Published: November 30th, 2010; Dutton Juvenile
366 pages
From Goodreads:
Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate... until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black.
The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow.
My Rating:
4 stars
My Thoughts:
I have
been wanting to read Matched for quite a while, so you can only imagine my
excitement when I finally found it at
the library. I know I'm pretty behind on reviewing it, since it came out in
2010, but I wanted to share my opinion anyways. It wasn't the greatest book
I've ever read, but Matched was still an amazing dystopian story. I might be a
little bit biased because I'm obsessed with anything dystopian, but I haven't
read a single dystopian novel (as of yet) that has let me down completely.
Matched
had some rough edges, but it was overall a good book. Cassia seemed shallow at
points, but - in my opinion - that's what happens when you're brainwashed to
sit back while someone controls your entire life for you. She was raised to
follow instruction, not think for herself, so you can't expect her to be a
strong-minded, independent person just yet. I'm hopeful she grows into a
stronger personality in the next book, because she had just begun to change by
the end of the first book.
I
thought Condie did a great job creating the society - it was detailed, and the
government seemed like a menacing force. But there really wasn't much
background on how the society formed in the first place. The Society didn't
seem loosely thrown together, but at least a little more past info would have
helped, such as why the country is divided as it is, and if all of the changes
happened gradually over time, or if there was a war that caused sudden changes.
I have a few questions, and I hope they're answered in the next book.
My
final problem is that I would have enjoyed a bit more "fireworks"
between Cassia and her men. It was simply stated that she and Xander were best
friends, but their interactions didn't make it seem that way. Even when they
acted like a couple it reminded me of grade school puppy love. Cassia's
relationship with Ky was a bit more dangerous and forbidden, but there was a
lack of romantic tension built up between them (other than Cassia saying she
wanted to kiss Ky). It seemed a little lacking; once again, I'm hopeful to see
them develop more in the next book.
Aside
from the things I DIDN'T like about this book, there were plenty of good parts
to it, and I expect the problems will be ironed out in the later books. I loved
the addition of the poetry in the story, and the way it inspired Cassia to act.
And (as I said before) I thought the concept of The Society was original (it
just needs to be explained a bit more). This book was really good. It had
imperfections, but not so many that I had to set the book down and stop reading
it. I enjoyed it, and I would totally recommend reading Matched, whether you're dystopia obsessed
like me, or you just want a good book to read.
