Review: Reached by Ally Condie

Reached (Matched #3)
by Ally Condie

After leaving Society to desperately seek 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 is assigned undercover in Central city, Ky outside the borders, an airship pilot with Indie. Xander is a medic, with a secret. All too soon, everything shifts again.

 Synopsis from Goodreads

I am a horrible person. I try not to judge a book before I read it, and even then I try to be fair. But shortly after starting this book it became obvious to me that I was suffering from a severe case of book discrimination. I had convinced myself ahead of time that I was going to hate this book.  And I tried! Really, I did! In the end, however, the book won.

As I was reading this, a friend asks, "How have you enjoyed this series so far? Is it worth it?!" I didn't know what to say. I really wanted to say YES! because it was obvious the series was trying to redeem itself, finishing strong. But it is so hard to forget the train wreck that was Crossed. Anyone who knows me, knows how I am physically incapable of letting go of a grudge. This is one of those times. 

Condie did her best to fix my biggest grudge: the fact that the characters inner voices are all the same. This became even more complex with the third installment, as there are now three different characters, as the story bounces back and forth between Cassia, Ky and Xander. I was mostly able to keep them straight, so Condie earned some points there. And, as complex as the plot was, she did a great job wrapping up all the loose ends, left dangling since Matched. 

The world building was decent, but I feel like it was relying on all the hard work from Matched. I am still able to remember most of what I imagined way back in book 1, and I think a lot of the setting is counting on that. 

So, would I recommend the series? It depends on who I'm talking to. But if you're like me, and you've already invested a part of your time in the first two books, definitely donate a little more to reading book 3.