Crossed (Matched)

SUMMARY - Cassia has been sent to work camps so she can learn submission to the Society after her love for Ky was discovered. But she is really here to find Ky, who was sorted and taken away. And she was the one who sorted him. Now it's up to her to find him; if she could only get into the Outer Provinces... She has the Compass from Ky and the blue tablets from Xander, and she will use both of them to find her way. Two boys, two worlds, and one journey that will break hearts, heal hearts, and change them. MY THOUGHTS - I am a very expressive reader. Meaning, I jump, scream, squeal, blush, giggle, laugh, groan, and more - very openly. My poor family... ;) In any case, as far as the louder, more intense expressions of emotion go - I save those for the best of the best. So know I'm telling you the truth when I say that Crossed is one of the best of the best. I screamed at least seven times, blushed, giggled, jumped, and groaned - all in this book. And the screaming - it was loud. Just sayin'. Even more shocking and amazing is that my sister, who is not one to show such strong emotions while reading, not only did the same as I did, but also screamed/giggled with me when I read it! Not only did it excite me (and my sister) to extremes, but it also made me want to sit still (I know, ironic, huh?) and contemplate the beautiful, poetry-like prose, the deeper meanings, the lyrical tones. While reading I came across the sentences - So many beginnings. I tell myself that in a way it's good that I haven't found Ky yet, because I still don't know what to whisper to him when I see him, which words would be the very best ones to give. (Page 111) These words are beautiful, and they portray something deeper than just Cassia thinking of what she'll say to Ky. It's about how precious speech is, how important it is to her that Ky taught her to write, to speak and give life to words. It's about not taking your words for granted. They are important, down to the very smallest word. Cassia has grown up in a world where words - your own words, spoken or written - are like diamonds. This careful choice of words is not only portrayed in the characters, but also in Ally Condie's writing itself. Her word choices are so precise, carefully portraying the scenes and the deep emotions carried throughout. It's like poetry, but not. I don't even know how to describe the full beauty of it. CHARACTER NOTES - Here is how well I know these characters, how distinctly they are portrayed: When the book arrived in the mail two months ago, before I knew really anything about it, I picked it up and started reading. My thoughts were, "This is great, but it doesn't feel like...Cassia. It doesn't sound like her voice at all. I like it, but I'm confused..." I put it on my shelf to read soon. My sister got to it first, and came to me, saying excitedly, "It's from Cassia AND Ky's perspectives!" After a bit of sleuth-work, I discovered that the chapter I read was about Ky, from his perspective - and suddenly, it all fell together. When I was actually reading the book, I never had an issue, determining which voice was which. I mean, the chapters are labeled one or the other, but I didn't need that. They both had a voice distinct form the other. That amazed me, especially when both are written in first person, present tense. Vick, Indie, Eli, Hunter, and Xander were all really well-developed side characters, and I appreciate that. I didn't love some of the characters themselves, but loved who they were for the story. And... I love Ky. Oh, how I love Ky. Cassia really grew in this book. She matured and did selfless things that made her radiant. Her love for Ky makes her strong, glowing. Makes her want to live to the fullest. She loves deeply, cares so much, and wants to do the right thing. She doesn't always, but that's how we learn sometimes. Cassia is just like you and me, and that's the beauty of it. STORY NOTES - Everything about this book had me grasping for more. It's so refreshing to read this story and get lost in it. I loved the journeys the characters had to face, together and apart. There were scenes that made me scream and squeal with joy, and others that had my heart aching with sadness. The emotions were so real and big and alive. I love Cassia and Ky's love story. I love the reality of it, how heartfelt it is. I feel like a lot of young adult love stories are full of couples whose only issue is that they're unable to be together, and other dramatic situations of the same kind. Other than that, the relationships have virtually no issues, or very small ones. I have nothing against that - a few of my forever favorites are that kind of love story. But Ky and Cassia are different. Out in the wild, they are allowed to be together - but they struggle because they have disagreements. Because they have to ask, how much will I do for you? How much do I really love you? That is one of the many things I respect about their relationship. It's perfect, with every argument, every kiss. Everyone has to sacrifice in this story, and that builds and strengthens the story/characters in a huge way. SUMMING IT UP - Indescribably beautiful. It's like, I can't even express my love. Please, read Matched and Crossed. Please. Please. For the Parents - Nondescript kissing. Recommended 13+

Ten Likes/Dislikes: 1. (+) Cassia, the Protagonist - Cassia is so much stronger and wiser in Crossed than in Matched. You can really tell the difference and see how much her character has developed so far in the trilogy. There are several times when she wants to give up, but she doesn't, and what I found even better was that she knew her mind. Though there still is that sort of love triangle, Crossed is very much a Ky book and the book where Cassia seems to choose the type of life she wants to have and is willing to fight for that until the end. 2. (+) Alternating Points of View - Crossed didn't have much for it in terms of actual plot-- I can think of Matched and a few specific things that happened in it to advance the plot, but Crossed is much more of a character book, and it shows in the alternating points of view. A lot of the most interesting things you learn about from Ky's perspective and he too sets the stage for suspicion about the Rising and what the third book will entail. I loved reading about how he saw the world and what had happened to him--his journey, in many ways, was much more fascinating than Cassia's and his character development more thorough. Fantastic decision on Ally Condie's part to give us both POVs. 3. (+) The Poetry - Ally Condie's writing is also a lot like poetry, but what I really, really enjoyed about this book was again the incorporation of other poems into the book. The poems from Matched become really important explanations for how Ky viewed Cassia and how the new characters view the two of them... and for the rebellion against the Society. I just love how Ally Condie makes every word count--that these poems, which had only seemed like words whispered between lovers in the first book, became so much more meaningful. 4. (+) The World-building - Okay, first off, I love Ally Condie's capitalization - the Rising, the Carving, the Warming, the Outer Provinces... I love that she doesn't explain some of these things like the Warming, that her capitalization basically tells you all you need to know about it. Secondly, I was fascinated by the history of the Society and the story of the farmers and the Rising and the way Ky's parents factored in and the Archivists and the blue tablets and the Enemy vs. the Rising and ah! All of it. So many more details were added to the world already established in Matched and I can't wait to see how the third book will bring them all together. 5. (+) The Romance - You guys know that I am not a fan of love triangles... but as I already said, this book feels very much like only a Ky book, so I'm disregarding the triangle and saying that wow, the love and romance is done so beautifully. So, so sweet and agh, there really are no words to describe Ally Condie's writing and how wonderfully this was done. 6. (+) New Side Characters - Four side characters are introduced who all have different stories to tell and who all are very interesting and integral to the plot. I cannot wait to find out more about them and see the rest of their character arcs unfold. 7. (--) Old Characters - Because this book takes place in the Outer Provinces / the Carving / outside the Society, you don't get to see some of the other characters introduced in Matched. For one, Cassia's parents and brother Bram are not in this book (except in Cassia's thoughts)... and her friend... (I can't remember her name now? Emily, was it? Or??) Cassia didn't think about her at all and she's not in Crossed either, and Xander makes only one appearance. (Side note: though he is not physically there, he's in Cassia's and Ky's thoughts quite often, and he is perhaps more mysterious than I had ever guessed from Matched.) 8. (+) The Setting - Ally Condie, on her website, has written about how Utah (I think) influenced the setting for Crossed, and I must say that I don't care what influenced it, only that I want to go wherever that is. Even though the setting is treacherous and hard to survive in, it is beautiful, and as is typical of Ally Condie's writing, it seems to have a life of its own. 9. (+/-) The Pacing - You can expect the same pacing that you get in Matched and the sense that things are slowly building to their end... but for someone like me, sometimes it does seem a tad too slow, even if I had expected it to be that way. 10. (+) The Cover - You learn what the blue tablets do... and though I thought that this cover was beautiful and symbolic when I first saw it, I now think it's even better and more representative of the book. I loved Crossed just as much as I had loved Matched. Whatever Ally Condie writes, I will buy because one thing's for certain: she knows how to write and tell a beautiful story.

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The cover of the book is not ok and the Pagés seem old

Matchedの続きということで、一気に読みきりました。Kｙとの再会、別れと完結巻に向けて、物語が加速していきました。最終巻が楽しみです。

Questo è il secondo libro della trilogia, ma non è all'altezza del primo. Dato che l'ambientazione è cambiata, il lettore si trova spaesato e non ci sono abbastanza elementi interessanti per mantenere le aspettative create dal precedente volume, che era davvero bello.

A real page turner from the point of view of the characters. Defenitely buy all three as you'll want to read the next one as soon as you finish one!