Review - Crossed by Ally Condie

Title: Crossed
Matched #2
Author: Ally Condie
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Publish Date: Nov 1, 2011
Hardcover, 368 pages

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I am starting to think I am just not a fan of the second book in a series. I once heard that a trilogy goes something like birth, life and death. The first book in the series is the beginning. The excitement of everything new and wild. There's love and learning and risk. The second book is built on the first. Maybe a few new characters, some new adventures, but it is almost like they are just setting us up for the final book. I feel like the second book is a roller coaster ride that never ends. I feel a bit tired, a bit motion sick, a bit bored mixed with the excitement, happiness and love reminisce of the first book. This isn't sounding like a positive book review, but the fact is, I like this book. The plot and concept are brilliant. The characters are smart, funny, vulnerable and good. There are secrets everyone is keeping, but we know it is for their own safety. It is very much a mirror to life, should we ever have society like this, hence dystopian.

Ally Condie has a very unique writing method that makes me feel I am there and I just love Cassia. If she were real, we would definitely be friends. She makes a great female role model. And Ky makes me sigh. He is romantic and caring and yet determined to be with Cassia. Secretly I like him better than Xander. But I like flaws. Xander seems too perfect, even though they reveal his secret in this book! The development of this society outside the city is fascinating. Meeting the farmers, their life and deaths. Wandering from outside territory and dealing with kids like them only lost. Finding Cassia's and Ky's own ways and wants.

I WISH I KNEW WHAT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN!

It kills me to have to wait. I get why people say they wait for the entire series to be printing to start reading. I almost felt I needed to reread the first book. Regardless, I fell in love again. And it finished with a very wonderful lesson of "be careful what you wish for."



AND HER THIRD BOOK, yet to be determined, has the words on the pre-book cover "It's her turn to choose. Fall 2012. All will be sorted."

OMG I am so excited to read the ending. I hope she chooses Ky, but then again, the next book should have more about Xander so I will get to know him better. Maybe, maybe I'll like him better?


Summary -
The hotly awaited second book in the dystopian Matched trilogy

In search of a future that may not exist and faced with the decision of who to share it with, Cassia journeys to the Outer Provinces in pursuit of Ky - taken by the Society to his certain death - only to find that he has escaped, leaving a series of clues in his wake.

Cassia's quest leads her to question much of what she holds dear, even as she finds glimmers of a different life across the border. But as Cassia nears resolve and certainty about her future with Ky, an invitation for rebellion, an unexpected betrayal, and a surprise visit from Xander - who may hold the key to the uprising and, still, to Cassia's heart - change the game once again. Nothing is as expected on the edge of Society, where crosses and double crosses make the path more twisted than ever.

Review - Matched by Ally Condie

Title: Matched
matched #1
Author: Ally Condie
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Publish Date: November 30, 2010
Hardcover, 366 pages

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Cassia is what every girl wants to be by society - good. She follows the rules, she is excited for her future, she is good at what she does. She is in love with life. She has dreams. She just wants to live a good, happy life. So when her Matching Banquet comes around, she cannot wait. It is the moment all teenagers wait for. To see who she will spend the rest of her life with. She is lucky to be matched to Xander, he friend since she was younger. Most matches do not know their people. Cassia finds Xander handsome and good as well. She feels so lucky. Until fate steps in and shows her another face on her screen. One she doesn't know. It confuses her and makes her start to question everything. Especially when she meets this mysterious man. He is kind too. But he has knowledge. And knowledge is power. Ky and Cassia are paired together in an outdoor retreat class and soon become fast, secret friends. But the more Cassia gets to know Ky and waht he knows, the more she wonders if being good means following society or her own heart.

I loved this book because it talks about following your inner feelings rather than doing what everyone else is doing. Listening to our own inner dialog can be extremely difficult. Cassia is a strong and bright character, which I like too. When she really starts paying attention, she sees things that are supposed to be not seen and instead of forgetting them, she starts to wonder. Without making rash judgments, she learns what she feels and how she views the world. Even, at times, against the own advice of her close friends. In a society, that on the outside seems to want the best for each person, turns out that the best for each person also benefits the society - and maybe more for the Society than the person. To follow society or follow your heart . . .

I am really excited to read the next installment. What Cassia does and who she ends up with, will be interesting.

Check out the next in the series - Crossed!
The hotly awaited second book in the dystopian Matched trilogy

In search of a future that may not exist and faced with the decision of who to share it with, Cassia journeys to the Outer Provinces in pursuit of Ky - taken by the Society to his certain death - only to find that he has escaped, leaving a series of clues in his wake.

Cassia's quest leads her to question much of what she holds dear, even as she finds glimmers of a different life across the border. But as Cassia nears resolve and certainty about her future with Ky, an invitation for rebellion, an unexpected betrayal, and a surprise visit from Xander - who may hold the key to the uprising and, still, to Cassia's heart - change the game once again. Nothing is as expected on the edge of Society, where crosses and double crosses make the path more twisted than ever.