Book Review: Caraval

Title: Caraval

Author: Stephanie Garber

Publisher: Flatiron Books

Year: 2017

Pages: 407

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Rating: 3.5 stars

One sentence summary: Scarlett arrives at a mysterious island to play the magical game of Caraval, only to discover that finding her missing sister is the object of this year's game.

A full synopsis of this book can be found on Goodreads.

Spoiler Level: None

When I first heard about this book, I was excited because it was receiving great reviews and it sounded like something I would love. Then I started hearing lots of negative reviews, and I was sure that it was something I would hate. I've seen many glowing reviews and many horrible ones, but it seems like I fall somewhere down the middle. In short, I actually enjoyed this one, and I think it's a step above a lot of other YA on the market right now. What really sets Caraval apart for me is the writing. It's flowery and beautiful and whimsical, and though Garber more than occasionally tips into ridiculousness, I really enjoyed it most of the time. It adds an extra layer to a story that honestly wouldn't be too magical without it. That said, I really hated the way colours were used to describe Scarlett's emotions. Scarlett essentially sees her feelings in colour and it didn't make much sense. Garber does however have a "colourful" vocabulary, using particular shades, like "wine" and "cranberry" and "ruby" etc. to build up an enchanting and pretty atmosphere. While I enjoyed this aspect, Caraval definitely reads like a YA novel. At points the writing lacked maturity and was repetitive, and it failed to delve too deep into the book's themes and worldbuilding. The politics of the conquered islands was never explained for instance, and while Caraval's is better constructed it still left much to be desired. While Caraval is more like an enchanted island than a circus, I still enjoyed learning about its fantastical elements. I particularly loved the carousel of roses and the cider that stripped colour from the world. These scenes were lovely and atmospheric and mysterious. I only wish Garber had pushed this world further, made it more enchanting and exciting. I won't call Caraval dull, but some aspects shined more than others and I think there was the potential to totally blow readers out of the water, much like the Night Circus does with its creativity. In terms of the comparison to this popular book, Caraval is reminiscent of the former but nowhere near it in star power. The plot was not what I expected but it was still interesting. Although Caraval is a game where multiple players compete to win a prize, Scarlett's quest is much more a battle against herself than a competition to beat others. Rather than directly competing with other players, Caraval is like a scavenger hunt filled with clues that lead you to the next clue. While Scarlett had help deciphering clues, and many seemed pretty obvious at times, no clue seemed to truly fall in her lap. She used what she had in her arsenal, whether that be her insider relationship with Tella, her memories, or her observation. While I feel mixed about the direction the story took, I was totally engaged and curious the whole time. The borders between reality and the game were certainly blurred, and while this frustrated me and left character and plot elements inconclusive, it was effective in its mission to confuse readers just as much as its characters. I didn't love the characters but I didn't dislike them. Scarlett felt naive and juvenile, adding to the clearly young adult tone of the book, but her determination to find her sister was endearing. I wish Tella had appeared more because I really liked their relationship. Julian was a typical handsome bad boy with a heart of gold, but he didn't offend me in any way and he was charming enough. I also liked the romance, although I prefer mine to be more slow burning than what appeared here. The characters seemed to genuinely care about each other and had fair chemistry. There's not much to say about the villains other than one is pretty cheesy and overdone, and the other may be more morally grey than he first seems. I can totally see why people are either obsessing or raging over this book, but I feel that a more average rating is accurate. It impressed me on some levels and failed me on others, but overall I really enjoyed the experience of unraveling this story's secrets.

Let me know your thoughts!

Thanks for reading!

Emily

#3stars #circus #youngadult