Praiseworthy Pages

Reader Rating: ⭐⭐⭐ (3/5 stars)

I kept hearing such great things about this book, so I borrowed it from my sister. It is definitely the kind of book high-school me would have devoured, but adult me had a difficult time getting into it. It did grow on me, though, and I’m interested to see where the sequel takes the story. 

Language: 9/10 (Mild / rare swearing).
Sex: 8/10 (Mild / rare mentions of sex).
Violence and gore: 7/10 (Not detailed or extensive).

Plot: 8/10 (The worldbuilding and idea of Caraval as a game you can’t trust is really well done. It just took me so long to start caring about the story. The relationship with the father and the mysterious count felt melodramatic/cliché to me, and the endings of some of the characters didn’t feel totally deserved, like their endings were too easy. Also, some things never were resolved in the story, like the first time Scarlett enters the tunnels and where Valentina went).
Characters: 6/10 (Not bad, but not great. I felt I’ve read many characters like Scarlett before, and even though her relationship with Julian was super cute, it did feel rushed, especially at the end).
Writing style: 6/10 (Garber did an excellent job with plotting the story, but some of the descriptions were too flowery for me, and it took me a long time—probably half the book—to actually start feeling like the book was getting interesting).

Genre: Young adult literature, fantasy, romance
Potential triggers: Familial abuse, neglect, manipulation, betrayal, murder, suicide, etc.
Is this book part of a series? Yes.
I would recommend this book to anyone 13+.