Title: Switched
Author: Amanda Hocking
Pages: 330
Genre: YA/ Fantasy
Source: Purchased
When Wendy Everly was six-years-old, her mother was convinced she was a monster and tried to kill her. It isn't until eleven years later that Wendy finds out her mother might have been telling the truth.
With the help of Finn Holmes, Wendy finds herself in a world she never knew existed - and it's one she's not sure if she wants to be a part of. [via GoodReads]
I have to say that what originally intrigued me about this book was its high ranking on Amazon's e-book bestsellers list and secondly it's low price of $.99 (Price has gone up since Ms. Hocking broke into NY Bestsellers List). But I was truly surprised by how good this story really was.
I found Wendy to be a very refreshing character. I liked her disposition and her "who cares" attitude. Along comes Finn and the tale he weaves is unbelievable to her, yet Wendy knows that she has never been a normal girl. In search of her roots and to keep her family safe, she flees with Finn into a world that she never dreamed of.
I really liked the growth and maturity that Wendy shows throughout our story. She's stubborn and headstrong and I truly appreciated that she didn't stray from her feelings. Considering the drastic change she goes through - from leaving the only family she's ever known behind and thrown into a fantasy world that she never imagined existed, I think she handles herself very well.
I think Ms. Hocking does a great job in her world building and character dynamics. I was sucked into the story right from its start. Although I must confess that it did slow down a bit for me in the middle (there was only so much I could take of daily activities). But aside from that I think this was a great start to the Trylle Trilogy.
I really commend Ms. Hocking for self-publishing her series - but I will forewarn that it does show in some places. There were some typo's and a few instances where a word was used incorrectly. But if you can overlook these minor flaws, you will find a gem in this series.
Full of twists and turns, romance and a cliffhanger ending that will leave you hooked - you'll definitely want to check this series out.
My Rating:
I'm so glad you reviewed this one. I stumbled upon it a while back and downloaded it for .99 onto my kindle. I started reading it and thought it was AWESOME. Then, I became preoccupied with other books I was forced to read because of review deadlines and such. I really want to know how it ends. Hocking's is such a great writer, I downloaded her next series book one for .99 too.
ReplyDeleteA great review you've written here. It makes me want to get back to reading it sooner than later.
I think it's great that the author self-published. A few errors here and there are easy to overlook. Yay for Amanda :)
ReplyDeleteI love Amanda and her work. She is one of my favorite authors.
ReplyDeleteHer other series "My Blood Approves" and her book "Hollowland" are both awesome as well!
Great review!
Interesting. This isn't one I would have picked up, but it sounds good. Thanks for reviewing!
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