GUEST REVIEW: The Selection Stories - Kiera Cass

PAGES: 272
PUBLISHER: Harpercollins
FORMAT: Paperback
BUY IT: Waterstones
RATING: 3.5 Stars

SUMMARY

It's swoon meets the Hunger Games in THE SELECTION series! Two captivating Selection stories - 'The Prince' and 'The Guard' plus an early sneak peek at 'The One', Q&A with Kiera Cass and more...'The Prince': Before America arrived at the palace to compete in the Selection, there was another girl in Prince Maxon's life. A captivating view into the heart of Prince Maxon before he fights to win America Singer's love. 'The Guard': Raised as a Six, Aspen Leger never dreamed that he would find himself living in the palace as a member of the royal guard. An inside look at Aspen's life within the palace walls - and the truth about a guard's world that America will never know.

REVIEW

The Prince and The Guard are two novellas in the perspective of the two main love interests Maxon and Aspen (BOO.) The Prince is set near the beginning of the selection and in the novella, Maxon meets the selected girls for the first time. The Guard is set around the time of an emotional event in The Elite (that I don’t want to spoil)

If you haven’t read The Selection, I thoroughly recommend that you do so! It’s probably best if you avoid reading my review if you don’t want to be spoiled! This review will contain spoilers for The Selection, The Elite, The Prince and The Guard… you have been warned! ;)

So here it goes: 

As a big fan of The Selection and The Elite (Check out my thoughts on The Selection and The Elite) and a devoted member of the Prince Maxon fanclub, I had high hopes for this book.

It did not disappoint!

Click through to read more!

REVIEW: The Elite - Keira Cass

GENRE: YA

PAGES: 272

PUBLISHER: HarperCollins Children's

FORMAT: Galley

BUY IT: Waterstones

RATING: 4 Stars

SUMMARY

The Selection gets fierce as rivals stake their claim on the prince. Six girls, one life-changing prize...America Singer will leave her pre-destined life for a world of glamour and luxury, if she wins...But surviving The Selection is tough. Rivals are battling to become Prince Maxon's bride as the threat of rebel violence just beyond the palace walls escalates into war. Only six girls are left and sworn friendships are tested to breaking point. America's feelings for Maxon grow stronger, but she suspects darker mysteries in his royal past. With ex-lover Aspen waiting for her in the shadows, where do her loyalties truly lie?

REVIEW

What is it that I love about this series? I can't quite put my finger on it. On one level it's reality TV trash. It's over obvious in the comparisons its trying to draw, even down to calling the protagonist America Singer. But on a level it's absolute entertainment and I love it. As soon as it came up on NetGalley I snapped it up and devoured it in a couple of sittings.

This 'episode' isn't so much a sequel as an extension of the first book, there's not much of an overlap and it jumps straight back in to the plot. There are some episodes, like the hosting of the foreign royalties that are so sickly sweet but this is not why I read it. The real reason?

Maxon.

No, I don't read him and think "OMG he's so hot she'd be mad not to go with him", no, I'm sucked into America's way of thinking. As soon as he goes away I too am doubting everything that comes out of his mouth and thinking 'why are you bothering? At least you know that Aspen is true'. But then you think, isn't it better to be in a position where you can change the world? Even if it means sacrificing your own happiness?

I could never guess what was going to happen next, or who was going to be eliminated, and every time I think I've got it all pinned down and realigned my expectations, I'm proved wrong. These are the things that I love. If you haven't read the first book, The Selection, then I hope I haven't ruined too much and you want to read it. It's great entertainment and although it's not a long read and there probably isn't too much under the surface I think you'll find enough in it to keep you thinking about what you would do long after you've finished reading.

- Bex.

REVIEW: The Selection - Keira Cass

GENRE: YA

PAGES: 272

PUBLISHER: HarperCollins Kids

FORMAT: Paperback

BUY IT: Waterstones

RATING: 3 Stars

SUMMARY

Thirty-five beautiful girls. Thirty-five beautiful rivals...It's the chance of a lifetime and 17-year-old America Singer should feel lucky. She has been chosen for The Selection, a reality TV lottery in which the special few compete for gorgeous Prince Maxon's love. Swept up in a world of elaborate gowns, glittering jewels and decadent feasts, America is living a new and glamorous life. And the prince takes a special interest in her, much to the outrage of the others. Rivalry within The Selection is fierce and not all of the girls are prepared to play by the rules. But what they don't know is that America has a secret - one which could throw the whole competition...and change her life forever.

REVIEW

I must stop judging books by their covers. I must stop judging books by their covers. If I keep telling myself that maybe one day I'll listen. 

The gist of the story is America Singer, narrator and generally stubborn lead character is picked in a lottery to become a contestant in 'The Selection': a country-wide competition to find a girl to marry the crown price Maxon. There are a lot of dystopian similarities between this and The Hunger Games but obviously with none of the gravity. 

I have to say that I quite surprised myself by enjoying this book. I expected it to be rather shallow and although it almost is, America's character really brought it forward to me. She is funny and strong and doesn't cower in a corner like the rest of the girls. She has the best of both worlds and I really enjoyed the growing triangle between Prince Maxon and her former boyfriend Aspen. It's got a fun, glitzy edge to it with the rivalry between the girls and the television interviews. I really enjoyed the banter, it was witty and funny. 

I tried to grasp why she is called America and decided she is supposed to represent those traditional American values of being yourself and fighting for what you believe in. She certainly has freedom of speech. I'm still not completely convinced that this is what it means because I imagine that her name would be a comment on the society that she is currently living in, but you only get to touch on its politics and backstory.

I concluded that this book isn't really for that kind of analysis. It does try with the introduction of the rebels that try time and time again to attack the palace and the intriguing notion that history should be oral and records of it shouldn't exist, but I don't think it needs that. It's Gossip Girl meets The Bachelor and even though I never watch those types of shows I loved this.

The most disappointing part for me was the ending. There was no cliffhanger and even though I was left wanting more it wasn't in the way it should been. It was a cheap ending. There's no way you can read this book without the rest of the series and feel any kind of resolution, and at the same time there was also no 'oh my gosh' moment to make you run out for the next one.

Having said that I'm quite happy to read the rest of the series; this is light, fun reading that is a change for me.

- Bex.