Trolls are real...

No really. They are. Well, at least to Amanda Hocking they are. I just finished reading her trilogy about Trolls nonetheless and to be honest after finishing them I truly wish they were. I know what some of you might be thinking... Why would I want to read a book about naked, stumpy, brown creatures that have crazy colored hair and jewels in their belly buttons. Or you might be thinking of Trolls in the other disturbing sense of creepy, ugly, nasty creatures that roam the earth wanting to eat everyone and everything. Either way, both assumptions are wrong. Amanda has placed a completely new meaning to the term Troll in her Trylle trilogy about their world and their secret kingdom, oddly enough located in Minnesota. (shout out to Jeanne Brown)

Somehow I managed to stumble upon the self-published author while rambling about Amazon.com. It's odd how I can get lost for hours researching book reviews. If there was a disease about being obsessed with reading I most definitely think I would fall victim to its diagnosis. Seriously. I. Am. Pathetic. In the last week alone I read over 9 books. 9 Books. And even though I don't have a "Job". I do have a 5 1/2 month old who requires a lot of attention. So by admitting that I have read 9 books in the last week says several things about myself that I would rather not admit. It's one of those situations where I can look at the glass half full or half empty. I choose half full... all the time. Its the optimist in me and also it allows me to continue on with my reading obsession without feeling like I am being a bad Mother. Which in all honesty I am not at least I don't think so. But you could also argue that anyone with an addiction would always see their choices as always being good and never being bad. An addiction is truly never good. But obviously I am not causing anyone pain or hurting myself by reading too much. My house might not be as clean as my neighbors, but at least I am expanding my creative thinking... right?

Anyhow back to the point. Amanda is a good writer. Not an awe-inspiring, jaw dropping, life changing author, but a nice, all around, good writer. And I don't think you find many authors who write Young Adult Fantasy and are out their changing lives with their fantasy realms about vampires, fairies and the endless forms of magic. But nonetheless they are extremely entertaining and rather addictive to my mind.

Her trilogy can be found on amazon.com and is only available through electronic copies because she is self-published. (although I believe the first and 2nd books are out in paperback now). The good news is that anyone can download the kindle app for their computer or iphone/android phone. Her books are inexpensive as well $.99 to $2.99. Which in comparison to $10-13 for most ebooks its a steal of a deal. Beware of some pretty major editing errors though. Overall they aren't horrible, but they are definitely noticeable, but what do you expect for the price and the fact that she self-published. Gotta give her 2 thumbs up for her success without having a mass market paperback.

Another great piece of information? Her books have been optioned for movie rights. I know it seems like all we hear about these days are books being turned into movies, but its because they make great movies. And trust me... after you read these books you'll be dying to see them on film.

So that's all for now. I know it wasn't much of a review, but I hope it at least encourages you to pick up the first book Switched and try it for yourself. It's only 330 pages so its an easy read.

Enjoy!