Torn (Trylle, #2)

by Amanda Hocking

[Kim Deister]

Torn begins as Switched finishes. This is an apt title for this book, as it is all about Wendy being torn between the people she loves and her destiny. She struggles to decide what the right choices are, knowing that the wrong choice could destroy her world... both of her worlds.

She is conflicted, unsure of what she should believe and who she should trust in her new world. She is overwhelmed and confused and doesn't really understand what is happening around her. That drove me nuts. For most of the book, various people are pulling at her in different directions, telling her what she should be doing without telling her why. There are so many things going on under the radar in the kingdom, but no one will explain anything to her and she tends to rebel. Elora and Aurora continue to snark at her, trying to mold her into something, someone she just isn't.

I loved this book even more than the first. Her struggles were real and I felt her frustration. I wanted to jump into the book and slap those who treated her so badly, even as they wanted her to save them all. The caste system also drove me nuts in this book, how badly the trackers were treated. These are the people expected to sacrifice everything for the nobles and yet they were treated as though they were disposable. They were the soldiers of the society and I suppose that, as a former soldier myself, it bothered me that their lives were so worthless and unsupported, even as they were expected to risk themselves.

Willa, whom I really didn't like in the first book, begins to come into her own. She grows up and realizes that people are people, regardless of caste. I loved that change, and it made me love her. There are all kinds of new characters inn this book, Tove being one of my favorites. He is starting to have a big role in the series and there is a bit of mystery about him. Wendy, too, begins to change and I love that she still has that spark and bucks the traditions of the kingdom!

Bonus: There's a bonus short story in the newer editions of the book, One Day, Three Ways, set in the world of the Trylle!

My Recommendation: Love the cover, love the story! This is my favorite thus far and I definitely recommend it! I gave it 4.5 mugs!