5 Things I LOVED About Caraval (Spoiler Review), And One Thing I Didn't

Hello, dear reader, and welcome to a game like no other. A game where I, the humble blog writer, will give you 5 reasons as to why I loved the YA fantasy book, Caraval, and one thing I did not like about it at all. 

But first, before we begin, let me inform you of the plot.

Young Scarlett, our unlikely hero, has heard many stories about the game of Caraval since she was a young girl. Of a traveling circus that roams around, popping up so soon, only to be gone when the game is finished. No one knows when it will come around, and you are only invited by ticket to this glorious event. Scarlett has been writing to Caraval's very own creator, Legend, in the hope that she would soon be invited to participate in Caraval. But after years of writing to him, without any response, she is ready to give up, writing him one last letter. 

For she is to be married off soon to an unknown suitor which her cruel, abusive father has arranged. As if by magic, Legend hears her cries, and tickets find their way to Scarlett so that she may participate in Caraval. Soon, Scarlett will find herself paired with an unlikely, and rather handsome, dark and mysterious, devil of a boy called Julian. For, when they arrive at the island, her little sister, Tella, has gone missing, and it turns out that if they find her, they win the ultimate prize: one wish. 

So come one, come all, whether you are a mere spectator of the game, or one participating in it.

But be so kind to remember, it's only a game.

Now, watch your step, you are about to enter into Caraval...


Reason #1: Caraval and the descriptions

Who could not love such a beautiful backdrop? The world, to me, felt like you'd gone down the rabbit hole and ended up in a world just as confusing and captivating as Alice in Wonderland, sprinkled with the elements of a circus, and an overdose of magic piled sky high. Ah, the beauty of it. Just the idea of something like Caraval was enough for me to even read the book. I mean, it's a magical place where you get to compete in some magical game. Hell. Yes.

And the beautiful, flowery writing. Most people hated that. But I could dive into a pool of that writing. I adore your writing, author. I adore it. Your style works for me. I was digging all the flowery descriptions. And that Scarlett saw in color. Well, most people thought this was a super power. And I was like, hey, it's just a really cool way of describing her feelings. For example:

“She imagined loving him would feel like falling in love with darkness, frightening and consuming yet utterly beautiful when the stars came out" (oh my gravy, yes); He tasted like midnight and wind, and shades of rich brown and light blue. Colors that made her feel safe and guarded.” Three cheers for the descriptions. It only made it that more magical.

And after an insane book hangover after reading it, I regret nothing. 

Reason #2: Legend

As most of you probably know already, Legend is the creator of Caraval. He's mysterious, and has existed for years, only making his presence while wearing his signature black bowler hat. And. We. Never. Get. To. See. Him. Or do we? We'll never really know. 

He's super mysterious and I adore him for it. Also, he kind of seems like a pretty evil dude. But, then again, he's mysterious, soooo....BLAH.

But, for real, the intrigue of Legend was enough to keep me reading.


Reason #3: Scarlett

Alright, jerks, I'm prepared to fight all of you on this.

I've read all of your stupid complaints about Scarlett, and I disagree. Everyone says things like "Scarlett's so dumb", "She's so distracted..." BLAH, BLAH, BLAH...BLAH.

Listen up, jerks. Scarlett was physically abused by her father. And going to Caraval is the first time she's able to get away from him and actually experience life outside of her abusive life. Think about that for just a second. So, I was a major Scarlett supporter. So what if she didn't always make the best decisions. Who really does?

Scarlett was sweet, and a hero I never expected. She wasn't your typical kick ass female lead, and I'm okay with that. 

I've got you, Crimson. I've got you.

Reason #4: The Game

It was just like falling down a crazy ass rabbit hole. Everything was confusing. Everything was weird. Everything was damn magical. I mean, Scarlett's dresses literally changed. Oh, and it was beautiful. Don't get me started about her gorgeous, magical dresses. 

I know, everyone says, well this game didn't make sense. 

WOW. THAT'S. BECAUSE. IT'S. NOT. SUPPOSED. TO. The game was as magical and elusive as Legend himself. Obviously. There were spectators who helped along the way, and random performers with the strangest clues. And that's how it's supposed to be. It was weird, random, and whimsical. Shut up book critics. 


Reason #5: Julian (also known as all-of-you-will-hate-me-for-this, reason)

It's no surprise that most reviewers hate Julian.

He's a bad boy. And that's the only issue people had with him. Oh. My. Gravy. SO WHAT. 

But, seriously. What is it? Julian made so many great, bad boy remarks, that he left me swooning. Sorry, but yes. No, actually, I'm not sorry. Because at the end of the day, Julian is a great character. He's sexy, bad, but still caring. And he was put there to distract Scarlett. People complained about that, and I'm thinking, once again, they didn't read the book to the end. Because if they did, they'd know distracting Scarlett was his job at Caraval. But somewhere along the lines, he developed feelings for her. And she developed feelings for him.

And this is where the haters fly in on their horses. "Oh my gravy...such insta love." Let me take your hand, and bring you back to the beginning. This was Scarlett's first time away from home. So give the girl a break. Also, Julian's job was to literally be insta love, but it so happened he started having the feels for her. 

I think I'm being a little mean. But it is what it is. Also, he calls Scarlett Crimson. Crimson. I love him. 



The One Thing I Didn't Like: Tella (Scarlett's little sister)

Also known as the real jerk of the story. Now, after I read the book, I watched some reviews on it. So many people gushed about the great sister bond in this book. SO. MANY. PEOPLE. 

Did no one actually read the book? Because Tella was the worst sister ever. There was literally no sisterly bond on her side at all. It was completely one-sided. Poor Scarlett. Now, okay, I understand that Tella wants to know what happened to their mom (because their mom mysteriously vanished and somehow -SPOILER- Legend may know something about that), but Tella is a jerk. A COMPLETE JERK. It's the worst "sisterly bond" I've ever seen.

Now, I do have a little sister. And I love her. But if she acted like Tella...

Well, just no. The sisterly love would zap away. 

So this is not the best example of a great sisterly bond. On Scarlett's end, sure. But Tella. I. DON'T. LIKE. HER. And the letter at the end of the book won't change that. And I hope to the birds I won't be reading from her perspective in the second book. But, if that's the case... *la sigh*


But, to conclude all of this, that's what I thought of the book. I loooooved it. LOVED IT. So fight me on it, I don't care. I'm ringing this book in at 5 stars out of 5 because I truly, deeply, madly adored it. 


Lots of 💙 and 🍵,

Liz



Too many gifs: 

Good day, sir: http://imgur.com/f6pbKx3

I said, good day: http://gifrific.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/i-regret-nothing.gif

So mysterious: https://media.tenor.com/images/8c0aa5fc153f3a99328bfdd9ccabaae1/tenor.gif

Come at me: https://media.giphy.com/media/rQJF42ylb31iE/giphy.gif

Sheldon knows all: http://68.media.tumblr.com/327a12502ab40f9ce51ba099fd4ad890/tumblr_inline_mzbppmjTFe1rhuxfs.gif

Shocked: https://media.giphy.com/media/l0Iydl9zWjbLvLv6U/source.gif

It's only a game: https://platinumwriter.files.wordpress.com/2017/02/caraval-stephanie-garber-feature.png?w=640

No: https://images.gr-assets.com/hostedimages/1385975577ra/7267956.gif

Obviously: http://www.reactiongifs.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/wiq5h1.gif

Blah: https://media.giphy.com/media/xT9DPJVjlYHwWsZRxm/giphy.gif