Legendary

“He worked for Legend, so it had only been an act—but although Caraval was over, it was still somewhat difficult to weed out the bits of fact from fiction.”

Caraval’s end does not mean that it is easier to distinguish between reality and illusion, because Legend’s power lets him create what people want to see. When Tella recalls the previous round of Caraval and questions the nature of reality and illusion, these musings establish the prevalence of the theme of Discerning Illusion From Reality in the upcoming game as well.

“I don’t know why you’re really carrying that coin […] but be careful. Nothing good has ever come from anything a Fate has touched.”

Garber uses the novel’s early chapters to establish the ominous tone of the novel and foreshadow the misfortunes and missteps to come. Here, Dante prepares Tella for her interactions with The Tension Between Free Will and Fate. Additionally, his words provide an unequivocal guide for how best to judge the value and inherent threats of any object or situation that Jacks overtly influences.

“Julian had warned Tella that fortune-tellers like Nigel toyed with the future. Maybe he sensed something in Tella’s destiny that put Legend at risk. Or perhaps Legend wanted to toy with Tella for trying to uncover his most closely guarded secret, and whatever Legend now planned had shifted her mother’s fate.”

The incorporation of fortunetellers into the narrative serves as yet another challenge to Tella’s desire to maintain her free will. Garber uses the fortunetellers—namely Nigel and the Aracle—to illustrate that the influence of a guiding force does not negate a person’s ability to choose their own path into the future.

“Tella burned. After what Dante had just done, they were far from even.”

Throughout the novel, the interactions between Dante and Tella display many characteristics of the popular romance trope commonly dubbed “enemies to lovers.” Tella’s dislike and distrust of Dante highlights moments in which she allows him into her heart despite her assertion that she will never fall in love.

“Tella had succeeded at far more complicated plots and yet she could not shake the growing premonition that all her plans were about to unravel.”

Tella does not believe in the power of fate, but the inclusion of this statement foreshadows Tella’s flexible beliefs, for as the story develops, she will be forced to accede to the existence of fate even if she refuses to succumb to its influence. As her character develops, she will devise creative ways of asserting her own free will despite the manipulations of characters who represent fate itself.

“The gleaming fortress could have been borrowed from a young girl’s dream, yet Tella noticed the moat surrounding it contained waters so dark they didn’t reflect any of Legend’s stars. She wondered if it was because the fanciful exterior of the castle was merely a magical glamour, or if the stars were one of Legend’s illusions and Tella had been tricked by them.”

Garber often plays with the contrast between light and dark, exploring this dichotomy through the question of which characters embody heroes and which act as villains. Idyllwild Castle’s contrasting elements highlight the complexity of good and evil by showing that even places of darkness and presumed evil contain light within them.

“She waited. Waited for Jacks to tell her she was wrong. Waited for his assurance that his kiss would not kill her. Waited for him to tell her she should know better than to put too much faith in old stories. Waited for him to tease her for being so gullible and believing that he was a long-lost Fate who’d returned. Waited for him to tell her that he was not the Prince of Hearts.”

As Tella waits for the Prince of Hearts to claim that he is joking, she implicitly seeks reassurance that her beliefs cannot be shaken. The pause that occurs here indicates a shift in the narrative as fanciful elements officially become part of Tella’s reality. Forced to accept the truth of magical entities that she would rather not acknowledge, she will have to find a new way to pursue her own free will in a world dominated by the threat of the Fates.

“But, either Tella had her facts wrong or she was in the incorrect place. The shops around her were as dark as an unkindness of ravens, packed between alleys that smelled of unmentionable things, and full of patrons who were far from the genteel sort she’d expected. Clad in her delicate gown of sapphire-blue lace, Tella looked like a character who had wandered into the wrong story.”

In this metafictional passage, Garber once again plays with the distinction between reality and illusion by engineering a situation that deliberately lampoons established stereotypes for place and setting. Tella’s knowledge of the Satine district comes from its widespread reputation, yet when she experiences the truth of its appearance, it is revealed to be far less exciting than she hopes. Tella’s dashed hopes for the district reflect Garber’s position that not everything said can be taken at face value. Additionally, Garber toys with the preconceived notions and cookie-cutter narratives of the fantasy genre by stating that Tella, as a “character who had wandered into the wrong story,” does not fit the appearance of her rough surroundings.

“I know you don’t want to believe me, but Caraval is more than just a game this time. I’m not sure what the Prince of Hearts has promised you, but to the Fates, humans are nothing more than sources of labor or entertainment.”

Dante draws attention to the question of good and evil by presenting the evils of the Fates. Likewise, the Fates will pose the same question by exposing the ways in which Dante/Legend would be a worse villain than the Fates if he were to receive their full power. Garber will continue playing with the dynamic between the Fates and Legend as she explores the theme of Discerning Illusion From Reality.

“Made of midnight-blue satin and thick black velvet stripes that slashed down a full skirt, the gown was darker than Tella’s usual attire, but something about the combination made her feel fierce enough to battle Jacks and Legend and anyone in Valenda participating in Caraval.”

Tella strives to be a reputable, heroic character and to do the right thing by protecting the people she cares about. Garber’s choice to dress Tella in dark clothing and explore her ferocity reveals that the character also possesses an inner darkness that will ultimately empower her growth.

“Jacks could not be Legend. But if he was, then Legend was a greater villain than Tella had ever imagined.”

In this passage, Garber uses Tella’s musings to propose the idea that Legend and Jacks—Fate and Illusion, respectively—may be the same character. Although this is not the case, Garber’s question nonetheless explores Tella’s character by exposing the fact that she believes fate itself to be a form of illusion.

“Tella wondered if this was the true allure of Caraval, not the magic or mystery, but the way Legend’s players knew how to make people feel.”

Garber complicates the theme of Discerning Illusion From Reality by adding emotions to the fantastical cornucopia of sensation that Caraval offers its attendees. In this moment, Tella realizes that how people feel is part of the illusion, and that controlling people’s emotions can make an illusion more effective.

“But remember, Miss Dragna, Caraval isn’t about the clues. Your sister didn’t win because she solved simple riddles. She won because of what she was willing to sacrifice for those riddles, and for what she was willing to sacrifice in order to find you.”

Tella carries the Opal Ring, which, unbeknownst to her, is a symbol of sacrifice. However, Tella wins Caraval not because of what she is willing to sacrifice to find her desire but because of what Dante is willing to sacrifice in order to save her from a fate worse than death.

“Tella clawed at the memory, tried to dig her fingers into it. But the harder Tella fought to keep it, the murkier it became, turning to smoke that couldn’t be held onto at all, and then dissipating into nothing.”

Memory becomes an untrustworthy form of illusion as Garber explores how memories can be lost, manipulated, forgotten, and challenged. Memories also create a tone of betrayal because Tella cannot rely on them when she needs them most—an experience that she encounters many times.

“Don’t give up on me, Donatella. If you stay with me long enough to get you somewhere safe and warm, then I promise I won’t let go of you like I did that night. Together we’ll fix all of this.”

Dante frequently contradicts his claim that he is not Tella’s hero, for he often steps in and acts as a hero would. Garber uses the figure of Dante to explore the distinction between light and darkness, and her descriptions of this enigmatic character imply that the same person can often embody contradictory roles.

“But Tella knew this wasn’t about finding her. This was about locating a deck of cards. This was about Fates and power and life and death. Tella wanted to know what it would be like to lose herself in someone like Dante and trust that he would find her. But the only person she could trust was herself.”

Although Tella has come a long way in her internal development, Garber illustrates the challenges of character growth by giving Tella a new setback. She learns to trust Dante and seek his aid, but when the challenges increase, she continues to rely on herself, isolating herself from The Power of Familial and Romantic Relationships rather than accepting help when she needs it.

“The crumbling pillars and overgrown courtyards spoke of ancient wealth, while the cracked statues and ghosts of painted ceilings hinted at disappearing art. Only one relic seemed to have avoided the deadly caress of time. A fountain in the central courtyard, shaped in the form of a woman dressed similar to Tella, who held a pitcher that poured an endless stream of currant-red water into the pool surrounding her ankles.”

The crumbling house and the untouched statue provide vivid imagery showing the longevity of the Fates’ power and how fleeting humanity is. The statue, a relic of the Fates, remains strong even as expressions of free will and humanity—art, wealth, and architecture—collapse under the weight of time.

“Somewhere between the Temple of the Stars and this cursed place something had shifted between them. Before their relationship was much like Caraval. It had felt like a game. But the moment he set her down on the steps of these ruins, it felt as if they’d entered the real.”

Reality and Illusion no longer influence Dante and Tella’s relationship. Tella accepts the romantic love that Dante offers, but she soon loses it to another illusion when Dante takes over the empire’s throne and overtly rejects the label of “hero.”

“I kept coming back to you, not because of Legend, or the game. But because you’re so real and alive and fearless and daring and beautiful and if what’s between us isn’t real, then I don’t know what is.”

Tella has never experienced romantic love like this, and Dante’s assertion that their love is real, not an illusion, makes his betrayal hurt Tella all the more. Despite his claims, Dante cannot distinguish between reality and illusion because he thrives on illusions. For Dante, the illusions are all real during Caraval.

“It seemed both expected her to win the game for them. But perhaps the only way Tella could really come out victorious was if she chose to no longer play in their games, if she left her mother where she was, and her cursed cards where they were, safe in the stars’ vault where neither Jacks nor Legend could touch them.”

The question of free will arises again as Tella considers the options available to her. Since she does not yet know that Dante is Legend, she does not know who she can trust. Rather than assuming that she must take one of the two obvious options, Tella considers what else she might be able to do to stop the games between the powers that use her.

“Not everyone gets a true ending. There are two types of endings because most people give up at the part of the story where things are the worst, where the situation feels hopeless. But that’s when hope is needed most. Only those who persevere can find their true ending.”

Garber foreshadows the novel’s inconclusive ending by inserting this contemplative metafictional passage about the true nature of conclusions. By enumerating several different types of endings and implying that a less-than-satisfactory ending is on the near horizon, Garber warns her audience that they will need to persevere past this novel’s conclusion to reach the series’ true ending.

“She still wasn’t entirely ready to think of him as Legend. Legends were supposed to be better than the truth. Perfect, idealized dreams and crystalline hopes that were too flawless to exist in reality. And she might have described him that way just then, if the naked expression that crossed his face didn’t cut deeper than disappointment.”

When Garber reveals Dante’s identity as Legend, this moment shatters all illusions and concludes the theme of Discerning Illusion From Reality. Tella can no longer pretend that Dante is not Legend, nor can she pretend that she can lose herself in Dante without succumbing to Legend and his illusions.

“There’s somewhere else I need to be. And, no matter what this looks like, I’m still not the hero in your story.”

Dante’s character arc becomes much more complex as he isolates himself from Tella after asserting his role in The Power of Familial and Romantic Relationships. Garber also raises questions about whether Dante himself can discern between reality and illusion.