Rate: 3/5

Medium: Kindle

Overview (No Spoilers): Saturday, my parents called and asked if my husband would come help them farm. Due to all of the rain southern Michigan has received over the last couple of weeks they were behind on planting and needed someone to help fit the ground, while my Dad and Grandpa continued to plant. Therefore, I spent a beautiful Saturday riding next to Luke in the tractor reading The One, and ultimately finishing it in one day.

The One is the third installment of The Selection Series, which up until I just looked it up, I thought it was the last book in a trilogy. My mind is a bit blown that there could be more books in this series! The One is a vast improvement over The Elite, however didn’t come close to inaugural book in the series, The Selection. As with the previous books, the Bachelor (TV show) concepts continue in this novel, as Prince Maxon get closer to choosing his wife from a selection of candidates. America Singer continues to defy the norm and go with her gut instincts, often resulting in cringe worthy moments and moments of embarrassment, only for the event to pass and find out the people love her more for the antics. In The One, we get a closer look at America’s enemies and find out that underneath, most of them are not what they seem and even might become important allies in her quest for Maxon’s heart. First, she will have to overcome her own fears and the opposition of the King. Overall, The One was a quick and entertaining read, however it ultimately lacks the detail and development I have been complaining about throughout this series.

Additional Insight (Contains Spoilers):

1. Poor Celise! She finally becomes a real person in this book that the readers can identify with and love by shedding off the bullish façade she had swathed herself in for most of the story. I even almost cried when she was killed in the final fight.
2. So Maxon catches Aspen and America having a intimate moment talking together and he immediately goes into rage mode and when America is given a chance to defend herself she completely botches it. She doesn’t explain that nothing is going on anymore and Aspen was her previous love. She instead pretty much insinuates that even more had occurred. Obviously, America was going to be sent home, however chaos ensues and somehow in the fighting Maxon realizes that he wanted her all along regardless of Aspen. I was so frustrated that this storyline wasn’t resolved and America didn’t clarify her side of the story and fully explain herself. Relationships do not work this way, and I found myself more than irritated that all was immediately forgiven instantly after the dust had settled from the fighting.
3. Speaking of the fighting. How did the Southern Rebels sneak into the castle as guards? Were there not leaders among the guards that recognized the fact that there were strangers among the troops?
4. How did Anna just disappear at the end of the book? How was America not more concerned with her dropping off the face of the earth?
5. It was so obvious that America’s Dad was a rebel! I called him disclosing the location of the diary as soon as America told him!
6. I liked learning more about the Northern Rebels, but I have a hard time believing that they were just looking for the diaries. How do they not have more ambition for the throne?
7. The King and Queen being so quickly killed right at the end was too convenient of an ending. The King was an ultimate ‘bad guy’ and there was no climax of confrontation between him, America and most importantly, Maxon. Maxon was never able to resolve his ‘dad’ issues by standing up to his Father.   Honestly, that aspect of the story life felt like an easy way out and unresolved.