Book Review: Crossed by Ally Condie

CROSSED BY ALLY CONDIE

REVIEW BY NICKY

Though I was entertained but not blown away by Matched, I still was intrigued enough to want to continue the series with Crossed. Perhaps it was because the novel's setting took us outside the Society, or perhaps it was the addition of Ky as a narrator, but I enjoyed the 2nd installment in this series better than the first. 

The novel picks up where Matched had left us.  Cassia has been sent by her family to a work camp.  They sent her there, under the guise of a punishment, so that she could pursue her search for Ky.  Ky, in the meantime, has been sent to the Outer Provinces.  He is sent there to impersonate actual visitors, when in reality, those sent there (mostly Aberrations and Anomalies, or non-Citizens) are essentially sent to their death.  They are fired upon by the Enemy and fight to survive each day.  Xander waits for Cassia back in the borough.  He remains an upstanding member of the Society. 
Ky, in the company of two other survivors, escapes the Outer Provinces.  They run to the Carving, which is a dangerous canyon that holds its own mysteries and secrets.  Ky hopes to somehow return to the Society and get back to Cassia.  Meanwhile, Cassia stows away on an airship that she knows is heading for the Outer Provinces.  She knows this is her chance to find Ky.  Following his trail, she and another companion head into the Canyon as well.  After being reunited, the group must fight to survive and decide whether they will join the Rebellion.  It is rumored that the Rebellion is working against the Society.  However, Ky, Cassia, and the other members of their group have different ideas about what the Rebellion is.  Cassia and Ky struggle with tension in their relationship as Cassia realizes that Ky is still holding onto his own secrets, including one about Xander.

There were a few things that I did not like about this novel.  First of all, as in Matched, some of the language, in an attempt to sound poetic, seems a bit forced.  Also, Cassia and Ky's reunion occurs very quickly and without much struggle on either character's part.  I understand that Condie needed to move the plot along in order to carry the rest of the story, so I wasn't too upset by this.  It is refreshing to read from a new character's point-of-view, and I commend Condie on this because it's a brave move and it definitely adds an interesting element to the story.  Although, in this sequel, we miss some of the minor characters from the first, we are introduced to quite a few new ones that truly add some interest... Indie, Eli, Hunter, etc.  Though some may complain that Xander, the 3rd character in this love triangle, is all but missing from the book, I find that he is a large part of it.  What is revealed about Xander gives him the most character development in this sequel. 
Though I enjoyed it more than Matched, I still was not completely thrilled by Crossed.  I found myself reading it just to find out what happens and be done, not out of any true interest in the characters or their fate.  Still, after reading the first two novels in a trilogy, one can't help but carry this through to the end, so yes, I will be picking up Reached on November 13th. 

Book Review: Matched by Ally Condie

Matched by Ally Condie

REVIEW BY NICKY

Matched  was read by many of our high school students this year, and I figured it would be a good, light summer read.  I think, however, that after this one, I may be ready for a break from dystopian fiction.  I think that Matched follows a lot of the same formula as the past few dystopian novels I have read.  The Society limits personal freedoms to maintain peace; the main character (a young girl) realizes how much she wants the ability to choose her own direction, control her own fate; and, of course, you have to have the love triange between the young protagonist and two seemingly equally appealing young men: one, the "safe" choice, and the other, the mysterious, hardened one.  Yes, I do know this is a broad generalization, but I think, to my own discredit, that I have finally gotten myself into a dystopian rut.

Matched starts out by introducing us to Cassia Reyes, who is on her way to her matching ceremony, where The Society will tell her with whom they have "matched" her.  She will spend the rest of her life with this young man, and chances are that she has never met or even seen this person before.  Of course, Cassia, like all young girls in The Society is nervous yet very excited for this momentous occasion.  She is shocked, then, when her match is revealed to be her best childhood friend, Xander.  When she goes home and reviews here match program on her home "port," she is shocked to see another's face on the screen as well: Ky Markham.  Cassia begins to see Ky in a different light, and to realize that the matching system, as well as other things in The Society, seem faulty at least, if not corrupt and cruel.  When it comes time to make her final decision, will Cassia "go gently"? 

I have to admit, I was annoyed by Cassia and Xander from the very beginning.  To be seventeen and not ever question this whole concept of being "matched" seems fairly far-fetched to me.  With Ky, I was a more sympathetic, however, and his story is why I did read this one fairly quickly.  Though I do feel, as I mentioned earlier, that I am in a dystopian rut, I also think that having just finished and loved Where Things Come Back, my standards have been set high, and I am a harsher critic that usual.  Though, my reaction to this book is a bit lack-luster, I do think it is credit to Ally Condie that I found the story intriguing enough to go out and start its sequel, Crossed, right away.