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."
(Picture and Summary from Amazon.com)




Review:
This book had me hooked from the very beginning.  The idea of being matched with your soul mate seems like an awesome idea.  You wouldn't have to worry about dating jerks, you would be with your soul mate from the day of your match, and you would be happy.  Sounds awesome, right?  But when Cassia discovers Ky's face instead of Xander's, her whole thought process changed.  Cassia went from thinking the society was a great help to seeing the flaws within them.  I thought the character change of Cassia was portrayed really well.  You see how Cassia evolves from one side of the spectrum to the other, and how it ultimately helps her make a huge decision.


The character portrayal of Cassia and Ky's relationship is amazing.  You can really feel Cassia falling in love with Ky from the very sight of his face on her screen.  Also, Cassia's relationship with her Grandfather is just so real.  They explain that not many people have that kind of relationship with their grandparents, therefore, Cassia's is special, and they really seem to be kindred spirits.  You can really tell where Cassia gets her sense of rebellion from.  I would have liked to see more about Xander and Cassia's relationship, because Xander really seems like a great guy to Cassia and he clearly loves her, yet Cassia seems to be a little bit close minded, but I have a feeling we're going to get more character information in the next book.


Matched had me captivated from the very instant I started it and I could hardly put it down.  The characters really captivate you and the idea of the society was definitely new.  I can't wait to read Condie's second part of this series, Crossed!