Kiera Cass Explained

Kiera Cass
Birth Date:19 May 1981
Birth Place:Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, U.S.
Occupation:Writer
Yearsactive:2009 - present
Genre:Young-adult fiction
Children:2

Kiera Cass (born May 19, 1981) is an American writer of young adult fiction, best known for The Selection series.[1]

Career

Cass was born and raised in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina and graduated from Socastee High School in Myrtle Beach. She is of Puerto Rican descent. She attended Coastal Carolina University before transferring to Radford University.[2] [3] She graduated from Radford with a degree in History and art.The first book in The Selection trilogy, The Selection, was published in 2012 by HarperTeen.[4] Television rights for the trilogy were optioned by the CW Television Network and two pilots were filmed, but neither were picked up for a full series.[5] In April 2015, movie rights for The Selection trilogy, The Selection were acquired by Warner Bros.[6] The rights were then bought by Netflix. After three years in development, the adaptation was scrapped.[7]

In May 2013, Cass announced that

she would be working on an as-yet untitled series she refers to as 238 on social media, to be published by HarperCollins. The series was cancelled and Cass pursued other projects.[8]

On August 14, 2014, Kiera Cass announced that The Selection series would be expanding into more books.[9] First, The Elite, was published in 2013. "The One" followed. The Heir followed in 2015. Cass announced another book following The Heir, The Crown, which was released on 3 May 2016.

On August 20, 2015, Kiera Cass announced that her originally self-published book The Siren would be rewritten and rereleased on January 26, 2016.[10]

On October 7, 2019, Kiera Cass announced that her novel The Betrothed would be released on May 5, 2020.[11] It followed Hollis Brite, a daughter of nobility, who was courted by King Jameson of Coroa to be his queen. Hollis fell in love with an Isolten commoner named Silas, and she had to choose between two paths. The book became a #1 New York Times bestseller.[12]

The sequel to The Betrothed, titled The Betrayed, was released on June 29, 2021.

Kiera Cass' latest book, A Thousand Heartbeats, was released on November 29, 2022.[13] [14]

Personal life

Cass has been married to Callaway Cass since 2004.[15] They have two children, a son and a daughter. They have lived in Los Angeles, California[16] and Blacksburg, Virginia.[17] Cass has been vocal about her love of cake.

The Selection

The Selection Series
Author:Kiera Cass
Books:The Selection
The Elite
The One
The Heir
The Crown
Country:United States
Language:English
Genre:Young adult, Dystopian, Romance
Publisher:HarperTeen
Pub Date:24 April 2012 – 3 May 2016
Number Of Books:5
Media Type:Print (hardback & paperback)
Audiobook
E-book

The Selection series, which is what Cass is best known for, is a series of five young adult novels set in the fictional country of Illéa, formally North and Central America. The books are about a competition known as The Selection, where citizens of Illéa compete for the current king's heir in marriage. The first three books are from the point of view of America Singer, joining the selection after bribery from her mother, who doesn't know she is in love with Aspen, who is a caste lower than her. The two sequels, The Heir and The Crown are written from the point of view of Princess Eadlyn, the firstborn daughter of Prince Maxon and Lady America Singer.

Reception

The A.V. Club commented that the first book in the series "is something of a Hunger Games rip-off, but at least it's an entertaining one".[18]

On 4 February 2015 The Guardian posted a review about Kiera Cass, saying, "Cass makes it a suspenseful read with dramatic events and romantic moments and you never know what is coming up in the next chapter".[19] On 24 October 2015, The Guardian added, "The story is also excellent for gripping people who don't generally enjoy reading".[20]

The Siren

Cass is also the author of The Siren. This book is about Kahlen, a girl who lost her family when the cruise ship they were on overturned. Then she was chosen to become a siren and needs to serve the Ocean for a hundred years. Her voice is deadly for humans. One day she meets Akinli, the boy of her dreams, and wants to be with him but she can't. She struggles with her emotions for a while as her "sisters" try to talk her out of him.

Cass originally self-published "The Siren" online in 2008. On January 26, 2016, it was released by HarperCollins after Cass rewrote it into an updated version.[21]

Controversy

On 12 January 2012 a one-star review of The Selection was posted on the book reviewing site Goodreads,[22] and on the reviewer's blog. Later on the same day, Kiera Cass' literary agent, Elana Roth, posted a series of derogatory tweets on the social networking site Twitter. In a conversation that Cass and Roth believed was private—but was, in fact, public—Roth called the reviewer names and both Roth and Cass discussed how best to bump the negative review down and boost positive reviews by manipulating the ranking system themselves.[23] The controversy sparked an article by Publishers Weekly speaking out against this practice and raised an outcry from multiple reviewers, bloggers, and publications against the cyber-bullying of non-professional reviewers by authors and agents.[24] [25] [26]

Bibliography

The Selection series

  1. The Selection (2012)
  2. The Elite (2013)[27] [28] [29] [30]
  3. The One (2014)
  4. The Heir (2015)
  5. The Crown (2016)

Novellas

Stand-alone novels

The Betrothed

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Young Adult Author Kiera Cass on The Selection. 27 April 2012. Teen Vogue. 16 May 2013.
  2. Web site: About . Kiera Cass (kieracass.com) . 16 May 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150318082842/http://www.kieracass.com/about-me . 18 March 2015 .
  3. News: Interviews: Kiera Cass and Cornelia Funke . USA Today . 16 May 2013 . Jessie . Potts . 24 April 2013.
  4. Web site: Should Authors and Agents Weigh in on Citizen Reviews? . Publishers Weekly . 16 May 2013.
  5. Web site: Andreeva . Nellie . 'The Selection' Dead at the CW . Deadline Hollywood . 9 May 2013.
  6. Web site: Warner Brothers has purchased the film rights for the selection . Kiera Cass . 22 April 2015 . 5 December 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191205134959/http://www.kieracass.com/news/2015/4/22/warner-brothers-has-purchased-the-film-rights-for-the-select.html . dead .
  7. https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/news/netflix-scraps-the-selection-movie-adaptation/
  8. Web site: Kiera Cass to Author Two New Young-Adult Novels . Children's Book Council . 16 May 2013.
  9. Web site: HUGE NEWS! . 2022-05-09 . Kiera Cass . en-US.
  10. Web site: The Siren is coming! . 2022-05-09 . Kiera Cass . en-US.
  11. Web site: The Betrothed is coming! . 2022-05-09 . Kiera Cass . en-US.
  12. News: Young Adult Hardcover Books - Best Sellers - Books - May 24, 2020 - The New York Times . en-US . The New York Times . 2022-05-09 . 0362-4331.
  13. Web site: A Thousand Heartbeats . 2022-12-26 . HarperCollins . en.
  14. Web site: A Thousand Heartbeats . 2022-05-09 . HarperCollins . en.
  15. Web site: Instagram . 2024-05-25 . www.instagram.com.
  16. Web site: About . 2024-05-25 . Kiera Cass . en-US.
  17. Web site: GrubStreet NYT Bestseller Kiera Cass Talks About Her New YA… . 2024-05-25 . GrubStreet . en-US.
  18. Web site: The Selection, a YA book and incipient CW series, looks for royal love in a post-WWIII world. The A.V. Club. 16 May 2013.
  19. Web site: The Selection by Kiera Cass – review. hockey_jess. 2015-02-24. the Guardian. en. 2018-05-07.
  20. Web site: The Selection by Kiera Cass - review. Wanderer378. 2015-10-24. the Guardian. en. 2018-05-07.
  21. Web site: 2016-01-22 . Kiera Cass Gets a Second Chance at a First Novel With The Siren . 2022-05-10 . B&N Reads . en-US.
  22. Web site: Goodreads: The Selection Review. Goodreads. 6 August 2015.
  23. Web site: Goodreads: The Selection Review. Goodreads. 6 August 2015.
  24. Web site: Should Authors and Agents Weigh in on Citizen Reviews?. Publishers Weekly. 19 January 2012.
  25. Web site: Breaking the Silence: The Selection Debacle. The Midnight Garden. 31 May 2012. 21 April 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190421061001/http://www.themidnightgarden.net/2012/05/breaking-the-silence-the-selection-debacle.html. dead.
  26. Web site: Authors Behaving Badly. Pocketful of Books. 17 May 2012. 23 May 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120523162537/http://www.pocketfulofbooks.com/2012/05/authors-behaving-badly-3.html. dead.
  27. Web site: 'The Elite': Kiera Cass talks about the sequel to 'The Selection'. EW. 16 May 2013.
  28. Web site: Review: The Elite. RT Book Reviews. 16 May 2013.
  29. Web site: Review: The Elite. April 2013 . Publishers Weekly. 16 May 2013.
  30. Web site: Review: The Elite. Kirkus Reviews. 16 May 2013.
  31. Web site: Read an excerpt from Kiera Cass' new novella 'The Prince' -- EXCLUSIVE. EW. 16 May 2013.
  32. Web site: Books.
  33. Web site: The Betrayed. Goodreads.