Crossed by Ally Condie

Chasing down an uncertain future, Cassia makes her way to the Outer Provinces in pursuit of Ky–taken by the Society to his sure death–only to find that he has escaped into the majestic, but treacherous, canyons. On this wild frontier are glimmers of a different life and the enthralling promise of a rebellion. But even as Cassia sacrifices every thing to reunite with Ky, ingenious surprises from Xander may change the game once again.

Narrated from both Cassia’s and Ky’s point of view, this hotly anticipated sequel to Matched will take them both to the edge of Society, where nothing is as expected and crosses and double crosses make their path more twisted than ever.

This sequel in the Matched trilogy is vastly different from the first, and compelling in a very alternative way. While the first story explores the Society through a methodically clean lens, echoing the feel of Brave New World with its technological advancements, secretiveness, and pills, the second installment is gritty and political, mirroring a Hunger Games feeling of predator and prey, survival, and rebellion.

Although the political back-and-forth between Ky’s opinions and Cassia’s opinions could become irksome once in a while, I enjoyed the way Condie revealed more and more about the Society’s current situation and history. All the things I was curious about in the first book were answered in the second, and the second has raised questions for the third that are incredibly deep: is there truly a war? Who are they fighting against? How long has this been going on? Who is the Pilot? How will the Pilot lead the rebellion? What is the rebellion composed of? I’m glad these questions were different from my questions after the first book, because it’s a sign that Condie is diving deeper into her dystopian world and revealing truth to her characters and readers.

Crossed was nothing like I expected, and yet I was not disappointed. If I had read Matched immediately before Crossed I may have felt jarred by the different atmospheres, but the books in-between certainly helped to give the slow pacing Crossed deserved to resemble the passing of time between Ky’s capture and Cassia’s move.

Rating: ★★★★
Goodreads: 3.53