Author: Kiera Cass
Publication Dates: May 5, 2015, and May 3, 2016
Lengths: 342 pages and 278 pages
Warning: Contains spoilers for the original Selection trilogy.
I don't think I've ever done a double book review before! But I read The Heir and then immediately had to read The Crown so now it's hard to separate them in my mind. And in any case, it's all one story. This will be a long one, because these books gave me ALL THE FEELS.
These two additions to the Selection series tell the story of Princess Eadlyn, daughter of Maxon and America and heir to the throne. She has no plans to marry anyone any time soon, but soon finds herself at the centre of a Selection designed to distract a restless public. While she starts the Selection planning to hold out for three months and then end it without an engagement, things change as the political situation becomes more precarious and the boys work their way into Eadlyn's heart.
The Heir was hard for me to rate. In the heat of the moment when I finished the book, I gave it 5 stars, but I later downgraded it to 4 just because of how insufferable Eadlyn is. I get that she's a princess, but I don't get how any daughter of America's could grow up this much of a self-centred brat. Her treatment of her brother, Ahren, and her beloved maid, Neena, are particularly terrible, seemingly without her being aware of it. But, she does grow over the course of the story, especially in The Crown (which I did give 5 stars and which kept me up half the night needing to finish it).
As for the boys, it was interesting how different this Selection was from Maxon's. With the story being from the princess' point of view this time, you might think we'd get to know the suitors better, but the fact is that Eadlyn doesn't get to know many of them, not even going on dates with even those who make it to the Elite. As the choices dwindled, I became increasingly worried (correctly, I might add) that she wasn't so much narrowing it down to the best choices as she was eliminating the bad ones. There were a few guys I liked and was even rooting for, but a lot of the time the worry isn't that she'll have to pick but that she won't fall in love at all.
I gotta say, I did not see the ending coming, and I loved it! The rushed feeling of Eadlyn's Selection seems to accelerate the closer you get to the end, until Eadlyn is basically running around the palace changing her mind as she gets to each possible fiance. The Crown is similar to The One in the way it keeps you guessing and doubting and hoping and page turning until the very last second!
A couple final thoughts: OMG Maxon and America being all adorable and perfect for each other! And their little dropped hints about the complications in their own Selection that Eadlyn never knew about! And how much they care about Eadlyn's happiness! I just love them so much.
Also, without giving anything away to those who haven't finished the series yet, did anyone else think of Hans from Frozen? You know what I'm talking about.
Basically, if you could put up with America in The Elite, you can probably put up with Eadlyn in The Heir. And, in my opinion, it's so worth it to get that happily ever after.
