Book Review: Reached

First of all, whoa. It's been a while since I've reviewed a book. Probably because I'm still plowing my way through the third book in the LotR trilogy... but somehow I managed to finish a book anyway. So here we go. Let's start the review!

Reached
Ally Condie
Genre: Dystopian
Star Rating: 3.5

(This is the third book in the Matched trilogy)

Synopsis:

Cassia’s journey began with an error, a momentary glitch in the otherwise perfect façade of the Society. After crossing canyons to break free, she waits, silk and paper smuggled against her skin, ready for the final chapter.

The wait is over.

One young woman has raged against those who threaten to keep away what matters most—family, love, choice. Her quiet revolution is about to explode into full-scale rebellion.

With exquisite prose, the emotionally gripping conclusion to the international–bestselling Matched trilogy returns Cassia, Ky, and Xander to the Society to save the one thing they have been denied for so long, the power to choose.

Thoughts:

The first thing I want to mention is the fact that each of the colors of the three covers matches up with the three tablets of the book. I just found that cool. I also liked the fact that the orb on the first book's cover is solid, the second one is being cracked open, and now the third is completely shattered. That's pretty sweet.

In this book Xander, Ky, and Cassia all narrate from first person, alternating people every chapter. That alone was a little confusing. If you didn't always check who was speaking on each new chapter, then you ran the risk of getting confused. I was constantly going back to find out who was talking, or fumbling through the chapter until someone talked to the character and said their name. Then I would nod, and continue.

I had a real problem with the plot twists. I found them...dull. Too easily fixed. (Oh no! That guy just got sick. Well look here, we just so happen to have a cure! Wait! Someone destroyed the cure! Oh well, we'll just make some new ones, how about that?) Sure, when something bad happened, I wondered a bit what they would do, but not for a moment did I ever freak out and grip the book, frantically reading pages to find out what happened next.

Another thing I disliked about the book was the fact that the power of the government shifted hands too easily. In the book they explained why that happened so easily, but I still found it hard to believe. Wouldn't there be larger pockets of people defending the two sides? Wouldn't there be someone supporting the Society side and leading it, the way the Pilot did the Rising? It was all too easy.

I also didn't like the ending. They don't tell you what the final voting resulted in. They cast their votes on who they wanted to lead, but they never tell you who actually won the vote.

There was good stuff too. I liked the fact that Xander was able to narrate some of the story from his point of view. I finally got to hear what he thought on the whole Cassia-Ky-Xander love triangle, and that made my happy. I hated only hearing Ky and Cassia's opinions in the other two books.

Speaking of love triangles, the author decided it would be fun to throw in a few more people to the love triangle. Sure, it added a little bit, but in Ky's case, I knew he wouldn't pick the other girl over Cassia. There wasn't any wondering there either.

If I could tell the author one piece of advice for future books, I'd tell her to stop making things so easy. I was never on the edge of my seat, sitting on pins and needles and gnawing on my fingernails in suspense. I just always knew things would end fine. It was all just a little....predictable. And predictable books just aren't my thing.

This book was a quick read, so if you read the other two, this one probably won't take long. I encourage people to read this book if they've read the others, but I'm warning also that it might not be what you're hoping or expecting.