Beasts of Carnaval

“Utterly dazzling, Beasts of Carnaval’s mysterious island of midnight wonders and luxurious spectacle will sweep you away. Yet not all is as it seems on this isle, and beneath the glamour lies a transfixing story of heartbreak, hope, and a hard reckoning with the ghosts of its colonial past—and present.” —Georgia Summers, author of The City of Stardust

For fans of The Night Circus, this sweeping historical fantasy set in a lush, Puerto Rico-inspired world, uses magical realism to combine Caribbean carnaval culture and the mythology of the Taíno—the Indigenous people of the region—in a gripping exploration of community, reclamation, and healing in defiance of a violent past.

When night descends, el Carnaval de Bestias rises.

Within the shores of Isla Bestia, guests from around the world discover a utopia of ever-changing performances, sumptuous feasts and beautiful monsters. Many enter, but few ever leave—the wine is simply too sweet, the music too fine and the revelry endless.

Sofía, a freedwoman from a nearby colonized island, cares little for this revelry. Born an enslaved mestiza on a tobacco plantation, she has neither wealth nor title, only a scholarly pragmatism and a hunger for answers. She travels to el Carnaval de Bestias in search of her twin brother, who disappeared five years ago.

There’s a world of wonder waiting for her on the shores of this legendary island, one wherein conquerors profit from Sofia’s ancestral lands and her people’s labor. But surrounded by her former enslavers, she finds something familiar in the performances—whispers of the island’s native tongue, music and stories from her Taike’ri ancestors…a culture long hidden in the shadows, thrust into the light.

As the nights pass, her mind begins unraveling, drowning in the unnatural, almost sentient thrall of Carnaval. And the sense that someone is watching her grows. To find her brother and break free, Sofia must peel back the glamorous curtain and face those behind Carnaval, before she too loses herself to the island…

What you can expect in BEASTS OF CARNVAL:Indigenous Taíno MythologyThemes of Decolonization + Reclamation Atmospheric Island SettingCarnival Culture & VejigantesCaribbean + Latine Adult FantasyHistorical Fantasy with Magical RealismThe Revelry Never Ends

© 2025 Harlequin Audio (Lydbog): 9781488234958

Release date

Lydbog: 29. juli 2025