Take a photo of a barcode or cover
A review by zaiphon
Finale by Stephanie Garber
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
(3☆'s for Finale, and 3 ☆'s for overall series)
I'm not a quitter, so despite there being elements I didn't fully mesh with in this trilogy for me, I wanted to see it through to the end. Overall, I was just not vibing with the writing, pacing, and how some character developments were handled.
I'll just summarize my positive and negatives(light spoilers listed below)
+Jacks
+The idea of fates and magic and how they fit into the Caraval universe and world building
-Pacing for me felt too slow when it needed to move forward but then too fast paced with the twists when it would have been better to slow down and really absorb the details we are being given
-SPOILER, The fact it took two sentences to end the Fallen Star when it felt like he had so much to give to the story and multiple layers to his character that weren't explored
-SPOILER, something did not agree with me on how the "love triangle" was handled and Jacks's story ended like that? Naw..
+Scarlett and Julian felt reminiscent to themselves as we were first introduced to them in Caraval. Despite it being a rocky start at the beginning, I enjoyed having more interactions in Scarlett's POV.
-But on that note, Nicolas's involvement in the story felt kind of silly compared to everything else going on.
I was hoping for more depth in the characters and their interactions, so by the end, I didn’t feel as satisfied as I’d expected. The romance follows a typical YA fantasy pattern, which isn’t a problem for me, but it felt like there was potential there that was never fully realized. That lingering sense of "something more" is what kept me going through the trilogy, though I’m still unsure if the connected series will deliver what I’m hoping for. (Convince me if I would be missing out!)
I'm not a quitter, so despite there being elements I didn't fully mesh with in this trilogy for me, I wanted to see it through to the end. Overall, I was just not vibing with the writing, pacing, and how some character developments were handled.
I'll just summarize my positive and negatives(light spoilers listed below)
+Jacks
+The idea of fates and magic and how they fit into the Caraval universe and world building
-Pacing for me felt too slow when it needed to move forward but then too fast paced with the twists when it would have been better to slow down and really absorb the details we are being given
-SPOILER, The fact it took two sentences to end the Fallen Star when it felt like he had so much to give to the story and multiple layers to his character that weren't explored
-SPOILER, something did not agree with me on how the "love triangle" was handled and Jacks's story ended like that? Naw..
+Scarlett and Julian felt reminiscent to themselves as we were first introduced to them in Caraval. Despite it being a rocky start at the beginning, I enjoyed having more interactions in Scarlett's POV.
-But on that note, Nicolas's involvement in the story felt kind of silly compared to everything else going on.
I was hoping for more depth in the characters and their interactions, so by the end, I didn’t feel as satisfied as I’d expected. The romance follows a typical YA fantasy pattern, which isn’t a problem for me, but it felt like there was potential there that was never fully realized. That lingering sense of "something more" is what kept me going through the trilogy, though I’m still unsure if the connected series will deliver what I’m hoping for. (Convince me if I would be missing out!)