Common Sense Media Review
By Darienne Stewart
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Satisfying, solid resolution of twisting dystopian romance.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 13+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
Parent and Kid Reviews
Based on 2 parent reviews
Based on 16 kid reviews
Kids say the final book in the series is a satisfying conclusion that includes elements of action and romance, though it has some language and moments of violence related to a deadly plague. While some readers felt it did not live up to the first book, many enjoyed the multiple perspectives and character development, making it suitable for mature young readers.
- appropriate for teens
- action and romance
- multiple perspectives
- character growth
- language and violence
Summarized with AI
Summarized with AI
What's the Story?
In REACHED, the final book in the Matched trilogy, the Rising against the controlling Society begins with a spreading Plague. By providing a cure, the Rising starts to win over the people. But the three protagonists -- Cassia; her friend and Society-approved Match, Xander; and her love, Ky -- struggle to reconcile their personal hopes with the drama playing out around them. Who really brought the Plague, and why? Can the Rising and its leader, the Pilot, be trusted? Their alliances -- to their families, the Rising, and to each other -- are tested. As the Plague mutates and spreads, Ky goes still; Xander searches for a new cure; and Cassia helps unleash latent creative voices and puts her sorting skills to work helping Xander.
Is It Any Good?
The pace picks up here, with threads of a medical thriller entwined in the engaging tale of rebellion, love, and longing. But it's the quieter thoughts that stick: Cassia's meditation on the purpose of creating, the ways the symbolic power of a poem can shift and change, the choices and challenges that complicate the desire to do good, and what makes a life well lived.
Matched was told from Cassia's perspective, and the second book, Crossed, shifted between Cassia and Ky. Reached adds a third narrative voice: that of Xander, whose absence was keenly felt in the middle book. At first he sounds confident but naive; his evolution from earnest soldier into a bruised but wiser young man is one of the more interesting narrative threads.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how the Matched trilogy compares with other popular series featuring love triangles, such as The Hunger Games and Twilight. Why is this structure so popular in teen fiction?
How do you interpret the symbolic meaning of the poems quoted in Reached, which shift and change depending on the perspective of the narrator and the circumstances?
Do you think creative expression is as important as Cassia does?
Book Details
- Author :
- Genre : Fantasy
- Topics : Fantasy ( Magic ) , Adventures , Friendship , STEM
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Dutton Books
- Publication date : November 13, 2012
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 12 - 17
- Number of pages : 528
- Available on : Nook, Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : October 9, 2025
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