The One

• Author: Kiera Cass
• Genre: YA Romance
• Publication Date: May 6, 2014
• Publisher: HarperTeen
• Series: The Selection #3

CONTENT WARNING: gun violence, death of a parent, death

The time has come for one winner to be crowned.

When she was chosen to compete in the Selection, America never dreamed she would find herself anywhere close to the crown—or to Prince Maxon’s heart. But as the end of the competition approaches, and the threats outside the palace walls grow more vicious, America realizes just how much she stands to lose—and how hard she’ll have to fight for the future she wants.

Sometimes I just need a fluffy, quick read in between heavier reads. And this series completely fits that bill. I’ve kind of fallen hard for America’s character — she’s smart, sweet, and not afraid to speak up for what she believes in. Most importantly, she’s got strong morals and values, which seem to be lacking in the girls from the upper castes. I’ve kind of been rooting for her to win the selection from the beginning.

While like America, I was expecting Maxon to be a spoiled rich boy, he was the exact opposite of everything I thought he would be. I liked him as soon as I got to see who he really was, and it was endlessly frustrating to see America push all of that aside to fall back on unproven assumptions. 

Everything changed in this story. The rebels play a bigger role in this story, and there’s a bit more of an emotional depth to this story, which got me more invested. However, it also played heavily on the miscommunication trope, which is another one of those tropes that I despise. America was so focused on not saying “I love you” first, that I just wanted to shake her! It’s so clear that they’re meant to end up together, but her stubbornness got in the way, when all Maxon wanted was to be sure of her feelings. I could understand where she was at a lot of the time, but I struggled with her reluctance to share that. 

Overalll, the story held my attention, and I enjoyed it even though I kind of knew what was going to happen at the end. It was consistently fast-paced and I found myself listening to it for long periods at a stretch, not getting bored but wanting to get to the end to see them end up together. Because as maddening as they could be, I knew they just had to get together in the end!