The book resonates with "The Selection," but with a twist—instead of girls being sent home, they are randomly chosen to compete in an arena until only one survives. Ten goddess-touched girls must battle to the death, vying for the chance to marry the prince and become queen.

However, amidst the competition, there are hidden secrets, a formidable queen reluctant to surrender her throne, and whispers of rebellion in the background. The only downside is the cliffhanger ending, leaving readers eagerly awaiting the next installment. Nonetheless, it's a captivating read that shouldn't be missed.

Ever wondered what The Selection would be like if it was mixed with The Hunger Games? Well girlies, now we have it! Add in some magical abilities and this is the book for you. I devoured this book! There was so much action, betrayals and twists. And that ending!!! Pick this one up… you will not be disappointed!

This was an amazing book that I wished that I could give a 5 plus to. The main characters and the plot fascinated me. It reminds me of the book Selection but it still had it's unique spin that made it an intriguing and exciting book to read. I love competition books and I highly recommend this book.

Although the story line wasn't particularly unique, fans of YA fantasy, especially the Selection series will enjoy this story. I appreciated that the book didn't end on a complete cliff hanger!

This was spectacular! I loved every second of it and I can't wait for the second book. That ending 😩 don't do that to mee. It's paced pretty well, the plot is great, the characters are easy to get attached too. I don't want to say too much and give away anything! I like going in to books blind.

Thank you to NetGalley for the e-arc.

<b><i>The Selection</i> but make it stabby</b>

I would definitely recommend this for fans of <i>The Selection</i> because a lot of the elements are the same: a competition to marry a prince, rebels who want to take down the monarchy; the main character is very much an underdog, etc. The big difference is that this is has a violent aspect that was missing with the selection. Basically, there are 10 girls vying to marry the prince, but they need to defeat each other in a series of one on one battles and the last survivor marries the prince.

I really enjoyed the fighting aspects. It was unexpectedly violent in spots which definitely made the story more interesting and made the stakes feel much higher.


However, I didn’t like the romance as much as the fighting aspects. I appreciated that the book made it seem like there was no instalove (at least on his end) but I still found myself enjoying the fighting sequences more.


The writing was pretty good and the story was pretty quick and easy to read. While not a favorite fantasy of mine, I still enjoyed it quite a bit.


And that cover is absolutely stunning! I love the color scheme!!!

I loved the story, the world building and meeting the different characters. I felt completely immersed in the story and couldn't stop reading it.

With aspects reminiscing of The Hunger Games and The Selection, this read dives into an exciting world, where magic and royalty mix with death and blood.

Monroe was born as a goddess-touched, meaning she might be one of the ten possible heirs to the throne. Like the other nine girls, she carries a magical ability, and is required to take part in a competition called the Culling to see who will marry the crowned prince to become the next queen. Gifted with the ability to command fire, Monroe's chances at winning aren't bad...if she wanted to compete. Not only is she uninterested in the throne, but she doesn't see any good in killing nine other girls to get there. In an attempt to keep her alive and away from the trials, her family has always claimed her as a son and have let her rarely be seen even in their small town on the outskirts of the kingdom. But the Culling has come, and the kingdom is in unrest thanks to starvation and a threatening war. While Monroe hopes to escape, fate has other plans...and it will take a miracle for her to survive. Not only are the other girls powerful and dangerous, but the palace harbors secrets more deadly than any of them.

While this read take a definite dystopian direction, the world holds some unique twists. There are armies with swords, palaces with secret passageways, magic, and ballrooms, which give a midieval, fantasy flair, but at the same time, there are cars (although only for the elite) and guns, which by no means make it 'modern' but add an odd embrace. The world building is never heavy but adds enough to set it up as the action takes over. It's a faster paced with plenty of fight scenes, more than a few deadly moments, some gore, quite a bit of tension, and more than a little dark intrigue.

The characters are easy to like or hate. Monroe and her friends are given depth and purpose. Their decisions are, for the most part, understandable, and the emotional moments hit enough to keep the pages turning. The enemies could use a bit more substance, but there are quite a few characters in this book, and their lack of background doesn't make the tale less entertaining. It's just a lighter, more entertaining read. There is romance, which was nicely paced, although it took over the plot more than needed, at times, as YA tends to do. But the pair is one to root for.

I did read this in one sitting, and while there were sections I found myself quick-skimming over (I'm an action girl and get bored quickly), never did I have the urge to lay it down. There are some open questions concerning the war and the Culling's purpose, which never were addressed, and there are other untied ends, which should be finding their answers in the upcoming books. This one does end on a 'to be continued' note, but book two's release isn't far off, so the wait is short. I am looking forward to diving into the second book because I do want to see what happens next.

If you are a fan of the Hunger Games, I highly recommend this book! Hunger Games is one of my favorite series and this book gave me some of those same feelings.

The story is really good and I loved the world building. This book is full of action, romance, and political intrigued and it had me hooked from the beginning! Monroe was my favorite but I do wish we got to see more of her powers. Cant wait to see where the story goes in book 2!

Brianna was a brand new author to me and I was really excited to jump into this. This was reminiscent of early 2010 YA novels with a dystopian vibe to me. There were some pretty obvious references such as Hunger Games and The Selection being two of the main ones. I thought this was a fun and easy read, but this ultimately didn't really bring anything new to the YA genre. I think a lot of people will like this, but I was hoping for more originality overall.

I would like to preface that I read this book all in one go because it was just that enjoyable for me. This book is described by reviews as The Selection meets the Hunger Games and they are not lying. It's a perfect mix of those 2 books and ends up getting you glued to your seat because you just have to know how it ends. The story deals with Monroe, one of the goddess-touched girls and her destiny is to pretty much participate in the Culling, a competition to determine the next queen of Erydia. She's gone under the radar for seventeen years, no one knowing that she has the power of fire. But circumstances lead to her deciding she no longer wants to hide and that she’ll enter the culling. There's 10 girls and if she wants to survive she has to outlive them all since it is a fight to the death. She also meets the dreamy sounding prince Cohen ( who I love so much ) and his sister Uri who is such an amazing character.
Monroe’s development throughout this book was slow at first but once she was in the castle was perfect. The only thing I wish we got to see more was her powers develop. I feel that was left out a lot since she was so used to hiding her powers but I do hope that's something we get to see in book two. I also enjoyed the romance between Monroe and Cohen. It does seem to go a little fast and then abruptly stop due to circumstances but I loved every second of it and I’m excited to see where they go. I wasn’t expecting the plot twists that were presented to me in this book either, I mean for half of the book I was trying to figure out who could be poisoning the girls and the twist of who it was was AMAZING. And all that bloodshed at the end was totally unexpected. I’m excited for book two.
Thank you to Netgalley and Wattpad WEBTOON book Group for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Monroe has spent her entire life hiding. Her fire magic means she's marked for the Culling - a death match to crown the next queen. When the prince comes of age and the announcement is made, she tries to flee into a neighboring kingdom only to march into the arms of the crown. Can Monroe reconcile who she is and who she needs to be to survive?

I have mixed feelings about this one. I like Monroe and some of the other characters, but prince Cohen didn't work for me. The villains were over the top - clearly sociopaths and prone to violence - yet Monroe's actions are seen as a "betrayal" The book has pretty good pacing and the ending leaves most of the plot shattered. Other than some suspicious character choices, this is a decent hunger-games style fantasy adventure.

<b>Your choice is to die running from it or die fighting for it.</b>

This was a wild ride packed full of secrets, plotting, revenge and perseverance.

Our FMC, Monroe, is a goddess-touched (meaning she holds supernatural powers), that was called to participate in a Culling (cue Hunger Games vibes), to determine the next Queen of Erydia. Each goddess-touched girl is expected to fight with their power and strength until there is only one left standing.

Monroe, spending her life hiding her gifts, gets caught trying to escape with one of her brothers, and is thrown into the palace to compete in the Culling. There she meets Rebels, the Culled, who need her help to overthrow the Kingdom and right the Kingdom’s wrongs all over the world, once and for all. There’s a major problem though, she meets the prince, Cohen, and her growing affection towards him presents a challenge in trying to free Erydia of their terrible ruling.

The first book in the series—it features solid world building and character development. Even the side characters I have grown to either adore or hate simply by the writing provoking emotions.

This book contains friendships, deceits, betrayals…all in the name of freedom from the world suffering under the current rulers. It’s a wild ride, that I will tell you, and I don’t want to give too much away so just pick the darn book up.

Off to venture into book 2!

Thank you to NetGalley, Wattpad Publishing and author Brianna Crump for the ARC copy to read and review. I absolutely devoured it.

This book was absolutely phenomenal and completely took me by surprise. Set in a dystopian country, ten girls grow up across the nation with special powers, thought of as “goddess touched.” When the prince of Erydia comes of age, the girls are sent to compete in “The Culling,” a series of trials where they must fight to the death (a bit reminiscent of The Hunter Games and The Selection). Main character Monroe Benson grew up in the outskirts hiding her power of fire, but is caught trying to escape as the trials are beginning and forced to compete. She forms an unlikely relationship with Prince Cohen, his sister Uri, another goddess touched girl, and her trainers, amidst lots of palace politics and the impending trials.

This sucked me in completely. The world building was spot on: not too complicated to understand and just intriguing enough to keep the pages turning. I was on the edge of my seat every step of the way. The pacing for the first half was a little bit slow as weeks took place between trials, but it allowed for more development of all the relationships. There were also only a select few actual trials. By 70% of the book, I believe only two had taken place (and some girls kept mysteriously dying) and I wished there had been a bit more time spent in the arena, or at the very least emphasis on each girl’s respective gift. Other than that, I truly loved Monroe’s empathy and tenacity. I felt like I was truly experiencing everything along with her. I loved how her relationship with Cohen progressed and her internal turmoil between her feelings for him and her urges to fight for the rebellion. She was an incredible main character.

I can’t wait to read the second book and eventually the third - I’m officially hooked! I hope this series gets the recognition it deserves.

Fans of the Hunger Games? This one is for you. Don't even question it, just pick it up and give it a go. It's unputdownable. When I tell you this book had me glued to my seat for hours, captivated by the world Brianna created for us I am not kidding. I loved the world-building, the storyline, and the romance. There’s so much action and political intrigue, and it’s a pretty intense read. I can see why others have compared it to The Hunger Games and The Selection.

This was a strong start to the Culled Crown series, it had a great world-building element and enjoyed the overall feel of the world. It had everything that I was looking for in this type of book and enjoyed the characters in this world. The characters were written perfectly and was engaged with the overall story. Brianna Joy Crump has a great writing style and it left me wanting to read more in this series.

“You can die unloved and sheltered- or you can lean into whatever this is and live for as long as you can.”

“Of Cages and Crowns,” by Brianna Joy Crump

Ten girls are born with magic and marked with it on their skin, these girls battle to find the next queen when the time comes. When Monroe is born with fire magic, her mother intended to keep her safe by hiding her away her entire life. But when time for the Culling happens, she cannot run from what she must do. She is captured and brought to the palace to fight and defeat the other girls in arenas to become the next queen. Cohen, the prince, cannot fight the tradition of the Culling, no matter if he believes in it or not.

I loved this series so much. This is book one of the Culled Crown series, and it was so good. It reminded me of The Hunger Games but a marriage selection situation. The characters are good, but the main character was perfect. I loved her fire, I loved her menacing ways, I loved how she cared a lot about her family, I liked the inner turmoil of her feelings of being loved by a boy in fight with her feelings of not wanting to kill a bunch of girls to get it. The plot and world were super interesting. Loved every second, 5 out of 5 stars.

-Magic
-Political Intrigue
-Marriage Selection
-Royalty

Thank you for the ARC, Netgalley.

The Hunger Games meets The Selection with a lot of twists that keep you turning the pages and wondering why the world building is the way that it is. Some of it is interesting, but some of it isn't believable either. There's an interesting balance to that to keep you reading if you can look past some of the unbelievable moments though.

This was a very interesting read. Takes place in a Dystopian period which I think those are pretty cool. Something like the Hunger Games but (in my opinion) better. I could not put this one down I actually read it in one day. It has everything you would like to see in a story. Romance, Action, betrayal, lies, emotion and etc. It's about a young girl named Monroe Benson who is a "Goddess Touched" girl with powers that her create flames at her fingertips. Imagine having that power in the palm of you hand. There are 9 other girls with the same powers and they are are going to battle to be a queen. Except Monroe doesn't want that and so the journey begins. Eyrdia was ruled by an evil Queen it's up to Monroe to make Erdyia a better place.
The world building was phenomenal and it drew me in from the start. Very well Written and easy to follow. Would love to read more of her. Hoping there will be more to this book in the form of a series

Rate: 5. Read: 04/04/24. Format: E-Book. Recommend: All Ages.

I truly felt like this book had a lot of potential. It had some very great moments that left you flying in your seat and being so ready for the next part. For me, however, I felt that the writing style was there and then it would just disappear. Truthfully, as far as this being my first fantasy type book - I truly did enjoy it and would definitely read it again. I think that you just have to go into this feeling and understanding that this feels very fan fic like in writing - and since I’m an OG wattpad girly - I’m fine with that.