Review: Switched By Amanda Hocking

Title: Switched

Author: Amanda Hocking

Series: Trylle Trilogy #1

Genre: Young Adult

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Release Date:
January 3rd 2012

Source: 

LibraryThing Early Reviewers Program 

Format: ARC

Buy the Book: Amazon

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 discovers her mother might have been right. With the help of Finn Holmes, Wendy finds herself in a world she never knew existed - a world both beautiful and frightening, and Wendy's not sure she wants to be a part of it.

Switched is the first book in a trilogy that was first self published and now is being re-published by St. Martin's Press. Even though I had the opportunity to see those books before, I hadn't had the opportunity to read the blurb or to look information about this series.

So when I got this book, I didn't know anything about it. It was a completely mystery, and I'm happy about that. After finishing reading the book I decided to read some reviews, and for my frustration some of them tells you in one sentence all the book is about. C'mon! I hate that! If you know what the book is about, first, you will know almost everything about the plot, and second (in my case) If I would have known what the book was about, I'm one 100% sure I wouldn't have read it… and I would have missed a great story.

Like the synopsis says, the story talks about Wendy, a girl who when she was 6 years old, her mother tried to kill her. She was convinced that her "daughter" was a monster. But, after eleven years, Wendy starts to doubt and some strange things make her believe that maybe her mother was right after all. She doesn't belong to the place where she is living. 

I must say that the story caught my attention immediately. The way the story is told is in first person POV, something really common in YA books, and it's really simple and easy to read.  But what keeps you motivated is the mystery that surrounds the story. Even though a few things can look really obvious or you might know what is going to happen next, you can stop reading until you finish the book.

Some of the characters are really nice, and others not so much, and the author did a great job creating each one of them. They are very realistic and at the same time common. Wendy is the typical teenage girl and the typical main character of a YA book. Nothing different. She has never felt loved or felt that she belonged to "her world", although her brother and aunt loved her and demonstrate their affections to her every time they had. And those things are really important to the plot, because for that reason is why she decides to change everything and look for the real place she is from. That is when the story gets more complicated, and this is when Wendy discovers the truth. But what Wendy doesn't know is that all that glitters is not gold, and she will need to find where she really belongs to. Truth is more complicated than you can imagine. 

Like I said before, this book is full of mystery, unexpected twists, and incredible characters. There is also romance, lies, magic and supernatural powers. A great combination of incredible elements that will make you read and read until you finish the book, and I'm sure, you'll ask for more. 

Happy Reading!

Loved it!

Amanda Hocking is the USA Today bestselling author of the Trylle trilogy and six additional self-published novels.  After selling over a million copies of her books, primarily in eBook format, she is widely considered the exemplar of self-publishing success in the digital age. 

Visit her Website