The Crown by Kiera Cass
Genre: Dystopian, Romance
Published by: HarperTeen
Pages: 279
Format: ARC e-book
Rating: ★★★
Series: The Selection (#1) | The Elite (#2) | The One (#3) | The Heir (#4)

After previously disliking The Heir, we were convinced that we weren’t going to enjoy The Crown. The Selection trilogy was incredible, and we were never entirely convinced that it needed to be continued. However, The Crown offers the most perfect conclusion…in some ways. I wouldn’t say it’s necessary to read these two spin-off books, but if you read The Heir then be assured that The Crown resolves the story. So, for this review, I thought I would do something a little different! A Pros and Cons list – how exciting!

PRO/ CON (it seriously depends how you look at it): You can probably guess who Eadlyn picks, but I think that’s the point. I don’t think these books are known for being subtle. And even though you know from the first page (despite other shipping allegiances you might have carried over from the previous book) you can bet that it’s going to be dragged out until the final second.

PRO: EADLYN’S CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT. I’ve put this in caps because it is imperative you know how important this development was. Yes, it sort of comes out of nowhere but it’s there. It happened. She’s not the raging, selfish, ignorant rhymes with witch I thought she was in The Heir. No, in The Crown Eadlyn seems to have grown a more likeable personality as a result of her mother’s condition and her decision to take life as a future Queen seriously.

CON: Where is her brother? Considering we left when he ran off to France to marry his dream girl, there is not a lot of Ahren/Eadlyn conflict resolutions. Are there no consequences to his actions?! There’s some exchanging of letters, but I thought this was supposed to be a high stakes issue. Why does nothing seem to have come of it?

PRO: Cute boys. I don’t think there’s anything more I can add.

CON: Unnecessary boys. Eadlyn keeps a few of them in, for what feels like no reason whatsoever. In the original trilogy at least we got to hear about a lot of dates, but in The Crown there is so much going on in the royal family that taking the elite on dates isn’t exactly on Princess Eadlyn’s mind. Frustratingly, she knew who her top three were from the beginning, but she couldn’t bring herself to chuck the rest of them for what reason…potential? I do believe when you don’t have any real intentions of dating someone, that’s called ‘stringing them along.’ Also the stereotypical presentation of a gay character as one that enjoys fashion design (that’s seriously how Eadlyn finds out) was very 2002.

PRO: Queenly insight. Not just from America, but from Eadlyn. There are quite a few scenes where she gets to whup some butt in her council chambers. Very Princess Diaries 2 style. This is where she really comes into her own. And where in the original trilogy I was bothered by the lack of insight into what Maxon really did behind the cameras, in The Crown it’s properly out on display.

CON: Unnecessary conflict! Class brings in another suitor. One from Eadlyn’s past and I was having none of it. He was flaunting the fact that he would marry her for sure, and I was thinking you can’t make a mockery of the selection system at the same time as having Eadlyn realise how great it can be. Unlike Ahren fleeing the country, this new guy’s entrance has no stakes whatsoever. For all intents and purposes he wasn’t even a threat, so why even include him?

V  E  R  D  I  C  T

That’s a pretty balanced mix, right? So we gave The Crown 3 stars. There were some ridiculous bits, as to be expected, but it wasn’t as abhorrent, by any means, as The Heir. So, give it a go if you’re already invested in the series.