Book Review - Legendary by Stephanie Garber

   So y'all. Guess which epic book comes out tomorrow?

   LEGENDARY.

4 Stars

I've been waiting to read Legendary ever since I finished reading Caraval when it came out (I will never quit raving about Caraval. Try and stop me, I dare you ;D), so when my lovely friend Soleil sent me a copy (you're a gem, my friend! <3), I devoured it in less than 24 hours!  

From The Back Cover

A heart to protect. A debt to repay. A game to win.

After being swept up in the magical world of Caraval, Donatella Dragna has finally escaped her father and saved her sister Scarlett from a disastrous arranged marriage. The girls should be celebrating, but Tella isn’t yet free. She made a desperate bargain with a mysterious criminal, and what Tella owes him no one has ever been able to deliver: Caraval Master Legend’s true name.

The only chance of uncovering Legend’s identity is to win Caraval, so Tella throws herself into the legendary competition once more—and into the path of the murderous heir to the throne, a doomed love story, and a web of secrets…including her sister's. Caraval has always demanded bravery, cunning, and sacrifice. But now the game is asking for more. If Tella can’t fulfill her bargain and deliver Legend’s name, she’ll lose everything she cares about—maybe even her life. But if she wins, Legend and Caraval will be destroyed forever.

Welcome, welcome to Caraval...the games have only just begun.

View Legendary on Goodreads   ---   View Legendary on Amazon

- The mystery. Oh look, and here's one of the biggest reasons that I also mentioned back in my Caraval review! xD But a HUGE portion of this Legendary was Tella trying to find out who Legend really is - which meant that I was guessing the entire time, too! It was loads of fun going through the whole book thinking 'could he be Legend? Wait, hold on - maybe he's Legend!' . Loved that aspect so much <3. Plus, the game that the book revolves around - Caraval - is never what it seems, so that only added to the mystery aspect, which was tons of fun. 

- The descriptions. Guys, let me tell you - Stephanie Garber is QUEEN when it comes to descriptions. I was basically drowning in the goregousness of it all the entire time I was reading Legendary <3. Normally in a book where the main character's dress is described EVERY TIME she changes, I'll get a little bored and start skimming descriptions. But in this book? NO WAY - there's was no way I was missing any more of Garber's beautiful word play!

- The world...and the higher stakes. The world of Legendary is just as vivid as the world in Caraval - but the place that Legendary is set in is so different from the Isla de los Suenos in Caraval. I loved how it was the same game being played, but a whole new environment. (also, what I wouldn't give it visit Elantine's Tower <3) I also loved how everything took a higher-stakes turn in Legendary! In Caraval it was Tella being played for, but in Legendary, Tella is playing to save...well, everything (#spoilers).

- Some scenes were...ah, not needed. I almost knocked the rating down to 3.5 stars because of that (I'm kinda still considering it - but the prose, plot, and world building were too good for less than a four) But ANYways - there were definitely some scenes in Legendary that made me cringe, and I wish they could have been taken out. They really weren't needed.

- The characters were harder to get attached to. Hey, hey - I did still like the main character, don't get me wrong (Tella is super spunky and fun) but some of the character's morals were completely out of whack. Like, the love interest prided himself on being bad, so ... there's that. I just found the characters a little harder to get attached to in Legendary than I did in Caraval. (could be because I held them all up to Scarlett, and I loved Scarlett a LOT xD). (also MASSIVE SPOILER ALERT (highlight to read): Dante was Legend? And I still don't know what to think about that? Do I like it or not? *has problems* *probably will have problems until Finale comes out* ;D END OF SPOILER)   

Legendary spun a web that Stephanie Garber is going to have a hard time getting her characters out of in Finale (who am I kidding, no she's not - Garber is a MASTER writer)! If you enjoyed Caraval, I'd say you should give Legendary a shot (though I'd only recommend it for readers 16+). And I'll just be over here, melting into a smol puddle as I wait for the final installment of the Caraval trilogy.

It's going to be epic. 

~ Savannah Grace 

have you read Legendary (or Caraval) yet?

what's your favorite book that revolves around a game?