Carry on

the rise and fall of Simon Snow

522 pages

English language

Published Dec. 14, 2015

ISBN:
978-1-250-04955-1
Copied ISBN!
OCLC Number:
898419026

View on OpenLibrary

4 stars (40 reviews)

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 starts 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.

9 editions

reviewed Carry On by Rainbow Rowell (Simon Snow, #1)

Review of 'Carry On' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

I'm actually reviewing this on my second read!

The first time I read this, I plowed through the entire book in a single day. I remember eating it up and loving it from the first sentence, and not much else. I was so excited about it that I didn't actually remember most of the plot.

I finished re-reading it today, and it was just as amazing as I remember it being, possibly even moreso.

This book is not a ripoff of Harry Potter, and as a trans- reader, it hurts me just a bit to hear reviewers say that it is. This book is a love letter to gay relationships and it doesn't shy away from saying so. Rowell writes first-person gorgeously, and the book would not be the same without the POV changes. This is also a book that rewards re-reads--it's got just enough foreshadowing throughout that you'll go …

reviewed Carry On by Rainbow Rowell (Simon Snow, #1)

Review of 'Carry On' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

Well, that was probably the most fun book I've read this year. It's campy, delightful, and just an absolute romp. A little confused since it seems Rainbow Rowell has never heard of someone being bi, but hey, maybe she figures it out on subsequent books. Also, I would die for Tyrannus Basilton Grimm-Pitch.

reviewed Carry On by Rainbow Rowell (Simon Snow, #1)

Review of 'Carry On' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

I saw another review that said 'if you can ignore the obvious harry potter similarities...' so I wasn't expecting that much out of it and I decided to read it anyway (just for the gay). However, I was pleasantly surprised at how I didn't really think the book was like harry potter at all, other than 1) there's a big threat looming and 2) there's a 'chosen one' because come on, there's ALWAYS 1) a big threat looming and 2) a chosen one.

I really liked in particular how the spells come about, everyday phrases and such carrying meaning behind them. On to the next book in the series! (when it comes out)

Review of 'Carry on' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

Let's recap briefly: [a:Rainbow Rowell|4208569|Rainbow Rowell|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1342324527p2/4208569.jpg] wrote a book ([b:Fangirl|16068905|Fangirl|Rainbow Rowell|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1355886270s/16068905.jpg|21861351]) about what it was like to be a Big Name Fan and in order to capture this experience she made up a fictional Harry Potter series, which the protagonist of Fangirl wrote a fanfic about. Then, Rainbow Rowell decided to actually write this fictional Harry Potter series, which is Carry On. Meta'ed out yet?

But, honestly, this kind of makes sense, because the Simon Snow snippets were the best part of Fangirl. Rowell is nothing if not wicked clever, and it shines the most in the way that she used the fact that everyone knows and understands Harry Potter to include huge swathes of background in a couple of paragraphs, which gave her inversions and subtle changes context. One of the coolest feats of literatures someone's pulled off in awhile, but I was worried that it was not particularly …

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Subjects

  • Magicians
  • Magic
  • Vampires
  • JUVENILE FICTION / Love & Romance
  • Students
  • JUVENILE FICTION / Fantasy & Magic
  • Monsters
  • Fiction
  • Roommates
  • Dating (Social customs)
  • Boarding schools
  • Schools
  • Missing persons
  • Juvenile fiction

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