Book Review: Crossed

I must admit, it's taking me forever to finish this book. Most of the series books I read have the same problem- the second is never as good as the first. That is the case with Crossed.

I've been trying to figure out why that is, as I LOVED Matched.  The one thing that is different is the author, Ally Condie, is now telling the story in 2 voices. It makes great sense why she does this. You have two characters looking for each other and trying to find their way to and through a location. So, the reader follows each of the characters on their journey.

There are a few twists and turns in the book that had me say aloud "What!?" but for the most part, I was kind of bored. You simply wait for the characters to do something for what seems like a while in the middle. I am not good with waiting, especially in the middle.

Aside from waiting, the book isn't terrible. One of the things I like is that it's told in 2 voices. I also like that Condie doesn't spend the majority of the first few chapters recounting what happened in the first novel- she shares this information as is needed when you read through the book and in a great way- just enough to help you remember, but not too detailed to bog you down. Thank goodness!

The first few chapters were catching but then the story slows. I'm not sure why. It's almost like Condie was stuck and trying to bring things together but not sure how.

I like how Condie makes you wonder if Cassia made the right choice or if she should switch. I found I was unsure of my feelings on how Ky behaved/interacted with others. Xander simply blew my mind in this.  I also enjoyed the end of the book. Again, Condie keeps you guessing which "he" Cassia will be meeting- even though I'm 100% sure I know!

**** Something really cool- I looked up Ally Condie's site. She has a cool blog where she posts on Tuesdays. One of the posts was a playlist for the book. I'm going to go through it and check out what she pictures as good tunes for the journey the characters are on. I just love the face that she took time to come up with it. Check out her blog here. Scroll down and you'll see the playlist under the picture of Crossed. She also gives good ideas for books for Christmas. Love books for Christmas... Shoot, I love books anytime!