The Elite

Title: The Elite

Series: The Selection - book 2

Author: Kiera Cass

Rating: 4 stars

Genre: Young Adult Dystopia

Number of Pages: 323

Publication Date: 2013

Publisher: Harper Collins

Summary (from the back of the book): America Singer is one of the Elite and Prince Maxon only has eyes for her. If she wins the competition for heart, she will leave her pre-destined life for a world of luxury. But the outcome is less than certain; the threat of rebel violence just beyond the palace walls is escalating into war and bitter rivals are ready to take her down. And America's feelings for Maxon grow stronger, ex-lover Aspen waits for her in the shadows. Where do her loyalties truly lie?

This book is far better than the first one. The plot in this book is more thought out and the characters have started to develop some depth. One of the reasons that I think this happens is because America is finally invested in the story line. In The Selection America spends much of her time wanting to be anywhere else, to be living a different reality - and reading about a character who doesn't want to be in her own story is hard.

Which is what leads me to the thing I love the most about this book. Kiera beautifully crafted the emotional labour that someone would probably be feeling going through an experience like the Selection. With a premise like this book you end up putting the characters in some pretty emotionally hard places. First there is the love triangle between America, Maxon and all the other girls in the Selection and then as Aspen so nicely puts it: "Sometimes I feel like Maxon and I are in our own version of the Selection...and...Maxon doesn't exactly know we're competing". Naturally anyone put in a situation like this begins to get a little stressed which I was glad to finally see. For a moment I was worried that the situation wasn't going to bother any of the characters, they were all just going to go with the unrealistic flow.

All though this also lead to thing I hate must in any book: angst! I hate angst, it puts me in a really bad space and when I read about it...well I just want to put the book down and walk away. However, I did persevere and I was glad I did. Because having a bit of angst was the only way that Kiera managed to get America and Maxon to finally talk to one another. If I could have reached through the book and shaken these two I would have.

The angst did have one redeeming quality. It gave some really good insight into who America and Maxon were as characters. Obviously from page one it has been clear that America and Maxon come from two totally different worlds. America's family would go without adequate food and sometimes forfeit electricity and Maxon is a prince. There was never going to be a perfectly aligned relationship that these two assumed existed. America's fears are really brought into the light in this book. We see her struggle with not only her relationship but with her questioning if she is actually cut out for some of the hardships of being a future queen. With Maxon we see that being a prince isn't all charm and smiles but can sometimes be a cage of its own. We also get to see a not-so-perfect side of Maxon as well. The side that shows that he is an only child and a prince...so yes he is a little spoiled and good at hiding who he is really is.

The one thing that I would liked this book to have had more of was the rebels. It has been clear throughout both The Selection and The Elite that rebels are going to play some significant role. But as of yet, they haven't. I'm a bit concerned for how Kiera will play this out in the next book as I feel like all of sudden the rebel plot line could take over, when the fundamental story line is the Selection competition. I am also hoping that the next book looks a little more at the creation and structure of Illéa as I think this would give the book something more.