Customer Reviews

Switchcraft

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Switchcraft is a fun read with great characters that you really care about and a suprise ending. What more could you want?

I liked the concept but it was SOOO confusing to follow who was talking when after they did the switch.

I found this book a fun original read. I loved the way Mary fused new age spas into fun chica lit tome. As a San Diego native, I also loved the specifics Mary used to describe the San Diego Gaslamp single life and Eastlake suburban mommydom. (Go Pannikan Coffee) Non San Diegans will love a glimpse into the So Cal lifestyle. I also loved the cameo by Mary's previous characters.

Unlike other body swap stories such as It's a Boy Girl Thing, Freaky Friday, Dream a Little Dream, Being John Malkovich, Vice Versa, or 18 Again Mary Castillo's new novel, Switchcraft is fresh, mesmerizing, and unmatched in what could have been a very derivative story in the genre.

Aggie and Nely, two life-long friends, accidentally switch bodies at new age spa while attempting to commune with Aggie's deceased mother. Aggie finds herself as a pudgy super-mom with an impossible, meddling mother-in-law from hell, and Nely finds herself in a sleek, single body with a failing business and a scary stalker. The two spend the next month realizing what they had and what they have lost biding their time until the guru can switch their consciousness's back to their own bodies.

Castillo's unique story is creative in that it deals with Latina peers and the culture of their machismo men. It is modern without being stereotypical. Fans of women's fiction will adore the very hot, erotic dream Nely has of her husband, Simon, and romantics will appreciate the way tough-guy Simon sees through the exterior of Aggie to find the soul of his wife, Nely. Castillo spends enough time creating three-dimensional Aggie and Nely characters that the reader feels a clear connection with both.

Castillo's book is smart, inventive, and an extremely satisfying read! She is also the author of Hot Tamara and In Between Men.

It was only supposed to be a relaxing weekend at a New Age spa....

When Aggie Portrero drags her friend, Nely Mendoza, to a meditation session with Guru Sauro, neither expects the results. Aggie wants to see her now deceased mother but instead Nely and Aggie end up switching bodies. Now, Aggie must cope in Nely's life as a married woman with a toddler and a meddling mother-in-law, while Nely finds herself in the role of an independent businesswoman on the brink of financial disaster. Will Aggie and Nely be able to pull off their charades and still remain friends?

Life sure does get convoluted quickly for Aggie and Nely! Despite their assertions that they are close friends, Aggie and Nely have drifted apart as their lives have gone in very different directions. In fact, at times they are downright cruel to one another. I almost wanted to shake them both and say, "Grow up!" as they both seemed locked in their own self-absorbed worlds in the beginning. However, as the story progresses, the underlying reasons for their behaviors begin to emerge as Aggie and Nely learn what walking in another's shoes really means.

The most difficult part of SWITCHCRAFT is keeping Nely and Aggie's personalities straight when they first switch bodies. Neither initially appears very likable and so despite the fact that their outward appearances are very different, their inner personalities seem quite alike. However, as Nely and Aggie are forced in situations outside their comfort zones, the bonds of friendship are truly tested as the surface masks of everyday appearances are blasted away.

Oddly enough, the individual with the strongest personality is Simona, aka La Cacuy or Nely's mother-in-law. Talk about the nerve of some people! Aggie gains a whole new level of respect for Nely as she is forced to deal with this manipulating and downright mean woman.

SWITCHCRAFT is all about looking past outward appearances. Just as Aggie and Nely had drifted apart, so do friends in real life. Mary Castillo makes some very valid points about friendships and the masks people wear. SWITCHCRAFT is entertaining, albeit painful at times, and the slight paranormal aspects add a needed touch of humor.

COURTESY OF CK2S KWIPS AND KRITIQUES

Switching lives is a well-used plot device that here leads to madcap scenarios and deep introspection. Castillo allows her heroines to scramble and make entertaining and illuminating discoveries. Toss in some danger, and this is first-rate fun!

SUMMARY: A trip to a New Age spa takes two friends on a wild and scary ride into each other's lives. Nely Mendoza is married with a young child and Aggie Portero is an entrepreneur. During a ceremony, Aggie and Nely switch bodies and are told they're stuck that way until the next full moon. After first freaking out, they decide to make the best of things, as different as they are. For Aggie, suddenly being responsible for a baby and dealing with a nasty mother-in-law is a big wake-up call, while Nely finds her business sense reawakening. But keeping the husband and boyfriend in the dark may be the biggest challenge of all.

Reviewed by Vicky Burkholder
on 07/13/2008

Aggie is a high-maintenance, no strings attached, single owner of a failing boutique. Her best friend, Nely, is an overweight, married mother of an eighteen-month-old and subject to an overbearing, meddlesome mother-in-law. Both look at each other's lives with a touch of envy.

While on a girlfriend's weekend at a New Age spa, the pair ends up getting their spirits switched into each other's bodies. What follows is a month of mishaps, misadventures, and a new understanding of each other.

The story is a bit cliché, having been done in "Freaky Friday" (twice) and other similar stories. The premise is different in that the switch lasts a full month. The evil mother-in-law is also a stereotypical cliché. In addition, the writing is mediocre, making one wonder if Avon is in need of a good copy editor. There were multiple point of view shifts, many within the same page, leading to confusion as to whose head we were in and when. While in one person's Point Of View, we were given information from another character that the first person had no way of knowing, such as while talking on the phone in Character 1's POV, Character 2 pounded on the wall - something the point of view character had no way of knowing. For this one sentence, we were drawn out, then abruptly dumped back. Also, there were loose ends either left dangling or with unsatisfactory ends.

I think with a good editor and a major re-write, this could be a very good story. As it stands, it is mediocre at best. If you can ignore the clichés, stereotypes and head-hopping, go ahead and try this story. But if you're just looking for a fun "switch" story, go rent "Freaky Friday."

2.5 Books

Married with an infant Nely Mendoza is the best friend of commitment phobia boutique owner Aggie Portero. Although their lifestyles are 180 degrees apart each to a degree envies what the other has. While Nely wipes the baby clean, Aggie kicks herself for sleeping with her neighbor Kevin. Both look forward to sharing a girls' weekend together at Venatana de Oro spa where the highly regarded Guru Sauro practices his Seekers of the Dead mumbo jumbo.

However at the spa the "grumpy Guru", tired of their whining, believes the two best friends need a kick in the butt to learn that each lives a rich fulfilling life. He performs SWITCHCRAFT so that Aggie's conscience resides inside Nely's body and visa versa as Nely's is inside that of Aggie. Now Aggie deals with Nely's baby, her needy husband Simon, and her sarcastic mother-in-law, while Nely manages Aggie's boutique and keeping Kevin on the other side of the fence.

Switching bodies has been used in many books and movies, but Mary Castillo makes it feels fresh because the audience obtains a deep introspective look inside the souls of the two prime characters as Nely and Aggie learn that the grass on the other side of the fence might be brown under close inspection. The story line is amusing as each of the switcheroos struggle with living their best friend's life. Readers will appreciate the latest New Age reincarnation of switch.

Harriet Klausner