Play Book Tag discussion

4 golden stars, definitely earned

Spell binding and situated in a futuristic utopia, Cassia Reyes, the protagonist of the book explores her life, of love and words. Everything in the society is carefully measured. Everything is determined beforehand. No mistakes are permitted, no surprises are imminent. Until Cassia's Matching.

The error on her microcard portrays a single face, so familiar yet nothing close to who she had been expecting. Ky Markham. They said it had been a mistake, but is it really one? One that hadn't been done since the society's establishment?

Throughout the book, Cassia approaches Ky, little by little, delving into pieces of his life. The subtle affection, the secret pieces of words embellished her life better than any Match could do for her. Better than the Society could provide. Through the build-up of their trust, the foundations of their relationship lay thick, perhaps even thicker and perennial compared to her rightful Match, Xander.

The love triangle rages along with several conflicts, making the entire plot realistic and believable. Who could have thought that a utopia would actually be a dystopia? Entirely wrapped in the luxuries of technology, the strict rules have omitted nature and humanity. People are no longer allowed to love freely, quite the contrary, they are matched based on the perfect genes. People no longer have the liberty to relax under the sun, the freedom to do whatever they like, but are trapped amidst tight schedules that plan your every step. Through a young love's point of view, Ally Condie presents the struggles and the passion she is facing in great depth, depicting the society's flaws vividly with unforgettable language. The small pieces of poems were truly great additions that made this book utterly memorable and impactful.

Despite all that perfection, there was a noticeable flaw. Amidst the flowing language, one could never stop appreciating how well the plot was built up yet it seemed to be lacking something. For one, the other characters should have been developed besides the sweet romance between Ky and Cassia. They should've been portrayed more throughout the book rather than only appearing in a few chunks. I felt that the entire story was far too centered on the two protagonists and a wider scope would be prefarable.

All in all, the book was awesome except for the minuscule flaw mentioned above and I'll definitely recommend that to anyone who enjoys romance, dystopian story lines, or even anyone else!

I like your review. It’s almost as poetic as Ally’s words are. And, I can see where you’re coming from with your viewpoint of the one flaw. When I read the series, I didn’t care, lol, because I just liked reading the romance between Cassia and Ky. But as the plots become more complex, that flaw is noticeable. I think it may be less in the second and third books but I’m not sure since it didn’t bug me.

Thanks Jenni :) Honestly I loved the romance as well but I would probably appreciate that better if the plot had been more three dimensional... I'm really trying so hard to find time to read the next books but my school schedules are just making me so stressed out :( I do hope the next books are great though, I'm definitely looking forward to reading them