Similar Covers

While these aren't that similar, my mind immediatly went to Ally Condie's Matched when I saw the cover for Jo Knowles' Pearl.  And now I have yet another book I want to read...

Happy Reading!
-Melly

"Crossed" by Ally Condie

I am LOVING the Matched trilogy by Ally Condie!  I powered through Crossed, the second book in the trilogy (Book #3 will be released later this year) and still couldn't get enough.  Cassia and Ky have one common goal- to find each other again.  If you have read Matched (and if you haven't, then you definitely should) then you know that the two are seperated from each other- Ky sent to the Outer Provinces and Cassia risking everything in hopes of one day being reunited with him.  Crossed picks up the story wonderfully!  We find out that there is more in the outside world than our main characters ever could have imagined.

This time, we get a look at Ky's side of the story with chapters alternating from his and Cassia's point of view (how I am hoping that Book #3 will have chapters through Xander's eyes!).  I did feel that the novel progressed a bit too slowly, but this left room for a lot of build up to the conclusion of the series.  This is the first book I was able to cross off my reading list for the year and it has left me thirsting for more!

Find out more on Facebook and Twitter as well as the Matched website!

Happy Reading!
-Melly

"Matched" by Ally Condie

I feel like I may be one of the only people on the planet who had not started the Matched trilogy by Ally Condie yet.  Boy was I missing out!  I powered through the first book this weekend and I will be starting Crossed shortly after finishing this blog.

I like seeing what trends appear to be popular in books and am happy to see that the vampire trend tends to be dying down.  I am also suprised to see that dystopian themed books might be the next big thing.

Cassia (love the name) lives in a seemingly perfect world.  There are no choices, everything is decided for you;  where you will work, when you will die, and who you will marry.  The book starts with Cassia finding out that she is to be matched with her childhood best friend, Xander.  Everything appears to be perfect until she takes a look at the microchip with with Xander's information on it- only to see the face of another boy, Ky.  The Society rarely makes mistakes but they tell Cassia that's what this is; a mistake.  So why does she suddenly find herself wanting to spend time with Ky?  The more time she spends with Ky the more she begins to question the Society she has always known.



This book has a little bit of everything; romance, adventure, action, suspense, and a bit of a cliffhanger.  While I think it will appeal more to girls, it's not overly mushy so I think guys can enjoy it too.  Like many others I'm sure, I found Matched to be quite similar to The Giver by Lois Lowry and Delrium by Lauren Oliver.  If you like Matched and Crossed, I recommend reading the other two while you wait for the trilogy's conclusion.