Paul's Top 5 Books Read in 2013

2013 was another great year for Young Adult books. I read over 50 books in 2013 and I want to share my Top 5 books that are not sequels. I'll also throw in the sequels I enjoyed at the end. One thing that I absolutely loved about 2013 was the inclusion of LGBT in so many Young Adult books. 

Here are the TOP 5 BOOKS I read in 2013 that are not sequels:

5. Crewel by Gennifer Albin

4. Skulk by Rosie Best

3. The Burning Sky by Sherry Thomas

2. Pantomime by Laura Lam

1. Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan

And here are some amazing sequels, some of them even conclusions to a series:

          

       

     

What were your favorite books of 2013? Check out my reviews of these books by clicking on the titles for the TOP 5 and the cover images for the sequels. 

--PAUL

Reached (Matched #3) by Ally Condie - Ashley's Review

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Title: Reached
Author: Ally Condie
Year Published: 2012

My Pre-Reading
Paul's Review
Paul's Pre-Reading

Synopsis: After leaving Society to desperately seek 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 is assigned undercover in Central city, Ky outside the borders, an airship pilot with Indie. Xander is a medic, with a secret. All too soon, everything shifts again.

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Review: I'm not going to lie, I have had the worst time with this series. I liked the plot, the world, and the concept, and I even like Xander and Ky and their stories... I just cannot stand Cassia. I tried for three books to like her and relate to her, and I just wanted to punch her every time one of her chapters came up. I have no idea why, and it makes me kind of sad, because I know this is a good series. This is also an excellent conclusion to this series, so whenever I could forget about Cassia I really thought that the way the story is wrapped up is excellently done.

Condie's world is interesting and exciting and mysterious and yet somehow so familiar. I think she does an excellent job taking her small world of the Society and expanding it into the Outers and the stone villages and everything else beyond that without spending too much time listing details. Everything is given as a memory or an event or a conversation, and it helps move the story along as well as introducing readers to new aspects of this complex world. I think this book had the best world building in it, since this is where Cassia, Xander, and Ky learn more about the world than they've ever known before.

I kind of feel like most of the relationships are underdeveloped, and the only one who really grasps anything about what love should be like is Xander. He loves Cassia, not only because she's his Match, but because they were best friends in childhood and he admires her strength and courage and then was lucky enough to get matched with her! But at the same time, he comes to realize that maybe first love isn't everything. And I admire him for that, and for his journey to get to that point. It wasn't an easy one, especially in this book, but he handles it very well. I also really wish that Ky and Indie had ended up together, because Indie is totally morel likable than Cassia. Cassia is just so annoying and only does things because she loves Ky... and she just comes off as so needy that it drives me insane. 

I was also really excited that a lot of this book was from Xander's viewpoint, since we hadn't heard much from him before. It was interesting to get inside the head of a character who has been there from the beginning, but mostly on the sideline. I also loved the way that everything from the previous two books is tied together in this one. Oh, and I also enjoyed how the colors on the covers make total sense now that I've finished the series. I don't want to spoil anything, but it's a really neat parallel. 

As much as I dislike Cassia, I still enjoyed this book and this series. I would definitely recommend Reached to anyone who has read any of the Matched series, because you won't want to miss this ending! I would also recommend the series to fans of The Hunger Games, Delirium, Divergent, and all those other dystopian books out there. It's really a well-written dystopian series. I would rate this book a 4/5.

--Ashley

Reached (Matched #3) by Ally Condie - Ashley's Pre-Reading

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

Title: Reached
Author: Ally Condie
Year Published: 2012

Synopsis: After leaving Society to desperately seek 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 is assigned undercover in Central city, Ky outside the borders, an airship pilot with Indie. Xander is a medic, with a secret. All too soon, everything shifts again.

Why?: I read and enjoyed the first two books in this series, Matched and Crossed. And so I feel like I should definitely read the third book to find out how the story ends for Cassia, Ky, and Xander!

Expectations: I expect this book to be similar to the first two. Mostly romance in a dystopian society, with Cassia and Ky trying to find each other (again...). I'm hoping we learn more about the society in this one though. And also, what Xander's secret is!

Judging a book by its cover: I'm a huge fan of covers that match the rest of the covers in the series, and this one does an excellent job of that. On Matched, the girl is trapped in a bubble. On Crossed, she's punched a hole in her bubble. And finally, on this cover, she's free of her bubble. I would probably pick this up if I saw it on a shelf somewhere. It's simple, but effective.


--Ashley

Reached (Matched #3) by Ally Condie - Paul's Review

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My Pre Reading

Title: Reached (Matched #3)
Author: Ally Condie
Year Published: 2012

Review: Although I did enjoy the first two books in this trilogy, I was not expecting to enjoy this third book this much. It was not what I was expecting at all. I expected a story about the revolution to take over the Society. I expected grand battles and for the Society to crumble. What I got was much better. I enjoyed seeing the more behind-the-scenes events and the revolution took a completely different turn. 

When Matched came out, love triangles were at the forefront of the YA genre. In my opinion they were an unnecessary evil. I felt that the love triangle took up so much of Matched. I wanted more world building. Thankfully, as this trilogy completes I am satisfied. The world is fleshed out, although there still are mysteries left. And, the love triangle felt natural and wasn't so dominant in this book. 

Pretty much all the questions you had after reading Matched and Crossed are answered. Some of the answers are not what you expected. It is always disappointing when you read a completed series and feel unsatisfied. In this case, I was satisfied by the answers to all the mysteries I had. Condie did a nice job on revealing them, as well. 

I really enjoyed that this book is from three points of view: Cassia, Ky, and Xander. I liked finally getting to see inside Xander's head.  

The concept and idea of the Pilot was my favorite thing in this book. I love the way Condie wrote when talking about the Pilot and what makes the Pilot the Pilot and what a Pilot is. The Pilot!

Towards the end of this book, there was a lot of color imagery. I enjoyed it, but it seemed slightly repetitive. The colors of green, blue, and red are not only represented on the covers of each of the books in the trilogy, but also the tablets each member of the Society possesses. They are also used to represent the elements to an extent. 

Overall, I was surprised by and really enjoyed this book. If you have read the other two int he series, you definitely need to pick this one up. And if you, like me, were not so excited about them, I hope you enjoy this conclusion as much as I did! I give this book a 5/5.

-PAUL

Reached (Matched #3) by Ally Condie - Paul's Pre-Reading

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Ashley's CROSSED Review

Title: Reached (Matched #3)
Author: Ally Condie
Year Published: 2012

Synopsis: 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.

Why?: Matched was one of the first in the big Dystopia trend in YA back in 2010, coming out a few months after Mockingjay. I enjoyed the feel of Matched. It had more romance than the Hunger Games trilogy. Crossed was less urban, following Cassia and Ky through the wild. Reached has Cassia back in Society, undercover.

Expectations: Both Matched and Crossed felt like lead up novels so I am expecting an epic ending. I hope there is some recap in the beginning of this book. I read Crossed over a year ago. I expect the romance will come to a final conclusion. I'm hoping to see Cassia kick some butt as a strong young heroine.

Judging a book by its cover: I love the covers in this trilogy! They are so clean, colorful, and sybolic. Cassia is trapped in the bubble, she cracks it, and now she is free. 

-PAUL