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malamare's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
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
from the start i was swept away by stephanie grabers writing. its so lyrical and beautiful. i enjoyed it thoroughly. shes also a genius because this book is so full of symbolism and so carefully written. the plot is full of twists you cannot see and you truly have to remember its all a game. i adored the characters, i felt so connected to them. this book made me stay up at night and dedicate my afternoons to it. i loved it wholeheartedly and cannot wait to read the 2nd book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood
Moderate: Murder, Suicide, Bullying, and Death
Minor: Death of parent
durrareadsstuff's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
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
3.75
Aside from giving me severe trust issues, this book was a really good ya fantasy. The writing was so magical and atmospheric it's like you can imagine yourself in caraval. I like how Scarlett pictures feelings in colours, that was interesting.
Usually first books in a trilogy are the ones I struggle through because the beginning would be slower-paced than the rest, but this one had a really nice pacing. It definitely could be read in one day, although I didn't because my attention span is blegh. It also helped that the chapters were short.
One thing I have to complain about, though, there's this one scene that I don't know, it feels so weird. Am I the only one who feels this way because so far I've seen people rate this no less than 5 stars. But that scene—I wish I could erase that from my mind.
The characters were okay I guess, I kind of wish Scarlett had a friend for some reason. Maybe because Tella was annoying the heck out of me in the beginning. But I really liked the way the author made us see more of Tella, aside from her "wild" ways. I kind of like her more than Scarlett now. Julian was a decent love interest. The foreshadowing, the subtle things that warn the readers that he's definitely hiding something—that was incredibly executed in my opinion. And I like how his feelings are also mentioned. Like sometimes, books make it seem like these guys are heartless snobs which just takes all the charm away from them.
Overall - ⭐⭐⭐💫/5
Plot - ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
Writing - ⭐⭐⭐/5
Characters - ⭐⭐⭐/5
Themes (abuse, abandonment) - ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫/5
Usually first books in a trilogy are the ones I struggle through because the beginning would be slower-paced than the rest, but this one had a really nice pacing. It definitely could be read in one day, although I didn't because my attention span is blegh. It also helped that the chapters were short.
One thing I have to complain about, though, there's this one scene that I don't know, it feels so weird. Am I the only one who feels this way because so far I've seen people rate this no less than 5 stars. But that scene—I wish I could erase that from my mind.
The characters were okay I guess, I kind of wish Scarlett had a friend for some reason. Maybe because Tella was annoying the heck out of me in the beginning. But I really liked the way the author made us see more of Tella, aside from her "wild" ways. I kind of like her more than Scarlett now. Julian was a decent love interest. The foreshadowing, the subtle things that warn the readers that he's definitely hiding something—that was incredibly executed in my opinion. And I like how his feelings are also mentioned. Like sometimes, books make it seem like these guys are heartless snobs which just takes all the charm away from them.
Overall - ⭐⭐⭐💫/5
Plot - ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
Writing - ⭐⭐⭐/5
Characters - ⭐⭐⭐/5
Themes (abuse, abandonment) - ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫/5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Physical abuse, Child abuse, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Death and Death of parent
Minor: Sexual assault
made1ine's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Death, Death of parent, and Murder
madison1239's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Death, and Death of parent
anenbydragon's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child death, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, and Suicide
Moderate: Torture
finallywakingup's review against another edition
3.5
I enjoyed this, I think I would have enjoyed it more if it weren't YA, it seemed a little bit underdeveloped sometimes and the characters could have done with a little more depth. Other times the plot twists piled up one on top of the other and were a bit much, I think Scarlett probably aged several years in a week due to the things she went through, there was no time given for her to process any of the trauma she went through. Interesting enough for me to go on to read the rest of the series as I like the idea of the game and the world that Legend creates for it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse and Death
Minor: Abandonment, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Murder, and Physical abuse
allonsythornraxx's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.0
21/01/2024
3 ⭐
I'm just here to have a good time with my girl Scarlett 🥰
18/07/2022
3 ⭐
Genuinely cannot believe I've now read this 6 times and also that even though I've read this 6 times I still cannot stand Donatella. I'm a Scarlett girl, through and through.
06/04/2021
3.5 ⭐
Re-reading books 1 and 2 so I can finally read Finale. I was in a bit of a funk today so I decided to pick this one up and as cheesy as it sounds, the writing and the world of Caraval really did lift my spirits today!
05/05/2019
4 ⭐
This is so detailed and beautifully written. It has its flaws and I talked about a few of those in my updates but, I can't help but love it.
01/06/2018
4 ⭐
Just re-read this again and I'm not even mad because it made me very happy while I was reading it.
27/04/2018
4 ⭐
I just re-read this in preparation for Legendary and while I didn't love it as much as I did the first time, I still really enjoyed it! I can't wait to listen to Legendary!
2017
5 ⭐
I loved this book very very much. This is definitely going to be in my top 5 of 2017.
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3 ⭐
I'm just here to have a good time with my girl Scarlett 🥰
18/07/2022
3 ⭐
Genuinely cannot believe I've now read this 6 times and also that even though I've read this 6 times I still cannot stand Donatella. I'm a Scarlett girl, through and through.
06/04/2021
3.5 ⭐
Re-reading books 1 and 2 so I can finally read Finale. I was in a bit of a funk today so I decided to pick this one up and as cheesy as it sounds, the writing and the world of Caraval really did lift my spirits today!
05/05/2019
4 ⭐
This is so detailed and beautifully written. It has its flaws and I talked about a few of those in my updates but, I can't help but love it.
01/06/2018
4 ⭐
Just re-read this again and I'm not even mad because it made me very happy while I was reading it.
27/04/2018
4 ⭐
I just re-read this in preparation for Legendary and while I didn't love it as much as I did the first time, I still really enjoyed it! I can't wait to listen to Legendary!
2017
5 ⭐
I loved this book very very much. This is definitely going to be in my top 5 of 2017.
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Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Domestic abuse
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