I am so excited to be talking about this book. I am not a big fan of carnivals and because of that very reason I didn’t pick this book last year at all. However, a couple of days back I saw the hardcover edition of this book and I absolutely loved it! What can you say, a person got to buy the book they love. I dived into the book as soon as the package was delivered.

Plot

In this book we follow a crazy adventure of Dragna sisters. Scarlett Dragna and Donatella Dragna grew up in the Isle of Trisida all their life. They were not allowed to go out and her father was so abusive to say the least. There were punishments brutal than you can imagine even for a little teenage whimsy. They were brought up so strictly that talking to a guy seemed like an eternal sin to them. However, Tella is more of an adventurous girl, always getting into trouble, sneaking off with guys when her father, Governor Dragna was not around. Scarlett is well put together, decent girl, unlike Tella. Scarlett feared her father very much and didn’t dare to do anything stupid which could get her in trouble. Once or twice she actually did something, for which she had to pay high price as a form of punishment. These incidents held her back from disobeying her father anymore. Scarlett’s love for her sister is just unconditional and Tella loves her sister in the same way. Since their mother disappeared, Scarlett and Tella were there were each other. Scarlett vowed to protect her sister no matter what.
Governor Dragna arranged his elder daughters marriage with a count from another land. The Count promised a better life for her sister and herself at his empire. One day something unexpected happened. She used to write to the Caraval Master Legend every year and ask him to come to Conquered Isles of Trisida. He never replied. One fine day she receives an invitation to attend the Caraval which is happening in an Isle which is 2 days from her home. She couldn’t take that offer, she knows too well what the consequences would be. Tella’s insistence lead her believe in something she knew was dangerous. When they finally reached the Caraval, Tella was kidnapped. To see her sister again Scarlett has to play the game. With a unsual company of Jullian, the sailor who got them to Carval, Scarlett is set to find her sister before anyone does.

Discussion

This book was an amazing read for me. The plot didn’t drag me in for sure, as mentioned in the beginning of the post, I am not a fan of Carnivals, it gives me creeps. Well, this book changed that for me. I love what Stephanie Garber has done to the story. It was beautifully written with the most amazing characters ever. Scarlett is just so amazing, she was brave, hopeful and acted like an adult when even adults would falter. I have no words to describe how fantastic her character was. Tella’s character was only seen towards the ending. However, the author made sure Scarlett never lost her purpose. Carval is quite a large and confusing place to get by, Scarlett herself was lost in that world many a times, but she never forgot why she came into the Caraval in the first place.
The relationship between Scarlett and her sister Donatella was just fabulous. It was so well written and I ached for Tella’s reunion with her sister in every page. Jullian is an interesting character as well. His character has so many layers and lies and secrets, it was so confusing to even define him. We get to know all about his secrets in the end but it wouldn’t have been same without him in the game beside Scarlett. I also liked the romance angle in this book. Jullian and Scarlett make such a good pair. Both of them haunted by their pasts connected so well.
I can’t belive that I liked this book this much. I literally had no expectations when I dived into this book. I only bought this book because it looked so pretty. I know I shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but I do it all the time. Going into the book with no expectations made this read even more amusing. I didn’t even see any reviews for this book before I started reading it. I can definitely tell that this would be in my all time favorites list. I am so pumped to be reading the next book in the series. I will let you know when I finish Legendary, second book in this trilogy. The last book is Finale and I am not sure when it is going to be out.
I highly recommend this book, if you are looking for something new and fresh. It was totally a great read for me and I hope whoever picks this book will definitely fall in love with the world Stephanie Garber has built into the pages of this book.