Title: The Selection
Author: Kiera Cass
Genre: Dystopian; Romance
Pages: 327
Publication: April 24, 2012
Synopsis:
For thirty-five girls, the Selection is the chance of a lifetime. The opportunity to escape the life laid out for them since birth. To be swept up in a world of glittering gowns and priceless jewels. To live in a palace and compete for the heart of gorgeous Prince Maxon.
But for America Singer, being Selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her. Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn't want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent rebel attacks.
Then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she starts to question all the plans she's made for herself--and realizes that the life she's always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined.
Before I read this book, I had heard many good things about, and I was not disappointed. The Selection was a fun and very interesting read, and I loved it. First of all, let's talk about the setting. The Selection takes place in a dystopian United States, but sometimes, hardly seemed dystopian. In a lot of dystopian books, you see worlds that are completely different from the original, or an exaggerated form of our current world, but this book kept out world somewhat familiar, but added elements that made it unique. I loved the plot in this book. It was like a mix of The Bachelor with some added (non-lethal) elements from The Hunger Games. You have the romance element from shows like The Bachelor, but you kind of have things like the actual selection process and how they get eliminated that sort of reminded me of The Hunger Games.
I would say that there was only one or two characters in this book that I actually loved: Maxon and May. May because she was hilarious and like a little fangirl imitation of all of us reading the book, and Maxon... because he's Maxon and he's amazing. I did like America, but there were times that I felt she was being extremely selfish (not on purpose, but still). I'm hoping that in future books, she will develop and change into a person who's both selfless and independent. The character that I liked the least was Aspen. I don't really know why. Maybe it was his Gale Hawthorne-y characteristics. Maybe he just rubbed me the wrong way, but what I did like about his character was his selflessness. He provided for his family and America, which is such an admirable quality.
The story in this book was good. It was written well, and it was a quick, fun read. But there was something missing for me in this book. I love books that have both character and plot development, but this book didn't have both, or just not in the quantities that I prefer. There was a little character development, mainly with our main character. But it wasn't a lot. America was practically the same in both the beginning and end of the book. This book was very plot development heavy. It changed and evolved beautifully, and I'm so excited to see what comes next when The Elite comes out.
I honestly don't know where this book is going. I don't have any idea who America will end up with, and by this point in a story, I usually do. But that's the beauty of this book. It was lovely and the romance was written fantastically. This book was brilliant and I can't wait until I get to read the second book this coming April! I'd definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves romance, and just a good story in general.
I'd rate this book 4 out of 5 stars. :)
