Ascend by Amanda Hocking

Ascend by Amanda Hocking is the third and final book in the Trylle trilogy. You can read my reviews of the first book, Switched, and the second book, Torn, at their respective links.

Ascend picks up the story shortly after Torn left off. As usual, it’s difficult to review a sequel without spoilers, so excuse my vagueness.

Wendy, who only learnt she was a troll Trylle princess in book one, now has to save her kingdom from destruction by the dark and power-hungry king of the Vittra, another race of trolls. The problem, of course, is the Vittra are physically much stronger than the Trylle and the Vittra king is very powerful magically.

As with the previous books, I particularly enjoyed Wendy’s attitudes towards the various love-interesty boys in her life:

• She never lets boys interfere with her mission (to save the kingdom)


• She does what she has to do without ignoring what she wants to do (so long as that doesn’t interfere too much)


• She has sane reactions to their bullshit where relevant (“you didn’t love me enough to make any sacrifices yet you still expect me to want to be with you?”)


• She’s not afraid to tell boys to piss off (eg when they’re showering her with unwanted attention/affection)

The lack of a conventional love triangle is also a big point in this series’ favour. At the end of book two, I was a bit confused as to how the boy she does end up with was a serious contender, but having read Ascend it does work.

I enjoyed this series very much. It’s one of the less conventional YA fantasies I’ve read lately, particularly thanks to the lack of love triangle. And the troll part was novel too, I suppose. I recommend it to anyone who likes YA fantasy/paranormal.

4 / 5 stars