Book Review: Reached

Goodreads summary:

After leaving Society and desperately searching for the Rising—and each other—Cassia and Ky have found what they were looking for, but at the cost of losing each other yet again: Cassia has been assigned to work for the Rising from within Society, while Ky has been stationed outside its borders. But nothing is as predicted, and all too soon the veil lifts and things shift once again.

In this gripping conclusion to the #1 New York Times-bestselling Matched trilogy, Cassia will reconcile the difficulties of challenging a life too confining, seeking a freedom she never dreamed possible, and honoring a love she cannot live without.

My review:

Oh, this book is so beautiful.  I loved every moment of it.  This series has been one of my favorites for quite some time.  Matched was the first dystopian book I ever read, and I loved it.  And while I still loved the sequel, Crossed, it wasn't quite as good as the first one.  However, Reached is a perfect conclusion to this amazing series!

One thing I love about this series is the symbolism.  Take the covers, for example.  They're so simple yet striking, and I love how they convey the journey Cassia's character takes throughout the series.  And the titles are so poetic too: Matched, Crossed, Reached.

Ally Condie's writing is just as beautifully poetic as ever in Reached.  There's something about the way she writes.  It's so simple, yet filled with gorgeous imagery and metaphors.  And despite the lovely writing, Reached is a fast read.  While it's just over 500 pages, I read through it in a day.

It was so much fun to read about the characters again.  Reached is told from three points of view: Cassia, Ky, and Xander.  I really loved this.  It was never confusing, and it gave great insight into each of the different characters and their motives.  While I never cared much for Xander in the previous books, I grew to admire his character in this one.

The plot was wonderful.  Though it was a bit slow-moving at first, I thought it was necessary to the storyline.  I felt so much for the characters as they tried to figure out who was truly on their side and who they could trust.  Amazing!  And that ending was just perfect.

Reached was a powerful, thought-provoking conclusion to the Matched series.  Definitely recommended!  And now I'll end with a couple of my favorite quotes from Reached:

"Mountains, I realize.  That's what the ocean is.  Those waves are peaks.  The stars are lights in houses and on streets.  The earth reflects the sky and the sky meets the earth and, every now and then, if we're lucky, we have a moment to see how small we are." - pg. 236.

"'Sometimes paper is only paper,' my mother says.  'Words are just words.  Ways to capture the real thing.  Don't be afraid to remember that.'
I know what she means.  Writing, painting, singing - it cannot stop everything.  Cannot halt death in its tracks.  But perhaps it can make the pause between death's footsteps sound and feel beautiful, can make the space of waiting a place where you can linger without as much fear.  For we are all walking each other to our deaths, and the journey there between footsteps makes up our lives." - pg. 510.

*sigh* I could go on and on about how beautiful this book is and how much I love it, but this review is long enough already.  So anyway...just go read this book. 

My rating:  10 out of 10 (5 stars)

~ The Bookworm