Not Your Typical Fantasy Novel: Carry On

Review: Carry On by Rainbow Rowell

Title: Carry On
Author: Rainbow Rowell
Pages: 522
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Publish Date: October 6, 2015
Genre: Fantasy, YA, Fiction, Magic

Synopsis: Simon Snow is the worst chosen one who’s ever been chosen.
That’s what his roommate, Baz, says. And Baz might be evil and a vampire and a complete git, but he’s probably right.
Half the time, Simon can’t even make his wand work, and the other half, he sets something on fire. His mentor’s avoiding him, his girlfriend broke up with him, and there’s a magic-eating monster running around wearing Simon’s face. Baz would be having a field day with all this, if he were here—it’s their last year at the Watford School of Magicks, and Simon’s infuriating nemesis didn’t even bother to show up.
Carry On is a ghost story, a love story, a mystery and a melodrama. It has just as much kissing and talking as you’d expect from a Rainbow Rowell story—but far, far more monsters.

Cover: The simplicity of the cover makes it great for the novel. The colors are eye-catching. I love the silhouettes are cool. It’s one of my favorites especially for a more Fantasy geared novel.

Characters: Simon is a great lead. He’s really nothing like a chosen hero. He’s quite dumb. His obsession for Baz just makes it clear that he likes him. It seemed almost unhealthy and then they became sort-of friends.

Baz was awesome. He was probably my favorite character. He’s such a smart aleck. I love him. His vampireness was funny. He was just a great enemy turned boyfriend. Saz (Bimon doesn’t work either) were adorable. I’m like Cath and I ship them completely!

Plot: You are first introduced to the world of Simon Snow in Fangirl (read my review). I like how different Carry On was. It’s not your typical fantasy novel. It’s takes a lighthearted approach while still managing to be serious. It was addicting. I can’t get enough of Saz and Penelope. I want the eight books. I want the whole nine yards. This is a series that needs to be completed from start to finish. I want it. Carry On was just different, and I loved it.

Ending: Happy endings are always nice. Some things weren’t happy, but others were so I’m calling it happy. I did not see the ending coming, but it tied up loose ends nicely. I still want more though.

Overall: I liked Carry On more than Fangirl. I think Rowell has meet her calling. She just takes a different approach that irresistible. Also, I love her use of parenthesis. They make the story so much better while adding personality. Carry On is a must read. Ask for it for Christmas because you want it on your shelves. It’s just that good.

About the Author

Rainbow Rowell writes books. Sometimes she writes about adults (ATTACHMENTS and LANDLINE). Sometimes she writes about teenagers (ELEANOR & PARK and FANGIRL). But she always writes about people who talk a lot. And people who feel like they're screwing up. And people who fall in love.
When she's not writing, Rainbow is reading comic books, planning Disney World trips and arguing about things that don't really matter in the big scheme of things.
She lives in Nebraska with her husband and two sons.

Fangirl Review | Goodreads | Amazon | Author's Website