Reached

Rating: 3 out of 5 Red Pills

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.

(from Goodreads. com)

 

I don't know what it is about trilogies, lately, and the Third Book Syndrome. Condie's trio has potential. And this is why I have a love-hate relationship with it. The idea is good, and it works, but it didn't work for me. I don't know. Condie writes beautifully at times. There were a few gems of wisdom in each of the books, commentaries on life and human nature that I thought were priceless, but there seemed to be a disconnect. 

Ok, compared to other YA fiction out there right now, Condie's novels have more depth and the love stories are a little more believable, but I couldn't help feeling like it was missing something. Cassia is likable, but she isn't relatable. I don't feel like her character, as the heroine, leaps out of the pages for any special reason. At least she isn't a moody character and she is determined all the way through to the very last page, but I think because she didn't have fluctuations in her mood is why she was so unrealistic to me. She'd cry or she'd have these flashbacks but she never got angry. Of all the people in this series to get angry, Cassia is the one who should have been screaming mad. I wanted emotion and all I got was a pretty monotone character. Her insights are beautiful, and she becomes a way for Condie to show that it is the arts and the ability of humans to create that is going to save us someday. 

Ky was the best character throughout all of it because he was the most in-depth. He had more emotion behind him. However, I hated that he was so okay with Xander being in love with the girl he loved. So when the characters have emotions in this series it doesn't feel like something a normal person would feel. 

Xander is okay. He seems to shine the most in this book and he doesn't get very much mention in the other two books. He's kind of a side figure. The poor fella who got Matched to Cassia who doesn't love him. And then we are introduced to Lei in a sad way to match him off with someone else so the Cassia and Ky can live happily ever after. It felt like the whole Renesmee/Jacob fiasco in the last book of the Twilight series. Hey, let's introduce a new character for my third member in the love triangle so he can also be happy and my main duo can have their love. I'm sorry, but real life doesn't work that way. It's messy. And I wanted there to be mess in this book. I wanted there to be raw emotion. I mean...hello, The Society is being overthrown and nobody seemed to care. I won't spoil it, but I just feel like that should have been handled differently.

 Now to the Pilot thing. My other big gripe about this. Two whole books of the buildup of "Who is The Pilot?" Then it's just some random guy we never heard of. Nor do we ever get a freaking name or a description of this guy. I'm not sure I understand the point of that. And then we suddenly had Pilots popping up everywhere. Indie was a Pilot? We are all Pilots? Meaning we all determine our own destiny? I was so confused. I wanted the Pilot to be Cassia or Ky or even Xander. That would have made literary sense. 

Ok. Enough of the gripes. I have to give Condie props for some really beautiful writing. Especially in the first two books. Her descriptions were very handy and well-crafted. Where story line and emotion seemed to fail, her writing picked up the slack. When I finished the second book, I wasn't sure I wanted to finish the last book because the whole business in The Carving felt plotless and too wander-y for my taste. But it was Condie's writing that brought me back. I will continue to watch for her career in the future because I definitely think she's a gifted writer. I just think she needs some help in the conveying emotion department. 

Addendum: Now that I think of it, this book actually reads a lot like Ayn Rand's Anthem which is an amazing and very short book. The plotline seems about the same. But, Rand was still able to convey some very real emotion in characters that didn't even have names. So it can be done.