Book Tour: Review (and Giveaway!) of Carnival of Souls by Melissa Marr

Title: Carnival of Souls

Melissa Marr is the author of the New York Times bestselling Wicked Lovely series and Graveminder, as well as a manga series (Wicked Lovely: Desert Tales) and various short stories. She is also the coeditor, with Kelly Armstrong, of the anthology ENTHRALLED: Paranormal Diversions. When not writing, editing, or travelling, Melissa is buried under a plethora of books, dogs, and children in Virginia or online at www.melissa-marr.com.

In a city of daimons, rigid class lines separate the powerful from the power-hungry. And at the heart of The City is the Carnival of Souls, where both murder and pleasure are offered up for sale. Once in a generation, the carnival hosts a deadly competition that allows every daimon a chance to join the ruling elite. Without the competition, Aya and Kaleb would both face bleak futures–if for different reasons. For each of them, fighting to the death is the only way to try to live.

All Mallory knows of The City is that her father–and every other witch there–fled it for a life in exile in the human world. Instead of a typical teenage life full of friends and maybe even a little romance, Mallory scans quiet streets for threats, hides herself away, and trains to be lethal. She knows it’s only a matter of time until a daimon finds her and her father, so she readies herself for the inevitable. While Mallory possesses little knowledge of The City, every inhabitant of The City knows of her. There are plans for Mallory, and soon she, too, will be drawn into the decadence and danger that is the Carnival of Souls.

From Melissa Marr, bestselling author of the Wicked Lovely series and “Graveminder,” comes a brand-new tale of lush secrets, dark love, and the struggle to forge one’s own destiny.

First of all, I have to admit that I have never read a Melissa Marr book before. So, I didn’t really know what to expect of the book. However, I did know that Melissa Marr is the New York Times Bestselling Author of the Wicked Lovely series. That was one of the reasons why I became excited when I was given an opportunity by Pinoy Book Tours to review this book. Another reason is that I just love reading anything about love, magic and the paranormal. Well, it’s a good thing then that Carnival of Souls did not disappoint. 

From the first page of the book, I was hooked. Melissa Marr has a way of luring you into another world with her words. She made The City very dark and dangerous yet intriguing and relatable. The City is a paranormal world ruled by daimons and is where witches lived in secret. The heart of The City is the Carnival of Souls where both pleasure and murder can be bought. It is relatable in the sense that there exists a caste system, which is prevalent in the real world wherein which we live. Those on the upper castes rule The City whereas those in the lower castes are often used and abused, if they’re even lucky enough to live. Much of the focus of the book revolved around a competition that only happens once in a generation. Daimons from upper and lower castes fight for a chance to become part of the ruling elite. 

What I love most about the book though are the three main characters and how their stories were developed throughout the book. Their stories were actually told in their point of view, which I think is great because it gives the reader a sort of direct access to the character’s way of thinking.

Aya, is part of the upper caste and is the only woman who has ever joined the competition. She must win in order to protect herself from a bleak future that most women in the upper castes are expected to have – to marry and breed. She must win in order to keep a dark secret that will possibly end her life if revealed. I love her because she’s a good role model for women. She’s smart (and conniving at times), strong-willed and determined. She would do anything and everything to get what she wants even if it means giving up her love for Belias.   

Kaleb is a cur from the lower caste. He joined the competition so that he can change his life and the future of his pack, which consists of his loyal friend, Zevi. His determination to win is further fueled by his love for seventeen-year-old Mallory, a daimon whose mother, in an effort to protect her, gave her up for adoption to a witch, Adam, to be exiled in the human world. I admit that I’m a sucker for love stories and for male protagonists, like Kaleb, who would move heaven and earth just to be with the woman he loves. However, I’m not yet a full-blown fan of the Kaleb-Mallory love story. Although their feelings for each other were established in the story, I felt there should have been more chemistry. Hopefully, I’ll change my mind as their story progresses in the next book.

Mallory grew up thinking that she’s human and that her adoptive father is a witch. All her life, she was trained to hate and fight daimons, not knowing that she’s one herself. Mallory came off as weak in the beginning because she was powerless against her controlling and overprotective father. At the same time, many  would be able to relate to her teenage angst. Mallory’s quest for freedom and her experiences in falling in love for the first time makes her very relatable to teens.  So, although she was week at first, I was happy to see that towards the end of the book, she started to become independent. It’s exciting to anticipate how her character will evolve in the next book.

As a whole, I loved reading this book because it was easy to imagine myself in the settings. Plus, all the secrets, twists and turns are exciting. Melissa Marr did a great job of revealing them at just the right moment throughout the book. The only thing I didn’t like is the ending, which I think was kind of rushed and hanging. But I guess, that’s just because Melissa Marr wanted the readers to end up wanting more. Honestly, it’s the type of book that is very hard to put down. I definitely recommend this to those who love this genre. I give this book a 4 out of 5 rating. I can hardly wait for the sequel!

To buy this book, please visit Fully Booked and National Book Store.

Good news! There’s a giveaway as part of the book tour. Win a finished copy of Carnival of Souls by Melissa Marr. This giveaway is open to Philippine residents only and will end on October 20, 2012. Just follow the Rafflecopter instructions below.