifted back to a point on the fly after learning about his powers was near the start (and, forgivably, pretty unsubtle). There were a few points during the thick of things when I wanted to shout at him to go back to that last decision point I'd noted to save whatever. I was also expecting it to end up being more complicated in terms of shifting between realities, Scott having old memories and what was real and what was really going on? A bit more like the movie Prime. Or, if not actually that insanely complicated, less linear than it was. Basically, I had higher expectations of the concept. But perhaps Curran will up the ante in the sequels.
That said, I did enjoy reading Shift and found it difficult to put down. I even set up my phone (for the first time in this way) so that it would read it aloud to me while I was driving. So it's definitely an addictive type of read (probably because of the explosions). I recommend it to anyone who's after a light, action-packed, quick read. It's mercifully not (very) dystopian, and has mystery and conspiracy to keep the reader interested.
4 / 5 stars
You can read more of my reviews on my blog.
The premise of Shift is fairly high-concept: some people have the ability to change decisions they've made in the past and "shift" the world on to the reality in which those decisions were the ones they really made. Of course there are caveats: only children between the ages of pre-teen and 18 or 19 can do it before they grow out of it, they can't influence events they weren't a part of, and they can only change decisions that were consciously made, not automatic, non-thinking reactions. Generally, they only remember the old reality for a few minutes before they assimilate fully into the new reality. The sixteen-year-old main character's — Scott's — extra-special power (apart from being rather powerful) is that he can remember other realities for longer.
And of course, there's a government agency regulating shifters and their training.
Shift was a fun, fast-paced read. There are a lot of explosions and surprisingly competent eleven year olds. The bad guy was truly horrifying (although, a warning for those that care, part of his ickiness is centred about his fatness and lack of personal hygiene) and reminded me a bit of Sylar in early Heroes (the TV show) when we still thought he was all-powerful and ate brains. Also, it's set mostly in London, which is quite refreshing, as was the slang and spelling.
I couldn't help but feel, when I got to the end, that Shift didn't quite deliver on what the blurb and prologue. I was expecting more shifting, more chaos, and more doom (admittedly, not more explosions; those were sufficient). I was reading carefully, noting each time Scott made a subtle conscious decision in the narrative, and the only time he actually shifted back to a point on the fly after learning about his powers was near the start (and, forgivably, pretty unsubtle). There were a few points during the thick of things when I wanted to shout at him to go back to that last decision point I'd noted to save whatever. I was also expecting it to end up being more complicated in terms of shifting between realities, Scott having old memories and what was real and what was really going on? A bit more like the movie Prime. Or, if not actually that insanely complicated, less linear than it was. Basically, I had higher expectations of the concept. But perhaps Curran will up the ante in the sequels.
That said, I did enjoy reading Shift and found it difficult to put down. I even set up my phone (for the first time in this way) so that it would read it aloud to me while I was driving. So it's definitely an addictive type of read (probably because of the explosions). I recommend it to anyone who's after a light, action-packed, quick read. It's mercifully not (very) dystopian, and has mystery and conspiracy to keep the reader interested.
4 / 5 stars
You can read more of my reviews on my blog.
tachyondecay's review
3.0
Sometimes I wish I had the power to checkpoint my life, much like one can in many video games. I’d like to index certain times and be able to rewind to them and then make a different decision. For example, this morning I noticed that I was running low on brown sugar, and I hadn’t bought any more last time I bought groceries. It made me wish I could go back to the point where I was ordering groceries and have ordered brown sugar, just so I don’t have to buy any during the week. It’s time travel, but on a very mundane scale.
But those sorts of ideas—transforming the mundane into the extraordinary—often make for the best fiction. What I’m describing is very similar to Shifting, the central conceit of Shift. Shifters, however, don’t consciously relive the moments between the decision they change and the present. Reality itself just changes, and their memories of the old reality fade.
Despite my enthusiasm for the idea, I have to admit, this book didn’t excite me for the first little while. It’s probably Kim Curran’s writing style, or at the very least the voice of Scott Tyler, the protagonist. In the beginning he has very little to define him. He is, to put it mildly, the perfect candidate for a CW-sponsored television adaptation of the book: bland, white, slightly dumb white dude with a superpower being supported by a variety of more intelligent-yet-sidelined diverse minor characters.
Fortunately, the plot makes up for the protagonist’s shortcomings. See, Shift is also a murder mystery. A Shifter is killing former Shifters (for the power disappears as one ages into adulthood in a process known as entropy), and then Shifting reality to make the murders look like suicides. Scott, who has only recently discovered his powers and seems to be able to hold on to past realities more clearly than most, stumbles on to this mystery and the requisite conspiracy that any good secret government organization must have.
Curran delivers essentially another take on the “empower the adolescent through superpowers” theme. Scott feels like he has no voice, even in his own life. His younger sister’s achievements overshadows his own; his parents’ bickering blinds them to their son’s approach to adulthood and independence. Suddenly, he gets this power that literally lets him shape reality.
And then a government organization tells him he can’t use it unless he comes to work for them!
What sets Shift apart from many similar novels is how quickly Curran develops Scott’s story within the organization of ARES. He doesn’t spend much time in training. He doesn’t spend much time on the job before disasters strike and he finds himself in the thick of a fight for his life. Curran clearly has a story that she wants to tell and gets on with it, and the result is a lean, mean novel that doesn’t fail to entertain.
I’m not entirely convinced that adolescents would function in the bureaucratic cubicle farm that Curran portrays as Scott’s world when he’s stuck in the office. It seems a little far-fetched to me that even Shifter children could muster the maturity to work in such an environment (though, that’s overestimating the average maturity of a cubicle farmer). In general, it was difficult to remember that the majority of the characters in these novels are adolescents—Aubrey is only fourteen or fifteen. They’re hanging out in a night club, gambling and whatnot, and basically acting ten years older than they are.
In addition to these issues of characterization, the concept of Shifting itself could have been better-defined. Curran lays out the basic premise, cloaked in pseudo–quantum mechanics technobabble, well enough. The consequences, however, seem less certain. The actual mechanics are typically chalked up to “instinct”.
That being said, I have to praise the many and sundry inventive ways Curran works Shifting into Scott’s adventures. It’s more than just, “I regret action x, so let me fix it!” He figures out how to use Shifting to fight, to run, etc. The threat of entropy proves to be a major plot point and helps add to the sinister aura of ARES.
So Shift is far from perfect, but it hits enough of the targets to be worth a look if the main idea interests you. Neither the characters nor the plot are particularly special. As first novels go, though, it’s entertaining enough to show promise.
But those sorts of ideas—transforming the mundane into the extraordinary—often make for the best fiction. What I’m describing is very similar to Shifting, the central conceit of Shift. Shifters, however, don’t consciously relive the moments between the decision they change and the present. Reality itself just changes, and their memories of the old reality fade.
Despite my enthusiasm for the idea, I have to admit, this book didn’t excite me for the first little while. It’s probably Kim Curran’s writing style, or at the very least the voice of Scott Tyler, the protagonist. In the beginning he has very little to define him. He is, to put it mildly, the perfect candidate for a CW-sponsored television adaptation of the book: bland, white, slightly dumb white dude with a superpower being supported by a variety of more intelligent-yet-sidelined diverse minor characters.
Fortunately, the plot makes up for the protagonist’s shortcomings. See, Shift is also a murder mystery. A Shifter is killing former Shifters (for the power disappears as one ages into adulthood in a process known as entropy), and then Shifting reality to make the murders look like suicides. Scott, who has only recently discovered his powers and seems to be able to hold on to past realities more clearly than most, stumbles on to this mystery and the requisite conspiracy that any good secret government organization must have.
Curran delivers essentially another take on the “empower the adolescent through superpowers” theme. Scott feels like he has no voice, even in his own life. His younger sister’s achievements overshadows his own; his parents’ bickering blinds them to their son’s approach to adulthood and independence. Suddenly, he gets this power that literally lets him shape reality.
And then a government organization tells him he can’t use it unless he comes to work for them!
What sets Shift apart from many similar novels is how quickly Curran develops Scott’s story within the organization of ARES. He doesn’t spend much time in training. He doesn’t spend much time on the job before disasters strike and he finds himself in the thick of a fight for his life. Curran clearly has a story that she wants to tell and gets on with it, and the result is a lean, mean novel that doesn’t fail to entertain.
I’m not entirely convinced that adolescents would function in the bureaucratic cubicle farm that Curran portrays as Scott’s world when he’s stuck in the office. It seems a little far-fetched to me that even Shifter children could muster the maturity to work in such an environment (though, that’s overestimating the average maturity of a cubicle farmer). In general, it was difficult to remember that the majority of the characters in these novels are adolescents—Aubrey is only fourteen or fifteen. They’re hanging out in a night club, gambling and whatnot, and basically acting ten years older than they are.
In addition to these issues of characterization, the concept of Shifting itself could have been better-defined. Curran lays out the basic premise, cloaked in pseudo–quantum mechanics technobabble, well enough. The consequences, however, seem less certain. The actual mechanics are typically chalked up to “instinct”.
That being said, I have to praise the many and sundry inventive ways Curran works Shifting into Scott’s adventures. It’s more than just, “I regret action x, so let me fix it!” He figures out how to use Shifting to fight, to run, etc. The threat of entropy proves to be a major plot point and helps add to the sinister aura of ARES.
So Shift is far from perfect, but it hits enough of the targets to be worth a look if the main idea interests you. Neither the characters nor the plot are particularly special. As first novels go, though, it’s entertaining enough to show promise.