Review: Torn by Amanda Hocking

Torn
Author: Amanda Hocking
Series: Trylle, #2

Summary:  
When Wendy Everly first discovers the truth about herself--that she's a changeling switched at birth--she knows her life will never be the same. Now she's about to learn that there's more to the story... She shares a closer connection to her Vittra rivals than she ever imagined--and they'll stop at nothing to lure her to their side.

With the threat of war looming, her only hope of saving the Trylle is to marry a powerful royal. But that means walking away from Finn, her handsome bodyguard who's strictly off limits...and Loki, a Vittra prince with whom she shares a growing attraction.

Torn between her heart and her people, between love and duty, Wendy must decide her fate. If she makes the wrong choice, she could lose everything, and everybody, she's ever wanted...in both worlds.

Review

Once again I am sucked into this magical world of trolls from the very first page. Wendy Everly is back home. And Rhys is with her. Her brother is unbelievably confused as she tries to explain to him that Rhys is actually his real, flesh and blood sibling, and he continues to ask questions, though Wendy isn't sure she should answer him and leaves most of the truth unspoken. But it isn't long before the Vittra catch up with her, kidnapping not only her, but also Rhys and their brother Matt.

If you've read Switched, you know that the Vittra are the sworn enemy of the Trylle, but nobody seems to be able to tell her why; no one really knows what started the war between them. While being imprisoned at the Vittra King's palace, Wendy learns just how close of a connection she shares with them and just how desperate they are to have her on their side. And with a gorgeous Vittra prince named Loki vying for her affection, staying with them seems more appealing than ever. But Wendy knows that something isn't quite right and she plots her escape, finding it easier than she deemed to be possible.

Once she finds her way back to Forening, with Rhys and Matt at her side, she is forced to face her future and tell Matt the truth about where she was and who she really is, which he finds a bit difficult to grasp, but finds comfort in spending time Rhys and Willa. Wendy begins her training with the Markis Tove, and discovers that controlling her abilities is far more difficult than she could ever have imagined. And just when she's beginning to form a relationship with her mother, she learns a truth almost too difficult to bare and what she has in store for Wendy as the leader of the Trylle. All of this at the price of a broken heart, for not only is she in love with someone who she can never have and who is not her betrothed, but she is also falling for someone else who is even more off limits, someone willing to give up everything to be with her. So when the time comes to take the crown, will she muster up the strength to go through with the plan? Or will she once again plot to escape the life she never wanted?

I feel deeply for Wendy at this point in the plot. She is faced with a life she never wanted, but feels obligated to take the thrown, to lead the Trylle and find a way to bring peace between them and the Vittra. And it's more difficult than ever with a huge secret that is revealed at the beginning of the book. And now, not only is she betrothed to someone she doesn't want (although she doesn't hate the guy and actually likes him as a person), but she is also torn between two guys she can never have: Finn, a tracker (which is basically a slave in the world of the Trylle); and Loki, a Vittra prince (although he is unbelievably charming and kind). At this point, I have no idea which guy I'm rooting for because they are both amazing!! Part of me is hoping that she'll find a way to be with Finn, but then another part of me is hoping that she'll run away with Loki. Wendy as really grown since the beginning of the story; she no longer throws tantrums about every little thing, and she's starting to learn that sometimes you have to about what you want and put the needs of others before them. That is what she is trying to do at the end of Torn. I do have the slight feeling that at the beginning of Ascend, she will make her escape and run off with Loki for a while before taking the thrown, but that is just what I imagine happening (and what a part of me wants to happen anyways!).

I actually like this installment better than the first, but I think it's because we get more insight into both the Trylle and the Vittra (though not a tremendous amount), and the fact that there are the beginnings of a pretty big love triangle, but you get so sucked into this world of magical trolls that you can't help but want read and know more.



I rate this book: