This was a neat one! It was really well paced and kind of refreshing and cool having a fantasy book in a surrealist setting. 

For the positives, this book had really excellent world building. There was a continuous guessing game throughout it. What may be magic, may also be illusion, but may also be real, so you never truly knew what to believe. And due to the unpredictable nature of the game there were lots of really cool twists and surprises I didn’t see coming! It was fun to try to figure out everyone’s true intentions, as you could truly trust no one. 

As for what I felt was a smidge meh. The character development felt a little undercooked for me. Some of the conversations felt a little out of place and the reasonings for certain actions felt too simplified for the complex emotions that would undoubtedly come from the consequences of them. (If that makes sense). 

Another thing is, I liked the romance plot, but it never felt genuine because, as with every single character in this book, you could never fully trust it. 

Overall, it was a really fun read. BbI’m gonna try book 2 next and see how it goes!

Overall, this had a pretty intriguing premise and decent execution. I loved the idea of having a week-long "game" where attendees had to search for clues within a kind of magical theme park. There's just so much potential there. Some of the marks hit - such as the dress that altered itself according to the wearer's mood or the idea of selling secrets/years of life to gain information. The writing was pretty good too - not anything spectacular but solid for what this is. I really liked how the author used colors to represent moods or situations. While kind of cheesy at times, I thought it actually worked for a YA novel. The descriptions of the various sights and attractions of Caraval made me wish I could experience it for myself. 

My biggest issue and downside of this book was Scarlett. *sigh* She is definitely one of the most boring protagonists I've ever encountered. And the fact that we are stuck in her head 24/7 meant there was no reprieve of her constant distress and whining. Her obsession of finding and "saving" her sister so they could leave was so exhausting. Usually in a fantasy like this, where one character is reluctant to be mesmerized by the magic around them, they usually give in by the 50% mark. Scarlett? Ha! Now I didn't expect her to simply toss Tella aside, but I would have liked for her to interact more with what Caraval offered and engage in gameplay instead of stumbling into things. There were several characters - such as Dante, Aiko, and Caspar - that seemed somewhat wasted given that their time in the story was so short. We learn almost nothing about them and that's not my complaint because Scarlett doesn't really want to know anything about them and since we're stuck in her head/perspective, we don't. I get her protectiveness, especially given the upbringing that she and Tella had, but I wanted to see some actual growth from her and it never came.

Other parts that were just kind of "meh"... the romance. There were maybe one or two moments that I actually enjoyed between the romantic leads. Other than that, I didn't care for it. I also didn't particularly care for the "finale" with the multiple fake-outs. Even in the scenes that were supposed to be dramatic/tragic, the severity of what had happened was never emphasized so I wasn't impacted when the reveal showed up and everything was made better. I get the whole "It's just a game" tagline, but when the stakes aren't really present, it's hard for me to become emotionally involved when something "terrible" happens.

So yeah... it was a decent read. I don't regret picking it up and based on the reviews of later books, it sounds like the author/story do improve (and include less Scarlett 🙌) so I look forward to that.