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rhm04's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Violence, Blood, Gore, Murder, Physical abuse, and Suicide
Moderate: Grief and Abandonment
zoepagereader's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
I didn’t really have any feelings about this one, didn’t hate it, didn’t love it. It was intriguing, yet uninteresting. I think it was the writing, but I just didn’t feel anything about this one. I won’t be reading the sequel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Suicide attempt, Gore, Child abuse, and Blood
Moderate: Violence and Murder
izzie_chamomilletea's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.0
First of all, finally a fantasy book that doesn’t have an elaborate and borderline incomprehensible beginning!! Now is that due to lack of general development… maybe but oh well. I saw some of the reviews on goodreads and they were pretty harsh but honestly to me this book was really good. It has a mysterious and dangerous mood, and a great romance arc. This book toys with the lines of what’s real and what isn’t which makes the book all the more interesting— it’s a puzzle. The ending did give me a headache and lots of anger like they’re dead then they’re not dead, is Julian even the same if he’s not calling her Crimson anymore??? What is going on with Donnatellla shhdhshshs but that’s just more motivation to read the second book. Don’t forget to check the content warnings :)!
Also yeah a lot of the reviews critiqued the ending and I agree with them. I love a good twist but this was practically nonsensical, it left me frustrated rather than awe struck, didn’t even know what to think.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gaslighting, Torture, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Grief, Blood, Suicide attempt, and Physical abuse
bookishgoob's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
“Every person has the power to change their fate if they are brave enough to fight for what they desire more than anything” Caraval was such an immersive experience. I was kept guessing the entire time which made it so hard to predict and also kept me completely invested from start to finish. the secrecy and the world reminded me of Spirited Away and the game reminded me of the move The Vampires Assistant (John C Reilly movie)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, Suicide, and Violence
fromjuliereads's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I went into this book a little cautious of the hype, but hoping I would love it. I adored The Night Circus when I read it years ago, so I was looking forward to giving another "travelling circus" story a try.
I think there were a lot of things that this book tried to do that just didn't work for me though... I still enjoyed it, just not as much as I had hoped.
Let's start with the things that I did like:
- I loved the plot and pacing. There was a good mix of fast-paced sections, with slightly slower paced scenes, and it worked really well to drive the story and to keep me interested in the goings on of the Caraval competition. Not to mention how intriguing the set up of the competition was! I found the idea unique and intriguing, and it had some good twists to how things worked or worked out. I will say the ending seemed a little rushed to wrap everything up, but it still explained everything. I just think after the whole competition was most of the book, the explanation and wrap-up was like two chapters...
- The magic! There was an element of mystery and magic that worked so well for a competition and performers who relied on magic to drive the story forward. I thought some of the uses of the magic were well-done and unique.
The things that made it difficult for me to really enjoy this book:
- Scarlett... and well, most of the characters who were main to be honest. I will admit that I was intrigued by Julian, enough that I could overlook at parts how annoying and frustrating both Scarlett and Tella were to me... I'm sorry, but we get it, Scarlett loves her sister more than anything. I don't need it written like 25 times in the book... (that might be an exaggeration but definitely what it felt like) The only characters I was interested in were Julian, Aiko, and Dante - side characters we don't get much from... also there was one reveal at the end that left me a tad bit uncomfortable. I was not a fan of the reveal about Julian's age... It made sense for his connection to Legend and how he knew the games of Caraval so well, but that means that he is close the age of Scarlett's grandparents!? That just felt kind of icky to me, even if he doesn't age because of magic... It's not the same as if he were some magical creature who lives a long time, he is still human and has aged in everything except looks... and Scarlett is supposed to be what? Under 20? I just didn't like that very much...
- The weird colour descriptions for emotions... I really didn't like these. I am so confused why the author felt she had to constantly describe the colour of things that don't have colour? It actually became frustrating to me and I started recording some of the more ridiculous ones down: panic is described as "shades of hemlock green - the color of poison and terror;" "Scarlett had an emerald-green premonition;" "Sour shades of yellow-green made her stomach roil;" disappointment is described as "forget-me-not blue;" I think panic is described later on as purple instead of green; and don't even get me started about how a kiss is described as tasting like "shades of rich brown and light blue." This might work for someone who sees the colours in everything, but it gives me NOTHING for describing emotions and abstract things... Honestly I just found it an annoying attempt at descriptions that I wish had been taken out...
I did enjoy the book overall - it was an easy read. I am not entirely sure if I will continue the series, unless someone can confirm for me that Scarlett gets a little less annoying... but I am glad that I read it!
I think there were a lot of things that this book tried to do that just didn't work for me though... I still enjoyed it, just not as much as I had hoped.
Let's start with the things that I did like:
- I loved the plot and pacing. There was a good mix of fast-paced sections, with slightly slower paced scenes, and it worked really well to drive the story and to keep me interested in the goings on of the Caraval competition. Not to mention how intriguing the set up of the competition was! I found the idea unique and intriguing, and it had some good twists to how things worked or worked out. I will say the ending seemed a little rushed to wrap everything up, but it still explained everything. I just think after the whole competition was most of the book, the explanation and wrap-up was like two chapters...
- The magic! There was an element of mystery and magic that worked so well for a competition and performers who relied on magic to drive the story forward. I thought some of the uses of the magic were well-done and unique.
The things that made it difficult for me to really enjoy this book:
- Scarlett... and well, most of the characters who were main to be honest. I will admit that I was intrigued by Julian, enough that I could overlook at parts how annoying and frustrating both Scarlett and Tella were to me... I'm sorry, but we get it, Scarlett loves her sister more than anything. I don't need it written like 25 times in the book... (that might be an exaggeration but definitely what it felt like) The only characters I was interested in were Julian, Aiko, and Dante - side characters we don't get much from... also there was one reveal at the end that left me a tad bit uncomfortable.
- The weird colour descriptions for emotions... I really didn't like these. I am so confused why the author felt she had to constantly describe the colour of things that don't have colour? It actually became frustrating to me and I started recording some of the more ridiculous ones down: panic is described as "shades of hemlock green - the color of poison and terror;" "Scarlett had an emerald-green premonition;" "Sour shades of yellow-green made her stomach roil;" disappointment is described as "forget-me-not blue;" I think panic is described later on as purple instead of green; and don't even get me started about how a kiss is described as tasting like "shades of rich brown and light blue." This might work for someone who sees the colours in everything, but it gives me NOTHING for describing emotions and abstract things... Honestly I just found it an annoying attempt at descriptions that I wish had been taken out...
I did enjoy the book overall - it was an easy read. I am not entirely sure if I will continue the series, unless someone can confirm for me that Scarlett gets a little less annoying... but I am glad that I read it!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexism, Suicide, Violence, and Vomit
amandasharabooks's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse
Moderate: Blood, Gore, Grief, and Murder
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