I thought since this was 2.6 in the series I would be OK reading it between book 2 and 3... but it actually spoiled book 3 for me. I could guess what was going to happen, but I wanted to find out for myself in book 3.

Spoiler

I thought I would learn more about Marlee and her time at the castle with Maxon and more details about her relationship with Carter. The way this book is written is super choppy. Like she stumbled from wearing heels, then Carter carried her to the hospital, and then BAM! They are in love. It skips how and goes straight to them being punished.

The last 20 pages are spoiling events I'm sure will happen in book 3. If you're reading this series, I would recommend reading this probably at the end if you don't want certain events to be spoiled.

Another Love story. One that wasn't supposed to happened but nobody could stop it either. I like the small details of how the romance blossoms, how they both find another path to happiness and love. The devotion they have for each other is ... breathtaking.

I am glad I read this after The One...it would have spoiled some things!!

• did this add anything to the story? a little i guess 
• i wish we got more of carter and marlee dating 
• and maybe what led to them on halloween
• this should be one star but i love marlee i can’t lie 
• also….for marlee to say she thinks going from served to serving is weird….then agreeing to be americas lady in waiting like that’s odd

I'm going to miss this world a little bit when I finish the series.

In this novella, we follow Marlee, a very memorable character from the first two books in the series. A favorite. The people’s favorite. Hence, the title of the novella. This story explores what it means being the people’s favorite but knowing that your favorite, your one true love doesn’t align with their choice. It explores what happens when love and loyalty don’t necessarily align and I enjoyed every minute of it.

We’ve seen forbidden romance before but in this trope and all that comes with it, Cass captures beautifully here a genuine romance that I, a non-romantic can truly root for. So if you were rooting for Marlee and Carter before, you will thoroughly enjoy this novella.

How far are you willing to go to fight for love? This story shows us the humiliation Marlee must endure and sacrifices Marlee must make, the power dynamics in the castle that she must navigate, to survive and to love as freely as her circumstance allows until she can truly love boundlessly.

Speaking of power dynamics, this story is an uplifting portrayal of friendship and empathy, as we see what Prince Maxon is willing to do for other people, even if it means he himself may not live in the truth that these two can. (If you’ve read the trilogy, we know that Maxon eventually does make it with his one true love but at this point in time, his fate with America is still a question).

In seeing certain moments that we’ve seen before from Marlee’s point of view as well as fresh scenes from her POV, it was exciting to see Marlee’s world through her lens which, yes, include a bit of her thoughts on the other girls (*cough* Celeste *cough*).

I do wish this novella had been a little longer and given us just a bit more depth from frankly, every aspect but overall, it’s just what I wanted which is a dip back into this world. Is it necessary? After reading, I can’t say that it is. I don’t know if this would have been satisfactory filler had I read it between books two and three. It’s surface exploration, really, especially considering that Marlee could have her own spinoff trilogy. But having been out of this world for awhile now, it was fun to jump back in for an hour. So if you love The Selection trilogy and are just looking for a way to dive back into this world without reading the entire trilogy again, consider the novellas.

*sobbing*