Game Changer - Tim Bowler

"Life is hard for Mikey. He's frightened of open spaces and would much rather curl up in his room and avoid the world outside. So going to a noisy, public place is a big deal-but with his sister Meggie by his side, it should be safe. And Mikey is determined to overcome his fear.

But things go badly wrong when he encounters a gang and witnesses something terrible. To make matters worse, they know where he lives, and now they want to see him . . .

This time, there's no hiding place for Mikey . . ."

Game Changer is a short read, took me about an hour to read, which is why I am posting 2 reviews today. Just because it is short don't expect boring. It is quite fast-paced and tense throughout. The only time the pace slowed down slightly was towards the end but by that point I really needed a bit of a breather.

Our main character in this story, Mikey, deals with a rather serious case of Agoraphobia and because of this his family, especially his younger sister, Meggie, are always really aware of him and are keen to support him and help him when things get tough. Throughout the narrative, Mikey makes all kinds of comments in which he feels like he should be treated in a more negative way because of his fears and the way in which his life (and thus his family's life) is changed because of them. I really loved that Mikey has the people in his life that he does, not the usual awful parents seen in books with this type of character. However his sister, Meggie, is his main rock of support.

The relationship between brother and sister is really at the heart of this story, however I found the relationship creepily close and just didn't ring true for me.  

Right from the start, we get this feeling that Mikey is more anxious than normal. His fears and his coping mechanisms for his fears (hiding in a wardrobe) are amped way up and everyone is worried about him. There's a touch of the unreliable narrator at play with Mikey as we don't really learn what he's seen for things to have changed in his life until quite far into the story and at times I was really thinking that Mikey had lost touch with reality and let his fear take over.  

Game Changer was an interesting book. I didn't quite know what to expect when I first started reading it and it surprised me. This is a thriller with an unusual hero and a good fast paced plot. A good quick read.

Age rating I would suggest 13+ as it can get a little dark and involves a very hard-core gang.