In this novel, Cassia is Matched--assigned her future marriage partner. To her surprise, she is assigned Xander, her best friend, a rare occurrence because he is someone she knows. She is further confused when another face later appears on the portscreen when she intends to review the Courtship Guidelines. She sees Ky Markham, another boy she knows. Ky is an attractive and quiet guy originally from the Outer Provinces. Cassia starts paying attention to him and finds herself falling in love. Additionally, her realization that the Society can make mistakes leads her to question her place and her future. 
 I really liked the characters in this novel and look forward to getting to know them better in the sequel. I cared about Cassia's entire family and found her relationship with her little brother Bram to be very touching. I expect to see more rebellion from Bram in the future. 
 I did feel that Cassia transitioned a little too quickly from being naive and trusting to insurgent. On the other hand, new ideas and realizations are embraced more readily at that age. The most powerful theme in this novel is that words empower, and I liked that Cassia grew stronger when she learned to write and discover her own language. 
 Of course, the romance was really engaging. I can't write too much about it without putting a spoiler alert here. I will comment that there are all these lucky girls in novels lately, with not one but two amazing guys in love with them! 
 I'm eagerly awaiting the sequel, Crossed.