Book Review: Matched by Ally Condie

Rating: 4/5; Really liked it. Enjoyable. Re-readable.

Release Date: November 30, 2010

Series: Yes it is!

Synopsis:
In the Society, Officials decide. Who you love. Where you work. When you die. 

Cassia has always trusted their choices. It’s barely any price to pay for a long life, the perfect job, the ideal mate. So when her best friend appears on the Matching screen, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is the one . . . until she sees another face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black. Now Cassia is faced with impossible choices: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she’s known and a path no one else has ever dared follow—between perfection and passion. 

Matched is a story for right now and storytelling with the resonance of a classic.
-goodreads


Thoughts:
Start saving up because this is the next book for you! Let me state why I liked this read so much :)
Even though this book starts out slow and kind of reads like a Middle Grade read it's going to be enjoyable for ages 12 and up. For a YA book there's not really much sexuality (like there is in a bunch of YA's considering most are coming of age stories in one way or another), but that may change in the coming sequel/s. In the mean time, it's appropriate for the younger audiences. Anyway, Cassia lives in a crappy society that controls what anyone can do including how they live and how they die. Her whole society does not have a choice in anything. One of the things the Society ( that's what the higher ups that control everything are called) controls is who one marries, but Cassia is falling for the guy she's not arranged to marry. 
Gradually, Ally Condie gives us more bits of information on how Cassia's society works while Cassia begins thinking about how messed up her society is. How can they keep controlling everyone's lives like this? Cassia finds herself breaking more and more rules and getting a taste of freedom. She of course likes it and wants more of it. She not only wants freedom, but she also wants to choose who she loves. 
There's a love triangle in which I wish both guys had a semi-equal amount of time in the book, but nope. That makes me sad :( Either way, it's a cute love story and even though it's not exactly what I hoped, readers will want more of it. I also wasn't a huge fan of the fact that a huge chunk of the story is about the Society and how it works. I want to know more about the characters and I want to know more about any adventures they are going to partake in! 
Condie created a dystopian read with a great set of characters, twists, and surprises. I wonder where she will take the story next. All I really want to say is, I very much liked this world (not the mean parts, but the hope building up inside Cassia) and I know many readers who enjoy an entertaining story will most likely enjoy it. The main downsides are how the reader gets a lot of background information, not much adventure, and at times the pacing is slow. I for one, was still intrigued and ended up liking it. 
I must stop thinking about this book now because I'll go crazy waiting for the sequel especially since there's no word on the release date (Ms. Condie's still working on it). 

Tag Cloud:
Nightshade by Andrea Cremer - These two reads have quite a bit in common, including the bit about arranged marriage, choosing between two great guys, and living among a society where your choices are not your own. Ally Condie. Arranged marriage. Dystopian. Love triangles.

~~Lisette~~