The Testaments

Please put this on screen to reach more people. Margaret Atwood is an oracle in our time.

Couldn’t stop reading…!

Being a fan of watching Handmaids tales I couldn’t wait to read this. It was nice to see Hannah and Nicole meet. The story explained Aunt Lydia more which made me not hate her.

Loved it. Truly gave me closure.

I found this book hard to get into but once you are hooked, it’s hard to put down. A rarely accurate look at the dark side of human nature and doing whatever is needed, when being brave it all one has left. Beautifully descriptive writing as always from Atwood.

I like Margaret Atwood but this is not her best work. I don’t know how it got such good reviews.

I love this whole storyline set in the future even after with what the show covers and I hope the show picks up this storyline.

This book absolutely took my breath away. The way that modern events are similar to events happening in this book is quite clever. As a woman this book hit hard. From Agnes to Nicole, their experiences resonated with my own struggles as a woman in America.

(WARNING: Potential Spoiler) First time around this book doesn’t make a whole lot of sense (especially in the first half). This is primarily because there is a vital aspect of the story and setting that is never explained (you just kinda figure it out): 15 years later. The Testaments takes place 15 years after the events of The Handmaid's Tale (that would’ve good to know 🤬). Another key aspect of the story that I think should’ve been known from the beginning in order to better understand the characters we’re following, is that (view spoiler). Instead, it is done as a surprise reveal about half way through (hens why the first half didn’t make a whole lot of sense), but upon a second reading, I personally enjoyed the book more knowing this from the beginning. *This part is a HUGE, HUGE negative for me because it relies entirely on the TV show.* 👎 (yes, unfortunately the book makes a lot more sense if you’ve seen the show) But the biggest downfall here is the epilogue, which chronicles the future/history of the collapse of Gilead and the fate of all our characters, past and present. Ironic, considering that Margaret Atwood herself stated that explaining the collapse of Gilead was the purpose of writing this book in the first place (also, once again, there is a heavy reliance on the reader having seen the show in order to fully understand everything). As a stand-alone book, it provides good closure to its own story. As a series, it only serves to ruin a first entry that was never meant to have a sequel. Sometimes the best ending is no ending. While I am not a fan of The Handmaid’s Tale, I do recognize that it is a good book. And its ambiguity is what made it good. The lack of information we’re given because we’re following a single POV from a lower class character was not only understood, but accepted. It made us wonder, it made us question, and encouraged us to use our imagination to fill in the blanks. The ending alone is the very definition of “fear for the worst, hope for the best.” Many questions were left unanswered, and the book was all the better for it. The Testaments, however, seems to have set out to answer these questions. Using the tactic of exploring multiple POV’s in order to fill in any potential gaps, and jumping forward into the future to tie up any loose ends. For most books this would be a good thing, except for when the readers fear of the unknown is your friend. In this, the stories ambiguous nature that made the first book so good is suddenly stripped away, and provides you with the happy ending you never realized you didn’t want. 👍 On the positive side, almost every aspect of The Testaments is a step up from The Handmaid's Tale. The characters are better developed with more emotion, and the narrative is more focused, giving the characters more direction and purpose, all done while adding greater tension and higher steaks. Independently they are both good books, but as a series all they do is clash. And while good, they could’ve been great. Even though The Handmaid’s Tale came out over 30 years ago and The Testaments is an obvious cash grab (that’s right, I said it), in retrospect, it would’ve been so much better if they were 1 book. Take the world building and setup of the first with the story and tension of the second, and it would be even more of a classic.

Gripping, entertaining, fantastic. I read it in one day, which is saying a lot because I’m not a fast reader. I loved the book, the changes in perspective made perfect sense and the character choices were spot on. Truly great ending to a story that began 30 years ago.