Category Archives: Romance

Review: Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry (@KatieMcGarry @HarlequinTeen)

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Received an advance digital copy from the publisher via NetGalley

If I’m not careful, I’m going to have to admit I like reading Contemporaries. Which just seems weird. I mean, I’m a fantasy/sci-fi gal. I like when things blow up and shoot lasers and travel through time and battle monsters. What is up with me liking books lately that are all about relatively normal high school students? I’m having a bookish identity crisis, people.

But with Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry, I found yet another well-written and riveting contemporary that I simply could not put down. Really. I tried.

The Plot (from Goodreads)

“No one knows what happened the night Echo Emerson went from popular girl with jock boyfriend to gossiped-about outsider with “freaky” scars on her arms. Even Echo can’t remember the whole truth of that horrible night. All she knows is that she wants everything to go back to normal.But when Noah Hutchins, the smoking-hot, girl-using loner in the black leather jacket, explodes into her life with his tough attitude and surprising understanding, Echo’s world shifts in ways she could never have imagined. They should have nothing in common. And with the secrets they both keep, being together is pretty much impossible.

Yet the crazy attraction between them refuses to go away. And Echo has to ask herself just how far they can push the limits and what she’ll risk for the one guy who might teach her how to love again.”

My Thoughts

Okay, the synopsis sounds hokey. Maybe you don’t think so, but I do. Bad boy reaches out to the popular girl so that she can learn to love again? Um, no. Truth be told, I’m not exactly sure why I requested this book, because I think the synopsis sounds hokey. But I’m glad I overcame that (for whatever reason), because it is not hokey.

From the first page, a counseling session between Echo, her father and stepmother, and her therapist, Mrs. Collins (who I LOVE, by the way), I was completely engrossed in this story. Echo is a complex and well-developed character, and we find out right from the beginning that she suffers from traumatic memory loss, that she deals with tremendous grief over the death of her brother, that she has all sorts of authority issues and trust issues, and that she’s smart. And unlike a lot of books that claim the main character is smart but the character never actually talks or thinks or acts like a smart person, Echo actually thinks intelligently. She’s logical. She’s quick. She’s witty. She made me like her, despite her myriad of issues and struggles.

Then you meet Noah, another case of Mrs. Collins. Noah has been in the foster system ever since his parents died in a fire after his freshman year of high school. Since then, he’s been labeled a “bad influence” and cut off from his young brothers. And while Noah is also a smart cookie, he reacts understandably — he decides to become the bad influence everyone thinks him to be, without really thinking through the consequences. As a reader, I could see that he wasn’t really doing himself any favors there, but Katie McGarry does a fantastic job getting inside Noah’s head so you can really understand how he became the way he is.

Partially through the interference of Mrs. Collins, Echo and Noah wind up thrown together, and although they aren’t each others’ biggest fans at first, they slowly grow to see all that they have in common, and ultimately get together (which I don’t consider a spoiler, since it’s on the cover).

However, unlike many other contemporary teen romances, the romance in Pushing the Limits is not the central focus of the book (Echo and Noah actually get together around the 50% point). Although my emotions were pulled every which way by the romance, the main focus is trying to get Echo and Noah to both cope with the trauma in their lives and move past it. Echo needs to remember what happened on that night two years ago when her mother senselessly attacked her. Noah has to come to terms with how he fits into the lives of his brothers, who he is only allowed to see rarely, and how to determine what is best for them. Both stories tackle difficult subject matter admirably (Noah’s scenes with his brothers made me cry on more than one occasion), and both resolved in a satisfying and realistic manner.

There’s a lot of secondary characters in the book, and while none are developed as thoroughly as Echo and Noah, they all had their own voices and personalities, and I loved reading about how the different relationships worked. My favorites were Noah’s foster brother Isaiah, and the aforementioned Mrs. Collins, who Katie McGarry somehow made me love even while viewing her through the eyes of Echo and Noah, neither of whom really liked her.

The narrative uses the alternating POVs of both Echo and Noah, and each had their own distinct voice. They thought completely differently, and even if their names were never mentioned in the narrative, I would have been able to follow who was speaking when. I thought it was a great use of dual POV, and I was fully invested in both characters.

There were times when some of the dialogue felt a bit forced, or some of the descriptions were a bit unrealistic. For example, according to Noah, Echo smells like hot cinnamon rolls all the time, and tastes like warm sugar. I get that maybe she’s really into the “Warm Vanilla Sugar” scent at Bath & Body Works (because seriously, it smells so good), but unless she’s constantly licking frosting (which she isn’t), I’m not sure how that scent is translating to taste for him.

And then there was Noah constantly referring to Echo as “my siren.” I get that he thought she was irresistible, but I kind of doubt a tattooed, stoner “bad boy” would actually think the words “my siren” every time he sees this girl. They’re minor things, but they took me out of the story just a tad.

That aside, I still really enjoyed this book. I didn’t intend to devour it the way I did, but I couldn’t stop reading. I only got 4 hours of sleep the night I finished it because my bedtime came and went and I couldn’t put the book down. If you’re a fan of contemporary romances that tackle some serious issues, I highly recommend Pushing the Limits.

Content guide: Contains profanity, mentions of child abuse, drug and alcohol use by minors, sexual situations

Review: Something Strange and Deadly by Susan Dennard

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Something Strange and Deadly by Susan Dennard grabbed my attention when I first saw it. Looks pretty and Victorian and mysterious, right? But then I found out it was about zombies, and I’ll admit, I don’t read a lot of zombie books. I’m not opposed to them in theory — I like stories that incorporate magic and the supernatural and action and suspense, and zombie stories tend to have all of the above. I just often find zombie stories to lack the finesse and nuance of other paranormal creatures, and so I tend to gravitate towards fairies and vampires and demon-hunters and aliens and time-travelers.

However, something happened to make this book stand out: I saw the video of the Susan Dennard’s reaction to finally seeing her book in print, and my heart grew three sizes that day. It was just so sweet. And I thought to myself, “If the author is that cute about getting her book published, I kinda want to read it.” And then I was fortunate enough to snag an advance digital copy from the publisher, so I happily dug right in.

The Plot

Something strange and deadly is afoot in 19th century Philadelphia. 16-year-old Eleanor Fitt goes to the train station to pick up her brother, Elijah, but instead of meeting Elijah at the station, the Dead have arrived. No one knows what has caused the recent rising of the Dead from their coffins; the only thing the citizens of Philadelphia know is that the Dead are dangerous. After hiding from the Dead, Eleanor finally finds a note from her brother, saying he has been delayed — and the note has been hand-delivered by a corpse.

Avoiding the subject of the Dead, Eleanor simply tells their mother that Elijah has been delayed. Her mother then decides to change the welcome-home party she had planned into a seance to summon the spirit of Eleanor’s dead father. This wouldn’t be the first seance her mother has hosted, and they are always a farce, so Eleanor agrees to play along. However this time something goes horribly wrong — a spirit appears, and it is most certainly not Eleanor’s father.

Nervous for her brother and terrified of the malicious spirit her mother has conjured, Eleanor seeks the help of the Spirit-Hunters, a Ghostbusters-esque group that has arrived in Philadelphia to hunt down and put a stop to the necromancer that has been animating and controlling the Dead. And while the Spirit-Hunters are initially hesitant to trust Eleanor or allow her to help, they ultimately are forced to join forces as the necromancer gains power, and Eleanor may hold the key to stopping him.

My Thoughts

I want to say first off that I found this book action-packed and entertaining. I really enjoyed Eleanor, even if she did seem a tad too liberated for 1876. She was fun and feisty and tried her very best to be useful instead of just reporting on what she knew and then waiting for the Big Strong Men to save her. Yes, she probably would have been better off on several occasions if she had let other people handle certain situations, but I admired that she wanted to be helpful and contribute.

I also really enjoyed all of the Spirit-Hunters. They were an interesting and assorted group of personalities, each with their own intriguing backstory that wound up being crucial to the plot. It was nice to have such a varied group of characters in a setting as restrictive as 19th century Philadelphia.

As a bonus, none of the villains (save one) were actually all bad. Each had some redeeming qualities that allowed me to understand them, and even sympathize to a degree, even if I totally disagreed with their actions. I liked that none of the zombie shenanigans was as simple as evil for evil’s sake.

And as far as zombie shenanigans goes, there was plenty. It was exciting and fast-paced, with the requisite amount of grossness that any book dealing with zombies has. It was almost reminiscent of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, in that it blended the nasty violence of zombies together with the refined etiquette and culture of earlier times.

So those were all the things I liked. Unfortunately, they were counterbalanced by a lot of things I wasn’t so fond of.

The main problem I had in this book was the predictability. By the first chapter, I had figured out the identity of the main villain, and by the fourth, I had also figured out most of the villain’s motivations. It took the entire book to confirm my suspicions, and when it finally did, there weren’t any surprises thrown into the mix. I could pretty much have stopped reading at chapter 4 and still been able to give an accurate synopsis of the entire book. And that was disappointing.

Also, in spite of the fact that I was able to figure everything out really early on, I thought that the characters in the book — especially Eleanor — made some decisions based on giant leaps of conjecture that had huge holes in their logic. Eleanor would suddenly remember something from her childhood, apply it loosely to something that happened recently, and firmly decide that not only were the events related, but that they suddenly explained  everything. The fact that she was prone to wild conjecture wasn’t the problem. The problem was that her assumptions almost always proved to be correct, whereas in real life, “logic” like hers normally proves faulty. And meanwhile, while she was Sherlock Holmes-ing her way through a convoluted backstory, she was missing tons of painfully obvious clues right in front of her face. Either the girl is remarkably perceptive and intuitive or she’s not. It seemed really odd for her to be both.

So while I enjoyed the premise of the story, the characters, and the feel of the storytelling, the execution came off a bit clunky to me. It just didn’t gel as cohesively as I wanted it to, especially since this was, underneath all the zombies and supernatural elements, a mystery. I like mysteries to be tight and smart, and this one felt weak.

I still think that fans of zombie stories, especially zombie-historical mashups, will enjoy this book. It’s fun and fast and chock-full of zombie craziness. It just fell flat as the intelligent mystery I wanted it to be.

Content Guide: Contains oodles of zombie violence and some profanity

Blog Tour: Circus Summer by Kailin Gow – Dream Cast (@kailingow)

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Today I’m happy to be part of the blog tour promoting Kailin Gow’s newest book, the circus dystopian Circus Summer! I’ll be putting up a review at a later date, but today I have something that I always find rather fun. Kailin is guest posting and letting us know her dream cast if there were ever a movie version of Circus Summer!

And seriously, if there was ever a movie version, it would be super-awesome, because this book has crazy action, monsters, romance, and circus funtimes. Honestly, who wouldn’t want to see that?

So now you’ll know who Kailin had in mind as she was writing Circus Summer, and that’ll make your life easier when you read it. Or at least, it should. That’s how my brain works, at any rate.

As a bonus, if you want to go buy the Kindle version of Circus Summer, there’s a contest/giveaway for the chance to win a $100 Amazon Gift Card hidden in the pages!

Say what?

*Looks ruefully at paperback*

*Considers buying Kindle version in spite of already owning signed paperback*

Ahem.

Oh, also, if you are intrigued and would like to purchase a copy of Circus Summer, email your receipt to info(at) theEDGEbooks(dot)com, along with a comment saying that you heard about the book from me. Whichever tour host generates the most sales gets goodies. And I like goodies. Obviously.

So without further ado, here’s Kailin!

Guest Post  – Kailin Gow

Dream Cast

Circus Summer (Circus of Curiosities #1)

When I thought up the idea of the Circus of Curiosities Series, I pictured a world in sepia and red.  A world that has been devastated by war and poverty, but where people still have the willpower to survive and love despite all the devastation.

Out of the ashes from the devastation in this post-apocalyptic world, emerge the champions of humankind.  Everything is cryptic in Book 1 (Circus Summer), as seen through the eyes of Leela Sinclair, who is kept innocent and ignorant of the Invaders, the War, and the mysteries behind the Capitol.  Like most citizens in the United, this is intentional, as is the Circus’ purpose to entertain and distract while displaying the height of human capabilities as well as faults.  However to those who know a bit more about the War and the Circus, such as Zachary Niles, the Circus presents an opportunity to change things, an opportunity he must keep secret.

Dex Hightower (Dr. Dex)

Dex Hightower is the mysterious and charismatic, handsome, quirky,  and charming ringmaster of the Circus of Curiosities.  He can be cruel yet kind at the same time.  He has a connection to Niles and Leela’s mother, as well as an intriguing bad boy past in Sea Cliff, the little town the Circus of Curiosities have stopped at to perform this summer.  Somewhere in the beginning of writing, Johnny Depp kept popping up in my mind as a strong contender for the role of Dr. Dex.  He has the smoky and sexy quality that gives him an allure that allows him command the attention of all those in the crowd, as well as the circus performers.  He’s also charming, smart, and mysterious.  He can be a villain as well as a hero, which Dr. Dex walks the fine line with in his Circus.

Zachary Niles (Zach)

Zachary Niles is the gorgeous, popular and charming boy in Sea Cliff, whom Leela Sinclair had always had a crush.  His parents own the only marketplace in Sea Cliff, which makes Zachary the richest boy in school.  He volunteers to be in the Circus, although no one can figure why, since he doesn’t need the opportunities, food, and money as the others who enter.

Thomas Tattenbaum

?

Thomas is Leela’s best friend and family friend.  He’s handsome in an All-American boy next door who’s a hunky hottie way.  He and Leela have always been done things together like dive for oysters and go rock climbing together.  He’s Captain of their school’s swim team, and very much in love with Leela.

For some reason, I didn’t picture an actor specifically to play Thomas.  But from reading Circus Summer and about Thomas, who would you cast?

THCW vote: 

or maybe…

(And yes, I realize I cast Matt Lauria last time I did a dream cast too. What can I say, I want to see FNL actors in EVERYTHING.)

Leela Sinclair

?

Leela Sinclair is a hard-working teen living in Sea Cliff with her ailing mother and little brother.  Her older brother has been drafted to the War and her father, who used to be a doctor, was sent to the War to help.  Leela is the provider of her family, which means she couldn’t have time for anything other than school, work, and taking care of her family.  When the Circus of Curiosities rolls into town, she finds the Circus, as morbid and dangerous as it is, a way to help her family and a way for her to do more with her life.   She’s a natural beauty, who is athletic  yet feminine at the same time.

Again, I’m leaving the character of Leela Sinclair open.  Who would you cast after reading Circus Summer and getting to know Leela?

THCW vote:

(Again with my great love for FNL.)

Well, there you have it – the main cast of Circus Summer.

Thank you for letting me share Circus Summer with you!

Kailin

About the book:


In post-apocalypse America, every season, the Circus of Curiosities visits the city, bringing with it the most fantastic circus acts that are beautiful, majestic, curious, and death-defying. Every season performers for these acts are chosen from the young men and women in each town, trained, and sent to perform in a live grand performance, performed literally to the death. Two performers from Sea Cliff, a beach town at the outskirts of The Center find themselves chosen to be in this Summer’s Circus Act. Both must win at any cost, but could they ignore their feelings for each other? Leela Sinclair needs to win in order to get to The Center where she can get medical help from the best physicians for her ailing mother, plague with a condition no one have heard of. For Zachary Nile, his reasons for becoming a performer at the Circus is more mysterious. Only the ringmaster and the Circus of Curiosities owner Dex Hightower (Dr. Dex) knows what the touring Circus is really about amidst the magic and splendor. Despite the Great War and the poverty surrounding the land except for the towns fortunate enough to be near the Center, Dr. Dex and the Circus performers all know, “The show must go on.”

About the author:

Kailin Gow is the author of over 100 books, with the majority of them for young adults. Her most popular series are:  The Frost Series, PULSE Series, Desire Series, Wicked Woods, Steampunk Scarlett Novels, and more.  A full-time author, she is also a producer, having worked in radio, television, and film.  She grew up in Southern California, lived in Texas and England, and had traveled extensively around the world.

Links:

Website: www.KailinGowBooks.com

Blog: http://KailinGow.Wordpress.com

Twitter: http://Twitter.com/KailinGow

Facebook: http://Facebook.com/KailinGowBooks

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/KailinGow

Interview: C.J. Redwine, author of Defiance (@cjredwine @harperteen)

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Guys. I’m so excited.

You may remember me mentioning the upcoming fantasy adventure Defiance, which is one of my favorite books of 2012. I met the author, C.J. Redwine, a few months ago right after I finished reading Defiance, and I may have gushed just a tad (and/or a lot). I put a teaser review up shortly before then, because I couldn’t wait to give you all a glimpse of how much I loved this book. My full review will be coming soon, because Defiance releases August 28, which is NEXT MONTH.

And today, I have an interview with C.J. herself! Aren’t you BESIDE YOURSELVES with glee?

Well, you should be.

What gave you the idea for Defiance?

I have no clue. Ideas just ferment inside my brain and then one thing leads to another and BAM! I suddenly see a story.

Was the book always written from both Rachel’s and Logan’s points-of-view?

Nope. I got halfway through the book with just Rachel’s POV, and then realized Logan had such a strong story of his own that he really deserved to have his own shot at telling it.

Which character was easier to write, Rachel or Logan?

Hmm. I got inside Rachel’s head faster than I did Logan’s. Mostly because his brain sort of breaks mine. It’s all … scientific and analytical and logical. And I am usually NOT.

Can you give us the title of the sequel to Defiance? And when can we expect it to be released?

The sequel’s title has yet to be approved by Marketing, so I can’t say anything about that. It will be released next fall. (2013)

THCW Note: I suggested “Even More Defiance: Now With Extra Sass,” and C.J. said she liked it. Now I’m going to be shocked and appalled if that’s not the title.

How many books will there be in the Defiance series?

Three!

Any plot teasers that don’t spoil what happens in Defiance? Are we going to learn more about the Commander’s back story? Logan’s mother?

Yes! And more about Quinn and Willow’s back story too.

The world of Defiance seems to be mostly medieval fantasy, with some almost sci-fi technology thrown in, like the wrist scanners. How did you weave these different genres together in a way that made sense? And what genre would you put Defiance in?

My publisher is calling Defiance a fantasy adventure. I had no idea I’d written a fantasy. I was just writing something that had a little piece of everything I love: post-apocalypse, dystopian, fantasy, light sci-fi, and romance. I wove it together by knowing the rules of my world and making sure everything I did stayed within those rules.

How did you come up with the names for your characters?

Most of them just came to me with a name already attached. I don’t know how. My brain is a strange place.

What’s the most exciting thing about having your book published? The scariest thing?

Most exciting and scariest are the same thing: I finally get to put my story in the hands of readers and let them interact with my world. That makes the story theirs instead of mine, now. That’s both thrilling and almost vomit-inducing scary, lol.

How did you find your agent?

I wrote a good book, networked at conferences, queried those I’d researched, and on the recommendation of a friend, made sure to include Holly in those queries too.  Months later, we were happily agent and client.

What was your reaction when you got your book deal?

I cried. I’d been with Holly for two years and gone out on submission with two other books (not YA) and hadn’t sold. But I kept working at it, believing that one day I’d write the one that DID sell. I almost didn’t believe it when Holly called to tell me one of the editors who had Defiance was going to make an offer. It didn’t feel real for days.

How long did it take to write Defiance?

Two and a half months.

What’s your writing process like? How do you overcome writer’s block?

Much of my writing process is in my head. The story has to live there and breathe for a while as I wander through the scenes and listen to the characters and start to get a feel for it. Then, I sit down and write multiple crappy beginnings, throw them all away, and finally find some traction and write the entire thing.

I don’t let writer’s block get in my way for long. If I’m stuck, there’s a reason. Either I need to refresh my well of creativity, or I’ve pushed the scene in the wrong direction and need to back up a bit. I take care of that and jump back into the thick of things.

What’s one piece of advice you would give to an aspiring author?

Your first book (or two, or five) might not be the one that will get you a publishing contract, but you should write it (them) anyway. You’ll be amazed at how much you improve from book to book.

What are you most looking forward to in the next year (other than the release of your book)?

Spending time with my family. I know that sounds cheesy, but that’s pretty much what I do for fun.

What other authors are your inspirations?

Oh, so many! I have taken bits and pieces of inspiration from all kinds of books. The way Stephen King puts a name to our secret fears and parades it in front of us. The way J.K. Rowling builds her world so seamlessly that we truly believe it must exist. The way Myra McEntire writes swoony, awkward kissing scenes that feel true to life. The way Franny Billingsley describes things so that they feel at once familiar and brand new. I could go on and on all day here.

What are your 5 “desert island” books?

Only five????! *pets ALL the books* I have such a huge TBR pile, that I think I’d grab a selection from there. I know that’s a wuss answer, but seriously … I can’t choose just five.

If there was a movie made of Defiance, who would you cast to play Rachel, Logan, Oliver, and the Commander?

Rachel – Danielle Panabaker, though with blue contacts.

Logan – Chris Pine. He’s probably too old for the role, now, but still …

Oliver – I don’t know.

Commander – Bill Nighy, as he was when he played Viktor in Underworld.

THCW Note: You mean like THIS?

I’m pretty sure the husband has earned himself a cookie or two with that one. And maybe an ice cream sundae. Speaking of which…

What is your favorite dessert?

Lemon bars!

What’s your drink at Sonic?

Peach tea (made with unsweetened tea)

How do you take your coffee or tea?

No coffee. I love tea with honey in it.

Who’s your favorite superhero?

Batman. Because really? Batman> Every Other Superhero. Why? Hello? Cars, high tech toys, angst, and Alfred. Game over.

What movie made you laugh the most? Cry the hardest?

Laugh the most has to be The Whole Nine Yards. There is an entire scene that made me laugh so hard I nearly choked. For five minutes.

Cry the hardest is definitely Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. I was UGLY crying. Like “can’t breathe out of my nose” crying.

What’s your idea of the perfect vacation?

The beach!

Thanks so much, C.J., for joining me on the blog today, and for writing such a great story! I can’t wait for everyone else to discover its awesomeness.

If you would like to support C.J. (and you SHOULD), you can find her at the following places:

Her blog

Twitter

Facebook

Pinterest

YA Books Central

And don’t forget to preorder your copy of Defiance, releasing August 28, 2012!

Review: The Selection by Kiera Cass (@kieracass @harperteen)

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I knew I wanted to read The Selection by Kiera Cass the moment I saw the pretty, girly, fluffy cover. I mean seriously, how gorgeous is that? I heard it was a dystopian and would appeal to fans of The Hunger Games, but I also heard that it was solely a romance, with none of the crazy violent and suspenseful elements. And I wondered how on earth this book was appealing to fans of The Hunger Games if you took all that stuff out of the book.

So after finishing The Maze Runner, which gave me heart palpitations for a day, I figured The Selection would be a nice change of pace for me to calm down and rediscover happiness in the world.

Sometimes when you read nothing but dark and scary dystopians for two weeks, you need to rediscover happiness.

And let me tell you, this was just what the doctor ordered.

The Plot

America Singer is talented, poor, and in love. She is a Five in the caste system of Illéa, where Ones are royalty and Eights are pretty much on par with dirt and slugs. Her family of artists and musicians struggles to scrape by, having barely enough food and not much else. Her boyfriend, Aspen, is a Six, born into the serving class, and in even more dire circumstances than America. Their relationship is forbidden by law, so it must be kept secret, but they are happy.

However, all that changes when notices go out all over the kingdom that Prince Maxon is looking for a bride, and she will be picked via the Selection. All eligible girls may apply. 35 will be picked to go to the palace and compete for Prince Maxon’s hand. The families of the girls in the competition will be well compensated for their service to the monarchy.

America doesn’t want to apply, regardless of the incentive of extra food or her mother’s persistent nagging. But when Aspen tells her that he also wants her to apply, she finally gives in, knowing the odds are heavily stacked against her.

But against all odds, she is picked to participate in the Selection. And although she is determined not to fall for Maxon, she goes to the palace to compete, knowing each week she remains in the competition is another week of food on her family’s table. And once she meets Maxon, nothing is the way she thought it would be.

My Thoughts

This book was just fun. I really don’t understand the constant comparisons to The Hunger Games. Yes, they’re both dystopian, but The Selection is VASTLY different from The Hunger Games. America and Katniss are nothing alike, except that they’re both kind of socially awkward. There is no violence (except for a subplot involving rebels that keep attacking the castle for no reason the monarchy can understand). The families in the lower castes may go hungry, but the world doesn’t feel nearly as impoverished and depressing as the Districts of Panem. And while the losers of the Hunger Games die, the losers of the Selection go home to wed prominent businessmen and politicians.

So yeah. Not the same thing.

No, the pop culture phenomenon The Selection most closely resembles is The Bachelor. A bunch of pretty girls trying to win the hand/money (or in this case, crown) of a studly guy. There’s even camera crews and a weekly televised broadcast.

But whereas I can’t stand The Bachelor, I absolutely LOVED The Selection.

Beyond just the abundant prettiness (and there WAS abundant prettiness), this book just gave me happy fluttery feelings in my tummy. America was fun and feisty. Sometimes a bit dense, yes, but that’s when I had to remind myself (as I have to do often in YA books featuring female protagonists) that she is a teenage girl, and so it makes sense for her to be a bit dense.

Prince Maxon was sweet and charming and I’ve got to say, I know the whole point of the book was that America has two viable options in Aspen vs. Maxon, but I am Team Maxon all the way [I can’t believe I just said that]. Aspen is stoic and intense and responsible and B-O-R-I-N-G. Granted, we don’t have nearly as much time to get to know him as Maxon, and most of our perception of him is through America’s lovesick and swoony eyes, so I will try not to be too disappointed if she runs back to him in Book 2. But I sincerely hope that Maxon is the victor.

There is a brief attempt to explain how the country of Illéa came to be, although the caste systems are never explained. Maybe in Book 2? I found the explanation reasonable enough. I know there are others out there saying they didn’t buy or understand it, but in the context of the story, and especially since America is narrating in first person and she herself doesn’t fully understand it all, I thought it was fine.

And while there’s very little action or nail-biting suspense in this book (unless you consider a will-they-or-won’t-they romance nail-biting suspense), I still found myself completely enthralled in the beauty of the Palace, the developing relationship between America and Maxon, and the tentative friendships between the girls in the Selection.

The only thing I wasn’t a fan of was the ending. I wanted there to be MORE. Even though I knew it was going to end without resolving a lot of things (since my friend who loaned me the book warned me of as much), I was still sad and surprised when I hit the last page and still had questions. There’s a lot of subplots (and main plots) left hanging at the end. Consider yourself warned.

I think The Selection isn’t so much for Hunger Games fans (although I am a Hunger Games fan) as it is for fans of stories like The Princess Diaries or anything by Jane Austen. Or, obviously, fans of The Bachelor. It’s a fun, sweet, and highly entertaining romance, and the future dystopian setting adds some interest and uniqueness. I enjoyed it immensely.

Content guide: Contains mentions of sex, mild amorous activity, mentions of violence.