Legendary ~ Review and Summary

I recently finished Legendary by Stephanie Garber. This book is the second of three in her Caraval series. Stephanie Garber beautifully tells this story about Tella, and her quest to find Legend is riddled with joyful triumphs and heart wrenching fails. The word to describe this book would be jaw dropping *two words I guess*. This book was amazing and left me speechless. Stephanie Garber is an extraordinary author who is able to make the reader not only feel, but visualize a character's feeling. That talent is one of the many reasons why this and Caraval were amazing reads. To be able to connect stolen dreams with a heart racing kiss takes one's breath away and allows one to be fully immersed into the book.

“His mouth was crashing against hers. He tasted like exquisite nightmares and stolen dreams, like the wings of fallen angels, and bottles of fresh moonlight.”

“The air tasted like wonder. Like candied butterfly wings caught in sugared spiderwebs, and drunken peaches coated in luck.”

This book was truly electrifying and should be on everyone's summer reading list. Its action packed plot intertwined with love, deception and world shattering secrets will transport you into the world of Caraval once more and when it ends you won't want to leave.

****WARNING**** : Spoilers ahead (turn back now if you haven't read the book after this there is no going back)

The book is told in Tella's point of view. Tella is the younger of the two Dragna sisters and is definitely the more fiery one. She is rebellious and repeatedly dances along the line of life and death. She has been on a search for her long lost mother for the past seven years and has been communicating with who she thinks to be a criminal. This mysterious "friend" only asks for Legend's name as retribution. Legend is the infamous Caraval leader who was given half of the Fates magic by a witch thousands of years ago. No member of the cast is allowed to utter his name for they have a spell placed on them to protect Legend's anonymity. This task proves to be a challenge for Tella but is miniscule to what she faces in the novel.

Tella and her sister Scarlet were previously on Legend's private island for the Caraval that Scarlet participated in. However, they have been invited to yet another Caraval in Valenda, the capital of the Meridian Empire in honor of the Queen's 75th birthday. Tella views this opportunity as the perfect way to repay her debt to her "friend". However, before Tella gets to Valenda she makes a deal with Nigel: a member of the Caraval cast who can see the future (and bend it) and ends up giving away her rest in order to attempt to find more information about Legend. (deals with the cast of Caraval never go well. Exhibit A: Scarlet's silver lock of hair demonstrating her deal that cost her days of her life). Nevertheless, Tella is awake by the time the crew gets to Valenda. When docked, Tella separates from Scarlet and Julien (Scarlet's super hot boyfriend *swoon*, brother of Legend *intrigue*, and performer in Caraval). Tella goes to explore the city of Valenda famed for its beauty for the Fates (big powerful magical beings that were mean to humans) once ruled their. Tella eventually makes it back to the castle where she is supposed to be staying.

On her way to the castle, Tella meets a alarmingly handsome but obnoxious entitled man who rides with her on a sky carriage up to the castle. Tella annoyed makes it to the castle but her name is not on the list for Legend knows all and decided to make Tella's life a little bit harder. But Dante ( a performer in Caraval and the man who slept with Tella after the last night in Caraval) steps in and lies to the attendant but saying Tella is the heir to the throne's fiancée. With the heir's murderous and violent reputation Tella is brought up to the Golden Tower. Tella then receives a beautiful dress made of flowers (I desperately wanted all the dresses given to her by the heir) by no other than the heir with instructions to wear it to the festivities that night. Dante runs into Tella before she meets the heir and advises her to stay back but she is head strong, upset at his previous actions, and doesn't need any one to help her (except she probably should have listened to Dante about this).

Tella eventually meets the heir and he is no one other than the alarmingly handsome but obnoxious entitled man who road with her on the sky carriage. Besides this revelation he also is her "friend" and the Prince of Hearts one of the greater Fates.

*Side Note* The Prince of Hearts, demonstrates one will have unrequited love. The Prince of Hearts can kill one with a simple kiss for this kiss is one willing to die for because it literally stops one's heart. The Prince of Hearts has no heart beat, his only weakness is his true love. She is the only one who can start his beat again.

Tella is led around the ballroom with the Prince of Hearts who calls himself Jacks. Jacks tells Tella that the payment for his with finding her mother has gone up and he no longer wants the name of Legend but he desires the man himself.

Tella agrees. However, as the two waltz around the ballroom Jacks says he wants their charade as the newly engaged couple to be passable and the two kiss. [ pause for dramatic silence]. Tella miraculously does not die for it is revealed later on that she is Jacks true love, and therefor cannot die from his kiss.This kiss is one that is all consuming and takes Tella's breath away and makes Dante steam with jealousy. However, Jacks is able to slow her heartbeat and make it so it feels as if she is dying day by day.

This rises the stakes for Jacks tells Tella that if she does not bring him Legend the last night of Caraval she will die and so will her mother. For her mother is in one of the cards in the famed Deck of Destiney.

*Side Note* The Fates are magical beings and were horrible to humans. A witch was able to give half of their magic to Legend (which made the fates angry) and at their weakened state trapped them in the first Deck of Destiny. The only way to save one from this fate is to take their place or for the person who did it to undo the curse.

The next night is the start of Caraval and Tella is able to find the first clue. however, to get the second she must read from the Deck of Destiny. These cards described like tarot cards, are able to predict one's future. Each card has a picture of a major or minor fate each symbolizing a different outcome. As a child Tella found these cards and was warned by her mother to never touch them again. Tella followed this until that night. For she must choose her fate. That very night Tella runs into Dante who is apologetic of his lie for he truly cares for Tella.

Throughout this book, Dante evolves from a playboy to a devoted character and has the best of intentions in his heart while trying to win Tella over.

Tella is scared of her intense feelings for Dante. Ever since she found the Deck of Destiny and pulled The Prince of Heart, which symbolized no one would love her back Tella never kissed a boy more than once. But Dante makes Tella feel things she never thought she could and that scares her the most.

“This was why love was so dangerous. Love turn the whole world into a garden, so beguiling it was easy to forget that rose petals were as ephemeral as feelings, eventually they would wilt and die, leaving nothing but the thorns.”

As Caraval countinues, Tella finds the true identity of her mother. Her name being the first discovery. The real name of Tella's mother is Paradise the Lost. She was a fiery criminal in Valenda and disappeared after she stole the first Deck of Destiny. Tella finds a poster of her mother and on the back is yet another clue that states (in more riddles and figurative language than this) that Tella will win Caraval is she gives Legend the Deck of Destiny, for he wants to destroy them to prevent the fates from getting out. However, this would mean Tella's mother would be destroyed.

One night after Tella returns from the game she looks for Scarlet and hears that she went to Jacks's castle. She ventures their and encounters another fate, The Unwed Bride and her Handmaidens. This lesser fate greatly injured Tella. Lucky for Tella, Dante rescues her. Tella is carried off by Dante where he and Julien heal her. Julien called Dante brother, and Tella drinks one of their blood. After this Tella is more aware of Dante and has a hunch he could be Legend (spoiler he is).

Tella fully recovered goes on to retrieve the Deck of Destiny. However, to do this she must venture to the creepy, cult like star temple. There she finds out her mother has not paid a debt and to get into the vault that contains the cards the debt must be paid. However, the price Tella's mother said she would give was Tella herself. After seeing this Tella is utterly destroyed and eventually tells Dante everything she has gone through with Jacks and her mother for she has been working so extremely hard to find her mother only to find out her mother offered her as a payment. Tella is ready to give up at this point for why save someone who cares that little for you?

Near the close of the game, Tella and Jacks are invited to a dinner with the Queen who seems joyful, jolly and full of life. Tella is surprised by her warmth. On the night of the eve of the Queen's birthday she writes to Tella and says she knew her mother, Paradise the Lost. Tella goes to the Queen to inquire about her mother. However, the queen has turned sick for she is dying. That night the Queen tells Tella not to give up on her mother. She mentions she had a child and regretted never seeing him or having a relationship with him. Tella takes these words to heart, and with the help of Dante she goes to get the Deck of Destiny.

Tella successfully gets the cards and wins the game. It is revealed that Dante is Legend.

Tella warns Dante of Jacks and then, takes her mothers place inside the card for she cannot bare to let her mother perish.

Dante who is in love with Tella breaks her out of the card as well as all of the Fates for he cannot live in a world without her.

"...more stars, stars that had not been seen in centuries. For it had been nearly that long since sacrifices of such magnitude had been made […] they saw what seemed to be truly unselfish acts. First, from the young woman […] This boy, who never seemed to care about anyone but himself, shook with rage. "

By doing this Dante ruins the human world.

However, the next day the Queen dies and her blood born Heir (not Jacks) takes his place. The Heir is no other than Dante.

If you got this far give yourself a pat on the back. Now time for the part you are all here for, the review. [que dramatic music].

All I can say is the ending had me shaking. I had expected Dante to be Legend, and was pleased Tella started Jacks's heart. However, I did not expect for Dante to also be the heir to the throne. This book was full of twists and turns and once I thought I knew the whole story I was flipped and new stories were brought to light.

One of my favorite parts of this book was all the allusions to lucifer and the epic poem Paradise Lost. I am a personal lover of these allusions and could not stop gasping at how perfectly they were weaved into this novel. Dante is constantly referred to being a fallen angel and I am excited to see what Stephanie Garber does with that. Will she go by the story in Paradise Lost and have Dante be Satan, the brooding, dark, angsty bad boy? Will Dante end up being Tella's destruction? Or will he be her salvation? To add to this we have Tella's mother literally named Paradise the Lost. How will this play into the third and final (pause to cry) book in the series?

Another added twist to this story is Tella's relationship with Dante and Jacks. It is clear Tella has no love for Jacks. Yet his kiss was able to change something within her. Tella is also his true love. However, then there is Dante who Tella loves fiercely even though he is Legend, the Heir and let all the fates out. Tella's heart still swells at the thought of him even though the last thing she wants to do is love him. This internal battle is so captivating for in the next book who will Tella choose? The man she loves, or the one who she is fated to be with?

As I have said many times now( I apologize), I loved this book. Still days later I cannot believe its amazing plot. The words are still stuck in my mind like the after taste of a sweet taunting you to take one more bite. All I want to do is live in her writing for the imagery in every sentence makes the head spin.

This book was truly a fantastic read and one that will not fade with time. This book is one that will always have place in my heart. There are those books that you vaguely remember reading and never pick up the second book because the plot or writing just didn't stick. But this book knocked the wind out of me.

I am sure the next time I look at a rose,

my first thought will be Legend.

A deck of cards will be a Deck of Destiny. And when I read another book or hear a story . I will look for

The beginning,

The middle,

The almost ending, and

The true ending

and to all of you remember...

“Only those who persevere can find their true ending.”