Book Review: Legendary by Stephanie Garber

Legendary (Caraval #2) by Stephanie Garber
Genre: Young Adult (Fantasy/Romance)

Date Published: May 29, 2018
Publisher: Flatiron Books

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.

Legendary is the second book in the Caraval trilogy by Stephanie Garber. This time we get Tella's point of view. I was expecting Scarlet, so it took me a minute to adjust, but I enjoyed Tella just as much. Caraval is different this time. It maybe more than a game.. or is it? I'm not saying. Quite honestly, I'm still not sure! I'm not sure about many things actually. Like, I always thought "one true love" meant you're supposed to.. you know... love the person. Isn't it? Scarlet behaved out of character too. Was she playing the game? I didn't expect certain behaviors from her, and there are so many things I have to say about Legend!

But, I cant. They would include spoilers. 

So, basically, the only thing you can expect from this trilogy so far is for something unexpected to happen or be revealed. Sometimes, I knew what was coming, but there were definitely some unexpected moments. I really need the next book to be released now. I need my questions answered!

LEGENDARY PLAYLIST

 Legendary by Welshly Arms

Sail by AWOLNATION

Violet City by Mansionair (confession—I didn’t hear this song until after I finished the book, but I thought it totally fit the scene where Tella first rode in a carriage above Valenda.

Wow by Beck

Nothing Personal by Night Riots

In Cold Blood by alt-J (if you’ve read the book I’m hoping this song will need no explanation)

Way Down We Go by Kaleo

Sorry by Nothing But Thieves (as soon as I heard this song I knew it would go in this book–at first I wasn’t sure where, but I knew it would fit in Legendary somewhere)

Breaking Free by Night Riots (I love this band so I had to put them on here twice)

In A Black Out by Hamilton Leithauser & Rostam (this song could fit so many scenes in the book—I listened to it a lot as I wrote)

Dream by Bishop Briggs

Dangerous Night by Thirty Seconds to Mars

Miracle by CHVRCHES

Never Say Die also by CHVRCHES (another favorite band—so I almost put three songs by them on the list)

White Flag by Bishop Briggs (I had to put Bisho Briggs on here twice because if Tella’s life had a sound track It would be sung by Bishop Briggs)

Check out my reviews of the other books in this trilogy!

Have you read Once Upon a Broken Heart?

My favorite place in the world is Disneyland because it’s the one place on earth where I feel as if the fantastical stories I love to write about could actually come to life.

When I’m not writing, I teach creative writing at a private college in Northern California, where I’ve been known to turn assignments into games and take students on field trips that involve book signings. I’m also a blogger on PUB(LISHING) CRAWL. But I probably spend most of my time on Twitter where I tend to overuse exclamation points and emojis.

To help pay my bills during college, grad school, and the breaks in between, I worked as a barista, a waitress, a bartender, a customer service representative for an energy consulting company, and as a sales girl at Bath and Bodyworks. I also spent years working with youth; I worked as a counselor at space themed summer camp, volunteered at a school for deaf children in Mexico, and I took multiple groups of college students overseas to spend their winter vacations serving at youth hostels in Amsterdam. But out of everything that I’ve done, writing young adult novels has been my favorite job.

My debut YA fantasy novel, Caraval will be published January 2017 (Flatiron Books/Macmillan—US and Hodder & Stoughton—UK). Caraval has sold in twenty-five foriegn territories and the movie rights were pre-empted by Twentieth Century Fox.

To learn more about Stephanie Garber  and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and Twitter.