Finale (Caraval Book 3) - Stephanie Garber

Publisher Summary:

"It’s been two months since the Fates were freed, since Legend claimed the throne for his own, and since Tella discovered the boy she fell in love with doesn’t really exist. With lives, empires, and hearts hanging in the balance, Tella must decide if she’s going to trust Legend or a former enemy. After uncovering a secret that upends her life, Scarlett will need to do the impossible. And Legend has a choice to make that will forever change and define him. Caraval is over, but perhaps the greatest game of all has begun. . . ."

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My Review:

Rating: 7/10

To start off, so much happened in this book. So much that I think it may have been better off being split into two books, just to give some breathing room. I liked how Scarlett and and Tella's plotlines met in this book, but that ended up creating so many plot points that I kind of lost track of them all.

The writing in this book was as good as Legendary, perhaps even better. I didn't feel like there were too many jumpy scenes or abrupt changes, so I didn't mind the writing in this book too much. Honestly, my main problems with this book was with the sheer amount of elements that made up the plot.

Almost all the Fates were introduced in this book, and I kind of had a hard time keeping track of them. I understand that each one of the fates has a representative characteristic, and they are an important part of the plot, but it still felt a little chaotic to me. I also was somewhat unsatisfied by the ending of the love interests, and while I admit that I am writing this review a while after reading the book, when I went back to the book again, I was surprised by the romance, because I hadn't remembered it that way. I also felt like the ending of the book was a little rushed, and I honestly did not understand how something of that scale could have happened so quickly in the book. I honestly felt like it was kind of unrealistic because of how the villain had acted before. But, I could more or less stand Scarlett's personality in this book, which already makes it better than Caraval (Book 1). There was also somewhat of a major betrayal that happened in the end of the book that was kind of swept under the rug and not really talked about again, but I think that's a minor detail compared to most of the plot.

Overall, I liked the idea of the series as a whole. It had a ton of potential, but I think it wasn't completely explored. I felt like some of the characters could have had better development, or a better personality in general, but I don't have too many other problems with this series than that. The plot really takes center stage for all three of the books, and while there could have been better pacing, I think it overall was a good read. Maybe not my first recommendation, but if I was asked about it I would respond positively.