Andrew W

Margaret Atwood’s sequel to Handmaid’s Tale.

Summary: Set 15 years after the original novel (and written 34 years after, with the original published in 1985), The Testaments follows the famous (or infamous, depending on which side of Gilead you’re in) Aunt Lydia, the new Daisy, daughter of a Commander, and Agnes, a young girl living in Canada. The latter two being completely new characters to Atwood’s universe, but very welcomed perspectives.

Review: Published as a sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale, a novel standing alone on a pedestal of all of Atwood’s work, the Testaments sails close to an iconic piece of feminist literature, and doesn’t only scrap the landing - but graces it. Did I possess the fear that this may end up feeling like an unnecessary sequel, due to the TV series and maybe a great book to release in today’s time? I am ashamed to answer that; but I’ve never been so glad to be wrong. The Testaments is one of few novels that is just as good as the first, and just as important in today’s society.

Originally I picked up The Handmaid’s Tale with the announcement of The Testaments, which (after recommending The Handmaid’s Tale to both friends and family) left me waiting ages for this sequel. The story isn’t a complicated one, some of the surprises aren’t surprises (the sisters, the mother) - especially to those who have seen the TV series and can affliate the names to characters on it that never appeared in the first book; but the story isn’t the major part of this. The theme and messages is what drives this, and has us in the passenger seat loving the adventure our driver Atwood is taking us on. Years ago the notion of a dystopian where woman are objectified into slave may have been dismissed, but now it is hopeless - or ignorant - to shun the possible nightmare with the direction our current society has taken. Is Offred missed? Of course. After living through Gilead with her perspective, how could one not be attached to the tortured narrator? But her presence is halted in our thoughts as we follow new protagonists and meet new antagonists (and characters who are in between; looking at you, Aunt Lydia!) who are all daring and keep us on our feet in both anticipation and fear, with every reader finding it impossible to put down their book due to both eagerness and dread. Aunt Lydia’s past is explored, and as we let her tell us what circumstances pushed her into her current position, we learn some her true motive: the desire to fix (and destroy) Gilead. With a great start, fast middle, and satisfying conclusion, there is no doubt this book has a place among literature history.

Overall: 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️