Tag: Review

Caraval (Caraval, #1) – Stephanie Garber

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caraval cover

RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

SYNOPSIS: 

Remember, it’s only a game…

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. And whether Caraval is real or not, Scarlett must find Tella before the five nights of the game are over or a dangerous domino effect of consequences will be set off, and her beloved sister will disappear forever.

Welcome, welcome to Caraval…beware of getting swept too far away.

REVIEW (Spoiler Free):

“Whatever you’ve heard about Caraval, it doesn’t compare to the reality. It’s more than just a game or performance. It’s the closest you’ll ever find to magic in this world.”

What a magical and enchanting world! When I received Caraval in my February 2017 “Run Away With The Circus” Owl Crate box I was thrilled! It was very high on my anticipated reads list. Caraval did not let me down at all! It grabbed my attention from the very beginning.

Caraval is a story of family, love, magic, and a mysterious quest. I loved following Scarlett on her journey and discovering clues and obstacles with her. I felt like I was right there with her in the game of Caraval.

Caraval is pure magic. Stephanie Garber does an exceptional job of building a stunning world. The writing is beautiful and lyrical. I was absolutely captivated. The game of Caraval is mystical, mysterious, and whimsical. At the beginning of the game, Scarlett is advised that Caraval is a performance and to be careful to not get too swept away. It was so difficult to remember that Caraval is just a game. Garber does an excellent job of creating an environment where the reader is unable to determine what is real and what isn’t. The twists were very clever and unexpected. I was holding my breath at each twist and turn.  My theories about Legend and the game changed multiple times while reading. It kept me on my toes throughout the entire story.

At the heart of Caraval is Scarlett’s relationship with her sister, Donatella (Tella). The have a beautiful relationship and have always protected each other from their abusive father. The truly love and care for one another. However, Scarlett and Tella are opposites. Scarlett craves stability and safety, but Tella is a dreamer and desires adventure. At times, both characters are difficult to like. Scarlett is naive and too trusting. She always puts Tella’s well-being before her own, and Tella seems to take advantage of this. Tella does have good intentions, but her methods are difficult to understand. I will not say any more to avoid spoilers!

FINAL THOUGHTS:

  • Caraval is a beautiful, whimsical, and sensory world filled with magic, adventure, quests, and love.
  • All of the characters are flawed, but I loved going on this adventure with them. I can’t wait to learn more about their lives and worlds outside of the game.
  • Caraval ends on a cliffhanger and  I have so many questions! I am so excited to find out what happens next.
  • I cannot wait for the sequel, Legendary, to discover more about the game of Caraval and its master, Legend.

The Inquisition (Summoner, #2) – Taran Matharu

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inqu

RATING:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

SYNOPSIS:

A year has passed since the Tournament.

Fletcher and Ignatius have been locked away in Pelt’s dungeons, but now they must face a trial at the hands of the Inquisition, a powerful institution controlled by those who would delight in Fletcher’s downfall.

The trial is haunted by ghosts from the past with shocking revelations about Fletcher’s origins, but he has little time to dwell on them; the graduating students of Vocans are to be sent deep into the orc jungles to complete a dangerous mission for the king and his council. If they fail, the orcish armies will rise to power beyond anything the Empire has ever seen.

With loyal friends Othello and Sylva by his side, Fletcher must battle his way to the heart of Orcdom and save Hominum from destruction…or die trying.

REVIEW (Spoiler Free):

I was so excited to start The Inquisition after the cliffhanger ending of The Novice! This book picked up exactly one year after the events of The Novice. Fletcher has spent the last year wasting away in jail in fear of what will happen to him.  Fletcher soon finds himself on trial facing those who want him dead. I absolutely loved the trial portion of The Inquisition. It’s probably because I love to watch Law & Order, but I was enthralled by the procedural aspects and listening to Arcturus defend Fletcher. The trial was also great because we get to discover Fletcher’s birth history and who his family was. I am keeping this review spoiler free so I will not go into details, but I thought it was a great reveal and woven excellently into the trial. I love watching Fletcher grow and develop. He is discovering himself and finding his way with us along for the ride.

The next part of the book is my favorite visual of the series so far. Fletcher travels to the Elvish land in the great forest. Taran Matharu did an excellent job writing this gorgeous setting. It shows how talented Matharu is. The world he has created in this series is amazing. I could visualize it perfectly in my head. It was absolutely beautiful and I am hoping that we get to spend more time there in future books.

My favorite part of The Inquisition (and really the whole Summoner series) is the demons. We are introduced to more species of demons and they are even cooler than the ones we’ve already met. Matharu does a brilliant job describing the demons so that I can picture them as I’m reading. The demon classification guide at the end is also so cool. We are also introduced to the other species that live in Fletcher’s world…orcs, gremlins, and goblins. I really enjoyed learning about these species (especially the gremlins), their culture, and their history. It was thrilling and so scary to enter the orc territory with Fletcher and his team. I was sitting on the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen.

Whenever I’m reading fantasy, I always ask myself if I would want to live in the book’s world. I definitely want to live in Fletcher’s world so that I can be a summoner! Although, I’d be terrified to fight in the war against the orcs!!

I do have a small criticism for The Inquisition (which is why I deducted one star). It started off very strong and pulled me in immediately, but the middle was slow. I did like reading it and meeting a couple new characters, but it wasn’t as good as the first and last parts. I understand that Fletcher’s mission had to be set up and this middle part was necessary to the story, but it seemed to drag a bit.  HOWEVER, when the story picked up again it did not hold back!! The action was non-stop! I couldn’t put it down! And that ending!?! Are you kidding!? So many twists!! I am so excited to see what happens next. Matharu has a gift (or a curse depending on how you look at it) of delivering great cliffhangers!

FINAL THOUGHTS:

  • The Inquisition starts off strong, slows down a bit in the middle, and is non-stop in the last part.
  • We get to meet several new characters that add so much to the story! I especially liked Cress!
  • We meet even more super awesome species of demons. I stated in my review for The Novice that I wanted a salamander demon and a griffin. I am added a Gryphowl and all four elemental bird demons to my list!
  • I also want to be an elf and live in the great forest. It was so beautiful!
  • That ending!?! Such great twists and cliffhanger! I can’t wait to see what happens in The Battlemage!

The Novice (Summoner, #1) – Taran Matharu

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novice

RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

SYNOPSIS:

When blacksmith apprentice Fletcher discovers that he has the ability to summon demons from another world, he travels to Adept Military Academy. There the gifted are trained in the art of summoning. Fletcher is put through grueling training as a battlemage to fight in the Hominum Empire’s war against orcs. He must tread carefully while training alongside children of powerful nobles. The power hungry, those seeking alliances, and the fear of betrayal surround him. Fletcher finds himself caught in the middle of powerful forces, with only his demon Ignatius for help.

As the pieces on the board maneuver for supremacy, Fletcher must decide where his loyalties lie. The fate of an empire is in his hands…

REVIEW (Spoiler Free):

The Novice has been on my TBR for a very long time. It sounded interesting, but some new book or series always came up. That all changed when I attended the Fierce Reads Spring Tour which featured Taran Matharu as one of the guest authors. During the tour panel, Matharu described The Summoner Series as Harry Potter meets Lord of the Rings meets Pokemon. I was hooked immediately and I knew I had to read The Novice ASAP. And I am so glad I did! Matharu’s description of his series was spot on!

The Novice was a highly entertaining and original story. I don’t often read books with male protagonists as the only POV, but I really liked reading from Fletcher’s POV. I was very invested in his story and development. He is very mature despite his young age. I felt like I was with Fletcher during his journey. The other characters were also very well done, especially Othello. I enjoyed Fletcher’s and Othello’s friendship! It seemed so genuine.

The magic system of The Novice is so cool! Fletcher discovers that he is a summoner. This means that he is able to summon demons from a parallel world (the ether). These demons then become bonded to the summoner – both as their partner and a part of their consciousness. The bond between the summoner and demon is strong and allows the summoner to use magic, or “mana”. Fletcher’s demon is a rare salamander demon named Ignatius. Fletcher and Ignatius train together at the Academy and become adept at using mana and spells. The demons and magic system were fascinating. I would really like to have my own demon!

While The Novice mostly focuses on Fletcher and his training, we also discover a world filled with humans, elves, dwarves, and orcs. The war against the orcs, the nobles’ overreaching power, and the class divide between the humans and dwarves are the fundamental conflicts faced by this world. These conflicts are all addressed and contribute to Fletcher’s story. I feel like we only scratched the surface of the war against the orcs. Fletcher has not yet seen the war or been involved. I am looking forward to the next book to really delve into the war and how Fletcher responds.

The Novice ended on a big cliffhanger! I won’t give anything away! I am going to start the next book (The Inquisition) very soon because I can’t wait to find out what happens next!

FINAL THOUGHTS:

  • Harry Potter meets Lord of the Rings meets Pokemon = very accurate description of The Novice. I highly recommend The Novice to fans of any of those fandoms.
  • Unique and extremely cool magic system!
  • Demons are awesome and I would like both a salamander demon and a griffin!
    • Make sure to check out the demon classification guide at the end of the book! Matharu definitely put a lot of thought and creativity into the demons.
  •  The first few pages were a tad slow, but as soon as Fletcher used the summoning scroll I was hooked! Matharu’s writing kept me interested and entertained throughout the entirety of The Novice.