Switched by Amanda HockingMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I originally started reading this book as an ebook from its original release (free, self-pubbed edition). I thought it was okay but wasn't really digging it. And then the action sequences got annoying, so I quit. Ha-ha. That was an example of the action that irritated me so much. This happened and then that happened, so I did this. It was a few paragraphs with every sentence like that on the same page which made me throw (place gently) down the book (my iPad) and quit.
But I hate quitting books. I knew this book series had major success as a self-pubbed book. I'd also read that it got a huge deal with a major publisher. I figured, if a publisher bought it, they probably had it edited and fixed the issues I had with the writing. I checked on Amanda Hocking's website and discovered that the content had been revised and issues fixed. I immediately went to my library's website and requested the print version.
I'm so glad I did!
I don't know how different the self-pubbed edition is to the trad-pubbed edition, but the second half of the book was so much better than the first. I did go back to check the one scene I couldn't stand and found it remained unchanged. However, once Wendy went to Forening, her character really blossomed and so did the story.
The romance between Wendy and Finn was a little flat, but has promise and is the main reason I will be getting TORN (book 2, already requested from the library). The mystery and intrigue of the Trylle (troll) society was enough to make me keep turning the page, hoping to find the answers to Wendy's questions (which no one ever gives her - or rarely does anyway). I really was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed the book once I had the paper version in my hands. If TORN is as good as the second half of SWITCHED, I will definitely finish the series and be on the waiting list for her new series (WAKE) coming out this fall (2012).
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I read this. I thought it was a knock off of Twilight, only with trolls.
ReplyDeleteDid you read the whole series, or just book 1? I'm hoping book 2 is better, even though sequels rarely exceed the first in a series.
DeleteI agree that it isn't the most original story (I thought it more like The Princess Diaries, but using 'trolls' instead of Genovians), but it had enough uniqueness to make it enjoyable. The only relations I see to Twilight are that the MC met her beau in high school and the mythological creatures don't resemble their traditional form/characteristics. What connections did you make to Twilight?