Book review: Crossed by Ally Condie

Title: Crossed(Matched #2)

Dystopian YA

Published November 1st 2011 by Dutton Juvenile

Goodreads summary:

The hotly awaited second book in the dystopian Matched trilogy

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.

Review:

When I first read Matched, the first book in this trilogy, I really didn’t keep up with book news and the like. I recalled hearing a title mentioned and that was good enough for me, so I checked it out from the library. So imagine my reaction when I arrived at the end of the book, having loved it, and realized it was the first in a trilogy… and neither of the next books had been published yet.

It went something like this:

So you can imagine that I was THRILLED when I won a copy before the release date from Sash and Em. I wasn’t so thrilled when I couldn’t get to it RIGHT AWAY.

The setting of Crossed was a little different from Matched. Yes, they both take place within The Society’s rule, but we’ve left our days of polite Society (ha, see what I did there?) in Oria behind. Cassia and Ky are both on the run, though not together.

I don’t know what it is about being in the wilderness (or simulated wilderness) in a dystopian series, but I love it. I think that’s why Mockingjay is my least favorite in The Hunger Games trilogy, and Uglies is my favorite in the Uglies trilogy. I therefore suspect for that reason that Crossed may wind up my favorite book in the Matched trilogy.

The love triangle between Ky, Cassia, and Xander is still alluded to in Crossed, but it wasn’t quite the be-all, end-all that it was in Matched. Cassia’s pretty much made her choice, but in her own way she does love Xander too. I am crossing my fingers that this triangle isn’t made a huge deal again in the third book.

Crossed is told in alternating points of view which was new. I was used to seeing the world only from Cassia’s perspective and while I liked seeing what Ky was up to it could be a bit jarring and disorienting. I usually skip reading chapter headings, so when I flipped the page and therefore POVs it took me a minute to realize it since they’re both written in the first person and the same tense.

Much like in Matched, Crossed uses poetry and the arts to get its points across. Poetry, stories, paintings… none of them are created any longer. Only one hundred of each of them have been saved from pre-Society days, which makes the ones that have been saved beyond those, forbidden. This is one of the most chilling ideas to me in the Society and I truly love how Ally Condie gets the point across that art is still valuable and even essential.

Overall rating: 4/5. I enjoyed Crossed even more than its predecessor Matched. I am very eagerly anticipating the as yet Untitled 3rd book in the trilogy, expected in some time 2012.

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