Title: Matched
Author: Ally Condie
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Release: November 30, 2011
Pages: 366
Series: Matched #1
Synopsis:
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.

Review:
Matched was a fast paced, fun read, with a lot of hype to boot. Not to mention the cover! I finished Matched a little while back and had a pretty good time with it.

Wow, the cover is just wow. I mean the minute I saw it I knew I had to read it. It's just that eye catching, though it's even more beautiful in person. It has gloss highlights over the girl and off set highlights over the letters of the title giving it a very futuristic feel. I also love the colors, they stand out against other books as the green that they use if so vibrant and it also gave you a feel for what Cassia actually wore to her Matching ceremony. I really like though how the girl is in the bubble, symbolising the society she lives in keeps all its people in a bubble away from the real world. I always love a cover that's gorgeous and has meaning.

The characters in Matched were interesting to read about for many reasons like they were so new with love and unlike today's teens they weren't looking for a boyfriend or a girlfriend, the Society did that for them. Then when Cassia started to realise she had feelings for Ky that might go against everything that the society taught her, she had no idea of what to do. It was a very different trait than we are used to in our everyday lives because we know what love is where she was taught that anything that couldn't be proved or wasn't approved of be the society didn't exist. On Xander's side of things, he faced rejection which doesn't often occur among members of the society because of the rigorous Matching system. And Ky (I'm Team Ky!) had to fight for Cassia's heart because he realised his feelings for her though he wasn't her chosen partner. When you pool this all together, you get one great set of characters that are all unique in their own ways.

The story in Matched is the part that I didn't always care for. I found that sometimes there wouldn't be much of anything going on during some chapters. Most of the time though the story kept chugging along at a fairly good pace, and then the end happened. The last part of the book was definitely my favorite part. The events of the book finally all caught up to the characters and the result was a suspenseful ending with some realization as well.
After reading Matched, I really can't wait to read and find out what happens to all of the characters and to see if Cassia will get her happy ending after all. Until then, Matched gets a 3.5/5.