The Selection Trilogy, by Kiera Cass

Hey, all! 

What is this? A proper book review!? Finally, isn't this the point of a bookish blog? 

Yes, yes it is. 

And Caro's back with a review of a series I binged in under a week. 

I'm about to share my thoughts and feels about a book series that people seem to either love to the moon and back or hate so much they'd like to have never have read it. 

I present to you... 

The Selection, by Kiera Cass

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"For thirty-five girls, the Selection is the chance of a lifetime. The opportunity to be swept up in a world of glittering gowns and priceless jewels. To live in 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, and leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn't want. Then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she begins to realise that the life she's always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined"

So I know I'm super behind on this bandwagon - Although I must say that The Selection is one of my very first book reviews on this blog, ever! I saw someone talking about it as a guilty pleasure read a few weeks ago on Booktube, and on the same day, I saw The Elite and The One on the second-hand shelf at the bookstore. 

So naturally I got them to complete my collection and binged all three books in a few days ^^

I decided to review these as a package, because there is one thing I can say about this trilogy - this can have been done in one big book, or maybe as a duology. The transition between each of the books was seamless, making for a very quick and easy read of 900 pages. 

Seriously, I was called a speed-reader while reading this! 

But it's easy to get all of this done in a few days when it's a simple, light-hearted teenager read. 

I actually really liked the first book - individually I have it a 4/5! America stood out by just wanting to be friends with Maxon, and being at the castle as her family needed the money, and they were being paid for her participation. She missed her ex boyfriend and made friends in the castle and generally seemed super down-to-earth. Their friendship was actually super fun, as it really felt like she was the only one Maxon could talk to about his thoughts on the Selection, which was great! I'd love the same books in his point of view, to be honest! 

Now, there were also some problems with it - some of the other contestants were just awful to each other, and they really made it seem that America was the only 'sane' one, which was an 'eh' choice in my opinion. 

But the fun, emotional, and swoon-worthy moments of the books really made me hold onto the series as a whole as some moments were just SO FRIGGEN ADORABLE?! Maxon and America are so cute together, it was difficult not to feel the butterflies when he would be true to her. 

I also quite like how clear the book was. It was just raw and honest and it was really to understand everyone's motives behind their actions. Maxon had never dated before so of course was clueless, America wasn't there for love, the other contestants entered voluntarily so tried a bit harder... it all made sense.

I loved this line

Then we get to books 2 and 3 that I'll review in a package as they felt like the same book 90 percent of the time. I had a real problem with these, in that America became so, so annoying! Her ex, Aspen, of course makes a reappearance, saying he's sorry he broke up and will always be there for her. 

This makes her emotions waver like a perpetual pendulum. One minute she gets all dramatic, she wants to leave the Selection and never wants to see Maxon again because she is jealous of her contestants. The next she says she doesn't mind waiting for him to be done getting to know them. 

One minute she considers giving it all up to be with Aspen, the next she treats him horribly and doesn't explain her actions. 

The arguments are constant. 

There are some things I liked - her devotion to her family was beautiful, and the way she stood up for the lower castes really singled her out well. But even that became problematic when the King wanted to get rid of her for being passionate, plaguing the plot of the third book. 

What I did really like about books 2 and 3 was the heavier involvement of the Rebellion, especially the Northern rebels. From time to time, Cass gives snippets of info about a rebel cause that is working towards... something, that was never made very clear. But I really loved that aspect of these books, and I wish there was more about that specifically!  

And, just to hit the nail on the head about these books, again, Maxon is so pure. <3 Best part of the Trilogy, hands down. 

Overall, I'm giving this entire trilogy 3/5 stars. That's right I'm slowly converting from my feather system to stars. It's just easier and fits my overall theme more, to be honest! I'll design them before my next review : )

Have you read The Selection? What did you think of it? Let me know! 

Stay bookish!