CROSSED
Match #2
Author: Ally Condie
Source: Publisher
*I received this book free of charge in exchange for an honest review*

Reading level: Young Adult
Hardcover: 384 pages
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile (November 1, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0525423656
ISBN-13: 978-0525423652

In search of a future that may not exist and faced with the decision of who to share it with, Cassia journeys to the Outer Provinces in pursuit of Ky – taken by the Society to his certain death – only to find that he has escaped, leaving a series of clues in his wake.

Cassia’s quest leads her to question much of what she holds dear, even as she finds glimmers of a different life across the border. But as Cassia nears resolve and certainty about her future with Ky, an invitation for rebellion, an unexpected betrayal, and a surprise visit from Xander – who may hold the key to the uprising and, still, to Cassia’s heart – change the game once again. Nothing is as expected on the edge of Society, where crosses and double crosses make the path more twisted than ever.

Crossed is the second book in a dystopia themed trilogy from author Ally Condie.  After finishing the first book in the series called Matched, I was a little wary in my expectations for this one.  So many things were left unanswered in the first book and I was hoping that the author would at least clear some of those things up.  Why is Cassia so drawn to Ky? Who are the informants within the Society? Is there a Rising and are they better than the Society? Will Cassia find Ky and choose him over Xander?


As I sat down to start reading Crossed, I didn’t get my hopes up.  I will say that the author does give some answers to the questions I listed above.  Cassia does find Ky, but there is a huge portion of the book that is the search for each other that could have been condensed to something less.  I wasn’t really thrilled to read about them crossing another plain or hiding in another cavern every other chapter. 


Crossed is also in alternating points of view between Cassia and Ky.  We get to read about each of their journeys through their eyes and the struggles that they endure during the search.  With mentions of Xander along the way, Cassia is determined to find Ky and join the rebellion.  Ky, with new friends in tow, is on the search to find his way back to Cassia.  Together they meet in the middle and decisions will have to be made.  Secrets are discovered in this book, but there are also new ones that surface.  We don’t get to see them all revealed in this installment, but I am hoping the wait will be worth it when the final book is revealed.


My best description for this story so far is a jigsaw puzzle.  Imagine the Society being the center of the puzzle.  The outcasts are the outer edge pieces that are described as the Outer Provinces.  The author is giving you the big picture, but she isn’t handing you all of the pieces yet to complete the finished product.  There will be times when the pieces don’t fit and you have to keep thinking about the puzzle.  Eventually, I am hoping all of those pieces will fit together and actually create a beautiful picture in the end.


I am still on the fence about this trilogy.  I want to like it as much as everyone else has, but my reading experience with it is just okay.  I want answers to start becoming clear and for less of the repetitive scenes. I will read the final book just so I can see the secrets revealed and the effects it will have on all of the characters involved. Hopefully the last book in the series will finish the masterpiece puzzle the author has created.

MATCHED
Matched #1
Author: Ally Condie
Source: Publisher
*I received this book free of charge in exchange for an honest review*

Reading level: Young Adult
Paperback: 400 pages
Publisher: Speak; Reprint edition (September 20, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 014241977X
ISBN-13: 978-0142419779

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.

After seeing so many reviews on this book– some good and some bad– I caved and decided to read it since the publisher sent them to me.  I knew it was a dystopia themed book, but I still didn’t know what to really expect.  In dystopia novels, the author has such creative freedom that you never really know what type of world you are going to step into when you open the book to read the first page.  


In the first few chapters my interest was captured with the characters and the Society.  I anxiously awaited the Matching ceremony along with Cassia and Xander.  Unfortunately, after the Matching ceremony is concluded, my interest started to dissolve away like the paper in the book.  I had a hard time finishing this book and it wasn’t because of the emotions that should have gripped my heart.  Instead, it had to do with the fact of repetitiveness and story that could have been chopped to move it along faster.  The poetry was nice for the first half of the book, but after awhile it started to get annoying and forced on the reader.  I know the poetry is suppose to hold some meaning, but I felt it to be confusing for the reader to keep up with.


I also didn’t understand the attraction that Cassia had with Ky.  It was so instantaneous and off the wall that it never really clicked with me.  I have heard other readers have this problem as well between the two characters, so I know that I am not alone in this one.  Xander was patient and understanding up to a point, but I felt he needed to defend his relationship with Cassia a little more. 


By the end of the book, my curiosity was peaked again but it came too near the end.  I wish my interest could have been throughout the whole book and not just an ending that left me with more questions than answers. 

GIRL STOLEN
Author: April Henry
Source: Gifted

Reading level: Young Adult
Hardcover: 224 pages
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR); First Edition edition (September 28, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0805090053
ISBN-13: 978-0805090055

Sixteen year-old Cheyenne Wilder is sleeping in the back of a car while her mom fills her prescription at the pharmacy. Before Cheyenne realizes what’s happening, their car is being stolen–with her inside! Griffin hadn’t meant to kidnap Cheyenne, all he needed to do was steal a car for the others. But once Griffin’s dad finds out that Cheyenne’s father is the president of a powerful corporation, everything changes–now there’s a reason to keep her. What Griffin doesn’t know is that Cheyenne is not only sick with pneumonia, she is blind. How will Cheyenne survive this nightmare, and if she does, at what price?

It would be horrifying in itself just to be kidnapped as a teenager, but add in the fact that you are blind and it has to be the worst thing imaginable!  When I first received Girl Stolen, for some reason I kept shoving the book to the back of my reading stack.  The book wasn’t really on my radar and I hadn’t read many reviews at the time for it.  So when I finally picked it up again, I decided to give it a go and see what it was all about.


The point of view in this book alternates between Cheyenne and Griffin.  Cheyenne was in her stepmothers SUV while she was in getting Cheyennes prescription for pneumonia.  Cheyenne had left her seeing eye dog at home and soon realizes that was a mistake.  Griffin jumps in the SUV and steals it with Cheyenne in the backseat.  When Griffin realizes that Cheyenne is in the SUV, he panics and realizes he has made a major mistake.  Not knowing what to do, he takes her with him to his house where his Father comes up with a plan to hold her hostage for ransom money.  


It was refreshing to read about something that could happen so easily in our world today.  I liked the twist of having the victim be blind as it caused some story arcs that wouldn’t have been there if she wasn’t.  I wanted to dislike Griffin so much, but like Cheyenne I started to see a softer side to Griffin and realize he didn’t really want any of this to happen.  His father is abusive and I can see him doing this as a way to gain his fathers approval.  As the story progressed, I was cheering for Cheyenne and Griffin.  I wanted them to both overcome all of the obstacles that were thrown at them.


If there was one thing that I didn’t like about this book, it is the ending.  I absolutely can’t stand open endings that are left open for the readers interpretation.  I like closure when I finish reading that last page of a book.  To me, it always feels like the author just decided not to finish the story because they got tired of it.  I like to read a finished product!  Some people might enjoy these types of endings, but I am not a fan of them.