“The Selection” takes place in the future when the USA is now Illéa. There is now a monarch and when the prince is old enough, he must have a competition for his bride. All girls ages 16-20 can enter and 35 make it to the castle. From there, the prince must narrow down his competition until there is just one, his wife.

America Singer is a caste 5 (the lower the number, the poorer you are and there are 8 castes total). She has no intentions of entering the selection but her family needs the money that she would get each week she is at the castle-if she even makes it to the castle. Her mom bribes her and her secret boyfriend Aspen (he is a 6 and usually girls do not marry down a caste) does not want to hold her back, so she enters, and she makes it to the castle. Her world changes overnight and she wants nothing to do with Prince Maxon… at first.

This book was amazing. I fell in love with the plot, which at first seemed to drag a little but then got so intriguing, and looking back, the early, dragging part of the plot seems necessary. I also fell in love with many characters and their actions. When America is in a situation and has a choice to make, I tend to root for one side. Then out of nowhere, America somehow compromises to merge both choices she has to make, so no matter what side you root for, you’re sure to be happy with the outcome. The characters’ feelings are brilliantly expressed (especially in the dialogue) and I could really learn a lot about the characters and how they will react to situations just from the dialogue. This book is overall beautifully written and the second book awaits, “The Elite”. So if you need a great book to read, I hope you select “The Selection”.