Review: Matched by Ally Condie

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 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. ~from Goodreads


The first dystopian novel I read was Delirium, and I have a feeling I’ll be comparing the rest of the dystopians to it. Matched was a good read, but I suppose I expected a little more. Not that I didn’t enjoy it, or that the story wasn’t done right. I was engrossed in it. Sometimes when you read books that have complicated story lines, you can be a little irritated with the setbacks (like rules keeping people from doing what they want, or from doing the right thing).

Like in Matched, everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, is regulated. Controlled. There is little that a person can do of their own choice. The whole love triangle brewing between Cassia and her match Xander and Ky, causing you to wonder where it will lead. How can it even get to anywhere with all the restrictions? How annoying are all the restrictions? I felt so claustrophobic thinking about it. I cannot imagine how it would feel to have everything planned and carried out by officers to keep it properly done. Yet I couldn’t stop reading because I wanted to see what Cassia was going to do about her feelings, IF there was anything she was going to be able to do without getting caught.

A great and well written story that definitely made me want more. I think my only issues were with where it was going near the end, which I cannot divulge so as not to spoil. Not that it was a bad way to end the first book or anything, it's just, different. I do have high hopes for where it will continue in the next book.