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4.13 AVERAGE
4.13 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Excellent follow up to the Handmaids Tale.
I had been putting off starting this book for years because I loved The Handmaid's Tale so much and was worried the sequel wouldn't live up to it. I'm really glad I finally decided to pick it up. While The Handmaid's Tale stands strong on its own and a sequel didn’t feel necessary, this book still ties everything together in a satisfying way. It has the same chilling vibe as the first one, and I couldn’t put it down – it was a total page-turner.
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
adventurous
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I like the premise of a historical analysis and reading old testimonials but I think the action of the screen adaptation for The Handmaid’s Tale left a lot to be desired for the sequel novel.
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
A *huge* fan of The Handmaid’s Tale book and Hulu series, I was thrilled to hear about Atwood’s sequel, The Testaments. I purposely held off on picking it up because I wanted to reread the original, not only as a refresher for where the novel left off, but also to see how closely the Hulu series followed the original text. This summer, in between bookclub reads, I had the time to zip through The Handmaid’s Tale (forgot how short it was!) and then zip through The Testaments (even though it was longer.)
I really enjoyed it! Atwood places her three main characters about 15 years after the original and used them to inform the reader about life on both the inside and outside of Gilead. Some characters are new while others are “old favorites” (I use that term loosely). It folded into the original story so well and we all know how great it is to read a sequel truly worthy of your time. Not only did it do the original justice, it went to a new and exciting place.
I won’t give away any spoilers, but one thing I will say is that if you’re hesitant to read the Testaments because you’re all caught up on Hulu, and you’re thinking it’ll be similar, the timelines are not the same. All new content.
Side-note that has little to do with the book and more to do with my experience purchasing it from Barnes and Noble: I’m a library girl, and on the rare occasion I can’t get a book from the library I’ll buy it from BN and return or exchange it for something else I’d rather keep. I had done that with The Starless Sea around January and had been driving around with it in my car for a few months with every intention of exchanging it for The Testaments (I could only get The Starless Sea hardcover and it was $30!) but then I kept forgetting to (out of sight out of mind) and then Covid hit. Only recently was I able to get inside an actual BN store and they let me exchange the books *no issue* even though I was outside the return/exchange window with TSS for *months* before Covid. They were super cool. While I still find their merchandise to be overpriced and still prefer supporting the library, I won’t forget that.
I really enjoyed it! Atwood places her three main characters about 15 years after the original and used them to inform the reader about life on both the inside and outside of Gilead. Some characters are new while others are “old favorites” (I use that term loosely). It folded into the original story so well and we all know how great it is to read a sequel truly worthy of your time. Not only did it do the original justice, it went to a new and exciting place.
I won’t give away any spoilers, but one thing I will say is that if you’re hesitant to read the Testaments because you’re all caught up on Hulu, and you’re thinking it’ll be similar, the timelines are not the same. All new content.
Side-note that has little to do with the book and more to do with my experience purchasing it from Barnes and Noble: I’m a library girl, and on the rare occasion I can’t get a book from the library I’ll buy it from BN and return or exchange it for something else I’d rather keep. I had done that with The Starless Sea around January and had been driving around with it in my car for a few months with every intention of exchanging it for The Testaments (I could only get The Starless Sea hardcover and it was $30!) but then I kept forgetting to (out of sight out of mind) and then Covid hit. Only recently was I able to get inside an actual BN store and they let me exchange the books *no issue* even though I was outside the return/exchange window with TSS for *months* before Covid. They were super cool. While I still find their merchandise to be overpriced and still prefer supporting the library, I won’t forget that.
medium-paced
dark
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No