Caraval (Caraval, 1)

2.75 stars rounded to 3 stars.

This book was pretty highly anticipated, so it was a disappointment that it ended up being so eh. The characters were fairly bland without enough development or depth, and the world was not really well explored or explained. I never really understood anything about Legend the character and his magic even at the end, since we never actually got to meet him. The circus was ~interesting, but it seemed like a pale cheap...read more

It was better than I expected, I really liked it

This book is Willie Wonka, but instead of a chocolate factory it's a weird carnivalesque island where nothing is as it seems. Overall, I enjoyed the plot and world. The characters felt a little one dimensional through most of the book, but the ending made up for it. I had a good time reading and can't wait to read the rest. 4.5 stars.

This book had me begging for something interesting in the first few chapters. But as soon as the game of Caraval began, I was hooked. The story has a lot of twists and turns. Although you can guess where some things are leading up too, Stephanie Garber did not fail to add a few extra surprises. It is a YA book, so it's safe to say that the writing style is a bit too basic for my taste. But she didn't fall short, making sure you are head deep in t...read more

I found the story enjoyable, but the writing fell short for me. There were multiple points where the author would give the setup for something happening and then describe its effects without ever saying it actually happened. For example, near the end of the book, it says someone picks up a bell as if they're going to ring it to call someone, and then the person they were calling shows up. It never actually says the bell was rung. There are also ...read more