eBook Deals: THE MATCHED TRILOGY

The ebook versions of Ally Condie's Matched, Crossed, and Reached are each available across many e-retailers for $2.99 each (all 3 books are less than $9.00 - such a deal)! Grab them while you can!

MATCHED 

Amazon | B&N | BAM | iBookstore | Kobo

CROSSED 

Amazon | B&N | BAM | iBookstore | Kobo

REACHED 

Amazon | B&N | BAM | iBookstore | Kobo 

Also, in case you're curious about Ally Condie's next novel, ATLANTIA, you can read an extended sampler of ATLANTIA online!

Study Session: The Matched Trilogy Covers

Study Session is where I share my notes on classic works of literature, young adult novels, and any other type of literature that captures my interest. I will feature summaries, analysis, and other musings on various works of literature. Each post is written fairly quickly, based on my private notes or spur-of-the-moment thoughts, so please forgive any factual or grammatical errors. 

I am a fan of book covers. When a novel is fortunate enough to have an excellent cover designer, it shows. After all, a good cover captures the story and subtly hints at what you will find inside. 

Ally Condie's Matched trilogy is one of those trilogies that features eye-catching covers that also happen to embody many themes, symbols, and ideas of the novel. 

In the cover for Matched, a young woman (I will refer to her as Cassia, the main character) is trapped in a bubble. The bubble represents the Society - it is thinly made, delicate, and even beautiful as it reflects rainbows in the light. Cassia is lightly pressing against the bubble's edges, noticing the limitations of her life but not entirely afraid of this confinement.Though Cassia is pressing against the edges of her limits, she has yet to take a strong stance. Instead, she is sitting and lightly touching her boundaries.

She wears a dress, giving her the appearance of innocence, youth, and decadence. The color green symbolizes one of three pills every member of the Society must keep with them at all times (the green tablet reduces anxiety, which further explains Cassia's mostly relaxed posture, despite the confinement). Yet, green may also represent jealousy (for the world outside?). All in all, this image evokes an overwhelming sense of curiosity and an eagerness to discover. 

In the cover for Crossed, Cassia is breaking through the Society’s perfect structure. The bubble no longer appears thin and harmless, but features jagged edges and sharp pieces flying around in the air. Her clothing is more active, revealing that the heroine has been through (and will continue to go through) quite a bit of growth and that she will face physical challenges.

Instead of wearing a beautiful dress, Cassia is prepared to take a stand and to fight in her active clothing.  But, she's also barefoot, exposed to the elements. Her body - though it is forcing through the bubble - has not entirely escaped. Though she is on her way to asserting herself, Cassia is still caught in the Society she seeks to escape. The blue coloring is a nod to the blue tablet (which I will not explain, to avoid spoilers). 

In the cover for Reached, Cassia has left the mindset the Society encourages and has broken entirely free. The broken, extremely thick, jagged edges of the bubble hint at the Society’s malevolent side, and a nod to its possible downfall / fracturing. Her red gown is more mature than her girlish green dress from the first cover, showing she has grown into a woman.

Cassia's back is to the viewer, and her overall stance is more assertive, strong, and curious to explore what lies outside. She is no longer being veiled by the Society bubble, and is free to make her own choices and decisions. The red hue connects with the red table (which, again, I will not discuss to avoid spoilers), but this color also makes one think of both war (red, the color of blood) and love (red is overwhelmingly associated with love, from Valentine's Day hearts to bright red roses). In all, this cover evokes freedom.

***

In the end, I love these covers because of the stories they tell. Even without reading the the novels, you can see the stories written in these images.

What are your thoughts on these covers? 

Review: Reached by Ally Condie

Reached
Ally Condie
November 13th 2012
384 pages (hardcover)
Publisher: Dutton
Source: ARC from publicist

Highlight to read the summary: "After leaving Society and desperately searching for 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 has been assigned to work for the Rising from within Society, while Ky has been stationed outside its borders. But nothing is as predicted, and all too soon the veil lifts and things shift once again.

In this gripping conclusion to the #1 New York Times-bestselling Matched Trilogy, Cassia will reconcile the difficulties of challenging a life too confining, seeking a freedom she never dreamed possible, and honoring a love she cannot live without."

An excellent ending to an incredible trilogy, REACHED ties everything together in ways you'll never see coming. As with the previous novels, Condie's writing is fluid, unhurried, and poetic with each line, each page. In REACHED, Condie lets readers know and learn more about Xander as a new narrator, in addition to Cassia and Ky's points-of-view. All three narrations are strong and each voice is authentic to each character, making it easy to always know who is narrating at any given point. Life has changed – and continues to change – drastically for all three characters as a deadly plague spreads and each character comes closer to choosing their future. 

Overall, this conclusion to the MATCHED trilogy is gripping, romantic, exciting, and surprising. Anyone who hesitates reading this trilogy because of the love triangle is missing out, because these books are about more than two young men and a girl struggling to choose between them. They are about freedom, fighting for what you believe in, and so much more. Condie's writing is evocative and completely engaging. All in all, REACHED is an outstanding conclusion that will captivate readers until the very last page. 

Highlights: I enjoyed how Condie tied everything together in this novel – a few moments that seemed inconsequential in previous books became extremely important in this story. This story surprised me a few times, and I loved the three distinct points of view – it was nice to finally get to know more about Xander's character. Character growth, especially Cassia's character. 

Lowlights: Very slow going and character-focused, which is to be expected from Condie's writing. However, it felt like it took a very long time to get to the main plot. 

Contest and REACHED Trader Challenge #4: Cross Over

I was lucky enough to be selected to become one of the traders for the Silk & Paper campaign! As traders, it's our job to get the word out about the fantastic Matched Trilogy as we wait for the final novel, REACHED, to release. Last week, we shared the Matched Trilogy Facebook Fan Page, and this week the Archivists and the Rising have given us (even you!) another task to complete:

Trader Challenge #4: Cross Over 

ASSIGNMENT: It is one thing to wake up from the Society’s dream of a “perfect” civilization, but it is another thing altogether to cross the boundary from your safe and sound world into new and dangerous territory. Follow and help Cassia through her journey into the Outer Provinces to reunite with Ky and ultimately discover herself. Drive as much traffic as possible to the Matched Facts Tumblr and the Crossed Facts campaign by reblogging, promoting the link and images on Facebook, etc.  & get as many people as possible to embed the CROSSED trailer on their blogs, post about them on Facebook, etc.

I'm a fan of Matched Facts, simply because they always refresh my memory of what happened in each book without adding in any unnecessary information. Here are a couple Matched and Crossed Facts that I like:

And now, for my contest with awesome prizes! But, I'm going to make you work for it (Don't worry, the challenges are easy and fun!) 

Challenge #4

Option 1: Find one MATCHED OR CROSSED Fact that you like and Tweet it OR Post it to Facebook.

OR

Option 2: Tweet OR Post the CROSSED Book Trailer to Facebook.

Easy, right? Did you complete one of the options for Challenge #4? Copy the link to your tweet or Facebook post, click on Challenge #4 on the Rafflecopter below and paste the link in the space provided. You can also still complete the first three challenges - the more challenges you complete, the more entries into the giveaway you receive!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Contest and REACHED Trader Challenge #3: Rise Up

I was selected to become one of the traders for the Silk & Paper campaign, and as traders it's our job to get the word out about the fantastic Matched Trilogy. Last week, we shared the MATCHED book trailer plus Scribd sampler, and this week the Archivists and the Rising have given us (even you!) another task to complete:

Trader Challenge #3: Rise Up

ASSIGNMENT: The Rising needs new recruits. Drive as much traffic as possible to the Matched Trilogy Facebook fan page (facebook.com/matchedbooks) to build up rebel forces.

So head on over to the Matched Trilogy fan page on Facebook and like it (if you haven't already). Plus, if you're willing to share the link to the Matched Trilogy Facebook fan page and spread the word about REACHED, you can win big:

GIVEAWAY (US ONLY)

1 Grand Prize Winner will receive a MATCHED Trilogy Box Set + MATCHED Trilogy Swag (poster + buttons)

2 Winners will receive MATCHED Trilogy Swag

Each week, I'll add new tasks to the Rafflecopter for more chances to win, so keep checking back. Welcome to the Rising!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Challenge Recap

Challenge #1

Grab, embed, and share the REACHED countdown widget

Challenge #2

Embed the MATCHED Scribd OR Trailer on your blogs / Facebook and Tweet about it using the #getmatched hashtag.

If you don't have a Twitter, it can be as simple as sharing the link to the book trailer or excerpt on Facebook and leaving me a link to that post in the rafflecopter. 

Challenge #3

Like the Matched Trilogy Facebook Fan Page and drive as much traffic to the page as you can to build up rebel forces.

Example: "Have you joined the Rising? Like the Matched Trilogy Facebook Fan Page: http://www.facebook.com/matchedbooks" and then leave me a link to where you posted. 

Contest and REACHED Trader Challenge #2: Get Matched

I was selected to become one of the traders for the Silk & Paper campaign, and as traders it's our job to get the word out about the fantastic Matched Trilogy. Last week, we shared the REACHED countdown widget (which you can grab in my right sidebar) and this week the Archivists and the Rising have given us (even you!) another task to complete:

Trader Challenge #2: Get Matched

ASSIGNMENT: For Cassia Reyes, the seeds of dissent and rebellion were first sown in MATCHED. The Society is corrupt and people must know. Spread the word however you can - get as many people as possible to tweet #getmatched, embed the MATCHED trailer and Scribd sampler on their blogs, post about them on Facebook, etc.

Matched sampler

Watch the MATCHED book trailer on YouTube!
Plus, if you help the Rising, you can win some sweet prizes. 
GIVEAWAY (US ONLY)
1 Grand Prize Winner will receive a MATCHED Trilogy Box Set + MATCHED Trilogy Swag (poster + buttons)
2 Winners will receive MATCHED Trilogy Swag
Each week, I'll add new tasks to the Rafflecopter for more chances to win, so keep checking back. Welcome to the Rising!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Challenge Recap
Challenge #1 Grab, embed, and share the REACHED countdown widget
Challenge #2 Embed the MATCHED Scribd and Trailer on your blogs / Facebook and Tweet about it using the #getmatched hashtag. 

Matched & Crossed Read-Along

Are you excited for Ally Condie's REACHED, but can't remember what happened in the last two books? Or are you a new reader to the trilogy and want to get caught up before REACHED releases?

If you said "YES" to either of those, then you should sign up for the MATCHED and CROSSED Read-Along (hosted by Benji and Enna)! You can even win awesome Matched trilogy prizes, so don't miss out!

Don't Miss #AllyChat tonight!

Tonight is second annual #AllyChat with Ally Condie, author of the New York Times Bestselling Matched Trilogy! Ally will be answering questions from 8:00 - 9:00pm Eastern, 5:00 - 6:00pm Pacific time. 

There will even be prizes, such as some awesome Matched trilogy swag for those who tweet during the chat using the hashtag #allychat. 

Don't miss out on the fun!

Waiting on Wednesday (Times Two!)

WOW is hosted by Jill of Breaking the Spine

Variant by Robison Wells

Release: October 2011

Summary: 

Benson Fisher thought a scholarship to Maxfield Academy would be the ticket out of his dead-end life. 

He was wrong. 

Now he’s trapped in a school that’s surrounded by a razor-wire fence. A school where video cameras monitor his every move. Where there are no adults. Where the kids have split into groups in order to survive. 

Where breaking the rules equals death. 

But when Benson stumbles upon the school’s real secret, he realizes that playing by the rules could spell a fate worse than death, and that escape—his only real hope for survival—may be impossible.

This is pretty much every teenager's worst nightmare (oh, to be stuck in school...with no way out!). I'm very curious about this one. 

Crossed by Ally Condie

Release: November 2011

Summary: 

In search of a future that may not exist and faced with the decision of who to share it with, Cassia journeys to the Outer Provinces in pursuit of Ky — taken by the Society to his certain death — only to find that he has escaped, leaving a series of clues in his wake.

Cassia’s quest leads her to question much of what she holds dear, even as she finds glimmers of a different life across the border. But as Cassia nears resolve and certainty about her future with Ky, an invitation for rebellion, an unexpected betrayal, and a surprise visit from Xander — who may hold the key to the uprising and, still, to Cassia’s heart — change the game once again. Nothing is as expected on the edge of Society, where crosses and double crosses make the path more twisted than ever.

I so cannot wait for this book! The cover is a tad bit awkward in some spots, but intriguing nevertheless. 

What are you waiting on this week?