Reviews tagging 'War'

The Testaments by Margaret Atwood

31 reviews

peachybee53's review against another edition

challenging dark hopeful reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

A perfect conclusion to The Handmaid's Tale. This book had me hooked from the beginning. With three protagonists from different backgrounds, it reads like a historical fiction despite being based in the not-so-distant future. I loved the tones of hope and rebellion throughout, I'm glad that Atwood's dark humour has continued to shine through and I enjoyed the comparisons between citizens' and outsiders' perspectives of Gilead's totalitarian society. Learning that every practice included in the world of Gilead has real-life parallels was frightening but sadly unsurprising. Overall, a fairly easy & very satisfying read.

Favourite Quotes:

"You don't believe the sky is falling until a chunk of it falls on you."

"The world was no longer solid and dependable, it was porous and deceptive. Anything could disappear. At the same time, everything I looked at was very clear."

"So peaceful, the streets; so tranquil, so orderly; yet underneath the deceptively placid surfaces, a tremor, like that near a high-voltage power line. We're stretched thin, all of us; we vibrate; we quiver, we're
always on the alert. Reign of terror, they used to say, but terror does not exactly reign. Instead it paralyzes. Hence the unnatural quiet."

"The world was emptying itself of meaning. Everything was hollow. Everything was withering."

"All of the secrets I had learned, and doubtless many more, would be mine, to use as I saw fit. All of this power. All of this potential to judge the wicked in silence, and to punish them in ways they would not be able to anticipate. All of this vengeance... I would not be telling the truth if I said I was not tempted."

"How can I have behaved so badly, so cruelly, so stupidly? you will ask. You yourself would never have done such things! But you yourself will hever have had to."

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Sexual harassment, and Classism

Moderate: Body horror, Cancer, Chronic illness, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Blood, Death of parent, and Abandonment

Minor: Eating disorder, Miscarriage, Terminal illness, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Trafficking, Medical trauma, Toxic friendship, Dysphoria, and War

beccamay99's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Self harm, Terminal illness, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Child abuse, Gore, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Cancer, Child death, Drug use, and Pregnancy

hannahnadeshda's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, War, and Classism

bombonita's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexism, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Religious bigotry, and War

rea1997's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I just finished reading this book, and I have to say, it's pretty wild. It's a sequel to The Handmaid's Tale, but you really need to have read that to understand it. The world-building is on point, and it's cool to see more of Gilead and how it works.

The story itself is a bit predictable, but it's still interesting to see how everything plays out. I especially liked the parts with Aunt Lydia and Agnes Jemima. They were my favorite characters. Daisy was kind of annoying, though. I couldn't stand her.

One thing I didn't like was the ending for Aunt Lydia. I thought it was kind of harsh. But overall, I enjoyed the book. It was a good read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

arinheck's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Sexism, Sexual violence, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Medical content, Pregnancy, and War

Minor: Rape

lay_kone's review against another edition

dark emotional tense slow-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Cancer, Death, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Trafficking, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

evaeyre's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

an amazing sequel! It’s not directly after the Handmaid’s tale and not in her perspective either, but in turn you learn about a newer cast of characters who are equally interesting — including Aunt Lydia! such a complex and inspiring character.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Pedophilia, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Medical content, Trafficking, Grief, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Abortion, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and War

Minor: Transphobia and Vomit

kyrstin_p1989's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

It took a minute to realize there were three POV but when I did, the story started coming together so nicely. I really didn’t want to put this down. I’m a sucker for a dystopian, corrupt-government tale, and this, much like The Handmaid’s Tale, didn’t disappoint. I really enjoyed getting a peek into Aunt Lydia’s mind. Atwood’s work continues to be timely and relevant and this sequel to the 1985 Handmaid’s Tale was equal parts fascinating and horrifying. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

samshort's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful tense medium-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

3.75

It was enjoyable, although I think some plot points took away from the message of the first book. I think I prefer THT as a standalone. I did appreciate the exploration into new aspects of Gileadean society, although I would have enjoyed seeing different demographics represented. All the protagonists are white women.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism