The Crown

It's rare that the books at the end of a series are better than the beginning but it's how I feel about this one: best of the bunch. The whole premise of the series has felt weird, but watching Eadlyn grow out of her selfish ways, watching her figure out how to really help her parents and the kingdom is pretty rewarding. And the ending is a nice surprise.

I loved this.

The perfect swan song to the ridiculous frothy series that I have adored against all sense or reason for the past several years. At this point, do we even need to get into the "dystopian" world politics that resemble nothing so much as the kingdom of Sofia the First? Despite being dropped into a world of scattershot and randomly applied dramatic tension, Eadlyn continues her character journey from book one - from spoiled, self-centred, Type A princess to a more rounded person in touch with her emotions. As per ever, Eadlyn is faced with a series of "hard" "decisions" where she's not sure how they'll go over, but in every case she's shocked to find her choices supported by everyone around her.

Maybe it's this relentlessly show more nice world where the villains are both obviously villainous and simultaneously not that scary or threatening and Eadlyn and her family 100% of the time don't get in trouble for anything, ever. Oh and also her parents, who are likely in their mid-to-late-30s, are suddenly acting like people of retirement age with little resemblance to their teen selves from the first books in the series.

A fun exercise could be reading this as a story of a clueless, despotic monarchy so out of touch with reality that they're able to joke about dating literally minutes after nearly going to war, which was only derailed due to basically, the power of the belief in love. The ending of the book takes on a dark resonance if you think about how Eadlyn's final decisions could potentially bring the country to the brink of rebellion but who cares? Love conquers all! Pretty dresses!

I legit love this series and hope there are more ridiculous, fun to read installments in future. show less

Why is this the end??

After reading [b:The Heir|22918050|The Heir (The Selection, #4)|Kiera Cass|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1422993526s/22918050.jpg|42484814], I pretty much hated Eadlyn, because of how she acted. This book, however, totally makes me change my opinion of her. Honestly, I went into this book just because I NEEDED to know what would happen to America.

This book picks up right where we left off in The Heir. America has just suffered a heart attack, Ahren has married and gone to France to be with his wife, the boys are down to the Elite, and Eadlyn is Queen Regent. As soon as this responsibility is put on Eadlyn, I begin to actually like her. She stands her ground and learns to take the advice of those who try and help show more her (Kile, Neena, Ahren's letter, Lady Brice). Then, we are introduced to Marid who I just KNEW was a sneaky-sneak who appears to want to help Eadlyn reach her people. Eadlyn is ultimately forced to realize where her heart is leading her, and the person that it is leading her to. She's made friendships with the Elite and it is hard for her to let them go. In the end, I'm very happy with who she ends up with, even though I guessed that early on. I liked the heart-to-heart that Eadlyn and Maxon had right before she made her decision. It showed that she was genuinely prepared to change her entire "personal" life for the future of her people. She grew so much as a character in this book. I'm sad it's over!

This book had some really good twists and turns Marid, Ean and Hale!!, Lady Brice! but it did leave me wanting more. I wanted Miss Lucy to be able to have a family. I thought that since it was brought up so much, Cass would at least put something in the epilogue about them having a happy little family now . I was happy that Josie completely took a 180, and I loved that she married into the family. . Overall, I loved this final installment, but I'll always want more of this story. show less

I was never a huge fan of Eadlyn, but I had read the rest of the series, so I wanted to finish this one just to know how it ends. In the end she does find happiness (which is good, I reckon). Most plot holes/questions are answered and the story line moved at a good pace. I liked this book, but I didn't love it. I would still recommend this series though. 3 out of 5 stars.

*Spoiler alert*

In the fifth Selection novel - the second to feature Eadlyn - the field of Selected is narrowed, and Eadlyn herself becomes more likable as she becomes more sensitive to those around her, and aware that there are pieces of family and palace history that she doesn't know. Seeing the difference that rest has made for her mother and father, she offers to ascend the throne sooner than planned, so that they can step back, and Maxon and America agree. The timeline is accelerated by Marid Illea, who seemed to be an ally but is angling to marry Eadlyn for power. Eadlyn quashes any possible swell of public opinion in favor of their union by announcing her engagement. After sending Hale, Fox, and Ean home, she has it narrowed down show more to Kile and Henri..but there is a quick, last-minute change, and Eadlyn's announcement on the Report is doubly surprising: she is marrying not Henri, but his translator, Erik; and she is transforming Illea to a constitutional monarchy.

The first four books (Selection, Elite, One) made no mention of same-sex couples, except when some speculate that the reason Eadlyn sent home so many Selected was that she was a lesbian; here, it's revealed that Hale and Ean have fallen for each other, and that same-sex marriages aren't warmly welcomed in society (not an attitude Eadlyn holds). All characters in all books default to white, except one of the Selected in Heir/Crown.

Quotes

I had power and no idea how to use it. (31)

"There were things I was always sure of, and almost all of that has fallen apart in the last few weeks." (Eadlyn to Kile, 46)

"Your impression of everyone is probably wrong in some way." (Erik to Eadlyn, 64)

"Focus less on what people say and more on what you can accomplish." (Lady Brice to Eadlyn, 97)

"There is no shame in loving who you love, and there is great honor is doing what is right." (Erik to Eadlyn, 196-197)

"So many people are in charge of keeping me in line, but no one seems to make me feel quite so normal as you." (Eadlyn to Erik, 211) show less

I found this a very enjoyable end to a fantastic series. Typically, you either hate the Selection series or love it... and I'm of the later category. Sure, it has its faults, but I can't help but fall for the wonderful universe that Kiera Cass created. While some fans criticize the addition of these final two books surrounding Eadlyn and deem them un-necessary to the series, I think they contributed a new perspective. In my opinion, the first three books of the Selection series were very much like a romantic fairytale. Though plot reaches into different places, the main plot surrounded the love story. However, I feel like the final two books did the complete opposite. Yes, there is a love story, but these final two books are more about show more Eadlyn stepping up to do her duty more than marry a boy. I can understand why some people weren't interested in the additions to the original trilogy, but I myself found them absolutely wonderful and look forward to the next universe Kiera Cass dives into! show less

Well how about that! Eadlyn has finally grown up. In fact, her turnaround is so abrupt that I almost didn't recognize her. It felt like we left one version of Eadlyn in the last book and started off with a Mini-America in this one. That's not necessarily a bad thing. I liked the switch to the responsible and compassionate princess! As I read through the pages, I constantly sighed in relief, saying to myself, "Finally!"

Eadlyn blooms like a spring flower in every sense, making this book one of my favorites of the series! I liked that she gave herself permission to make her own decisions, tough decisions, and I especially enjoyed how kind she was to The Elite. It was a bit distracting at times since it was such a dramatic change, but I show more just went with the flow.

Overall a nice book and a nice choice for Eadlyn. I do hope we hear more from her. If this is it for the series, it's a little on the weak side for an ending. Hopefully we will be treated to another book from this world that deals with all the political changes and unrest. show less