Matched trilogy by Ally Condie

I've had these books on my to-read list for a long, long time. At first I waited to read them because Reached, the final installment of the trilogy, wasn't published yet. Then I waited because there were 50+ holds on Reached at the library. Once the hold list got under 30 I decided I was tired of waiting and I was going to get started.

This trilogy has a typical dystopian setting, set in the future after society has fallen and a new Society has emerged. In the Society everyone is Matched with their ideal partner, disease is a thing of the past, and everyone is a contributing member to society. In the first book, Cassia is Matched with Xander, her best friend, but she is having feelings for Ky. Shouldn't she have the right to choose who she loves? In Crossed, book 2, Cassia has joined the rebellion and is working to bring down the Society. In Reached, the Society has fallen and Cassia, Xander, and Ky all have to work together to find a cure to a mutated disease that threatens to destroy the life they've been working for.

I'm not sure exactly how I feel about these books. Considering all the hype I heard, they weren't as good as I was expecting, but they were still worth reading. Entertaining, but not great. I feel like the love triangle theme is way overused in young adult fiction so I wasn't too happy about the Cassia, Ky, Xander situation, even though it all works out in the end. I was also annoyed by how much Ky and Xander adored Cassia. She's a nice girl and all but she's kind of an idiot. It's hard to love a series when you don't respect the main character.

Overall, I think these were entertaining books and an enjoyable read, but don't expect an amazingly original storyline, because you won't get it.

3 out of 5 stars

The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen

This book is by the same author who wrote Flipped, which I read a few months ago. Just before I read this book I decided that I wanted to do a big race before planning to have another baby and, consequentially, getting out of shape. I'd been exercising a lot already so I just needed to pick a race and tweak my training schedule. I thought about doing a half-marathon, but I really hate running so the idea of running 13.1 miles sounds like my idea of hell. My friend mentioned doing a triathlon and the idea stuck with me. I signed up for a sprint triathlon, which is the shortest distance: 1/2 mile open water swim, 15.1 mile bike ride, 3.1 mile run. Easy peasy, right?? Well I worked and I trained and I completed my first triathlon on June 1, 2013. During my training was when I read this book and it was the perfect read to keep my head in the game.

The Running Dream is about a high school track star who loses her leg in a car accident on the way home from a track meet. The story focuses on her personal journey of learning how to cope with losing a leg and adapting her life. She decides that she wants to continue running and works to accomplish her dream despite inconceivable obstacles.

I don't know if this is based on a true story, but shortly after I finished reading came the attacks at the Boston Marathon and I couldn't help but think of those people who lost their limbs and the journey they have ahead of them. I found The Running Dream to be inspiring and it helped me aspire to work harder to accomplish my dreams despite the difficulties life has in store. I definitely recommend this one--uplifting, easy read, all-around good book.

4 out of 5 stars

Hot Money by Dick Francis

Wow, I have been super neglectful of my blog. I've read several books since I last posted so now I get to review them all at once.

Hot Money was recommended by my aunt and I checked it out because I trust her opinion, even though it looked really different from the stuff I usually read. Turns out I should read "different" stuff more often because this was a really entertaining book! It's sort of a classic murder mystery who-dunnit book and I was guessing until the very last chapter. There are a lot of characters, aka suspects, and the author does a good job at making each one seem like the potential killer. Since it's been a couple months since I read it, I can't remember the character names, but the story is centered on an extremely wealthy man who has been married 5 times and has now-grown children from 4 of his marriages. His most recent wife has been murdered and now the killer is coming after him. The only person he trusts is his (I think youngest) son, who helps protect him and discover who is trying to take his life and his money.

I highly recommend this read, especially if you're looking for a good mystery!

4 out of 5 stars