Monday 18 June 2012

Switched - Book Review

Switched (Trylle Trilogy #1)
by Amanda Hocking


What is it about:
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've 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.

What did I think of it:
This is a nice enough read, but it had some things that annoyed me.

First there's the fact that a boy turns up in Wendy's life and starts telling her she's actually a Trylle and that she should leave her family to come with him to the world of the Trylles. At first Wendy declares him crazy and doesn't want him near her. A logical reaction in my opinion and I hoped there would be a believable story arc in which Finn manages to convince Wendy...

Alas: Like a Deus Ex Machina bad guys turn up to go after Wendy, forcing her to take Finn's wild tale for Gospel Truth and follow him.

Then there's Wendy herself. That little bit of spine she had before the bad guys turn up, quickly disappears and for most part of the book she turns into a doormat who lets people jostle her around. I couldn't help wanting to kick her and tell her to grow back her spine and to demand some answers from people instead of just going along with everything. When she finally does speak up against something she acts like a whiny brat though, not earning her any sympathy from me.

So while I thought the overall story was nice and the world building was interesting, I had a hard time liking and understanding Wendy. I might give book two a chance though, if only to see if Wendy manages to grow back her spine permanently.

Why should you read it:
It's a nice YA paranormal read with interesting world building


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7 comments:

LM Preston said...

It's nice that you still want to dive into the next book. Sometimes connecting to a character is a personal preference. I'll check this one out.

Carrie at In the Hammock Blog said...

hmm, sounds only ok, i keep seeing her books everywhere though!!

titania86 said...

I agree with you. Wendy lost a lot of her spunk after she got attacked and she mooned way too much over Finn. She acted like she would die without him, which was really annoying.

Melliane said...

I was wondering about this book as I loved the cover. But I finally saw a lot of mixed reviews as well, so I don't know what I'll do. I will wait for your second review. thanks!

Aurian said...

You are so brave for trying out so many YA books. I often prefer the safer road with one of my autobuy authors.

Red Tash said...

I felt similarly. I really wanted to like it, because I'm a troll girl, but it just didn't work for me.

Sullivan McPig said...

@Melliane: I'll try to get it soon ;-)
@Aurian: I like trying out new authors, but yeah, it leads to some disappointing reads sometimes.
@Red Tash: I had hoped they'd be more trollish than they turned out to be I will confess.