Reached by Ally Condie is the third and final book of the Matched Trilogy. It was released a while ago on November 13, 2012. The book takes place after the events of Crossed. This book is told from the point of view from three different people the main characters, Cassia Reyes, Ky Markham, and Xander Carrow.
What I liked about this book was the fact that it was told by different point's of views, I always like it when an author does that because it gives me insight on different characters and it helps me get to know the character better and understand why they're doing what they're doing even if I don't support them for some reason. It's no different with Reached, I enjoyed reading each characters story and I liked seeing that they were doing their own thing and they weren't just moping around for their loved ones like some characters sometimes do in stories.
Another thing I liked about this book was the style, like the first two in the series, Reached was beautifully written. I feel like you'd understand once you've read the books, there's something about Ally Condie's writing that it poetic and almost lyrical. Her style is almost whimsical, it's fancy and it's somewhat playful and I absolutely adore it! When I was reading this series I thought so much about the style of her writing and how much I wished I could write just as good as her one day, hopefully I will be able to at some point in my life.
There are few things that I didn't like about the book but the biggest one would probably be the lack of foreshadowing, some things just sort of felt like they were thrown at me and I was definitely not expecting them. I felt like Ally Condie could have worked on that a little more by actually dropping some hints every now and than so I wouldn't be confused on where that came from.
All in all, I adore this series, it's different from other dystopia novels I've read (and since The Hunger Games, it's been a lot) and the biggest difference is her style of writing. It's beautiful and to me, it makes her really stand out. I'm sad that this series has ended but a movie is set to come out so obviously I'll go see it! I give Reached 4 out of 5 stars.
(405 words)
Crossed by Ally Condie is the second book of the Matched series. Last week I did a book review on the first book of the series which can be found here: Matched book review .
Anyways, I thought Crossed was equally good as the first book, Matched, if not better! I enjoyed the plot, the writing of this book seemed to be ten times better than Matched, the characters development, this book was definitely worth my time.
After being separated, Cassia and Ky are on their own journeys, trying to get back to each other. From the very beginning of Crossed, I could tell, Cassia and Ky had grown as characters. In this book I saw them each in a different light. Cassia was tougher and she wasn't afraid to get what she wanted and she was able to get it successfully. I did not think Cassia was robotic like I initially believed in, Matched, there was more to her in this book because she was becoming a survivor, she was learning how to survive.
Ky was definitely not the same guy you meet in, Matched, he was also tougher and he seemed ten times more wiser then in the first book. Since you read the point of view from both Cassia and Ky in Crossed, you get to connect with each character better then in Matched because you only got Cassia's point of view.
The plot was nice, each character was on a mission and they didn't run into distractions and the book wasn't overflowing with romantic moments like some books tend to be. But when you did have romantic moments, they weren't cheesy, they were genuinely sweet.
I believed the writing in, Crossed, was simply beautiful! The descriptions, the dialogue, it was all amazing and beautifully written. I definitely love reading Ally Condie's writing and I can't wait to read more of it in the future! My favorite quote in the book has to be from Cassia on page 346 (in the hardcover version of the book):
"Everyone has something of beauty about them. In the beginning for me, it was Ky's eyes I noticed, and I love them still. But loving lets you look, and look, and look again. You notice the back of a hand, the turn of a head, the way of a walk. When you first love, you look blind and you see it all as the glorious, beloved whole, or a beautiful sum of beautiful parts. But when you see the one you love as pieces, as whys- why he walks like this, why he closes his eyes like that- you can love those parts, too, and it's a love at once more complicated and more complete."
I just love that quote, it's probably going to be one of my favorite quotes ever because it's such a beautiful thought and it's so true. What I love is how Ally Condie is able to evoke so much emotion in words rather than actions, it's what I would love to accomplish one day as a writer.
The new characters introduced were amazing, Eli and Indie were a wonderful addition to the book and I'm hoping to see them in the last book of the series, Reached, which comes out November 13, 2012 (I can't wait!). Eli did remind me of Bram, Cassia's younger brother, and I just loved how innocent this boy was and how strong he was emotionally even though he had been through so much, the same goes for Indie. Indie was someone I was wary of and I'm glad she was a part of the story because I loved her character since she was so similar to Ky and so smart and cautious.
Because of everything I loved about this book, I would have to give it 5 out of 5 stars.
(525 words, not including quote from book)
Matched by Ally Condie is the first book in the Matched series. The book follows the protagonist, Cassia Reyes who has just attended the matching banquet and has been matched with her best friend, Xander Carrow. The society where Cassia lives is that of a dystopia, the Officials decide where you work, when you die, what you eat, and who you love. After there has been a "mistake", Cassia begins to see Ky as more than a friend and begins to have doubts about the world she lives in and the rules that are enforced and followed without hesitation.
Beginning Matched was somewhat difficult, I liked the idea behind the book but it didn't really capture my attention in the first couple of chapters. As I continued to read about Cassia's world, the rules, and everything else about it I found myself interested in it a bit more. Some of the concepts about the book were confusing at times so I had to reread a couple of pages more than two times. I'm still not so sure about what Cassia really does as a job, I get the basic concept about it but it's still a bit fuzzy. At first I felt like Cassia didn't have much emotion, she felt sort of robotic to me but then I thought: Well she lives in a society where thinking and feeling isn't really required so I guess it made sense for the story. I enjoyed seeing the transformation with Cassia's character because she started off weak but throughout the story certain events made her think in a different way and her thoughts became deeper and it was amazing to read. As the story progressed, I found myself hooked about halfway through the book. Cassia begun to change and I could tell she was feeling emotions, her actions no longer seemed as robotic to me.
The relationship that developed between Ky and Cassia seemed sort of sudden but I grew to enjoy the relationship and it seemed pure which was good. The ending has me very excited for the next book, Crossed. So I plan to read that book this week so I can give it a review next Sunday, hopefully that happens though.
In the end, Matched was a lovely book to read it was beautifully written and it almost seemed like poetry at times which is ironic because some poetry is banned in Cassia's world. I give Matched by Ally Condie 4 stars out of 5 and I can't wait to see what and where Cassia's journey, in search of Ky, leads her!
(432 words)
