Spectacular out now from Flatiron Books; 224 pages
About the Author: “Stephanie Garber is the #1 New York Times and internationally bestselling author of Once Upon a Broken Heart, The Ballad of Never After, and the Caraval trilogy. Her books have been translated into over thirty languages” (Bio from publisher’s website).
Find Stephanie Garber on the following platforms (website is under construction):
About the Illustrator: “Rosie Fowinkle is a marketing and advertising graphic designer by day, paper and digital artist by night! Rosie only recently stumbled into the bookish community, but loves the freedom they get to explore with bookish fanart, as it relies so much on interpretation and imagination – it’s always fun to flex those muscles” (Bio from illustrator’s website).
In this holiday novella, Stephanie Garber returns to the world of Caraval to bring her readers a story of love, adventure, and holiday magic. It’s Great Holiday Eve Eve, and Empress Scarlet Dragna is planning a grand celebration for the city. Everyone is looking forward to it—except for Legend. He’s not a fan of the Great Holiday, but Tella hopes to change his mind, if only she could find him the perfect gift. But, it’s the Great Holiday, and there’s always magic in the air in the Meridian Empire. They may not be in Legend’s game of Caraval anymore, but everything is still not quite what it seems this holiday season. Follow Tella as she searches for the perfect gift, getting tangled up in an exciting adventure along the way.
Spectacular was the perfect mix of holiday magic and Caraval mischief. Every time I opened the book, I felt like I needed a hot chocolate and a warm blanket. The Great Holiday mirrored Christmas in many ways, with gift giving, merry colors, sweets treats, and more. I enjoyed reading about characters I loved in a low-stakes story filled with holiday cheer. Even though it was a short fluff piece, the plot was still engaging. The story never felt pointless, which can happen when an author adds a short story to a finished series. Tella was struggling with some insecurities regarding Legend, and the novella served to reaffirm their relationship while having a little fun along the way. Garber ensured that Legend’s mysterious and playful persona played a large role in the plot, which I enjoyed. Because Tella and Legend didn’t get together until the end of Finale, I felt like there was still a long road ahead for the two of them. This novella provided us with the continued growth of their relationship. I truly could not have asked for much more from Spectacular. Garber’s vivid descriptions of holiday cheer have me counting down the days until December.
Sam Yanis, Pine Reads Review Lead Writer