Nya is an orphan struggling for survival in a city crippled by war. She is also a Taker—with her touch, she can heal injuries, pulling pain from an...
read full description
reviews
Jan 29, 2012
Patricia
rated it: 
I really liked the sound of The Shifter's summary and it didn't take much encouragement to go off to amazon and download it. I have to say the cover was something that definitely drew me in, I loved the touch of fantasy to it.
The Shifter is the first book in The Healing Wars trilogy by Janice Hardy.
I was very taken in by the world building. I loved the way the world Hardy introduces us to. You've got a country that's been conquered in war, where its native people are subjecte More...
The Shifter is the first book in The Healing Wars trilogy by Janice Hardy.
I was very taken in by the world building. I loved the way the world Hardy introduces us to. You've got a country that's been conquered in war, where its native people are subjecte More...
0 comments
like
(2 people liked it)
Jun 06, 2011
Juju
rated it: 
The story is gripping, genuine, different from everything else on the market, complex, and action-packed. The characters are multifaceted and presented with incredibly difficult circumstances with no clear right or wrong. It is impossible to read this story without asking your self, "What would I do in this circumstance? Would I do something I knew was ethically or morally wrong to save the life of my sister?
Review Copyright © of Tales of Whimsy.com
To read my review in f More...
Review Copyright © of Tales of Whimsy.com
To read my review in f More...
8 comments
like
(2 people liked it)
Dec 26, 2011
Rayann
rated it: 
I was excited to read this book. I hadn't read a story like this before, with healers drawing pain unto themselves (although I have heard of A Touch of Power).
It was a nice story and action-packed. I liked the protagonist, Nya, although I don't like her name. She's strong and independent, a good female heroine. She was also fiercely protective of her sister, and willing to do everything in order to protect her family. Definitely an admirable trait. The other characters were also fun an More...
It was a nice story and action-packed. I liked the protagonist, Nya, although I don't like her name. She's strong and independent, a good female heroine. She was also fiercely protective of her sister, and willing to do everything in order to protect her family. Definitely an admirable trait. The other characters were also fun an More...
Nov 21, 2011
Cornerofmadness
rated it:
The Shifter by Janice Hardy
This was a YA I had been wanting to read and a friend lent it to me. It opens in a place that reminds me of eighteenth century Europe right down to various dukes invading and conquering their neighbors. It opens in conquered Geveg centering on Nya, a young woman living hand to mouth after the death of her parents and grandmother during the war (that the Gevegians lost). Her sister Tali is a little luckier, having a magical ability to heal people by drawing o More...
This was a YA I had been wanting to read and a friend lent it to me. It opens in a place that reminds me of eighteenth century Europe right down to various dukes invading and conquering their neighbors. It opens in conquered Geveg centering on Nya, a young woman living hand to mouth after the death of her parents and grandmother during the war (that the Gevegians lost). Her sister Tali is a little luckier, having a magical ability to heal people by drawing o More...
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Aug 04, 2011
Brittany
rated it:
The Shifter opens with Nya attempting to steal eggs from a farmer, getting caught, and revealing her gifts as a shifter of pain. The rest of the book is filled with difficult and sad decisions that Nya must make about who she will save, and how she will use her gift. There's just enough twists that they don't throw you off the storyline, but they definitely keep you reading.
Nya is a great female protagonist. She's strong, smart, quick-thinking, and likeable. Her relationship with her More...
Nya is a great female protagonist. She's strong, smart, quick-thinking, and likeable. Her relationship with her More...
Jul 24, 2011
Lisa
rated it:
Nya is a taker. She can take pain, illness, and injury from those who are afflicted with a touch. Her father was an enchanter, one who prepared the rock to hold such misery, and her mother was a healer. Her grandmother held the highest office before their country was conquered by a power hungry, land grabbing duke. The world is a harsh place for those on the bottom rungs of the social order; the new regime is unfriendly to the native inhabitants. Only the healers still have a useful and much
More...
Jun 14, 2011
Shazza
rated it: 
In a city still plagued by invasion, Nya is an orphan who used to be one of the upper class. Now, she's relegated to one step above starving. Her little sister, Tali, is training to be a healer, which will earn her respect and money once her training and apprenticeship is over, but Nya is struggling on the outside of those training grounds, with barely enough food to eat and barely enough money to survive.
The story opens with Nya trying to rob a chicken coop, only to be caught by t More...
The story opens with Nya trying to rob a chicken coop, only to be caught by t More...
Apr 13, 2011
Jesse
rated it:
I wasn’t really sure what to expect from the pain merchants, I mean I’ve never heard of the power to take pain away from someone and put it into a rock (pynvium) let alone shift it into another person. But boy was it good.
The book picks up on page one with an opening that grabbed my attention and then didn’t let go until the last page – the idea of shifting pain (or healing it for that matter) was new to me but I liked it.
The main character, Nya on more than one occasion is f More...
The book picks up on page one with an opening that grabbed my attention and then didn’t let go until the last page – the idea of shifting pain (or healing it for that matter) was new to me but I liked it.
The main character, Nya on more than one occasion is f More...
Mar 19, 2011
F.H.
rated it:
Review written by my 12 year old brother
Nya is an orphan struggling for survival in a city crippled by war. She is also a Taker - with her touch, she can heal injuries, pulling pain from another persons body into her own. But unlike her younger sister Tali, and other Takers who become Healers, Nya's skill is flawed: she cant push that pain into Pynvium, the enchanted metal used to store it. All she can do is shift it to another person, a dangerous skill that must be kept hidden . More...
Nya is an orphan struggling for survival in a city crippled by war. She is also a Taker - with her touch, she can heal injuries, pulling pain from another persons body into her own. But unlike her younger sister Tali, and other Takers who become Healers, Nya's skill is flawed: she cant push that pain into Pynvium, the enchanted metal used to store it. All she can do is shift it to another person, a dangerous skill that must be kept hidden . More...
Jan 12, 2011
Ithlilian
rated it:
I've had a hard time finding a good fantasy book in the YA genre. Some are too long winded and stale, some are too full of angst and drama, and others are just plain boring. The Shifter is unique and full of action. For once I actually care about the different backgrounds of the characters and the different factions. There wasn't a single thing I wasn't interested in in this book. I wish this book was more talked about and suggested. I stumbled upon it by chance at the library and I wish I had h
More...
Oct 27, 2010
Bookyurt
rated it:
The Shifter is a lovely change of pace from standard fantasy fare – no knights here, and no vampires, werewolves, or witches either. Instead I found a fascinating world, where Healers are a magic resource that can be used to fuel a war, where the politics of conquest cause poverty and helplessness, and where a war-made orphan is determined to do whatever is necessary to save her sister.
The loss of everything she ever had is the crucible that molded Nya, a desperate and determined girl. More...
The loss of everything she ever had is the crucible that molded Nya, a desperate and determined girl. More...
0 comments
like
(2 people liked it)
Oct 04, 2010
Jennifer
rated it:
Reviewed by Joan Stradling for TeensReadToo.com
Nya and her sister have been orphaned. Though her sister has been taken in as an apprentice with the Healer's League, Nya is on her own. She has the power to take pain, but Nya isn't a Healer - she's a Taker. Instead of shifting pain into the enchanted metal known as pynvium, she can only push it into another person.
This dangerous skill makes her valuable to the enemy, and she finds herself forced into working for a pain merc More...
Nya and her sister have been orphaned. Though her sister has been taken in as an apprentice with the Healer's League, Nya is on her own. She has the power to take pain, but Nya isn't a Healer - she's a Taker. Instead of shifting pain into the enchanted metal known as pynvium, she can only push it into another person.
This dangerous skill makes her valuable to the enemy, and she finds herself forced into working for a pain merc More...
Aug 22, 2010
Terri
rated it:
Description from the book jacket: “Nya is an orphan struggling for survival in a city crippled by war. She is also a Taker — with her touch, she can heal injuries, pulling pain from another person into her own body. But unlike her sister, Tali, and other Takers who become Healers’ League apprentices, Nya’s skill is flawed: She can’t push that pain into pynvium, the enchanted metal used to store it. All she can do is shift it into another person, a dangerous skill that she must keep hidden fro
More...
Apr 23, 2010
Eva
rated it:
The care with which Nya's culture - its religion, its customs, and so on - are described reminds me of Tamora Pierce's fantasies. Nya's country is under hostile occupation, and this comes through on almost every page, whether Nya is shopping in the market or trying to save her sister from a despicable collaborator. If details about the countries around Geveg are a little vague, it is perfectly clear how Gevegians feel about the invaders who have killed them, stolen their property, and taken over
More...
Mar 19, 2010
Debut Authors
rated it:
With a society that deals in a currency of pain, ruled by a despotic Duke, and a people that are verging on revolution, Janice Hardy must have written her book, “The Shifter” just for me. I found the first page of this book on agent Kristin Nelson’s Blog and I was hooked immediately.
Fifteen year old Nya is having trouble getting by in her conquered and occupied island homeland of Geveg. She is also a taker, by touching someone she can heal their injuries and take their pain, at the cos More...
Fifteen year old Nya is having trouble getting by in her conquered and occupied island homeland of Geveg. She is also a taker, by touching someone she can heal their injuries and take their pain, at the cos More...
Feb 23, 2010
Arya
rated it:
I cannot stress enough how awesome this book was! Nya is a tortured character that not only possesses immense resolve and determination, but an honor and goodness that is refreshing, though throughout the book she is faced with the hardest choices I can immagine, still at the end of the story you love her despite her myriad flaws.
Nya is a fifteen year old orphan who has been landed with way too many responsibilites these range from her own saftey, work, food and board to being her s More...
Nya is a fifteen year old orphan who has been landed with way too many responsibilites these range from her own saftey, work, food and board to being her s More...
Jan 28, 2010
Chris
rated it:
From reading the dust jacket I already loved the magic system. By half-way through chapter 1 I was smiling along with the voice of the book, and by the end of the chapter I was impressed with the pacing of the story. The rest of the book was just as good.
One of the really great things about this book is that the characters are entirely self-consistent. Their actions may not always be expected, but to a point they make sense based on who the character is, including age, personality, More...
One of the really great things about this book is that the characters are entirely self-consistent. Their actions may not always be expected, but to a point they make sense based on who the character is, including age, personality, More...
Dec 30, 2009
Ann
rated it:
Ages 10+ (one "ass", violence, general complexity)
I'm not sure what to think about this one. It's hard to wrap my head around genuine world-built fantasy sometimes (although I have no problem with science fiction, huh). New vocabulary must be absorbed, passages demand re-reading in order to understand them. But the story of Nya, an orphan in an defeated and culturally oppressed country, is terribly intriguing.
See, Nya is from a family of Healers, folks with a More...
I'm not sure what to think about this one. It's hard to wrap my head around genuine world-built fantasy sometimes (although I have no problem with science fiction, huh). New vocabulary must be absorbed, passages demand re-reading in order to understand them. But the story of Nya, an orphan in an defeated and culturally oppressed country, is terribly intriguing.
See, Nya is from a family of Healers, folks with a More...
Nov 16, 2009
Maggie
rated it:
Originally reviewed and published at www.readerviewskids.com
http://maggiesbookshelf.blogspot.com/200...
War is never kind to the losing side: So fifteen-year-old orphan Nya has discovered since the Baseeri invaded and occupied her homeland, the tropical island of Geveg, forcing her people out of their homes and livelihoods and into the streets. And while her sister Tali’s abilities have granted her a comfortable life training as a Healer in the League, Nya’s own talents have a da More...
http://maggiesbookshelf.blogspot.com/200...
War is never kind to the losing side: So fifteen-year-old orphan Nya has discovered since the Baseeri invaded and occupied her homeland, the tropical island of Geveg, forcing her people out of their homes and livelihoods and into the streets. And while her sister Tali’s abilities have granted her a comfortable life training as a Healer in the League, Nya’s own talents have a da More...
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Aug 05, 2009
A&E
rated it:
When Healers lay hands on injured people they can absorb the injury and pain into their own bodies, and later move it from themselves into a stone called pynvium. At least they can in the medieval fantasy world created by Janice Hardy in her middle grade novel, The Shifter, due out in October.
The story centers around 15 year old Nya who is a Healer...but with a defect. She can only shift the pain and injury into other people, not pynvium. This little 'quirk' is something she and her More...
The story centers around 15 year old Nya who is a Healer...but with a defect. She can only shift the pain and injury into other people, not pynvium. This little 'quirk' is something she and her More...
May 01, 2010
Cid
rated it:
I've read Janice Hardy's blog faithfully since.... November I believe. She's a fantastic blogger and I can't believe I've waited this long to read her book. That was my mistake. I should have read this months ago.
The Setting -- is an island nation called Geveg. In the recent history it's been invaded by a person called The Duke who remains a misty figure off screen for the duration of The Shifter. There are several islands linked together and the bulk of the story takes place ei More...
The Setting -- is an island nation called Geveg. In the recent history it's been invaded by a person called The Duke who remains a misty figure off screen for the duration of The Shifter. There are several islands linked together and the bulk of the story takes place ei More...
Oct 19, 2011
Rebecca
rated it:
Lovely little gem I found in a charity shop. I'd give it a 3.75 (fussy, I know). It gets off to a slightly slow start and it takes you three or four chapters to understand fully the politics, the different nationalities, what pynvium actually is and the differences between the healing abiilities, however, once you get yout head around that you can enjoy the story. I could tell from this book that it was setting up the story for the following books, and that's the only impression I got at the sta
More...
Oct 05, 2011
Julianna
rated it:
Original review is here: http://thereviewsnews.blogspot.com/2011/...
*STARRED REVIEW*
Janice Hardy crafts a tale both genuinely humorous and uncannily dark. I was hooked by both her premise and her first sentence, and the novel only gets better as it goes on.
Nya is a strong, witty protagonist. She can think on her feet, and has a way of looking at things that will make you burst out laughing despite your surroundings. The secondary characters were built very thor More...
*STARRED REVIEW*
Janice Hardy crafts a tale both genuinely humorous and uncannily dark. I was hooked by both her premise and her first sentence, and the novel only gets better as it goes on.
Nya is a strong, witty protagonist. She can think on her feet, and has a way of looking at things that will make you burst out laughing despite your surroundings. The secondary characters were built very thor More...
Sep 16, 2011
Courtney
rated it:
Nya is an orphan and has been attempting to keep herself afloat while her sister apprentices at the League to become a full-fledged healer. Nya would have done the same, except, instead of being able to heal pain and place it in the substance the League uses ("pynvium"), she can only shift the pain from one person to another. Her situation is so rare that it must be kept a secret lest she be used as a weapon. She's been hiding her powers for as long as she can remember. Unfortunate
More...
Jul 13, 2009
Jake
rated it:
Nya is a Taker, which means that she has the ability to absorb the pain of others just by touching their skin. What sets her apart from Healers, however, is the fact that she can't deposit the pain into the magical stone pynvium, and must hold it inside herself until she can shift it into someone else. Shifting, however, is considered a myth--and if the leaders of her community discovers her ability she will be forced to work as an assassin. When her sister, a Healer, disappears, Nya's investiga
More...
Jan 27, 2011
Alex
rated it:
Janice Hardy's 'The Shifter' is the first of a thrilling new young adult trilogy. Geveg is on the verge of another devastating war and Nya feels powerless to defend herself and her younger sister Tila.
Nya is a Taker, like her sister, but unlike most Takers Nya can't take pain to heal others, she can only shift it into someone else. When this becomes common knowledge Nya is sought out by those in desperate need, and others in dangerously powerful positions.
The Shifter is an intrigu More...
Nya is a Taker, like her sister, but unlike most Takers Nya can't take pain to heal others, she can only shift it into someone else. When this becomes common knowledge Nya is sought out by those in desperate need, and others in dangerously powerful positions.
The Shifter is an intrigu More...
Jan 03, 2010
Becky
rated it:
After reading the above blurb, I was so excited to begin The Pain Merchants. I thought the premise sounded fascinating and also thought-provoking. I found myself wondering about the moral implications of having an ability like the main character Nya. Why would you remove a person's pain just to give it to another person? Can purposefully causing another person pain ever be acceptable or morally right? I had expectations that The Pain Merchants would make me face ethical dilemmas and consider the
More...
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Dec 12, 2011
Angela
rated it:
An interesting read but somewhat uninspiring in its construction.
The premise that pain is a transferable entity/force is an original idea and was interesting to read about but the concept failed to deliver. Hardy is an ok writer but there is such a lack of description in this novel that I found it very difficult to actually envision the dystopic fantasy world she has created.
In fact, I find it quite hard to believe that this novel is being categorised as a dystopian in th More...
The premise that pain is a transferable entity/force is an original idea and was interesting to read about but the concept failed to deliver. Hardy is an ok writer but there is such a lack of description in this novel that I found it very difficult to actually envision the dystopic fantasy world she has created.
In fact, I find it quite hard to believe that this novel is being categorised as a dystopian in th More...
Nov 25, 2011
Patricia J.
rated it:
I was intrigued with the premise of this story that some people have a special skill allowing them to take pain from others. For Nya, this talent gets her in trouble and leads to moral choices, because she is forced to shift pain from one person to another. There is solid world-building in Janice Hardy's first book of a series known as the Healing Wars. The complex society, which has suffered more than one war, includes a state-sanctioned healing league, as well as shady pain merchants and Nya,
More...
Jan 29, 2011
Nya is a teenage orphan who can shift pain! But unlike her sister and the rest of the takers, she can pull the pain from one person and push it into someone else. When the country of Gevege runs out of Pynvium to push pain into, all the Takers are used as live pynvium, including Nya’s sister, and are forced to hold so much pain that they cannot move. Nya and her friends must save them from the Healers league before the shifted pain kills them. The only problem is they don’t have pynvium to put t
More...
