The Heir Summary: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.
The Heir Review:
It was a little surprising to see that there were going to be two more books in this series. It did make sense though, considering the upheaval of the caste system at the end of the One. Also, considering that some people did want to see the kids of Maxon and America. Me, I was interested in what happens after the One, but the One did end on a bad note for me. I wasn't expecting much of a good book, and it did live up.
To start off, the main character. America was incredibly annoying by the end of the series and the fluxes in her character made her that much more irritating. But America had nothing on Eadlyn. America from the beginning, stood up from female rights and basic human rights. She may have been irritating but she wasn't spoiled or self-righteous. America took every chance to help someone else even if it was stupid. Eadlyn was all those things and more. Every chance she got to help someone she didn't, instead used it as another way to complain about her situation.
And complain she did. She was incredibly self-righteous to the point that she thinks the world should fall at her feet without her doing anything. She was so obnoxious, I started to wonder whether she is actually the daughter of America and Maxon. Both having issues but had moments where they were likeable.
Eadlyn was supposed to be the first queen of Illea, thanks to a law passed by her parents. What did she have to say about this?
"Had I been born a generation earlier, it wouldn't have mattered. Ahren was the male, so Ahren would have been the heir.
Alas, Mom and Dad couldn't stand to watch their firstborn be stripped of a title by an unfortunate but rather lovely set of breasts. So they changed the law, and the people rejoiced, and I was trained day by day to become the next ruler of Illea.
What they didn't understand was that their attempts to make my life fair seemed rather unfair to me".
UNFAIR TO HER! America fought for her right to be Queen because she didn't want their to be only Kings. She wanted to give her daughter and all those after her, the chance to reign. She wanted them to be given the chance and to show support for equal female rights. On top of that, Eadlyn will become Queen in the future. She is only 16 or so. Her parents are still incredibly young considering America had her and Ahren before she was 20. Eadlyn shouldn't be getting on the throne for at least a decade. She has time to think what she wanted, figure out the responsibilities and who she is. So her whining that she can't be like other girls. Which, in fact, is not true. Most of this book is divided between her getting massages, tanning and other such activities. She has basically done no actual work. Of course she says she does but we never see her do anything.
Eadlyn is also incredibly self-righteous. She believes that no one is worthy of her time and her status gives her the right to judge others. If she's not judging her brother, it's her parents, or her country or a million other things.
She knows the caste system is broken and that gives no right to judge someone who works for her, yet she does this to her lady-in-waiting.
"Mark is a chemist. He's studying biochemistry, specifically."
My eyes widened. "Really? Such a range in your professions."
She frowned. "There's no caste system anymore, Your Highness. People can date and marry anyone they want to."
I turned away from the mirror to look at her directly. "That's not what I mean. It's simply intriguing to me the dynamic you must have. You have my laundry in your arms, and he might cure a disease. Those are two incredibly different roles in the world."
And then right after, she has the audacity to feel lonely because Neena was angry. And she doesn't realize that she treated her maid horribly, constantly putting her down and treating her like shit.
"Besides the simple giving and responding to orders, we hadn't spoken much lately, and I had to admit, it was hard on me".
She also insulted her Aspen and Lucy without realizing it. And pays no attention to what is going on around her, even to the people closest to her.
"What if you said you were already in love with somebody?"
I shook my head as I poked at my food. "I insulted my three most likely candidates right in front of them."
[...] "Perhaps a guard then? Happens to the maids often enough," she suggested with a giggle.
I scoffed. "That's fine for them, but I'm not that desperate."
And she's so caught up in her own world that she doesn't realize how important having children was to Lucy and Aspen. It took her years for her to figure it out.
I swallowed, daring to say what I'd been deliberating over for a very long time. "Look, Ahren, she's a great girl. There's no denying it. But maybe she's not the one."
His smile finally faltered. "What do you mean?"
"Just that you might want to consider other options. There are so many eligible girls in Illea that you've completely bypassed. Don't rush into something that you can't undo. If you and Camille broke up, it would be nothing. If you got divorced, we could lose our alliance to France."
Ahren stared at me. "Eadlyn, I know you're hesitant to fall in love, but I know how I feel about her. Just because you're scared--"
"I'm not scared!" I insisted. "I'm trying to help you. I love you maybe more than anyone. I'd do nearly anything for you, and I thought you'd do the same for me."
She says this without caring about Ahren's feelings. Only caring that she would feel lonely without her brother.
On top of that, she is incredibly mean to the Selection contestants...
"'Why were you so harsh? For a few you simply said 'no' or flicked your hand.'"
I tried not to let the worry show on my face. At the time those things had seemed kind of funny."
Marlee's daughter, Josie...
"Kile, could you please go talk to your sister?"
The contentment in his eyes quickly turned to frustration. "Why? What'd she do this time?"
"She's taken yet another one of my tiaras."
"Don't you have, like, a thousand of those?"
I huffed. "That's hardly the point. It's mine, and she shouldn't be wearing it. When she walks around like that, she gives the impression that she's royal when she's not. It's inappropriate."
and her own brother, Kaden.
He rolled his eyes. "Don't talk to me like that, Eadlyn. I'm fourteen, not four. I read all the papers, and I pay attention at the Reports. I speak more languages than you, and I'm learning all the things you have without anyone making me do it. Don't act like you're better than me. I'm a prince."
I sighed. "Yes, but I will be queen," I corrected, sipping my coffee. I really didn't need this right now.
"And your name will be in a history book one day, and some bored ten year old will memorize it for a test and then forget all about you. You have a job, just like everybody in the world. Stop acting like it makes you more or less than anyone else."
Without a thought she tries to ruin the work her parents had done. She does not try to enjoy or participate in the Selection. The Selection should have been an interesting event with the projects or stuff that the contestants had to do. Instead we are once again shown how selfish she is. So much so that she her own brother had to tell her that the people hated her.
Her character overshadowed the whole book. The plot was not there. There was no development in character and nothing interesting happening. The next is probably not going to be very good, but I will read it.
Sorry that this was a rant, but this was a terribly boring and irritating book. This book was a one star.
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