Review – Reached (Matched, Book 3) by Ally Condie (3/5 stars)

Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Dystopia
Size: 384 pages
Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Release Date: November 13, 2012
ISBN: 978-0525423669
Stand Alone or Series: 3rd book in the Matched Trilogy
Source: Gift
Rating: 3/5 stars

This is the third and final book in the Matched trilogy. It was a decent end to the series and wrapped things up nicely. The book is beautifully written, but moves slowly.

After reaching the Rising Cassia, Ky, and Xander have been given their assignments. Cassia is sent back to Central to sort. Ky is assigned as a pilot. Xander is sent to a city to serve as a medic. They are all struggling to figure out how their roles support the Rising. That is until the Plague breaks out and only the Rising seems to have the cure.

The story is told from Cassia, Ky, and Xander’s viewpoints. The chapters are clearly labeled at the beginning as to which viewpoint you are reading from which is helpful.

Most of the book revolves around the three characters trying to figure out exactly what the Rising is and how it came about. The other big plot topic is the Plague. When the Plague mutates, things become even more desperate.

Our favorite characters don’t actually interact much in this story. They spend vast amounts of the book in different places. This resulted in the characters doing a lot of thinking and speculation in their parts of the story.

Cassia, Ky, and Xander do grow and change a lot in this book. Cassia has come a long way from the ignorant girl she was in Matched. Ky is slowly learning to trust people, which is great to see. Xander’s transformation is the hardest to read about, he goes through a lot of pain in this book.

The book moves slowly and there are large parts of the story that seem a bit clunky and unnecessary. Condie tries to bring the whole theme of colors and threes full circle and she does an okay job…still it all felt a bit forced to me. At the end of it all I kind just felt like…huh…well I guess that series is over.

The writing is beautifully done and there is excellent imagery throughout, at times though the story just moves too slowly. Following what is going on with the Rising, the Society, and the people outside of either was a bit confusing at points too.

Overall a decent wrap up to this series. Everything is nicely tied up, although the story moves very slowly at points. This is a very long book and it feels like it. Our favorite characters spend the vast majority of the book in different places meaning that there isn’t a lot of interaction between them until the last third or so of the book. Recommended if you are a fan of this series. If you want a good YA dystopian read I would go elsewhere though. I would recommend The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins or The Divergent series by Veronica Roth.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– 150+ Reading Challenge
– Young Adult Reading Challenge