Changelings
by Anne McCaffrey and Elizabeth Ann Scarborough
Published by Del Ray
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Reviewed by Guy Wegener
In Changelings, Anne McCaffrey and Elizabeth Ann Scarborough have teamed up. Their focus is on the extraordinary Shongili twins, Murel and Ronan. They commune with animals and change into seals when immersed in water. It is this ability that brings them to the attention of a ruthless scientist, Dr. Maria Mabo.
Fearing for the safety of their children, their parents send the twins off world to hide. While the twins are having problems of their own, so is Petaybee, and it's up to the entire Shongili family to help their sentient planet through this difficult time.
First, I'm not familiar with the first Petaybee trilogy, but I don't believe that hindered my understanding of the characters. McCaffrey and Scarborough do a fine job of introducing readers to the world they've created.
Second, I had high expectations for Changelings since I am familiar with McCaffrey and her Dragons of Pern series. But after reading Changelings I was disappointed and wondered if McCaffrey actually contributed to the writing of this book.
For the first in a new series, Changelings is "fantasy-lite" with two-dimensional characters. Murel and Ronan are misbehaving children. And like all eight year olds, that's not difficult to believe. But what is hard to fathom is that they suddenly mature in two years, and at age 10 are made ambassadors to Petaybee and lead an expedition to a distant world.
The fact that the evil Dr. Mabo is after the twins doesn't seem to concern their parents. And that parents would let them head off to a distant world at such a young age--would win them the "Neglectful Parents of the Year" award.
Climatic situations are easily diffused with characters suddenly appearing to save the day. And a tense situation at the end is fixed with nothing more than a promise to keep a secret, which the twins immediately break.
Armchair Interviews says: There is definitely a good story in Changelings, but it's lost among flat characterization, stilted dialogue and quick fixes to dramatic moments. What should have been an explosive beginning to a new series was merely an adequate outing.