The Bursting Bookshelf

Author: Ally Condie
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:
After reading Matched, I was unsure of what to expect for Crossed. When I received a copy, I jumped in and found myself completely absorbed with the complexity of this story and everything inside of it. This book truly was a one of the best sequels I have ever read, to the point it was even better than the first.

The cover of this book is such a great symbol for what the character goes through during the book. It actually symbolises my favourite part of the book; the realization that her world is not perfect, but quite the opposite. I also love how they continued the bubble theme, with changes to colour and outfit. Also, if you look closely, there is a quirk in the second letter of the title, this time it is the "R" is backwards while the first title had an "A" with no cross. Just the beauty of the shattering glass as Cassia bursts the illusion of serenity was enough to get others around me to ask what I was reading, which really proves the appeal of this cover.

Though Cassia and Ky were separated for quite a bit of the story, you still could feel the connection between them purely from how much they thought about each other and through the actions they committed. Cassia went far from her comfort zone in an effort to find Ky, which really highlighted their love for each other, as well as Cassia's growth from Matched. I found that she had become the strong young person that I love to read about in books; strong to their beliefs, but still making mistakes along the way. Ky was also strong to his beliefs, but he was willing to make nearly any sacrifice for Cassia, making him a crush-worthy male lead.

The plot of this book was fairly swift moving, though there were a few times that I found to be a little too slow amongst the swift plot. Apart from those few slow moments, I found this book to have a more favourable plot than I went in hoping for. The writing of this book was very descriptive of the setting and characters, helping the reader form a much fuller picture in their mind. Another strong point of this book was the way the chapters were each either Ky or Cassia's point of view, giving the reader insight into both characters. Personally, I cannot wait for the third book of this series to see what happens to Cassia and Ky in their journey for freedom.

I would recommend this book to those who have read Matched or just love dystopian books. For being one of the best sequels I have ever read and for being a good book altogether, I give Crossed a 4/5.

Hey guys! At least one of my scheduled meme's is on time this week. This week for New In The World Of... I chose Ally Condie as I am so excited for her book Matched to come out I thought 'Hey let's see what's new in her world.'. So I did. And you'll never guess what I found. Or maybe you will. But probably not. Anyway, I found the tentative cover and name for Matched #2! Here it is...
That's right! It's called Crossed and if it follows suit with Matched's cover, it'll probably be a blue theme. Exciting right?