Booknut 101's Reviews > The One
The One (The Selection, #3)
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Booknut 101's review
bookshelves: to-die-for-book-covers, ethics-and-society, gorgeous-guys, dystopian
Apr 24, 2013
bookshelves: to-die-for-book-covers, ethics-and-society, gorgeous-guys, dystopian
Update: 25/9/14 I am officially changing my rating from 2 stars to 3 stars!
Why, you may ask?
The answer:
And with that lovely webpage comes an exclusive bonus epilogue for The One which made me a very, very happy fangirl!
There's even some irony in there:
From a selection of girls to a selection of food, huh?!
There's also an excerpt from the upcoming book The Queen on that page as well, so check it out it get the chance :)
With more books in this series to come, it seems like The One - despite its flaws - doesn't have to carry the weight of being the final book and summing everything up nicely, any longer.
Looking forward to seeing what this series brings us readers soon :)
Review:
Hmm. How to feel, how to feel, how to feel...
It's hard to know exactly how I'm meant to feel about this book.
On one hand, I'm kinda happy that the series managed to close in such a way (unlike some series' *cough* Divergent *cough*). On the other hand...I'm not totally convinced The One was well thought out.
Why, you may ask?
Simple. Because nothing is actually simple. Nothing! I mean, we've spent two whole books emphasising the fact that nothing about this world, or its characters, is simple. And yet here we are, simplifying things in the final book.
Exhibit A: the over-simplification of emotions
One word: Maxon.
For those who have read The One, only that word is needed to convey my feelings on the issue.
For those who haven't read The One, I'll put it a different way. Needless to say, even now, I'm still totally Team Maxon. But I'm Team Maxon 'Who Actually Has A Detailed & Varying Range of Emotions'.
Not Team Maxon 'My Anger Brings All The Available Girls To The Yard'.
Maxon's anger is often justified (seeing that America has not yet ceased to be an annoyingly predictable mess of a heroine). But it's so...2D. He has tantrums. Yes, you read that right - Maxon has tantrums. And not grown-up ones either.
As Sophie's review of The One put it: 'Newsflash, Maxy-boy. You already did that when you agreed to the Selection. And throwing a temper tantrum like a little boy is not the way to solve your problems.'
I couldn't agree more, Sophie!
As for Aspen...let's not even go there.
I have zero cares to give about Aspen at the moment. End of story!
Welcome to an ending that will make you weep.
True, it isn't Veronica Roth's. But at least Veronica Roth had the decency to write Allegiant's ending properly. She didn't go on a killing spree. She didn't include some major character reversals. She finished things off in the same style she began them...even though she broke all of our hearts in the process!
Basically, nothing about The One flowed.
Flow is so important in books. Stories shouldn't be put together like leftover puzzle pieces. Dialogue shouldn't be stilted, or robotic & forced. The easy way out of the situation shouldn't be just to kill as many characters as possible.
Spoiler alert: lots of characters die.
And most of their deaths can be described in the same way The One's plot can be: pointless. Totally, facepalm-inducingly, pointless.
But, that said, it's still the end of a good series.
This series started off with some amazing concepts and potentially great characters. And although The One didn't manage to reach the same level of awesomeness the previous books did, it's still part of a reasonably good YA series.
So, my rant aside, if you want to find out how it all ends feel free to pick up The One for yourself.
Or...go read some fanfiction. Or write your own ;)
Pre-read review:
The cover. Is. So. PRETTY!
And I'm just like:






Because you all know what this book is going to give us, right? Right?! MORE MAXON TIME!!



This book cannot come soon enough!
Why, you may ask?
The answer:
And with that lovely webpage comes an exclusive bonus epilogue for The One which made me a very, very happy fangirl!
There's even some irony in there:
'I made my way across the floor, sampling some hors d鈥檕euvres on my way. None of the food seemed terribly appealing, though. Maxon鈥檚 favorites weren鈥檛 necessarily mine, I just had to trust that everyone else would enjoy the selection.'
From a selection of girls to a selection of food, huh?!
There's also an excerpt from the upcoming book The Queen on that page as well, so check it out it get the chance :)
With more books in this series to come, it seems like The One - despite its flaws - doesn't have to carry the weight of being the final book and summing everything up nicely, any longer.
Looking forward to seeing what this series brings us readers soon :)
Review:
Hmm. How to feel, how to feel, how to feel...
It's hard to know exactly how I'm meant to feel about this book.
On one hand, I'm kinda happy that the series managed to close in such a way (unlike some series' *cough* Divergent *cough*). On the other hand...I'm not totally convinced The One was well thought out.
Why, you may ask?
Simple. Because nothing is actually simple. Nothing! I mean, we've spent two whole books emphasising the fact that nothing about this world, or its characters, is simple. And yet here we are, simplifying things in the final book.
Exhibit A: the over-simplification of emotions
One word: Maxon.
For those who have read The One, only that word is needed to convey my feelings on the issue.
For those who haven't read The One, I'll put it a different way. Needless to say, even now, I'm still totally Team Maxon. But I'm Team Maxon 'Who Actually Has A Detailed & Varying Range of Emotions'.
Not Team Maxon 'My Anger Brings All The Available Girls To The Yard'.
Maxon's anger is often justified (seeing that America has not yet ceased to be an annoyingly predictable mess of a heroine). But it's so...2D. He has tantrums. Yes, you read that right - Maxon has tantrums. And not grown-up ones either.
As Sophie's review of The One put it: 'Newsflash, Maxy-boy. You already did that when you agreed to the Selection. And throwing a temper tantrum like a little boy is not the way to solve your problems.'
I couldn't agree more, Sophie!
As for Aspen...let's not even go there.
I have zero cares to give about Aspen at the moment. End of story!
Welcome to an ending that will make you weep.
True, it isn't Veronica Roth's. But at least Veronica Roth had the decency to write Allegiant's ending properly. She didn't go on a killing spree. She didn't include some major character reversals. She finished things off in the same style she began them...even though she broke all of our hearts in the process!
Basically, nothing about The One flowed.
Flow is so important in books. Stories shouldn't be put together like leftover puzzle pieces. Dialogue shouldn't be stilted, or robotic & forced. The easy way out of the situation shouldn't be just to kill as many characters as possible.
Spoiler alert: lots of characters die.
And most of their deaths can be described in the same way The One's plot can be: pointless. Totally, facepalm-inducingly, pointless.
But, that said, it's still the end of a good series.
This series started off with some amazing concepts and potentially great characters. And although The One didn't manage to reach the same level of awesomeness the previous books did, it's still part of a reasonably good YA series.
So, my rant aside, if you want to find out how it all ends feel free to pick up The One for yourself.
Or...go read some fanfiction. Or write your own ;)
Pre-read review:
The cover. Is. So. PRETTY!
And I'm just like:






Because you all know what this book is going to give us, right? Right?! MORE MAXON TIME!!



This book cannot come soon enough!
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Quotes Booknut Liked

“Maxon wrapped his arms around me, and I laughed as he covered me with kisses.
We were so distracted, we didn鈥檛 even hear the butler open the door. 鈥淵our Majesty, there鈥檚 a call from鈥斺€�
Before he could finish, Maxon chucked a pillow at him, and the butler retreated into the hall, pulling the door shut behind him. There was a pause before a muffled voice filtered in. 鈥淪orry, sir.”
― The One
We were so distracted, we didn鈥檛 even hear the butler open the door. 鈥淵our Majesty, there鈥檚 a call from鈥斺€�
Before he could finish, Maxon chucked a pillow at him, and the butler retreated into the hall, pulling the door shut behind him. There was a pause before a muffled voice filtered in. 鈥淪orry, sir.”
― The One

“I was wondering,鈥� he began, murmuring the words into my cheek as I rolled over. 鈥淪eeing as it鈥檚 my birthday, do you think we could get away with spending the entire day in bed?鈥�
I smiled and forced my sleepy eyes open. 鈥淎nd who will run the country?鈥�
鈥淣o one. Let it fall to pieces. So long as I have my America in my arms.”
― The One
I smiled and forced my sleepy eyes open. 鈥淎nd who will run the country?鈥�
鈥淣o one. Let it fall to pieces. So long as I have my America in my arms.”
― The One

“I took a steadying breath. 鈥淟isten, I know we have a full night ahead of us, but I wanted to give you your birthday present.鈥�
鈥淥h, darling, you didn鈥檛 need to get me anything. Every day with you is a gift.鈥� He leaned in and kissed me.
鈥淲ell, I hadn鈥檛 planned on getting you a gift, but then something presented itself, so here we are.鈥�
鈥淎ll right then,鈥� he said, placing his glass on the ground. 鈥淚鈥檓 ready. Where is it?鈥�
鈥淭hat鈥檚 the only problem,鈥� I started. I felt my hands begin to shake. 鈥淚t won鈥檛 actually arrive for another seven or eight months.鈥�
He smiled but squinted. 鈥淓ight months? What in the world could take . . .鈥�
As his words drifted away, so did his eyes, leaving my face and making their way to my stomach. He seemed to expect me to look different, for me to be as big as a house already. But I鈥檇 done my best to hide everything: the tiredness, the nausea, the sudden distaste for foods.
He stared on and on, and I waited for him to smile or laugh or jump up and down. But he sat there, frozen to the point that it started to frighten me.
鈥淢axon?鈥� I reached out and touched his leg. 鈥淢axon, are you all right?鈥�
He nodded, still watching my stomach.”
― The One
鈥淥h, darling, you didn鈥檛 need to get me anything. Every day with you is a gift.鈥� He leaned in and kissed me.
鈥淲ell, I hadn鈥檛 planned on getting you a gift, but then something presented itself, so here we are.鈥�
鈥淎ll right then,鈥� he said, placing his glass on the ground. 鈥淚鈥檓 ready. Where is it?鈥�
鈥淭hat鈥檚 the only problem,鈥� I started. I felt my hands begin to shake. 鈥淚t won鈥檛 actually arrive for another seven or eight months.鈥�
He smiled but squinted. 鈥淓ight months? What in the world could take . . .鈥�
As his words drifted away, so did his eyes, leaving my face and making their way to my stomach. He seemed to expect me to look different, for me to be as big as a house already. But I鈥檇 done my best to hide everything: the tiredness, the nausea, the sudden distaste for foods.
He stared on and on, and I waited for him to smile or laugh or jump up and down. But he sat there, frozen to the point that it started to frighten me.
鈥淢axon?鈥� I reached out and touched his leg. 鈥淢axon, are you all right?鈥�
He nodded, still watching my stomach.”
― The One
Reading Progress
April 24, 2013
– Shelved as:
to-read
April 24, 2013
– Shelved
September 28, 2013
– Shelved as:
to-die-for-book-covers
July 25, 2014
–
Started Reading
July 25, 2014
– Shelved as:
ethics-and-society
July 25, 2014
– Shelved as:
gorgeous-guys
July 25, 2014
– Shelved as:
dystopian
July 25, 2014
–
Finished Reading
Comments Showing 1-19 of 19 (19 new)
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OMG, same here!! <3
If not, I shall start a petition and rally towards an alternate ending. That or I shall steal Maxon for myself. I'll keep him in my nonexistent basement and he can keep my darling, THE Adrian Ivashkov company.
ERMAGOSH!!! HECK YEAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!
FIRST PERSON TO... ER... INVITE... IN: ADRIAN!!!!!!!
THEN MAXON IF AMERICA DOESN'T CHOOSE HIM.
AND THEN WILL HERONDALE. (view spoiler)
HAHAHA. There'll be hoards of angry fangirls ready to steal them off of me. *pout*
FIRST PERSON TO... ER... INVITE... IN: ADRIAN!!!!!!!
THEN MAXON IF AMERICA DOESN'T CHOOSE HIM.
AND THEN WILL HERONDALE. (view spoiler)
HAHAHA. There'll be hoards of angry fangirls ready to steal them off of me. *pout*

May 6th is much anticipated by all! And thanks - I thought the Mushu gif was a nice touch, too :D


I have it waiting on my bookshelf for when I get the chance to continue reading it! I hope you get ahold of a copy soon :)




The 'short tempers' business annoyed me so much, as well. And not because they were angry w/ each other, but because neither of them had ever acted like this in either of the previous books! Their behaviour for a good portion of The One was completely out of character.

Thanks! I'm happy to hear you liked it so much :)
And not just any deaths. (view spoiler) It was seriously sloppy, in my opinion.

I will admit, I was pretty happy w/ how it ended too. But I wish the plot hadn't felt so rushed, and the author had built up to the ending a bit more.
I REALLY HOPE AMERICA CHOOSES MAXON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!