★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆ – 2 stars

This series drove me mad even as I felt determined to finish the trilogy. And that was what it took to finish it: sheer determination.

I loved the first book (The Selection), loathed the second (The Elite), and felt generally nauseous while reading the third (The One).

I’m taking a break before reading the second part of the extended series (2 books about the next generation of Illéa).

For what it’s worth, I was ‘Team Maxon’ the entire tortured time. Also: ‘Team Marlee’ for having the best life possible, ‘Team Dad’ for being one of the only characters with a spine (and that loss sucked from a plot and storytelling perspective…), and ‘Team Celeste’ (another pointless loss – both losses just served to piss me off, and did not endear me to any of the political ideologies in the book).