The Selection by Kiera CassMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
The Selection is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, giving a handful of lucky girls the chance to escape their caste to rise up and become a One, the wife of Prince Maxon. For budding musician America Singer, however, the Selection is nothing more than a burden, forcing her to leave behind her secret boyfriend, Aspen, and loving, if poor, family for luxury, cut-throat competition, and danger she neither wished for nor accepts. But at the castle, America meets her potential husband, a man less like a prince, someone who she could love, and she is torn between her love back home and the willing prince who would give her anything if she said yes. Fast-paced and riveting, The Selection provides a detailed portrayal of characters in this dystopian world and provides a fresh take on the love triangle cliché. Yet, the book offers only a hazy view of the world these characters inhabit, and we are left at the end of the novel, only knowing the caste system that shapes society. Readers of romantic novels, as well as dystopian fiction like The Hunger Games will enjoy this first of a trilogy. - Nitya M. '15
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I totally agree with Nitya. America is a sympathetic and engaging protagonist, and her take on the vagaries of courtship, feminine wiles and fashion are hugely entertaining. BUT the world in which she lives should definitely be fleshed out more in future books. The shadowy insurgents who regularly assault the castle are outrageous! Who are these people? Why are they attacking?? How are they able to get into the castle?? I hope for more explanation in the next book, The Elite.
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