[Review] Caraval - Stephanie Garber

Title of Book: Caraval
Author: Stephanie Garber
Series: Caraval #1
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
Publication Year: 2017
Language: English
Format: Hardback
Pages: 402

Scarlett Dragna has never left the tiny island where she and her sister, Tella, live with their powerful, and cruel, father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval—the faraway, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show—are over.
But this year, Scarlett’s long-dreamt-of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to the show. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season’s Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first is the winner.
Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. Nevertheless she becomes enmeshed in a game of love, heartbreak, and magic.

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Caraval is the first book in a young adult fantasy trilogy by Stephanie Garber. It follows Scarlett Dragna and her sister Donatella Dragna. They live in the island of Trisda with their cruel father. Ever since she’s a little girl, her grandmother told her a story of a magical carnival called Caraval. Caraval only happens once in a year and the show requires the audiences’ participation. However, only people with the invitation are allowed to come. On her seventeenth birthday, Scarlett finally got an invitation letter for Caraval. Since she’s engaged and her wedding was just around the corner, she’s hesitant to go to Caraval. Her sister, Tella, had another plan for them. She asked for help from a sailor named Julian to get them to Caraval. As soon as Scarlett arrived there, she found out that Tella was kidnapped by Legend, Caraval’s master. The only way to get Tella back is by winning Caraval that year. So Scarlett was determined to participate and win the game.

Caraval is probably the most hyped fantasy young adult book in 2017. It’s one of the reason why I picked it up. The other being it’s marketed as similar to the Night Circus, a fantasy novel which I love. I long for the beautiful, dark and intricate world of a carnival or circus that I finally decided to read this book. As you can tell, I had high expectation for this book. Does it deliver? Yes and no.

Caraval is a blend of amusement park and a game show. Caraval has a specific theme for each year it’s being held. There are rules that the visitors must obey. The visitors could choose to participate or just observe. The game itself is tricky. You’d be amazed at how majestic the performance is but confused at the same time as you’d be reminded over and over again that it’s not real; It’s an illusion. In Caraval, the line between fantasy and reality becomes blurred. That’s what I love about this book. The description of the setting and how the game is presented charmed me. Yet, because Caraval has always been described as the most magical, I assumed that magic only exists on Caraval. There’s not much description of the world outside Caraval which in this book is held on Legend’s private island. It’s unfortunate because I want to know more about the world that the Dragna sisters live in since it seems like it’ll play a big role in the next book.

This book is told from Scarlett’s perspective. She is not a character that I could sympathize with. She’s so naïve and unassertive. She often makes bad decision which I’d say a common thing with young adult book characters. She’s probably that way because she’s been abused by her father for a long time but at the same time living a sheltered life from the outside world. I hope that in the next book she’ll grow especially after experiencing Caraval. I do like reading her interaction with Julian though. I read Garber’s note on this book that it wasn’t meant to be a romance story at first and it shows. It’s fine by me. In fact, I like that the romance is not prominent in this book but it’s still there.

All in all, Caraval is an enjoyable read. There are twists in this book but somehow predictable to me. The ending is conclusive for the year’s game but it opens a new possibility in a bigger picture. Does it live up to the hype? Sadly, not for me. Like I wrote earlier, I think I set my expectation too high for Caraval. It’s still a good choice to pick if you want a fantasy book about magical game shows. I’ll definitely read the next book in the trilogy.