The Testaments: The Sequel to The Handmaid's Tale

By Margaret Atwood

Book Overview

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - WINNER OF THE BOOKER PRIZE - The Testaments is a modern masterpiece, a powerful novel that can be read on its own or as a companion to Margaret Atwood's classic, The Handmaid's Tale.

More than fifteen years after the events of The Handmaid's Tale, the theocratic regime of the Republic of Gilead maintains its grip on power, but there are signs it is beginning to rot from within. At this crucial moment, the lives of three radically different women converge, with potentially explosive results.

Two have grown up as part of the first generation to come of age in the new order. The testimonies of these two young women are joined by a third: Aunt Lydia. Her complex past and uncertain future unfold in surprising and pivotal ways.

With The Testaments, Margaret Atwood opens up the innermost workings of Gilead, as each woman is forced to come to terms with who she is, and how far she will go for what she believes.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0385543786
• ISBN13: 9780385543781
• Release Date: September 2019
• Publisher: Nan A. Talese
• Length: 432 Pages
• Weight: 1.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.6" x 6.4" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Engaging, captivating, and a perfect finale novel for the world of Handmaid’s Tale

I am a long time fan of The Handmaid’s Tale, and I went into this read expecting a similar voice as Offred and writing style like The Handmaid’s Tale. This is not what was received. Instead, Atwood has masterfully molded each voice (with three characters narrating past and present) to truly present its character, down to the style that each chapter is written. We have three different women, all different ages, all different roles to play in this conclusion of the legendary world created by Atwood. This book feels completely different from its predecessor and was clearly written with the idea of a finale in mind. Handmaid’s Te was written with a very purposely open ended non-conclusion (to really all of the stories began in it). Atwood clearly spent a lot of time carefully considering how she wanted to wrap up this world she so artfully created. Whereas the Handmaid’s Tale felt like a full view into a dystopian world, Testaments truly felt like a journey. Well thought-out and captivating, I highly suggest it to anyone who is interested in seeing the conclusion of this dystopia. Side note: the final chapter is presented in such an interesting and unexpected manner, and I honestly loved it as the wrap-up for this awesome story.

Not what I expected.

After having seen the series The Handmaids Tale, I was expecting the sequel to follow the series. It definitely did not. It started out slow but once it took off it was hard to put out down.

It’s almost NEW

Definitely prefer this one compared to the handmaid’s tale. Both are must-read!

Excellent

Came quick book is like new

It was fine.

It was fine, but the narrative style is so different from the Handmaids Tale and I wasn’t really a fan of the way Atwood chose to tell the different stories in this one. This book is a miss for me, but if you liked the Handmaids Tale and reeeally like the show, I think you would probably enjoy this book.

Fantastic follow up

A little tricky w/ the multiple narrators (so i listened to the audiobook too) but excellent extension of the original book and netflix show and fills in a little more of the system of Gilead