(kind of) review: the heir

From Goodreads: 

Princess Eadlyn has grown up hearing endless stories about how her mother and father met. Twenty years ago, America Singer entered the Selection and won the heart of Prince Maxon—and they lived happily ever after. Eadlyn has always found their fairy-tale story romantic, but she has no interest in trying to repeat it. If it were up to her, she'd put off marriage for as long as possible.

But a princess's life is never entirely her own, and Eadlyn can't escape her very own Selection—no matter how fervently she protests.

Eadlyn doesn't expect her story to end in romance. But as the competition begins, one entry may just capture Eadlyn's heart, showing her all the possibilities that lie in front of her . . . and proving that finding her own happily ever after isn't as impossible as she's always thought.

Okay, guys. It's time for some real talk. 

I'm going to start this with a little bit of background: I truly enjoyed the Selection series. I know some people absolutely hated it (and, for that matter, some people were completely in love with it as well), but I did like it. It was an interesting premise, a fun, easy read, and just an overall good experience. 

That being said... I was incredibly underwhelmed by this fourth instalment. 

It's not that it's a bad book, necessarily. It's fine. It's fun. It passes the time when you're bored. 

But honestly? I don't really care about that world anymore, and I was perfectly fine leaving off with Maxon and America having their happy ending. For the sake of complete and utter truthfulness, I'm going to flat out say it: Cass's world isn't strong or developed enough to carry a spin-off series.  

I really hate giving bad reviews. I do. And I am in no way saying that Kiera Cass is a bad writer, or trying to discredit her work in any way. I just honestly felt like this was an unnecessary addition to a series that was better off finished. 

What bothered me about The Heir was that, for those of us who had read the previous books in the series (which I'm sure we all have), it was pretty much the exact same book, just with the genders reversed. The formula was pretty much identical, and it was incredibly predictable. Assuming the series continues until the end of this Selection, I think I have a pretty good idea of what's going to happen. And that bums me out. 

There were things I did enjoy about the book. If I had read it as a stand alone, maybe my opinion would be different. I liked seeing the whole process from the other side, and having that exposure to all the stress the royal family undergoes throughout the Selection. I liked Eadlyn's no-bullshit attitude, although it did get a bit much at times. I liked the fact that we got to see how Maxon's reign is going, and how his plans to get rid of the caste system worked, as well as  the repercussions of those plans. 

Overall, I have to say I was disappointed with this book mostly because its failure to bring anything new to the table. I probably will read the rest of the series when it comes out, and hopefully I'll feel better about the continuation then!