The Crown (Selection #5)

The Crown Summary:
When Eadlyn became the first princess of Illéa to hold her own Selection, she didn’t think she would fall in love with any of her thirty-five suitors. She spent the first few weeks of the competition counting down the days until she could send them all home. But as events at the palace force Eadlyn even further into the spotlight, she realizes that she might not be content remaining alone.

Eadlyn still isn’t sure she’ll find the fairytale ending her parents did twenty years ago. But sometimes the heart has a way of surprising you…and soon Eadlyn must make a choice that feels more impossible—and more important—than she ever imagined.

The Crown Review:
I will start off by saying that the covers in this series look VERY nice. The colors and dress make it look incredibly appealing. Sadly, the book fails to maintain this appeal. Don't worry though, there are parts that leave you with a good feeling!

“Need I remind you that this Selection was your idea?”
She sighed.
“Listen to your daughter,” Dad said. “Very smart girl. Gets it from me.”
“Don’t you want some more sleep?” she asked flatly.
“No, I’m feeling very refreshed,” he said. I wasn’t sure if it was because he wanted to continue the conversation or if he felt he needed to keep his attention on Mom. Either way, he was clearly lying.
“Dad, you look like death punched you in the face.”
“You must get that from me, too.”
“Dad!”

and

“Grandma Singer was a fearsome creature. If we ever did have a war under my rule, my plan was to send her to the front lines. She’d come home holding the enemy by his ear within a week.”

This book, honestly, felt kinda like a fairy tale. Everything was really glossed over, happy endings everywhere and stuff that was solved too easily for Eadlyn. Yet, I was left feeling happy or at least warm inside. I got the same feeling when I read Ascend by Amanda Hocking. Happy that everyone got a happy ending, but slightly disgusted because it was waaay to cheesy.

“What about you? Full name?”
I sighed. “There was some debate over middle names, so it’s Eadlyn Helena Margarete Schreave.”
“That’s a mouthful,” he teased.
“It’s pretentious, too. My name literally means ‘princess shining pearl.’”
He tried to hide his smile. “Your parents named you Princess?”
“Yes. Yes, I am Queen Princess Schreave, thank you.”

Eadlyn, I am happy to say she has a matured a lot. She starts to realize how she self-centered she was before and is actively changing her behavior. She is a lot nicer and actually working to bond with the six left over boys. She is willing to take on the challenge of being Queen while America and Maxon are healing, and does it by taking into account the other opinions in Illea. Also, Eadlyn understands her role in the family and castle, and helps to fix the relationships. This does not mean that she was perfect or someone to truly rally behind.

“We definitely get the better end of the deal though,” he said, winking at my reflection.
I tilted my head. “I don’t know about that. The more I think about it, the sadder I get about having to send all but one of you away. I’ll miss having you here.”
“Have you considered a harem?” he said, deadpan.
I bent over in laughter and was rewarded with a pin stabbing my waist. “Ow!”
“Sorry! I shouldn’t joke when there are needles around.”

Like I said above, the problems were solved very quickly and didn't fully showcase Eadlyn's problem solving abilities. Obviously, there were moments that were surprising and posed a problem for Eadlyn. But yet again, there was no serious challenge for her to overcome. I'll go step by step below. Be warned there will be spoilers below this! Also, I won't talk about every single problem, I'll leave some for you to find on your own.

She became the Official Queen when Maxon and America stepped down. It doesn't make any sense because the couple is so young and the main problem has already been averted. Their excuse was saying that they needed some time to be just husband and wife. It's like saying that a parent would have kids and then leave them after a couple of years so that they can get time for themselves. They are the king and queen and that means that they understood the responsibility when they married. Obviously, this is bad for the ruling couple because they are forced into the role, but it is their responsibility. Not only that, instead of taking on the challenge, they gave it to their eighteen year old daughter. Eadlyn did step in the role of queen for a few weeks, but that doesn't mean that she has the proper training for it. In the previous book she complained about her roles as a princess, and suddenly in this book, only a few weeks later, is fully ready to be Queen. It doesn't make sense, and is barely explained.

“Mom let out a wistful sigh. “Finally out of the spotlight and into
the background,” she said. “I’ve missed it there.”
“People will still watch, my dear,” Dad said. “Just try to keep
your chin up tonight, and I’ll be right beside you if you need me.”
“So, same as always?”
He smiled. “Same as always.”

Second, was the how quickly and how she got rid of the other Selection boys. I won't go into how, but all of it was tied into a neat bow. She didn't have to throw a single one out. They all were willing to leave, and while that is very nice, it's incredibly unrealistic. No on fought to remain by her side nor did they actually prove that they can't be king. In the original Selection series, the girls had to face problems, challenges, projects that a normal Queen would have to do. These boys had to do no such thing, even the selected boy. That means, we can't see if he's going to be a good king. It obviously takes more than just good lucks and love to be the king.

The final problem is the decision making. Eadlyn no longer has to listen to her advisers or ask for feedback. No need to discuss with anyone or plan for any decisions she will make. At the end of the book she was just announced Queen and completely changes the form of government they have. Somehow her family cheered for it and everyone else was in states of OK. Doesn't make sense and once again completely realistic. Of course, the book soon ends after that decision so we don't see it come to fruition. Maybe that means there will be more books in the series to explain this. Hopefully not. Looking at the previous books, this series is getting worse. The biggest problem with the boys actually came from Marid (I think that's right). He posed the biggest problem and how quickly that was solved. Oh well, everyone needs a happy ending anyways.

These were not the only problems to the series. The failing love story, lack of development in the character and the romance, plot holes and lack of sufficient plot also helps to make this book bad. It is sad that this book the best out of Eadlyn's book, it shows how low the bar has fallen for me in the series.

Overall this book was a three star rating. It wasn't terrible and did make me smile at times. Most of the time, facts were glossed over leaving a sense of boredom with the whole novel. Once again, I hope that this is the last book in this series. Though, out of context, some quotes just made your heart stop!

“Maybe it's not the first kisses that are supposed to be special. Maybe it's the last ones.”