{Review Redux} CARAVAL by Stephanie Garber

 

O P E N I N G   L I N E:

  IT TOOK SEVEN YEARS TO GET the letter right.

(pg. 1, US hardcover edition)

This review was first posted February 21, 2017, and has been modified and updated with this post.

“What happens beyond this gate may frighten or excite you, but don’t let any of it trick you. We will try to convince you it’s real, but all of it is a performance. A world built of make-believe. So while we want you to get swept away, be careful of being swept too far away. Dreams that come true can be beautiful, but they can also turn into nightmares when people won’t wake up.”

~CARAVAL by Stephanie Garber

This past weekend, I decided to re-read CARAVAL for the third time and do my first re-read of LEGENDARY in anticipation of next month's drop of FINALE (Which I'm lucky enough to be currently reading an early copy of!). CARAVAL is just as fantastic a world as it was the first time around, and in some ways, I wish it was real. But also, it's a horrible little world, when you truly think about it, and do I really want to put myself through that? In some ways, yes, yes I do. And I loved LEGENDARY even more the second time around as well. This was my book, so full of lore and intrigue! I can see why it was one of my Top 5 Favorite Books last year.

I decided I finally have the stamina to review LEGENDARY, which I didn't have words for last year, but first, I wanted to review CARAVAL for everyone who hasn't read it yet. Now that the final book is on the horizon, you can binge the whole series without the long waits! Here is my initial review for why I loved this book so intensely:

CARAVAL by Stephanie Garber fills in the hole that THE NIGHT CIRCUS by Erin Morgenstern left behind in my heart and promises readers a breathless, enchanting ride. I've been chasing after a book like this for so long, but every single book that has a TNC comp doesn't live up to my super-high expectations. CARAVAL does. The world swept me away from the very beginning and the characters wormed their way into my heart.

How far would you go to save your sister? Sisters Scarlett and Donatella have grown up with an exacting, demanding father who isn't afraid to punish the sisters in order to keep them in line. Scarlett is desperate to free them both from his tyranny, and feels her upcoming marriage to her unknown betrothed will do that. As a child, she wrote yearly letters to the Master of the Caraval, begging the group to come to her island and perform their magical enchantments. Now, with her impending nuptials a mere week away, the sisters are finally invited to attend Caraval. Now, when there is so much to lose if Scarlett's wedding doesn't go as planned. Donatella, however, isn't about to let this opportunity slip away because Scarlett has grown too cautious and kidnaps her sister. She disappears before Scarlett can find her at Caraval, and suddenly becomes the prize. At Caraval, you can be an active participant or you can watch from the theatre balconies. When Scarlett chooses to play, she has no clue that all of the participants will be tasked with finding Donatella. In a world where you can trust no one, not even yourself because magic lies, what means will Scarlett go to in order to survive and find her sister before time runs out?

This book is so visual, it's breath-taking. You can smell the air, taste the magic, even see the swirls of color the way Scarlett does. I wanted to reach out and touch everything, and wished Caraval was a real place. Although, in some ways, I also didn't, because it's also a very dangerous, heart-breaking place. I haven't been so enamored with a world utterly enchanting me since THE NIGHT CIRCUS, and I fully embraced the experience.

I love that this book is all about sisterly bonds. Not enough books feature this, and it's always endearing when they do. I also like that the love aspect wasn't instantaneous and took a backseat to the novel's plot. I had a rollercoaster of emotions as I read the twists and turns of this novel, and while some hunches played out, others didn't. I was so happy not to have all the surprises figured out from the beginning the way I often do, which heightened my enjoyment of the novel.

It's hard to talk about everything that occurs in CARAVAL without spoilers and instead, I invite you to pick up the book and experience the world for yourself. The journey is beyond your imagination, and you won't want to let go once you hit the end. Thankfully, Garber plans one more book in the series, and you'll know the scope of its direction by the novel's end. I'm already shivering with anticipating just thinking about it! --ETA: And last year, when I hit the final pages of LEGENDARY, I thought, this can't be the end, and was so happy when Garber announced after its launch that there would be one more book. I'm so excited, and last night, I honestly didn't want to crack open FINALE and begin the journey to the end only because I'm not ready to say goodbye to this stunning world just yet!

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C O N T E N T R A T I N G S

Content Ratings: highlight between ( ) for details

Romance: PG13 ( Kissing. Innuendo about a "very special hug" that will bypass younger readers.  Nothing is graphic or described...or even HAPPENS except as an aside at the very end.  )

Language: -- 
Violence: G ( There is talk of decapitation, but nothing is visually shown. )

Other:  PG ( There is talk about rakes and what may be done in one's free time, but it's all innuendo and nothing happens! )

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C O V E R   D E S I G N:

This one is too gorgeous to talk about. 

I need to show you via video!

YouTube Link

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O F F I C I A L   I N F O:

Title:  CARAVAL
Author: Stephanie Garber

Release Date: January 31, 2017

Publisher: Flatiron Books // Macmillan
Received: For Review
(Video portion via Purchased copy)

SUMMARY:

Whatever you've heard about Caraval, it doesn't compare to the reality. It's more than just a game or a performance. It's the closest you'll ever find to magic in this world . . . 

Welcome, welcome to Caraval―Stephanie Garber’s sweeping tale of two sisters who escape their ruthless father when they enter the dangerous intrigue of a legendary game. 

Scarlett has never left the tiny island where she and her beloved sister, Tella, live with their powerful, and cruel, father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval, the far-away, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show, are over. 

But this year, Scarlett’s long-dreamt of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to the show. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season’s Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first is the winner. 

Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. But she nevertheless becomes enmeshed in a game of love, heartbreak, and magic with the other players in the game. And whether Caraval is real or not, she must find Tella before the five nights of the game are over, a dangerous domino effect of consequences is set off, and her sister disappears forever.