Caraval (Caraval Series #1)

by Stephanie Garber

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

Readers who loved the whimsical setting of Erin Morgenstein’s The Night Circus will fall in love with the world Stephanie Garber creates in Caraval. The enchanting prose of Garber draws readers into the performance of Caraval, where contestants only have five days to win the game…it is a game, right?

Welcome, welcome to CARAVAL, Stephanie Garber’s enchanting, NEW YORK TIMES bestselling fantasy debut about two sisters swept up in a mysterious competition filled with magic, heartbreak, and danger

Scarlett has never left the tiny island where she and her beloved sister, Tella, live with their powerful and cruel father. Now Scarlett’s father has arranged a marriage for her, and Scarlett thinks her dreams of seeing Caraval, the far-away, once-a-year performance where the audience participates in the show, are over.

But this year, Scarlett's long-dreamt-of invitation finally arrives. With the help of a mysterious sailor, Tella whisks Scarlett away to attend. Only, as soon as they arrive, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind organizer, Legend. It turns out that this season's Caraval revolves around Tella, and whoever finds her first is the winner.

Scarlett has been told that everything that happens during Caraval is only an elaborate performance. But whether Caraval is real or not, she must find Tella before the five nights of the game are over, and her sister disappears forever.

Continue the adventure in Legendary and Finale—out now!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250095268
Publisher:	Flatiron Books
Publication date:	05/01/2018
Series:	Caraval Series , #1
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	448
Sales rank:	287
Product dimensions:	5.30(w) x 8.20(h) x 1.20(d)
Age Range:	13 - 17 Years

About the Author

Stephanie Garber loves Disneyland because it’s the one place on earth where she feels as if the fantastical stories she loves to write about could actually come to life. When she's not writing young adult fantasy, she teaches creative writing at a private college in northern California, where she’s known for turning assignments into games and taking students on field trips that involve book signings. Caraval is her first novel for young adults. She would love to hear from you on social media.

Editorial Reviews

NEW YORK TIMES bestseller
#1 Indie Next Pick
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY Flying Start
ALA’s Best Fiction for Young Adults List
YALSA Teens’ Top 10 Pick
TEEN VOGUE Best YA Book of the Year
“Impressive, original, wondrous.” —USA TODAY
“A spellbinding tale of love, loss, and hope.” —PUBLISHERS WEEKLY, starred review
“A twisty, terrifically fun page-turner perfect for fans of THE NIGHT CIRCUS, STARDUST, and THE HUNGER GAMES.” —SLJ
“THE HUNGER GAMES meets THE NIGHT CIRCUS in this tale of two sisters enmeshed in a deadly game.” —ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY (Top 10 YA Novel of the Year)
“I lost myself in this world and never wanted to come out.” —Sabaa Tahir
“Beautifully written.” —Renée Ahdieh
“Shimmers with magic.” —Marie Rutkoski
“Like stepping into a living dream.” —Stacey Lee

From the Publisher

Caraval is The Night Circus Jr., with a dash of Alice in Wonderland and a sprinkle of Fantasy Island.

The New York Times Book Review - Marjorie Ingall

★ 10/17/2016
At the start of Garber’s magnificent debut novel, the mysterious Master Legend invites sisters Scarlett and Donatella Dragna to attend Caraval—a magical multiday event that is part spectacle, part treasure hunt. Although their tyrannical father has threatened death if they leave home without his permission, Tella strikes a deal with a roguish sailor named Julian for transport to Legend’s private island—a plan that essentially involves kidnapping the conflicted Scarlett, who is weeks away from marrying a man she’s never met. Upon arrival, Tella is taken, and it’s revealed that she is the subject of this year’s hunt. Scarlett and Julian join forces to find her, but in a game in which secrets are currency and appearances deceive, Scarlett has no way of knowing whether she’s a Caraval player or Master Legend’s pawn. Intriguing characters, an imaginative setting, and evocative writing combine to create a spellbinding tale of love, loss, sacrifice, and hope. While the search for Tella drives the narrative, Scarlett’s quest for self-empowerment is equally captivating. Scarlett and Julian’s chemistry intoxicates, and Garber’s tantalizing conclusion will leave readers hungry for a sequel. Ages 13–up. Agent: Jenny Bent, Bent Agency. (Jan.)

Publishers Weekly

09/01/2016
In this YA fantasy debut, Scarlett, who lives on a small island with her sister and icily domineering father, receives an invitation to Caraval, a fabled audience-participation performance taking place once a year. It's shortly before her arranged marriage, but Scarlett sneaks away to attend. A likely crossover title pitched as having a Night Circus-like atmosphere; with sales to 25 territories and preempted by Twentieth Century Fox.

Library Journal

Rebecca Soler is an ideal listener’s companion through a heady world. Scarlett's lifelong wish is to travel with her sister, Tella, to Caraval, a spectacular annual performance that draws its audience into the show. But when the sisters manage to escape their cruel father and attend, Tella is kidnapped by Caraval’s mastermind, Legend, who makes her the feature of this year’s show. Soler imbues each descriptive passage with exhilaration and wonder, providing a vivid sensory experience in which listeners will easily lose themselves. Though her accents occasionally slip, her inflections are pitch-perfect, capturing Scarlett’s yearning and growing worldliness, the jaunty tones of her erstwhile companion, and Legend’s ominous, mesmerizing whisper, which dominates the story as he dominates his world. B.E.K. © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine

APRIL 2017 - AudioFile

2016-09-19
Magic, mystery, and love intertwine and invite in this newest take on the enchanted circus trope. Sisters raised by their abusive father, a governor of a colonial backwater in a world vaguely reminiscent of the late 18th century, Scarlett and Donatella each long for something more. Scarlett, olive-skinned, dark of hair and attitude, longs for Caraval, the fabled, magical circus helmed by the possibly evil Master Legend Santos, while blonde, sunny Tella finds comfort in drink and the embraces of various men. A slightly awkward start, with inconsistencies of attitude and setting, rapidly smooths out when they, along with handsome golden-brown sailor Julian, flee to Caraval on the eve of Scarletts arranged marriage. Tella disappears, and Scarlett must navigate a nighttime world of magic to find her. Caraval delights the senses: beautiful and scary, described in luscious prose, this is a show readers will wish they could enter. Dresses can be purchased for secrets or days of life; clocks can become doors; bridges move: this is an inventive and original circus, laced with an edge of horror. A double love story, one sensual romance and the other sisterly loyalty, anchors the plot, but the real star here is Caraval and its secrets. Immersive and engaging, despite some flaws, and destined to capture imaginations. (Fantasy. 14 & up)

Kirkus Reviews