Rating: 4/5 
 ***Minor spoilers*** 
 I saw this book pop up on goodreads about a year ago and didn't really feel drawn to it much. The cover and summary just didn't appeal to me. I'm finally reading it now because some of my close friends said they loved it and encouraged me to read it. I regret not picking it up sooner! I should've given it a chance. 
 The Selection tells the story of America Singer (weird name, I know) who lives in a society that uses the caste system. There are 8 castes, 1 being royalty, and America is a 5, who are artists and musicians. In this society, when a prince comes of age, he marries a girl from his own country. To find this girl, 35 girls, 1 from each province, are randomly drawn (though there is speculation that it isn't random at all) and are brought to the palace to meet the prince. One of the 35 girls will become the future queen. America didn't want to enter into The Selection, but with some encouragement she did, and was chosen and now must live at the palace with 34 other girls competing for Prince Maxon's love. 
 At first, I was really sceptical about this whole thing. It seemed like a really bad reality tv show at first - win the heart of the prince! Become the future queen! It didn't end up as bad as I thought, though. Part of it has to do with the fact that Maxon wasn't a snobbish stuck up Prince, and he was actually pretty nice. Throughout the book we learn how sheltered he is about some of the problems in the country, and he grows a lot as a character. 
 I like how America, growing up with a life where food wasn't always on the table, didn't take the luxuries of the palace for granted. She thought about her family often and didn't change her character to try to fit in with the other girls. I expected the experience to change her a lot, and it really didn't. I do like a girl who stays true to herself. 
 Overall, I liked this more than I expected. It wasn't the most exciting book in terms of story, but it did keep me interested from the time she got to the palace onwards. It was a fun, enjoyable, light read. If you're looking for a nice, light-hearted book or a pleasant break from your darker novels, I would definitely recommend this.