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3.9 AVERAGE
3.9 AVERAGE
What a rubbish ending, it was disappointing and rushed. The rebels made the story interesting but then it felt forgotten. I loved the other two and it was just as addictive
I only wanted to see who she ended up with. I should have known based on the new title. These weren't bad books. They were entertaining. I just prefer something a little less focused on romance. It's the proverbial it's not you, it's me. I can see how a lot of people would love this series. I'm not sure if I will pick up the next one or not. The romance question has been answered so perhaps the next book will be more about the rebellion? I will have to see what the other reviews of the new book are like.
Yep. Now I'm utterly convinced that the Selection trilogy is just not for me. Sure, considering the pretty high Goodreads rating, a lot of people really liked this book. But unfortunately, this just isn't the case for me.
I really wanted to like this. I had been wanting to, even from years ago. The covers were really pretty, the books were pretty much everywhere, and the premise seemed like the type I would like. Admittedly, I read books mainly for entertainment purposes; I don't really care about classics, or intricately written books that provide detailed commentary on political, socio-economical, and/or environmental issues. Books have always been like a sort of escape for me, which is why I greatly preferred light-hearted and often times comedic books, as well as fantasy, because at least the 'real world' problems addressed in the genre happened in different worlds, so they didn't really hit close to home. And liking those books were okay. Aside from being a source of insight and education, books are a source of entertainment too.
And The Selection trilogy at first seemed like it would hit right up my alley. However, I didn't like each and every book, and I would not continue its subsequent books in the future (simply because I already couldn't stand this and the reviews said The Heir was even worse).
The One, while better than The Elite mainly due to its ending, is a miss for me as well. I had so many issues with this one. I could not stand America, or the draggy love triangle that should've never even happened, or the rebel threats that were not like a threat to me (they were the main conflict of the trilogy, for goodness sake). The rebel arcs of the book were really unnecessary, as there were actually straightforward, thinkable solutions to them. The Southerners were straight up terrorists that murdered people, and the dumb asshole of the King could really just invest in better security systems and weaponry to at least keep them out of the castle. Would you think of that! And don’t get me started on the major disregard for politics, international relations, and history (I get this is fiction but Cass used a number of real countries so).
One of the issues I have with this book that really stood out for me is the dysfunctional at best, oppressive at worst relationship between the asshole King whatshisname and Queen Amberly. I really couldn't stand it, because even when their relationship was briefly discussed, the character would just typically shrug it off by saying things like 'but it works for them'. Gosh darn it. I couldn't stand their relationship until the end, when a few characters romanticised their relationship when discussing the Queen's action towards the King. Ugh, the king was an asshat and didn't deserve the queen.
The ending was what prevented me from giving The One, one star, because I totally didn't expect that. Yep, just because of that. However, America as a main protagonist was already so boring and utterly indecisive (Maxon Aspen Maxon Aspen MAxon Asp e n M a x o n cries oh I’m conflicted woe is me) that by the end of this book, I would really prefer reading The Selection through Celeste's point of view. Yes, she's a bitch, but the author humanised her in this book, promoting her from the cardboard The Bitchy Bitch to a character with motives and reasons. Frankly, she is a bitch, but that's what makes her more interesting and complex than bland, bland Murica.
1.5 stars (lol)
I really wanted to like this. I had been wanting to, even from years ago. The covers were really pretty, the books were pretty much everywhere, and the premise seemed like the type I would like. Admittedly, I read books mainly for entertainment purposes; I don't really care about classics, or intricately written books that provide detailed commentary on political, socio-economical, and/or environmental issues. Books have always been like a sort of escape for me, which is why I greatly preferred light-hearted and often times comedic books, as well as fantasy, because at least the 'real world' problems addressed in the genre happened in different worlds, so they didn't really hit close to home. And liking those books were okay. Aside from being a source of insight and education, books are a source of entertainment too.
And The Selection trilogy at first seemed like it would hit right up my alley. However, I didn't like each and every book, and I would not continue its subsequent books in the future (simply because I already couldn't stand this and the reviews said The Heir was even worse).
The One, while better than The Elite mainly due to its ending, is a miss for me as well. I had so many issues with this one. I could not stand America, or the draggy love triangle that should've never even happened, or the rebel threats that were not like a threat to me (they were the main conflict of the trilogy, for goodness sake). The rebel arcs of the book were really unnecessary, as there were actually straightforward, thinkable solutions to them. The Southerners were straight up terrorists that murdered people, and the dumb asshole of the King could really just invest in better security systems and weaponry to at least keep them out of the castle. Would you think of that! And don’t get me started on the major disregard for politics, international relations, and history (I get this is fiction but Cass used a number of real countries so).
One of the issues I have with this book that really stood out for me is the dysfunctional at best, oppressive at worst relationship between the asshole King whatshisname and Queen Amberly. I really couldn't stand it, because even when their relationship was briefly discussed, the character would just typically shrug it off by saying things like 'but it works for them'. Gosh darn it. I couldn't stand their relationship until the end, when a few characters romanticised their relationship when discussing the Queen's action towards the King. Ugh, the king was an asshat and didn't deserve the queen.
The ending was what prevented me from giving The One, one star, because I totally didn't expect that. Yep, just because of that. However, America as a main protagonist was already so boring and utterly indecisive (Maxon Aspen Maxon Aspen MAxon Asp e n M a x o n cries oh I’m conflicted woe is me) that by the end of this book, I would really prefer reading The Selection through Celeste's point of view. Yes, she's a bitch, but the author humanised her in this book, promoting her from the cardboard The Bitchy Bitch to a character with motives and reasons. Frankly, she is a bitch, but that's what makes her more interesting and complex than bland, bland Murica.
1.5 stars (lol)
I'm afraid I just can't do it. I read the first book and found myself charmed by the pretty dresses and the wishy-washy romance but by book 2 I'd had enough. I wanted more about America growing in confidence in herself, I wanted less of the romance and more of the rebellion. And instead book two sees America veer wildly between two ridiculous boys and sees her being very unreliable and unable to make or stick to decisions. My frustration grows and grows. And with this, the third book in the trilogy, I found my patience to be at an all time low. Within the first 40 pages, I realised that I cared not one little bit about Maxon as he continuously humiliated or laughed at America and I find myself raging at the double-standards. There's a whole campaign being set up for America to be 'likeable' and yet Maxon faces no such criticism. I wanted America to realise that she doesn't need to change herself or her behaviour in order to win the heart of a man and I wanted America and the other girls to be kinder to each other and not call each other a 'slut' for wearing a revealing dress. Perhaps some of this behaviour is called out on later on in the book but I'm afraid I've reached my limit with this series. It's all too aggravating and Maxon calling America foolish and embarrassing to her face was the last straw for me.
Definitely the best one out of the triology. But I can’t give 4.5 stars, so I decided to go with 4.
The beginning was kind of slow, as it always is, but not too much of a problem to affect my review a lot.
I absolutely loved America’s character development. She went from an ‘I’m not like the other girls’ to a complete sweatheart. She’s confident, she’s unruly, she’s brave. I was impressed with what she did at convicting.
Celeste was certainly amazing. I knew from the first description of her, she would be the once-villain we would all grow to love. I wish we had some kind of backstory of how she grew up or how were her parents like. I was so sad when she died, let alone the fact it was so quick and no one was able to say goodbye.
Kriss being a rebel caught me off guard, but I think it was out of place. It was one of the only things I disliked happening in this book and I couldn’t really understand it. Not only we couldn’t understand what really was happening with her, I definitely couldn’t understand how she could have fallen in love when she should have been acting professionally. Maybe I would have understood if it was revealed a bit earlier in the story.
I wish Elise were someone other than ‘the Asian girl’. We got that she was only there not because Maxon was considering her, it was because of her connections. But later even the king reveals she wasn’t useful on that very much. Maybe we could’ve seen how much her relationship with her family affected the way she acted in the Selection istead of reading the boring and unnecessary relationship drama between America and Aspen.
I didn’t like the way Anna’s death was written so quickly. She had somehow a different personality than the other maids, although I can barely remember who Mary was even though I just finished the book, and she deserved so much more than an ‘Oh, btw, she died.’
Looking back to it, I had so many things I didn’t like. But I felt so warm reading it. I absolutely adored the way the girls connected and realized I cared about their relationship more than America and Maxon’s. The epilogue was great, it was sweet, nothing too significant I guess because it was short. The fights between America and Maxon weren’t as annoying as it was in the other books.
I’m not really hopeful for the next two books as they are the stories of America and Maxon’s daughter. I have a feeling they’re gonna be much like ‘the Cursed Child’, but I will be reading those too to finish the series.
The beginning was kind of slow, as it always is, but not too much of a problem to affect my review a lot.
I absolutely loved America’s character development. She went from an ‘I’m not like the other girls’ to a complete sweatheart. She’s confident, she’s unruly, she’s brave. I was impressed with what she did at convicting.
Celeste was certainly amazing. I knew from the first description of her, she would be the once-villain we would all grow to love. I wish we had some kind of backstory of how she grew up or how were her parents like. I was so sad when she died, let alone the fact it was so quick and no one was able to say goodbye.
Kriss being a rebel caught me off guard, but I think it was out of place. It was one of the only things I disliked happening in this book and I couldn’t really understand it. Not only we couldn’t understand what really was happening with her, I definitely couldn’t understand how she could have fallen in love when she should have been acting professionally. Maybe I would have understood if it was revealed a bit earlier in the story.
I wish Elise were someone other than ‘the Asian girl’. We got that she was only there not because Maxon was considering her, it was because of her connections. But later even the king reveals she wasn’t useful on that very much. Maybe we could’ve seen how much her relationship with her family affected the way she acted in the Selection istead of reading the boring and unnecessary relationship drama between America and Aspen.
I didn’t like the way Anna’s death was written so quickly. She had somehow a different personality than the other maids, although I can barely remember who Mary was even though I just finished the book, and she deserved so much more than an ‘Oh, btw, she died.’
Looking back to it, I had so many things I didn’t like. But I felt so warm reading it. I absolutely adored the way the girls connected and realized I cared about their relationship more than America and Maxon’s. The epilogue was great, it was sweet, nothing too significant I guess because it was short. The fights between America and Maxon weren’t as annoying as it was in the other books.
I’m not really hopeful for the next two books as they are the stories of America and Maxon’s daughter. I have a feeling they’re gonna be much like ‘the Cursed Child’, but I will be reading those too to finish the series.
Update: Here's my full review! http://www.bookishrealmreviews.com/2018/06/the-one-by-kiera-cass.html
This was an interesting conclusion to the series. I really enjoyed some aspects of it; however, I think that some aspects of it were rushed. For instance, there were some scenes that felt rather unnecessary especially some parts in which characters were killed without any rhyme or reason. I did enjoy learning more about the word. It was more complex than I was expecting and it really explained the establishment of the caste system. If you know me all, you will understand the fact that I’m not a huge fan of books that have perfect, happy endings. While that is enjoyable to read about at times, it does not always work and in the case of this series I think that the world wraps up a little too perfectly. I wished that Cass would have pushed for a little more complexity. I don’t know if that is evident in the two spin-off novels; however, I think I may give them a try.
I have a full review written. I'll post it here when it goes live on my blog.
This was an interesting conclusion to the series. I really enjoyed some aspects of it; however, I think that some aspects of it were rushed. For instance, there were some scenes that felt rather unnecessary especially some parts in which characters were killed without any rhyme or reason. I did enjoy learning more about the word. It was more complex than I was expecting and it really explained the establishment of the caste system. If you know me all, you will understand the fact that I’m not a huge fan of books that have perfect, happy endings. While that is enjoyable to read about at times, it does not always work and in the case of this series I think that the world wraps up a little too perfectly. I wished that Cass would have pushed for a little more complexity. I don’t know if that is evident in the two spin-off novels; however, I think I may give them a try.
I have a full review written. I'll post it here when it goes live on my blog.
Re-Read: May 2020
Still feel the same way about this read as I did when I first read it. America continues to make bad decisions throughout the entire book and all of the action was jam packed in the last 50 pages. However, I still enjoyed the re-read and I still recommend the series.
First Read: August 2014
This book was good but not my favourite of the series. I was hoping for something (which I won't mention because it'd be a spoiler) and I didn't get it. All of the action in this book seemed to be packed in the last 50 pages but overall, it was a good conclusion to an addicting series.
Still feel the same way about this read as I did when I first read it. America continues to make bad decisions throughout the entire book and all of the action was jam packed in the last 50 pages. However, I still enjoyed the re-read and I still recommend the series.
First Read: August 2014
This book was good but not my favourite of the series. I was hoping for something (which I won't mention because it'd be a spoiler) and I didn't get it. All of the action in this book seemed to be packed in the last 50 pages but overall, it was a good conclusion to an addicting series.
I am re reviewing this 30th April 2018.
I don't think I gave this book enough credit the first time I read it. On the second reading I understand fully why the author tied off all the loose ends the way she did.
The main character in this book is America and while she is still having problems with both Aspen and Maxon. The greater problem through this book is the increased attacks from the rebel groups and the alliances she has to make. There is also the threat of the king who strongly disprove of Maxon choosing America and works actively to try and separate the couple. America also suffers some personal strife with her family at home and it makes her question everything she thinks she knows.
The most noteworthy secondary characters are Maxon, Aspen and the other girls left in the selection. Maxon is still juggling with the other girls despite us all knowing who the clear choice is and he withholds his feelings from America in some kind of game to get her to say 'I love you' first. Aspen is still a great friend to America but in this book we get to see him come into his own a little and we find out that there is a life for him after the selection and after America. The other girls in the selection are a great help and Celeste really is a standout character in this book for me because we get to see a softer side of her.
The storyline is excellent and I'm glad that I got to see the end of this selection end in a way that we were all hoping from the start. The paving is superb but it does take a second read to understand that all the ends are tied up in the perfect way.
5 stars
I don't think I gave this book enough credit the first time I read it. On the second reading I understand fully why the author tied off all the loose ends the way she did.
The main character in this book is America and while she is still having problems with both Aspen and Maxon. The greater problem through this book is the increased attacks from the rebel groups and the alliances she has to make. There is also the threat of the king who strongly disprove of Maxon choosing America and works actively to try and separate the couple. America also suffers some personal strife with her family at home and it makes her question everything she thinks she knows.
The most noteworthy secondary characters are Maxon, Aspen and the other girls left in the selection. Maxon is still juggling with the other girls despite us all knowing who the clear choice is and he withholds his feelings from America in some kind of game to get her to say 'I love you' first. Aspen is still a great friend to America but in this book we get to see him come into his own a little and we find out that there is a life for him after the selection and after America. The other girls in the selection are a great help and Celeste really is a standout character in this book for me because we get to see a softer side of her.
The storyline is excellent and I'm glad that I got to see the end of this selection end in a way that we were all hoping from the start. The paving is superb but it does take a second read to understand that all the ends are tied up in the perfect way.
5 stars
