Reviews tagging 'Death'

The Testaments by Margaret Atwood

77 reviews

blymanor's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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peachybee53's review against another edition

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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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katie0528's review against another edition

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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? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

Set over a decade after the original book, this book follows three women, Aunt Lydia, a Gilead girl named Anges, and a girl in Canda named Daisy, and how their lives entwine to attempt to take down the oppressive Gilead regime. Each character is rich and complicated, her flaws apparent by her upbringing and being forced to confront their pasts and what they have been told is true and what is actually true. It does emphasize the importance of fighting against opressive regimes. Atwood's aftwerword also addresses the current situation in the United States and how shifting attitudes inspired the update to the original novel.

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rchulin1's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful sad fast-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? Yes

5.0

Im so surprised that this was published in 2019 more than 30 years after The Handmaids Tale was. But since this is the case the writing is a bit different but still amazingly done. In this book you get three perspectives: Aunt Lydia, Baby Nicole (all grown up), and Agnes. The story takes place fifteen years after the first book though some of the story takes place only several years later which can be confusing so you see Agnes as a child for a bit then as a teenager and lastly as a young adult in her early twenties while Nicole’s perspective is only from her being 15. Hand maids are not really in this book except for a few moments but I’m glad to have seen the other side of wives and aunts all that goes with it. There’s so many comparisons between Nicole and Agnes since they were brought up so differently but somehow have to work together. I believe this book is easier to read than the first book. Also I loved the “fake news “ bit

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mandi_lea's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional 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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kerrence30's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Wasn’t sure if the sequel was going to do justice to the first story, but fear not, it was perfect. Loved how the story developed with the new characters 

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rea1997's review against another edition

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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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arinheck's review against another edition

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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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soupysammy's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad tense fast-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? No

4.5

Such an amazing and wonderful way this story goes. Reading about the next part of the story was just everything I had hoped for it felt like. 

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lay_kone's review against another edition

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dark emotional tense slow-paced

4.5


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