Caraval by Stephanie Garber

Scarlett and Donatella have an awful life on Trisda with their domineering father and Scarlett has decided that their best way out is through the magic of Caravell.  She has been writing to Master Legend for years now begging for invitations to play the game but never got a response until a week before her arranged marriage to The Count.  Despite never having met ther fiance she is desperate to marry him as his letters are swoonworthy and, even better, he has promised to protect both Scarlet and her sister once they have married.  So determined is she that despite finally having three precious tickets for Caraval she decides it is not worth the risk to go but Donatella and a handsome sailor have other ideas.

What could have been a wonderful book full of magic, intrigue, romance and so much more was a complete disappointment.  I managed to finish the book but after the first 30 or so pages I found that I really did not give two hoots about any of the characters in the book as I just could not connect to them through the writing.  This did not improve throughout the book and the descriptions of the magical world of Caraval just did not bring it to life for this reader.

I purchased the Kindle version and the constant showing of communications as illustrated letters made them almost impossible to read on my paperwhite.  They were scrunched up to less than half theheight and width of the screen and you had to really squint to read them.  This dragged you out of the story so much I spent most of each page dreading that I would find one on the next page.  I assume that this will not be an issue in a physical copy and more thought should have been given by the publishers to their Kindle conversion, especially as it is such a popular format.

If you decide to purchase this book because the synopsis draws you in I really hope that you do not feel as disappointed as I do.  I was really looking forward to this one as being somewhere along the lines of The Night Circus which I read 2 or 3 years ago and loved.

**Review originally published August 23rd, 2017**