The Selection by Kiera Cass

Pages: 327
Intended Audience: Teens and mature tweens
Genre: Dystopian/Romance
Notes for Parents: Some mature themes

The Back Cover

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 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, 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 realize that the life she’s always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined.

What the cover doesn’t tell you:

This is the first in a series.

What’s good?

The story has a good, progressive plot that kept me reading. Life within the castle walls was interesting and the “selection” process was entertaining. Characterization is good; the main character is likeable and the supporting characters are effective.
Best Part: When Prince Maxon meets America for the first time.

What isn’t good?

I completely disregarded the history of Illéa because it was nonsense. I tried to ignore the silliness of the future being so patriarchal and archaic, but it was impossible to escape the numbered caste system, the focus on physical beauty, and the expectation that men are providers and woman are supporters.
I wasn’t bothered by the weird names like some reviewers, but I did find that the writing itself was a bit off. Strange descriptive choices left me confused.
Worst part: Another love triangle? Ugh!

Recommendation þþþoo

A friend of mine recommended this book because she loved it. This has been accurately described as The Hunger Games meets The Bachelor. I loved the Hunger Games and absolutely hate The Bachelor, which is fitting because my overall feeling of this novel is…it’s okay. It was an easy read, and if I’d had the second book handy, I probably would have continued reading (which is why I gave this 3 checkmarks instead of only 2). It was entertaining, but it was little more than fluff.   

Cass, Kiera. The Selection. New York: Scholastic, 2012.