Young Adult
Pages: 369
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Release Date: November 30, 2010

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 with complete certainty that 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.

 
I'm not sure exactly what lures me towards dystopia, if its the fear of the possibility or the rage at the unfairness of it all. The fact is, I love and crave reading about ways that things could go wrong. I'm a huge dystopian fan. Now that Mockingjay has left a hole in the world, I'm glad that lots of dystopian titles have been surfacing.

Matched is one of the most promoted, talked-about and hyped books of 2010, so I was awfully eager to read it. A horrifying society with a tight leash on it's members, beautifully crafted in Condie's words. A world where everything is controlled and Cassia starts to see and learn how wrong her life has been chosen for her. To be completely honest, it's not even close to being an original society setting, when comparing to some other dystopias I've read. It's a pretty standard authoritarian society, but Condie's poetic writing and the easy-to-relate-to characters enhance the story.

The gorgeous cover and vivid descriptions placed an image in my head that makes this book utterly memorable to me. The sudden incomplete ending almost left me salivating for more. Also, I found the mystery of the male character, Ky, quite fascinating. He's secretive and shy and flawed and perfect. He had me swooning every time his name appeared and I want punch Cassia and run to save him *sigh*

Anyway, I'm pretty sure this trilogy will be big. If you crave a great futuristic, stressful read, go grab Matched right now.