(4.25 stars) 
 Welcome... welcome to my review + discussion of Caraval. 
 Before we begin, I want everyone to know that I was sooooo excited to read this book. The cover was gorgeous, it was getting rave reviews, and the plot sounded absolutely astonishing. 
 I don't even know if I was disappointed. I kinda was on some aspects, but definitely wasn't on others. 
 Without further ado, let's discuss. 
 C H A R A C T E R S: 
 Scarlett. I'm just wholly neutral on Scarlett. I didn't hate her, I didn't love her; she just... existed. Yeah, she's the main character and all, but I didn't exactly worry for her. She could've been replaced with someone with a completely different personality and I couldn't have cared less. Just... there. 
 Tella. Definitely my favorite of the sisters. I liked that she had lots of personality! She, at least, took charge and was basically the whole reason that this book could exist. I can't really say more without spoilers but, yknow. Yay Tella! 
 Julian. I liked him! I liked Tella more, but I liked him more than I liked Scarlett. He was funny and was a pretty cool dude, all in all. I didn't actually feel much for him, but he was still enjoyable to read about. 
 R E L A T I O N S H I P S: 
 Oh, I haven't done this part of a review for a while. (These aren't just romantic.) 
 Scarlett & Tella. I liked them as sisters, but I feel that they had more potential to be a better pair. We had so many opportunities for banter, expressions of fondness or exasperation through words, and we just didn't see them. Oh well. 
 Scarlett & Julian. I like them together; I really do. I just don't exactly ship them. Their relationship just didn't excite me that much, even though I would be slightly sad if they don't end up together. 
 Julian & Legend. I KNEW IT. I KNEW IT. I. KNEW. IT. 
 The sisters & their father. Obviously, I hate it. I hate it because of their father, and I hate it even more because he tried to say that he was "protecting" them. Ugh. I hate their father SO MUCH. I feel so bad that they had to live with them. 
 W R I T I N G: 
 Oh, boy. This was my most I-have-no-idea-how-I-feel aspect of CARAVAL. 
 At parts, I loved it. I really love the quote, "She imagined loving him would feel like falling in love with darkness, frightening and consuming yet utterly beautiful when the stars came out." That is beautiful, and I definitely grasp what is being described there, even if I haven't exactly felt it myself. 
 Then we had other parts that I didn't love so much. Example: "Julian's smile turned seductive, all shameless curves and immoral promises." Like... I get it, his smile is supposed to be all sexy and inviting, but... what? How can a smile have immoral promises? What does that look like? 
 I also never really ~connected~ with the characters in this novel. I didn't have many feelz, and that is because of the writing style. I know I could've loved the characters; it's just that some of the writing makes no sense. 
 In conclusion of this writing part... I loved most parts, I was pretty confused on some. That directly correlates & describes my feelings about this book, too. 
 P L O T: 
 Save the best for last, right? 
 The plot was rock solid; it was enthralling, mysterious, wonderful. Everything a plot should be. I LOVED it. It kept me going, going, going, up to the point where I read over half of this in one sitting. Maybe that's directly related to the fact that I'm on spring break and have that much time, but I get the feeling that that would be the situation even while not on spring break. 
 Everything was wonderful and just as amazing as I expected. It went above and beyond the hype. If you don't want to read CARAVAL for anything, please read it for the plot. It's so wonderful and definitely one of the best I've read in a while. It's basically book crack. Ten outta teeeeeen. 
 I'm also suuuuuuper excited for the sequel. THE VERY LAST PAGE GOT ME LIKE !!!!!!!! 
 Anyways, I hope you understand my mixed feelings after reading this review + discussion. Thank you so much for reading this, and I hope I helped you gain some insight as to whether you will read this book or not. (Hopefully it's that you will!)