9.12: Crossed, by Ally Condie (2011 hardcover)

Fresh off the heels of complaining about the romance in my previous TeenLit read, I picked up this  teen romance. It seems a bad choice in retrospect, but I couldn't help myself; I read the first volume in the series some time ago and had been looking forward to the release of the second. In Entry 62, I discuss the first book, Matched, which I liked enough to call a teen version of 1984 or Brave New World. The Society (Yes, with a capital ess) depicted in Matched was interesting, allowing the romance to mellow in the background as readers were exposed to additional infringements on freedom taking place behind the calm, white-washed surface of Society.

In Crossed, though, Society takes back stage as Cassia and Ky struggle to define themselves, find each other, and survive in the Outer Provinces and beyond. There are only limited glimpses of the world they are escaping and the world they are fleeing to (likely not as ideal as Cassia believes), and during the remaining time were are stuck with the two young lovers, yearning, and long meaningful glances. The end of the book, however, left me with hope for the future of the franchise, as it is clear we are going to get dumped back into Society and unSociety in the third book. Please, Condie, tip the scales back to social commentary and away from moony teens.