Matched by Ally Condie

Katniss in THE HUNGER GAMES.  Katna in GRACELING.  Katarina (Kat) in THE HEIST SOCIETY.  Claudia in INCARCERON.  And now, Cassia joins the ranks of strong, intelligent and brave young women.

Cassia lives in a dystopian society. Couples are "matched," told how many children they will have, where they will work, what they eat, and when they die.  In a very rare situation Cassia is matched with a childhood friend, Xander and all seems perfect until she begins to develop feelings for another boy she has grown up with, Ky.  Cassia and Ky slowly fall in love and together they share Ky's family story, poetry, and writing (Ky teaches Cassia as writing has been replaced with computerized scribes.)  The story moves slow as the relationship blossoms and pieces of a puzzle begin to be laid out and as you near the end of the book you know it will have to continue in a sequel.  While I do wish it was a stand alone book, I will wait a year for CROSSED, the sequel and look forward to reuniting with Xander, Ky and Cassia.

MATCHED has been compared to THE GIVER and is recommended for fans of THE HUNGER GAMES trilogy.  I concur.  I recommend it for tweens and teens (no underage drinking or promiscuity.)

While some books don't always live up to the hype, MATCHED is one that did.