Matched (Matched, #1)

by Ally Condie

On her seventeenth birthday, Cassia meets her Match. Society dictates he is her perfect partner for life.

Except he's not.

In Cassia's society, Officials decide who people love.
How many children they have.
Where they work.
When they die.

But, as Cassia finds herself falling in love with another boy, she is determined to make some choices of her own.

And that's when her whole world begins to unravel . . .

• ISBN10: 0141333057
• ISBN13: 9780141333052
• Publish Date: 2 December 2010 (first published 30 November 2010)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 17 February 2012
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Penguin Putnam Inc
• Imprint: Puffin
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 384
• Language: English

Reviews

[rakesandrogues]

Posted at Muggle-Born.net

I guess after Hunger Games my expectations for dystopian novels are set very high, and as much as MATCHED was an interesting read, it didn't live up to those expectations.

Most of the reviews I read raved about the romance in this book, but for me, the love triangle was nothing special. The romance between Ky and Cassia was sweet at some parts, but no scenes ever made me say, "Awwww" out loud. Like the title would suggest, the focus on the book is about the Matching System and the relationships Cassia forms between Ky and also the relationship she already has with Xander. Out of the two, I lean more towards Xander, but I guess I can also see the appeal of Ky.

I was honestly expecting more about this book beyond Cassia and the Matching System. We learn more about the Society in snippets, but not enough to satisfy me as a reader. The book doesn't really answer the why aspects of the novel. Why is Society the way it is? There's hints of rebellion in the past, but I'm left as clueless as the characters of the book. I would have liked just a little more background to the Society than what was provided.

The novel is slow in terms of action. Nothing really happens except for the development of relationships. I was hoping for more instead of the quiet rebellion that took place in the book. For me, this really wasn't a page-turner by any means. I liked reading it, but it wasn't particularly exciting. Condie's writing style sometimes felt blunt and choppy, but then she'd say something just absolutely beautiful that makes me pause at the end of the passage to reflect on her words.

As of right now, I don't know if I'll be reading the next one in the series. I'd have to read a lot of reviews to be convinced of it. The way the ending leaves off, there's room for a lot more action in the second book. I guess I'll have to wait and see. I would recommend this one to dystopian fans, but be prepared for a slow-paced read.

[Stephanie]

The book starts out with Cassia on her way to her Match Banquet. She's really excited and nervous to find out her Match and to live the life the Society has chosen for her. She's happy to find out that her Match is her best friend, Xander. Everyone is surprised, it is not common for someone to be Matched with someone they have known their whole life.

But what is even more surprising is when Cassia goes to look at Xander's microcard, which holds information of Xander, Xander's picture disappears and another picture shows up. It's her friend, Ky, who she has known and lived next to. Now she has to decide between Xander, the Society's choice, or Ky, the choice that could take her away from everything she loves.

I have not read many good reviews for Matched. But for some reason, I still really wanted to read it. I read the first few pages in Wal Mart and was hooked. I bought it that night and stayed up till 3 in the morning reading it. I couldn't figure out what others didn't like about it. I enjoyed reading about Cassia's world and how controlled her society was. They have barely any freedom. The Society choose which poems they read, what songs they listened to, what movies they see, what job is best for them, what clothes they wear, and the list goes on. They don't even know how to write.

The story focuses on Cassia and Ky and their struggle to keep their relationship a secret, from everyone. Towards the end I got a little confused and started to lose interest. That's what really kept me from giving it 5 stars. I know that there is another book coming out, which I will definitely read, but the questions I have, I feel like they won't be answered in the next book. It should have been explained in this book. But, you never know.

Also, the writing is awesome. It's written in present tense, which I'm not quite used to, but I loved it. It was so smooth and pretty. It's what really got me into the story.

Overall I really enjoyed Matched and am looking forward to reading the next book, Crossed.

[jeannamichel]

Does a futuristic world ring a bell? Is it time for the Hunger Games? Of course not. Most of the reviews I have read on this novel all seem to have the series by Suzanne Collins in it. I just needed to add the title so I wouldn't feel left out. Sorry, folks, but it doesn't even come close to making the cut to the extraordinary trilogy by Collins.

Cassia lives in the Society (which may seem very close to the sort of Districts mentioned in Hunger Games but that is where the similarities end). The Society is good, great, wonderful- well, that's what the citizens are supposed to think. When Cassia gets caught up in an "experiment" with the so-called "great" Society and then gets a taste of the past with some forbidden written words- she finds that it seems so much better than the stuff the Society is feeding their citizens with.

Matched is a debut novel by Ally Condie. There was all this hype surrounding the book for awhile. There is even a few entertainment industries interested in the book. I do not understand it, because I was highly disappointed with this novel.


There was absolutely no character development. I had to imagine my own. Books are supposed to be movies in my head, I'm supposed to create the character in my mind according to what I read on the page. I could not do that with this book. Half the time even, except for the Matched ceremony, I didn't even know what the characters were wearing. Xander, one of Cassia's friend and Match (which I liked how "Match" was capitalized throughout the book), had no character development. He acted like a class clown one minute and the next, he was all serious and brooding. His character reminded me of the character, Xander, in the TV series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. (Xander from Buffy is the picture on the right).

Condie's writing style was very common- there was nothing really special about it. Yes, it was a debut novel, so hopefully her style will improve on next works, if there will be more books. Personally, the flow of the novel went very slow for me and I found myself, on numerous times, dozing off, or picking up other books to read because I just could not pick up Matched.


The cover is the only thing that I like about the entire novel. The cover is amazing- probably, only because my favorite color is green. (And you would have thought my favorite color is purple or pink...)


What do I suggest if you think about picking up this book and reading it today: Go read the Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins and then try to read through Matched. You'll understand what I mean when I say they should not even be compared.

[Jo]

On her seventeenth birthday, Cassia meets her Match. Society dictates he is her perfect partner for life. Except he’s not. In Cassia’s society, Officials decide who people love. How many children they have. Where they work. When they die. But, as Cassia finds herself falling in love with another boy, she is determined to make some choices of her own. And that’s when her whole world begins to unravel... From Amazon UK

When I first heard about this book, I was so intrigued! A book where the government chooses who you spend the rest of your life with?! This has got to be worth reading! Now I'm finished, I have to say, I was pretty disappointed.

The plot is pretty fascinating; a world set way in the future, where everyone is governed by probability and statistics. They live a way an "optimal" life as worked out by Society. They are Matched with the optimal partner, to produce optimal, healthy offspring. They eat what Society has found to give them the optimal nutrients to keep them healthy - regardless of taste. They are given the job they will do best at - the possibility of them may not liking it doesn't come into it. They die when Society states they've lived an optimal life, and it's probable that they will deteriorate and have a less than optimal life from that time onwards. The perfect life, right? Where everyone has what's best for them, live the best life they can? No!

There is no free will. It seems like there is, but there isn't. How they spend their free recreation hours on a Saturday evening is up to them - as long as it's either games, a showing, or going to the music hall. They get to have a free summer activity which they can choose - but involves them doing work. Society declared their culture was too cluttered, so everything was sorted, so there are now the Hundred Songs, the Hundred Paintings, the Hundred Poems, etc. Everything is controlled. Everything is worked out. Society considers all possible factors, and predicts the probability of even everyone's reactions to different events, their behaviour, and the type of person they will be. It's Big Brother gone mad.

This book is all about fighting, striving for change, for the right to choice and free will. What I liked most was the power that words held for Cassia. During his Death Banquet, Cassias grandfather gives her paper with two poems on them. Grandfather's own Grandmother was one of the people who were called to sort out the poetry and narrow it down to just the Hundred Poems. She stole some, and handed them down. These poems hold such importance for Cassia; not just because they are forbidden, but because of what they tell you - to fight. Society has also forbidden writing, so no-one ever learns how to write. They have their Scribes, where they can type, but they can't write with their hands. Ky, one of the guys who lives in her borough, can. And he teaches her. First, Cassia learns to write her name, and it's such a powerful moment, of almost ownership - she can write her own name. All these acts of rebellion - forbidden writing, forbidden poems, rebellion actually in the poem, and eventually, forbidden love - spark something inside Cassia. It's great to see her change from someone who believes in the Society, and that it keeps them safe, that they all live good lives, to someone who questions everything she knows.

However, apart from Ky, I didn't find the characters believable. They were two dimensional as opposed to three dimensional. I didn't feel anything for them, because there wasn't enough to make me feel. I was indifferent to everyone except Ky. I think this was also because of the pace. It's not fast or slow, it's average. And there's no real suspense. It all seems to be chugging along on on flat level. No rollercoaster in this book. At the beginning, I was intrigued, but then, until things started to develop with Ky, and we learned more about him, and the importance of words, I just wasn't interested, and, to be frank, bored. I read on because I can't start a book and not finish it. I just can't do it. But if I did, I would have stopped reading. I also think I've discovered that dystopian novels aren't really my thing. There may be a few dystopian novels that I like, but as a genre, I don't think it's my cup of tea.

I must say, it is the kind of book I think will make an amazing movie, so I'm really glad there will be a chance to see it on the big screen!

However, there is a lot about this novel that fans of dystopian will love. The way people are governed, the technology, the sheer wrongness of it all that makes a dystopian. I'm sure there are a lot of people who will - and who have - loved this book. I suggest you check out some other reviews of Matched (see below) before you decide just by my review. Matched could have turned out to be such an amazing boook, it had a lot of promise, it just unfortunately fell flat for me.

From Once Upon a Bookcase - YA book blog