Matched by Ally Condie
pages: 366
released: November 2010
publisher: Dutton Juvenile
cover love: ♥♥♥♥

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. (Goodreads)

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON 11/7/2011 ON BOOKSLIKESTARS.NET

Review:

I wish I would’ve read Matched before I went to BEA 2011. If I had, I would’ve went all fan-girly on Ally Condie while getting my copy of Crossed. Plain and simple, this is a sweet yet bitter dystopian romance that will not be easily forgotten. 

Everything starts to fall apart for Cassia Reyes after she is Matched (a futuristic arranged marriage) with her best friend, Xander. One night, as she inserts a microcard that obtains all Xander’s information, she gets a glimpse of another boy’s face in place of Xander’s. Ky Markham, another boy from her borough. Though an Official confirms that this was a computer malfunction and that Xander is her true Match, she cannot help but wonder…what if Ky is her real Match?

I loved how much Matched made me think about where this world is headed. Especially here in America. About what’s going to happen when technology takes over our lives so deeply that we forget how to write with a pen and paper. Can you imagine yourself not knowing how to write in script? One of the scariest parts about dystopian societies, is how little individuality anybody has. It feels like the first thing to go is creativity, religion, anything that makes you stand out from the rest. Imagine if you only had 100 songs that were allowed to be listened to or only 100 poems that are allowed to be read? Getting in trouble for running down the street? This is how it is in Oria, where Cassia, Xander and Ky live. All their choices are made for them, based on percentages and probability. Citizens are carefully monitored by the Society, what they dream, what they eat, how much they exercise. I couldn’t imagine living like this, I would go nuts. Matched does make me think that Oria could be a possible future for us, if everything were to tumble.

Then there’s the romance. I loved loved loved how Cassia and Ky fell for each other. It’s so built up. You keep waiting for it to happen and it almost does, then their time runs out so you have to wait. AHHHH! It was refreshing to have such a credible love triangle. There was no insta-love fest going on here. Cassia and Ky really try and get to know each other. What little time they spend with one another is not wasted and they share secrets and make new ones between them. Just like Cassia, I felt torn between Xander and Ky because they’re both great. She really has to struggle against what Society is telling her is right and what her heart is telling her right. 
Ally Condie is an amazing author, she has blended the best of both worlds inside of Matched: a thought provoking subject and a contagious love affair. I can’t wait to dive into CROSSED!

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