Finale - Stephanie Garber

Summary: A love worth fighting for. A dream worth dying for. An ending worth waiting for.

It’s been two months since the Fates were freed from a deck of cards, two months since Legend claimed the throne for his own, and two months 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. There are no spectators this time—only those who will win, and those who will lose everything.

Welcome, welcome to Finale. All games must come to an end… (Summary and pic from goodreads.com)

My Review: Ah, the end of a series. I know a few people who, when they love a series, will re-read the entire thing each time a new book comes out. I haven’t done that, I must admit, and if I did do it, it would have to be in a series that I absolutely loved. I loved the Harry Potter series, but I didn’t do that, and there were a few things I couldn’t remember each time I started, but within a short while I was caught up. I don’t know about ya’ll, but I don’t have a picture perfect memory. When it’s been a year or more since I’ve read something, sometimes I’m a little fuzzy on the details unless I’ve spent a ton of time with the characters or watched the movie. That brings me to this book. I remember the first books, I certainly remember how I feel when reading them (it’s a very immersive world), but it took me a little while to jump back in to what was happening. Part of the issue was that it picked up exactly where the last book left off, which is sometimes a little confusing just because there is very little back-story to kick you into gear and figure out where you should be. Luckily, I figured it out and was able to read along and pick up details as needed as I went.

Have you read the other two books in the trilogy? You can read my reviews for both: Caraval and Legendary.

So what is great about this book? Well, I think the world-building is really fun, and the creation of the atmosphere of it. This book has a very specific, magical fantasy feel to it. It’s unlike other books I’ve read. There are a lot of YA books that delve into the fantastic and dystopian, but they can often feel alike. This book feels different. It has a very specific feeling and she uses very specific words to describe it. That is, in part, one of my complaints about it as well. And I think I’ve mentioned this in the past reviews—it gets a bit excessive and a bit wordy. In addition, some of the descriptions are like mad libs. Sometimes they’ll make sense, and sometimes they’re two words that don’t even go together and don’t necessarily bring a new way of thinking about the (scent, look, feel, etc.), but instead are just silly and at times ridiculous. I’m sure younger readers will eat this kind of stuff up, but I’m old and cynical and sometimes I like my metaphors and descriptors to make sense. I’m not asking a lot, ya know?

The story in this book is fun. It’s got a lot of twists and turns (and sometimes it’s a little difficult to keep track of them because of it) but it certainly makes for a quick and fun read. It’s a long book, but it moves quickly. The story and characters are interesting, and I especially like the idea of the Fates and the magic that goes with them. I think there is potential for many spinoffs to this trilogy. It’s a rich world with lots of potential, and that’s a lot of fun. Some prequels would also be in order, as the Fates are really interesting and could make for their own adventures and stories.

If you are into YA Fic, especially magic and fantasy, this would be a fun book. I feel that teenage boys probably wouldn’t go for it as there’s quite a bit of romance and it’s quite fluffy in some aspects in that way (i.e. the descriptors and the clothes and the romance) but I know many teenage girls who would love this series. If that’s your jam, you should check this out.

My Rating: 3.5 Stars

For the sensitive reader: This book is clean, actually, with no language. It was a lovely surprise.