The Shifter by Janice Hardy

Hardy, Janice The Shifter 384 pgs. Balzer + Bray, 2009. Violence- PG-13; Language- PG (2 H); Sexual Content- G. $16.99. Nya, an orphan struggling to survive in her war torn country, is a Taker. Takers have the ability to heal injuries, pulling pain from the injured which is then deposited into an enchanted metal called Pynvium. However, Nya is different from other Takers in that she can't deposit her pain into the Pynvium; instead, she can only shift the pain from one person to another. Having been warned to never reveal her ability to shift pain, Nya is forced to expose her secret when her sister is taken captive. What starts out as just a one time thing of shifting pain becomes the only thing that can save Nya's sister, and ultimately, the entire city. Entertaining and interesting. The story is a change of pace from normal fantasy fare, although some passages may need to be re-read because of new vocabulary. Fantasy lovers will enjoy this one. EL/MS-ESSENTIAL. Whitney, Library-Teacher.