Title: Carry On (The Rise and Fall of Simon Snow)
Author: Rainbow Rowell
Genres: Young adult, fantasy, romance
Published: October 6th 2015, by St. Martin's Griffin
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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.
Carry On - The Rise and Fall of Simon Snow is a ghost story, a love story and a mystery. It has just as much kissing and talking as you'd expect from a Rainbow Rowell story - but far, far more monsters.

If I'm being completely honest, I went into this book not expecting to enjoy it very much. This isn't my first Rainbow Rowell book, but it is the first of her books I've finished. I first tried Eleanor & Park (which, to be honest, I found kind of racist), then Fangirl, which I also never finished, and I didn't really get the appeal (despite Baz & Simon originating there). So, understandably, I didn't go into Carry On with very high expectations. But there's been so much praise, and I do love a mlm fantasy, so I figured I would give it a go. Turns out, I was pretty pleasantly surprised.

So, the most obvious thing to address is the similarities with Harry Potter; the chosen one, the magic school, the trio of friends battling an ominous foe. When I first started Carry On all I could see were the similarities between the books, and it really really bothered me. Thankfully, it became a story of its own, and soon it didn't feel like I was reading anything like Harry Potter. This mostly happened once Baz, Simon's vampire roommate, turned up. He is instantly likeable, and once he arrives in the story, it picks up pace from a slow impatience inducing crawl to excitement and intrigue, and to romance. And to, at times, some really funny moments.

Once the story picks up, Carry On definitely becomes a page turner. There is so much mystery to the story, and to Simon's place in it the World of Mages, to his magic, to his past. Parts of this mystery were easily deducible, some things I figured out from about 150 pages in. Though I was kept questioning if my theories were right, it just felt like less of a shock or twist than perhaps it was supposed to be when everything came to light for the characters. It was fun to watch Simon, Penelope, and Baz figure it all out, if sometimes a little aggravating when it seemed so obvious to the reader.

Carry On was a strange mix of humour and darkness, a mix of funny moments and very tense and high stakes fantasy. It somehow worked really well. The small details (like spells being cast as nursery rhymes, or moments of genuine creepiness) blend well and make it so much more enjoyable to read.

"Those were my fifth-year fantasies: kisses and blood and Snow ridding the world of me." - Baz

And then, there's the romance between Simon and Baz, which is why I decided to read Carry On in the first place. I was not disappointed. At first, Simon was definitely a little frustrating with his animosity for Baz, especially after reading Baz's point of view and as their relationship progressed. But as it did progress, it was so lovely to see them grow and as Simon realised his feelings, their interactions were so perfect and I ended up loving these two so much. Their romance was my favourite part of this book. It definitely did frustrate me to see the bi erasure of Simon Snow though (bisexuality exists, Rainbow Rowell).

I also really liked Penelope, she's a fantastic character, and despite her similarities with Hermione Granger she is so much her own character and I loved her interactions with Simon and Baz, and their friendship. I'm, still not too sure what to think of Agatha, I'm not really sure whether or not we're supposed to like her, and most of the time she just really really annoyed me. I feel like this is partly because of how she is written, and under different circumstances I could have liked her.

Despite the slow beginning, the similarities with Harry Potter, and the bi erasure, I did love the relationship between Simon and Baz, they made Carry On for me - I adore them so much. I am still going to be very hesitant with any of Rainbow Rowell's books but, I'm glad I found one I genuinely enjoyed, and a relationship I fell in love with.