Caraval

I genuinely loved this book. The characters and the setting were probably my favorite parts. The atmosphere of Caraval was just so magical and unpredictable, and I loved feeling like there was always something happening underneath the surface. I never really knew what was real and what wasn’t (the whole point of this book aka to blend the lines between reality and insanity/fantasy lmao), which made the whole experience so much more fun.

I also REALLY loved how intentional stephanie garber is with everything. It wasn’t necessarily that I was constantly being outwitted. I was more fascinated by the way she chose to tell the story. She could’ve made things happen in a completely different way. She could’ve used different wording, left out certain details, or described something differently. But she didn’t.

She chose that specific wording. That specific detail. That specific moment.

And it makes me dare to ask, why?

Why did she choose to tell me this? Why did she make that detail so specific? Why did she word something THAT way when she could’ve said this instead?

And then she proceeds to answer those questions in literally the most gut wrenching way.

I had so much fun making theories and annotating because it genuinely felt like I was INTERACTING with the book whenever I wrote something down. I wasn’t just reading and moving on. I was questioning things, connecting details, and trying to figure out why certain things were there. It made me pay attention to everything. And when I say everything, I MEAN EVERYTHING.

Also, if you’re someone who has always been drawn to things like carnivals, circuses, amusement parks, wonderland vibes, jesters, clowns, or just that whole strange and magical kind of aesthetic, I genuinely think you’d have so much fun with this book. I’ve always been drawn to that kind of thing whether it’s in games, books, movies, characters, literally ANYTHING, so caraval felt very much up my alley. ALSO LOVED THE CHARACTERS. The ending rlly got me.