#matched trilogy

Read Date - April 30th, 2025

Length - 367 pages

Genre - Dystopia, Sci-fi, Romance

Rating - 7/10

Stars - ★★★☆☆

Notes - The descriptions of war in this book are so visceral and real and raw. hearing what Ky is going through is so TOUGH. i love the way its written though, it's so beautiful at the same time is such a grim way. i like that Cassia was given a companion in Indy. Indy is a really cool character so far. I also really love eli, and what he represents (in my opinion). not just a child soldier, but a 13 year old? Ky is at least 16 maybe 17 years old, but 13? it changes everything for me. we also learn WHY soldiers are being placed on the ground, and what things they are and are not allowed to do. the boys deciding to run away was a perfect idea, and i love the way the narrative switched between past and present with Ky and Cassia. i personally REALLY love the love triangle playing out here. Cassia is allowed full autonomy to play out her relationships with both Ky and Xander at the same time, which not only speeds up the process but makes things easier come to the third book when a final decision is made. Vic dying and Ky hallucinating his voice was truly a sad scene and i hated to see the way Vics story ended so suddenly. the reunification of Ky and Cassia was SO SWEET and i love them forever. they're my new OTP if i'm being honest with you. Indy having beef with Ky was not on my bucket lift but it did indeed happen and i kind of like the drama. Is indy good? is she bad? maybe she's just morally grey and has her own motives and prerogative. thats fine by me! the group meeting up with hunter was a great dynamic to show off how different society people are, compared to other groupings in the world. Hunter and everyone finding the tissue samples buried and deciding to break them was crazy to me. like who hurt you? the society obvi thats a joke lets kill the society. When Indy says that she thinks Ky is the Pilot?? girl SAME. SAAAAAAAAME FUCKING SAME. I WISH I HAD WRITTEN IT DOWN CUZ NOW I JUST LOOK LIKE A POSER!!!! i hope he's the Pilot. it's SO cool!! the reveal that Xander joined the rebellion was a twist i never expected!! i never expect most twists but it's still a nice surprise to see! i love being shocked every time sitting there jaw agape. the escape out of the outerlands into the rebellion was such an interesting read. i never expected Ky to join, and honestly expected him to leave them behind. but he said he'd never leave Cassia, and she entered The Rising and so he must as well. as always, i never expected the group to get split up. seeing Cassia be sent away to Central is beyond crazy to me because she literally JUST found Ky. but now she has a deeper connection with Xander in the end, which complicated things. this series is BEYOND interesting to me, and i cant help but crave more.