Book Review: The Selection (Book one).
I'm taking a break on my own struggles to do some book reviews, because it's a slow-go and a waiting game on my end. My Updates: I'd hate to bore everyone to death. I will say I've been rather productive the last couple of days. I'm back on twitter as an attempt to do that as well. Twitter, ugh *shudder*. That being said, hop over there and you'll see a excerpt from my first book. Let me know what you think, (constructive criticism is always welcome). Book two is in the works, about twenty pages in. Spent the day studying scene's from The King's Speech if that gives you any hints as to what I'm up too. Anyway... Book Review.
I picked up this book for a couple of reasons. Number one being, I saw it on Pinterest. I mean, EVERYTHING on Pinterest is wonderful, right? My husband is probably screaming "ASK HER ABOUT THE NO 'POO CHALLENGE!" right now. But that's a story for another time. I'll simply leave you with a warning, I've had my fair share of Pinterest fails as an avid pinner. That could be a whole other post for a whole other time. The best way I could describe this as Cinderella with a The Bachelor twist. It's set in future America, with a character named America Singer. So 'merica. The United States is now divided into a caste system ranging from Ones (the elite) to eight (what one would call the Untouchables). America Singer and her family are fives, which means that they are basically "starving" artists by trade. America entertains at parties for a living, her Dad is painter, her brother is a sculptor. Things are difficult at home, money is tight. But alas, there is a solution. The Selection.
The Selection is the Bachelor aspect of this book; girls from all over Illea (the new America) are chosen to go represent their Provence and compete for the hand of Prince Maxon. There is a fee paid to the young women who compete, A LOT of money that could help out a family of starving artists. Fake it till you make it, Girl. At first America is just not having it, and I was hoping it was because she was a strong, independent young woman who didn't want to be someone's arm piece. There is some truth to this, but then it becomes abundantly clear there's a secret love interest. Not just any love interest, she's fallen for someone below her own caste! The horror! His name is Aspen, they're saving money for a wedding, willing to sacrifice to be together.
Eventually, given the proposition of earning her own money from her gigs and encouraged by her boyfriend Aspen (he didn't want her to miss a possibly great opportunity for herself. Noble, but stupid) she enters the selection. *SPOILER ALERT* America gets chosen! She has a fight with her lover, *le gasp* because his masculinity feels threatened when she brings him food; knowing how tough things are for him at home trying to support his family. It was all very Les Miserables to me at this point because there's mentions of someone stealing a loaf of bread and being beaten in the square for it. It was very hard for me as a show-tunes nerd not to break out in song. I openly admit, the ADHD was kickin' during that. So they fight, and America decides she's going to go do this selection thing. Sadly, as she was leaving Carolina (her Provence) she thought she saw Aspen in the arms of another girl and it only fueled her anger to do this. Did I mention she's a red-head? As a part ginger, I understand this anger. Go girl, you got this. We're introduced to the other girls, some of whom are nice (Marlee) and some of whom are evil (Celeste). They fly to Angles where the Royal Family lives and instantly go through crowds of people at airports to what I like to call "Royalty" boot-camp. They go to the Palace, and for the first time the 35 girls from all over Illea are all in one place. They're made over, glamorized from head-to-toe in attempt to please the Prince. Some go along with this and do whatever necessary, others try to retain pieces of themselves and refuse to do things like alter their hair color. America, being a stubborn red-head, lets them clean her up but refuses to change herself. I like this, there should be more of this in young adult fiction. Polish her up and spit shine her, but she'll be damned if she's going to change herself for some man!
Like any love-struck teenager would be, she's there but she's still pining over her lost love Aspen. While lying in her glamorous new bedroom, she's starting to feel some panic come over and attempts to flee her bedroom for the gardens. However, she's detained by guards. But then some handsome man comes to her rescue, it's Prince Maxon! He follows her out to the gardens and she tells him why she's so weepy. My first thought was: If you're trying to win, this will not work. Does not compute. However, Maxon, despite his lineage and being a Prince, is pretty sympathetic to her cause. He doesn't kick her out right there like any normal human probably would. He keeps her around and asks her not to mention this to the other girls. Wouldn't want to make 34 other girls jealous! That's a death wish. The following morning, Maxon meets all the girls. To be honest, I had a hard time keeping track of all of them. All the way until half way-through book two I kept going: Who's that again? Frankly, there are a few stand-outs and a few no-go's. But when Maxon and America get their time together she manages to convince him to let her stay because her family needs the money. She also offers to help him weed out the competition, act as something of a spy on his behalf. He agrees that it's beneficial to have her there as his confidante. The arrangement is made, he will keep her there as long as he's able and she's willing to stay. I have to be honest, my only complaint about this book was the pace. I love any novel with a Royal lineage, I love a good romance. I found that America and Maxon had good chemistry despite trying to play the "We're just friends" card, over and over and over again. But despite that, something seems to be blossoming between them. Or at least until the twist at the end, which I'm not going to ruin for those of you who intend to read it now. It was a lot of talking and not a lot of action, a lot of confusion about who each girl is. I'm going to give credit where credit is due, though. I thought Kiera Cass did two things wonderfully. She established enough of a back-story of how Illea came to be that it kept me interested and made me want to know more. Also, have you ever tried to flesh out four or five characters, let alone 35 teenage girls? The thought alone gives me a headache. So, all that being said and not giving away the ending, I'm going to give it a solid B on the grade scale. It did what any first book of series is supposed to do, it caught my attention and made me want to know more. I liked America because she's a bit rough around the edges. I liked Maxon because he's smart and compassionate despite his heritage. So, that being said? Read the book, It's pretty good and I see it on the horizon as a possible "next big thing". I also don't like people who see movies without reading the book first. Don't be one of those people. Until next time!
