*Kind of Spoilery*
Ok…. I was highly entertained throughout the course of the storyline but the magic system really fell flat for me here. It was mentioned a lot in the context of the story however it wasn’t fully explained.
Caraval follows Scarlett and her sister Donatella who live under the rule of their terribly abusive and manipulative father. For years Scarlett has been writing to the leader of this magical travelling carnival called Legend, wanting him to travel to her island so she can attend with her sister to kind of escape reality for a while. For years and years she had no replies until suddenly 10 days before she is to be married to a count that her father arranged she received a reply and 3 tickets to attend. This is really where the story takes off.
I am kind of in two minds about Scarlett as the main character. She seemed a little too naïve to me and she had gotten so many reminders about Caraval and how she shouldn’t believe anything she sees or trust anyone while its taking place, and she continually disregards them and continues to make decision that I was kind of like ‘why?”. But I did think she redeems herself towards the end of the book, especially during the confrontation scene with her father and her fiancé. Her character arc over the 5 days she was in Caraval and her show of strength especially after she was at her lowest point was really commendable. I am also kind of in the same boat about Tella; I didn’t find her to be terribly likeable. She kind of seemed a little bit selfish and brash to me. But we really see a different side of her at the end of the novel especially after she explains herself to Scarlett and shows how much she loves, cares and trusts her.
That being said I still enjoyed the storyline, I really couldn’t anticipate or predict what was going to happen next. The atmosphere is really kind of dark and mysterious and the prose was actually nicely descriptive and sort of lyrical. I did like the gradual relationship Scarlett shared with Julian and the role that he played in the story really enraptured me and completely took me by surprise. I was intrigued enough by the premise of the book that I couldn’t put it down and finished it pretty quickly. I was disappointed that the magic system wasn’t expressed or shown more clearly in the book. It was mentioned various times and we see glimpses of magical elements but there is nothing really solid that was shown.
There were twists, revelations, romance, mystery, danger, bloodshed, a lot of aspects that come together to form this pretty good fantasy novel. I know that the sequel Legendary just came out recently and I definitely think I’m going to have to pick it up and see what else Stephanie Garber has in store.
⭐️3.5/5 stars it enjoyable and interesting but not one of my favourites.
This book follows Simon a 16 year old boy who is gay but hasn’t told anyone yet. Another boy in his grade finds out and makes thinly veiled threats about outing him unless he sets him up with one of Simon’s best friends.
this book, but I also didn’t love it. Jude just wasn’t a favourite character of mine; I didn’t find her to be likeable throughout the novel. Some of her choices she made just didn’t sit well with me and the relationships she formed Locke and Cardan just seemed a bit odd and cringey, especially after they made her life hell for so long. I much preferred her older sister Vivi, I loved that she rebelled from her father Madoc and how she tried to pry her younger sisters out of the world of Faerie and give them a normal life back in the mortal world. I did enjoy the ending however and I am curious as to how the series will be continued so I will be reading on. ⭐️3/5 stars
came out I seen it everywhere and everyone was raving about how good it was. I don’t read a lot of contemporary books but I was strolling through a bookstore one day and the title jumped out at me and so I immediately picked it up and proceeded to read it. I thought the plot was actually very captivating and original, I thought it was fast paced and entertaining. Aza as a character was very relatable and real, it was as if I could feel what she was going through and her anguish and pain was bleeding through the pages. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book and I am glad that I bought into the hype and read it. ⭐️4/5 stars
is one of my all time favourite genres I regularly peruse YouTube for lists of fantasy favourites and Graceling would always make an appearance in those lists. I picked it up with not really any expectations, I just wanted to get into a good fantasy book as I was craving one at the time and I absolutely loved it. I thought the premise was amazing, people being gifted with different graces I just thought that was really creative and it was very engaging throughout the plot. Katsa, as a female protagonist was deadly, powerful yet still very feminine and graceful (lol) she was a joy to read and this book really caught me by surprise. ⭐️4/5 stars
Another book that I didn’t love but I also didn’t hate. Again it was just because I couldn’t quite gel with Camellia. I thought she was terribly naïve throughout the first half of the storyline and kind of put me off her as character. I did think she progressed throughout the story line and started to read between the lines of what was going on at the palace. I thought the premise of the book was interesting and original, how everyone is born grey and the Belles are the beautiful colourful young girls who have the ability to transform other’s appearances to follow beauty standards and trends. ⭐️3/5 stars
stage in the booktube community it seemed like everyone was reading Scythe at the same time and raving about how good it was. I gave in and read it and of course I loved it like everyone else! I just thought it was so clever and refreshing. The premise of this book is just so thought provoking and it’s structured so well that I honestly didn’t know what was going to happen next. There are so many twists and turns and political machinations in the Scythedom and I highly enjoyed my time reading this book! ⭐️4/5 stars
Amy Leigh Reads 