ARC Review of Matched by Ally Condie

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.

Note: I received a copy to review from the publisher. Publishing date: Nov 30, 2010

This book is a lot like it's cover: Simple, elegant, thought provoking, sad at times, hopeful, haunting, beautiful and layered.

Matched is a wonderful coming of age story that would not have been half so haunting if handled by a less skillful story teller that weaved less evocative prose and relatable characters, even some of the ones you don't like.

I think this story will mean different things to different people. For me, a big part of it is the importance of the successful survival of our species and society balanced against the needs and happiness of individuals. It's a delicate balance that is easily lost and as was asked by one of the characters in the story, where does it end? Where's the line?

Beyond this, it is also a beautiful tale of love in all it's faces and guises. Familial love, friendship love, content love, passionate love, forbidden love, love of a society. It's also about loyalty balanced against personal desires. What we're willing to do for love of others and love of self. It's a story of growing up and becoming awake, aware of the world around us and seeing it and maybe ourselves for what it and we truly are for maybe the first time. Struggling with our place in the world and what's expected of us as well as what we want from the world and ourselves.

Under all that is also a mystery. I'm very curious about this world. The inhabitants don't know a lot about their history or even really what is going on around them in the present. They know only what they are told by the Society, so I'm very curious about what is going on in the rest of the world and even about the possibility of a rebellion and an underground. All these possibilities as well as the questions left at the end and the intriguing characters that I want to see more of kept me wanting more long after the last page of this book was finished. I hope we get to go back and visit this place. I feel a storm coming and I want to see what will happen. So many times it's easy to tell where a story is going and in this case I'm just along for the ride. I don't know where this story will go from here, but I really want to find out.

I want to take a moment and just mention the beautiful writing. It is truly evocative and sensual in that when Ms Condie described the rain I could see the approaching storm clouds, feel the electricity and excitement of the impending storm dance on my skin and watch as the drops fell from the sky. I could feel the moisture and taste it. That is the gift of a truly talented story teller and that is what Ms Condie is.

Overall I highly recommend this book. It is haunting and sad as well as beautiful and hopeful by turns. It is scary and stifling and comforting and loving and funny. Cassia is a truly great narrator and character and I enjoyed her voice immensely.

My grade: A. It was a little slow at some parts, but still lovely and when it picks up I really had no idea how the author was going to handle things and where she was going to take me, but I trusted her to get me there.

New Trailer for Matched by Ally Condie

Random

I have recently become addicted to Resistance by Muse because I've decided it's the theme song for Delirium by Lauren Oliver. I type this as I listen to....guess....Muse. Ha! I think I'm even gonna cry a bit....course that could be the wine talking...

Quickie Review: Magic to the Bone by Devon Monk

# Pub. Date: November 2008
# Publisher: Penguin Group (USA) Incorporated
# Format: Mass Market Paperback, 368pp

Using magic means it uses you back, and every spell exacts a price from its user. But some people get out of it by Offloading the cost of magic onto an innocent. Then it's Allison Beckstrom's job to identify the spell-caster. Allie would rather live a hand-to-mouth existence than accept the family fortune—and the strings that come with it. But when she finds a boy dying from a magical Offload that has her father's signature all over it, Allie is thrown back into his world of black magic. And the forces she calls on in her quest for the truth will make her capable of things that some will do anything to control...

I have a confession to make....I don't seem to like stories where the author tells us what's going on from the get go, even subtly, so that the only people who don't know what's happening are the main characters. It's frustrating for me as a reader to watch the protag fumble around in the dark while I'm trying not to yell, "Behind you, stupid! THE MONSTER IS BEHIND YOU!!!" I mean, not like I would ever yell at a book or anything. ::nervous chuckle:: Anyhoo, it tends to make me start thinking less of the MC when in actuality, maybe he/she/they aren't really stupid, they just haven't had it laid out like a Sesame Street lesson as the reader maybe has, but it still frustrates me....can you tell?
This was an issue that I had with this story. It's basically a good story filled with action, sex and a bit of mystery, but I felt like Allie, our protag, was made to be a bit dense for the story to work and that made it frustrating in some parts. I did like the fact that there's a price for using magic and Allie pays pretty dearly at certain points. I also liked her best friend Nola, but I was on the fence about her love interest, Zayvion. Oh, he was hot and calm and possibly even her soul mate, but the constant dancing around each other and uncertainty of their relationship got old in some parts. I kinda wanted to yell, pick a lane sister! Or at least have an honest conversation between the two of you BEFORE you jump into bed.....again. But that's just me.
Overall, I liked the story enough to want to read the next in the series, and hope that the series gets stronger as it evolves.

My final grade: B-

For all the Rachel Caine fans out there

Rachel Caine is going on tour to promote the new release of Ghost Town, the next in the Morganville Vampires series. Here are the dates and locations of her signings:

October 26th: Murder By the Book at 6:30 PM
2342 Bissonnet St.
Houston, TX 77005

October 27th: Mystery Bookstore at 7:30 PM
1036-C Broxton Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90024

October 28th: Books, Inc. at 7:00 PM
Not Your Mother's Book Club
Town & Country Village
855 El Camino Real #74
Palo Alto, CA 94301

October 29th: Powell's (Cedar Hills Crossing) at 7:00 PM
3415 SW Cedar Hills Blvd.
Beaverton, OR 97005

October 30th: Third Place Books at 6:30 PM
17171 Bothell Way NE
Lake Forest Park, WA 98155

October 31st: Uncle Hugo’s at 4:00 PM
2864 Chicago Ave South
Minneapolis, MN 55407

November 1st: Anderson’s Book Shop at 7:00 PM
5112 Main Street
Downer’s Grove, IL 60515-4601

November 2nd: Borders at 6:00 PM
Exton Square Mall
298 Exton Square
Exton, PA 19341

November 4th: Barnes & Noble at 6:00 PM
*With Heather Brewer, author of the Vladimir Tod series!
1442 Turner-McCall Blvd
Rome, GA 30161

November 6th: Barnes & Noble at 2:00 PM
1430 Plaza Place
Southlake, TX 76092

November 20th: Borders at 2:00 PM
2190 N. Rainbow Blvd
Las Vegas, NV 89108

Awesome Covers Alert

My girl, Gini, shared the covers for the next two books in her series that stars Kitty, Reader, Martini and Co, and I loved them so much that I had to share with you all.

Doesn't Daniel Dos Santos do the best covers? I love 'em. I especially love the one for Alien In The Family. Total awesomeness. What do you all think?

I can't wait to get these books in my grabby lil hands.

You can get the latest news about upcoming books, interviews and giveaways on the author's blog, here.

A Little Friday Hotness

So, I recently stumbled across pictures of Odette Yustman and I instantly fell in love. She is just so pretty. So, naturally I had to share.

I can see her as Kate Daniels (even though I always picture Kate as Angelina Jolie) or maybe Sascha from Slave to Sensation by Nalini Singh.

Which character(s) can you picture Odette as?