So I’ve been putting this off because of how this book ended. The cliffhanger eviscerated me and I need the last book of the trilogy now. NOW! NOW! NOW! For anyone who is reading this and is unfamiliar with the first book you can revisit my review of book one in the series here!

So Stephanie Garber I want your next book today if you’d be kind enough to oblige me. Legendary picks off right where Caraval ends. And as I had pretty much guessed it tells Tella’s story this time around. Tella was my favorite sister despite the fact that she played only a tiny role in the first novel. So reading about Tella basically made me finish this book in a few hours. And I loved it, even more than the first one in the series, which basically means it’s magic. I am actually a bit terrified that the last book might not measure up to this one and be a colossal disappointment.

While the first book mainly introduced us to Master Legend’s performance/game Stephanie branches out in this one. She moves off of Isla de los Sueños and deeper into this new world she has created, taking us with her to the seat of the crown, where the Empress lives, and Master Legend is to have another game of Caraval for her majesty’s birthday celebration. But this book doesn’t focus on only the game. There’s a deeper underlying plot of the mythical fates who once conquered the sun and skies and everything beyond it and how they were removed and imprisoned. But some of the Fates have been let loose including the enigmatic Jacks, the Prince of Hearts who is playing a dangerous game with Tella. Not to mention the mysterious identity of Legend and the handsome Dante who seems to appear at every corner and every move Tella plays.

So first of all – wow to all these men. You have the rakish Dante who’s just basically beautiful to think about, then there’s the mystery of Legend, you know he’s going to be a beacon of beauty and then there’s cruel, cruel Jacks who has a vicious sort of appeal to him. Who do we root for? Like I loved the uncertainty, which is strange because I’m not really big on more than a single love interest. But at any rate, I loved how all of them were written and tied together and the choices Tella has to make regarding them are deliciously difficult and I adored it.

Aside from the romance (which was my favorite part) the world building has become even more dense and immersive. I could reconstruct the temple district dedicated to the Fates in my mind with all it’s starry beauty. The description is just fantastic. If I could write like Stephanie, I’d basically just write all the time and do nothing else because this power of creating new worlds is unbelievable. The Game was played in the same style as the first book with clues and amazing clothes and bargaining and of course a cameo from my favourite guy, Nigel, but nothing about it felt familiar. Legend’s magic felt just as sultry and devious in the first book and you could tell the stakes were higher this time, with Jacks in the mix and Tella trying to save her mother. There were also new characters, who I enjoyed even though we met them all in passing. Every one of them added something small to the story.

There are so many storylines this book covered, and it still doesn’t overwhelm the reader because everything ties in together. It all comes together with a bang in the end. I also enjoyed that Scarlett took more of a backseat in this book and that we saw a lot of Dante and Tella. The big reveal was done beautifully as we discover who Legend is. There are subtle hints that come together until we the audience know who Legend is a few chapters before Tella does and in doing so I got a lovely Hitchcockesque vibe from the book. Is there any angle Stephanie can’t hit?

The ending destroyed me and I’m counting down days till the last book in the series. I mean 2018 seems to be cliffhanger year, after A Reaper at the Gates by Sabaa Tahir and now this, I can’t wait for 2019! Five stars for this one! Waiting ardently…