Manacled

There are mixed feelings about the “Harry Potter” series in general. This once-loved world of flying owls, castles, and a destined boy could feel semi-tainted to some due to the creator's personal beliefs. I will not discuss that, as that could be an entire essay on whether readers should separate art from the artist. This recent controversy, paired with the direction of my enjoyment of fantasy and what I seek out for myself, has driven me away from the original Harry Potter story. I love grimdark and darkly complicated stories with gray characters and fraught circumstances. And sadly, at this space in my life. The original “Harry Potter” story no longer does “it for me.”

It is too sweet.

But I posit to you, “dear reader,” as the illustrious Eleni would say, what if it wasn't saccharine but filled with real and truly flawed human beings dropped into an impossible scenario?

What if the bad guys won? What if war were actually war, the winning side hindered by morals that had no place in war and a side that had no scruples against using the most heinous spells and magic? What would that look like?

“I have warned you. If something happens to you, I will personally raze the entire Order. That isn't a threat. That is a promise. Consider your survival as much a necessity to the survival of the Resistance as Potter's. If you die, I will kill every last one of them.”

It is an interesting thought experiment, and up until now, no fan fiction author has hit on the right tone and had the necessary skill to immerse you in a new version of Harry's world convincingly until now.

First, something I don't usually do is give you trigger warnings. This new story has violence, sexual assault, and torture. And certainly not if you are a minor or young person; save this story for when you are a little older and jaded. I believe that all of these elements served a purpose in service to the narrative. There is no fridging on my watch. But it is still hard to read.

Firstly, if you are unfamiliar with shipping, let me elucidate. Shipping is when you, the reader, want a story that veers away from the original, takes two other characters, and puts them in a love match.
Popular ones in the Harry Potter fandom can be anything from Harry and Hermione to Harry and Ron to Regulus Black at Grimgotts and a room full of frisky goblins. Have at it. That is one of the most excellent parts of fanfiction. It is done in love to the original story, and frankly, it is so outlandish that it is hilarious to read. The story Manacled is an 876-page masterpiece of the genre written by SenLinYu that has become the defining Dramione ship piece and currently is sitting at 34k views on Goodreads with a 4.67 rating. It is not just successful as a fanfiction piece; it is successful as a novel in general.

“If he's a monster, then I'm his creator. What did you think was the source of all his rage?”

The plot revolves around Hermione and Draco Malfoy a couple of years after the start of the second wizarding war. Some creative license has been taken here. Instead of the story being rolled up in a “happily ever after,” People are dying in the most horrific ways, and the resistance barely survives.

We start the story with Hermione in the dark, in pure sensory deprivation, where she has resided for 18 months. She has held on to her sanity by sheer will alone. We don't know when in the war this is; at this point, we know the harrowing experience Hermione has been through. Hermione is unceremoniously dragged from her cell by rough hands and put forth before the one and only Dolores Umbridge. Dolores has become the Dark Lord's prison warden. And Hermione was one of his most protected prisoners. She is the last living member of the Order of the Phoenix, but oddly enough, she has memories buried down in her mind that are protected and sealed away from even the most practiced and skilled legilimentalist. The memories are the only thing keeping her alive.

A doctor examines Hermione and figures out that the only way that the memories might be recovered in any safe, usable manner is a magical pregnancy. Due to the sheer amount of death that this generation of living witches and wizards has had, Voldemort has started a birthing program, a la Handmaid's Tale, that shuffles off living witches, manacles them, and gives them to trusted death eaters to impregnate. Along with the birthing program, Voldemort has decreed that people will be married and pairs off individuals in the hopes that more babies can be born.

“Be careful. Don't die.
Only because you asked.”

While this chunk of the story borrows heavily from ideas found in The Handmaid's Tale, it doesn't feel hackneyed. The author makes these ideas of power and manipulation and the subjugation of women work within this narrative framework. For intents and purposes, the witches are handmaids; instead, they replace God with subservience to the Dark Lord. To control the magic the witches can wield and objects they can touch, the witches are manacled with a bracelet that stops the magic from flowing out of their bodies. No eye contact, talking, escape, or free will.

Because of the delicate nature of Hermione's case and the pure paranoia of Voldemort, the father of the future babies that Hermione will have must be wholly and utterly loyal to Voldemort and be a strong legilimens. That man has become the High Reeve, Voldemort's enforcer and truly terrifying individual. And he is none other than Draco Malfoy—Harry Potter's bratty nemesis who has come to a very dark place in this story. At this point, dear reader, you might think, “Oh, ok, this is the part with the porn soundtrack. They look deeply into each other's eyes and fall madly in love.”

You could not be further from the truth.

Hermione is psychologically flayed; she is broken down piece by piece. While the idea of a ship is lovely, people are people and are messy. Nothing that happens to Hermione is pleasant, nor to Draco. The world is ever-changing shades of gray. But all of it is necessary to support a complicated story that might have some of the most complex writing I have ever read. When the bough breaks and memories start to break through, we are shifted back to the height of the war when everyone was alive. Ron has become promiscuous; Harry seems to have aged a decade and, on particularly bad days, fights in underground clubs for release, and Hermione, the heart of the original story, is the glue that is holding everything together. Hermione becomes a chameleon with her brilliant brain, does whatever she has to do, and is whoever she has to be to save those she loves, even if they no longer love or appreciate her back. She sacrifices bits of herself slowly to give the resistance inches against the dark lord.

“But as she tried to unravel him, he grew increasingly tragic and terrifyingly human.”

The teenage bad boy sent to save the damsel trope is old and does a disservice to both of the characters involved. In real life, neither a “bad boy” nor a damsel are one-dimensional. People just are more challenging to figure out. And while this story could have stayed at that superficial level, it did not. Throughout the 800+ pages, we learn how incredibly complicated good and evil can be. That evil is just a matter of perspective.

There are a couple of things to overlook when reading this. This is fanfiction; a few chapters are a smidge repetitive, and given a good once-over by an editor would have sliced those away, along with the occasional grammar mistake. But it is few and far between.

“Pragmatism has stolen away any luster of heroism from her.”

To sum up, Manacled is a complex war story based around a well-known ship. It is one of the most complex stories of its kind I have ever read, and it now puts the original Harry Potter in stark relief for me. One who reads this cannot walk away unscathed in one way or another. Still, as an experience, this rich story has added much-needed nuance to Harry Potter's best friend, Braniac Hermione, and Harry Potter's nemesis Draco Malfoy. They are all so much more than the sum of their parts.

This is a negative reviewnot intended to hurt anyone's feelings


My curiosity got the better of me and I read the first half (~45ish chapters), then skipped to the last few chapters when it was getting too boring with the flashbacks. I'll be frank - I'm surprised this fic is so popular. It wasn't really my fave, and not because of the dark themes (although I did definitely skip the rape scenes bc that's a personal thing). but Draco wasn't that interesting.
For context, the first third of this book is “present day” after the Order/good guys have basically lost the war to Voldemort. Hermione is sent to Malfoy for the breeding program. Then, the second third of the book is one long flashback of what happened before they lost the war/things went bad because Hermione has suddenly regained her memories of those years. It turns out Draco was actually a “good guy” and helping the Order, he was a tortured conflicted spy, and her and Draco were in love.

Except when I read the flashbacks... Draco still kinda sucks as a person back then. Like he treats Hermione a tiny bit better than some of the Order members but he's still not nice? IDK I was expecting something different since it was supposed to be such a foil to his image in the present, when he Has To Be Bad and Hurt Hermione and Be Abusive because otherwise Voldemort will know something is up. But in the past, he was just as dark and mean? At the very beginning of the flashbacks, years prior, he agrees to be a spy for the Order in exchange for Hermione. Literally. Exact words.
When I read that I was?????? Why??? I didn't see this get explained. Did he want her in a possessive sexual way? Did he just...want a friend? Why Hermione? Why couldn't he just be a good person and be a spy for the Order in exchange for BEATING VOLDEMORT and saving the Wizarding World? It was so weird. Kinda ruined the chemistry and made Draco even more unlikeable.

Finally, the last third of the book is them doing plot stuff in the present to stop the death eaters and free Hermione etc. This was the part I skipped the most since I was pretty bored at this point, so if something incredibly redeeming for the story happened in this third, I missed it.

Overal.... yeah. Not a fave.

DNF @ 57%

The story / plot wasn't drawing me in. It's so similar to The Handmaid's Tale with that magical HP spin on it but I wasn't drawn in like how I was when I read The Handmaid's Tale. I could feel myself falling into a slump whenever I tried to read the book and I wasn't excited to pick up my kindle to read. I also happened to see an ig post of artwork from the story which spoiled the ending for me so I don't feel the need to complete the story.

can i read this if i've only watched the movies?

Feeling physically ILL after finishing this one.

I saw the last line everywhere and thought I knew how it was going to end - I didn't and the ending was better AND worse.

Wow this was such an incredible story.
Shed a few tears in the end, so very emotional!
The story, even though it is based on Harry Potter and Handmaid's Tale, is just so so good and guts you in the heart. I could not stop reading. And also even if it is “only” fan fiction, there are so many parts that I also really loved the writing of it a lot. The setup of the book with the three parts also really kept me on my toes, even though some things were expected turns for me, I still loved (hated?) them!
Thank you so much for this experience, such a heart breaking wonderful 5⭐ read!

This was everything!

Everything you didn't know you needed from the world of harry potter. I mean you guys, this was everyrhing. Omg the feels.
Very well written first of all, but also, the world building was fantastic. It made sense somehow, all of it. And it got very very dark. In a lot of ways this is a toxic ship, but still, you get it! I mean i shipñed for sure!

Now not wanting to continue the rant, read this if you want to expand on this wizarding world, if you think that maybe harry potter wasnt the most interesting character, if you wanted to see different sides of this conflict. But you'll end up staying draco and hermoine for sure! Still, the ending could've been more cohesive, but i repeat, this was everything and left me an incoherent blabbing mess. Loved it and highly recommend it!

Btw, this author's writting style was great, can't wait to see what's next...

This is my July book recommended by a friend. Why yes, it is June. But when Kat started raving about this book, I decided I'd start giving it a listen every now and then on Spotify, hoping that by the time it got to July I'd have wandered my way through it. But then....I got a few chapters in....and then....I couldn't stop. Last weekend I had to just give up and declare myself obsessed and plow my way through. And what book has me so obsessed, you ask?

It's.....Harry Potter fanfic??!? In this dystopian re-imagining of the HP world, Voldemort wins, Harry Potter is dead, and there is a Handmaid's Tale-style “repopulation” program. It is pretty dark (all the trigger warnings!). It is difficult to talk about the plot too much because there are lots of twists and turns and I really don't want to spoil anyone on anything. It is really, really good. Like....I think it's my favorite read so far this year?? (I'm willing to explore the possibility that I had low expectations going in.) The darkness is handled so well, and the ending is so on point, it never felt like the answers were too easy but it also never felt as if there was no hope. If this sounds interesting at all to you you should really give it a read.

And about that - I'll link to an online copy of the book below, but as I understand it this will likely only be available until the end of this year? The author, SenLinYu has a book deal to write a similar (but non HP) story that will be available for sale (Alchemised) in the fall of 2025. I will likely read that one as well!

Anyway, this book is great, read it!

5

• I would have really liked this when I read it chapter by chapter, was this a weekly or a monthly thing?
  - The art by AVENDELL! OMG! Amazingly gooood!!! I love it when a part has art on it!
  - Harry Potter is the true bitch of this world. In the original books, and in this one.
  - Topsy is the only creature that ever survived Draco.
  - Alchemised! I will be running to read that!

This book is written better then most books published by ‘contracted' authors. 

I am irrevocably changed. This book has altered my brain chemistry and will follow me for the rest of my days.

😭 😭 😭 

This is a distressing read that I unfortunately cannot recommend. This book attempts to weave a tragic love story, but instead, it shockingly forces readers to confront and, in a way, rationalize instances of rape and abuse. The narrative is deeply unsettling, as it depicts the main characters enduring irreversible psychological and emotional trauma. The portrayal of such sensitive topics is handled without the necessary care or depth, leaving the reader feeling more horrified than empathetic. Furthermore, the character development is shallow, robbing the story of any meaningful or redemptive qualities. It's disconcerting how the serious issues of abuse and trauma are used as mere plot devices, rather than being addressed with the gravity they deserve. Overall, Manacled left me more traumatized than moved, turning what could have been a powerful story into a harrowing and unpleasant experience.

Let me start by saying I have never read fan-fiction before now, and I had no idea this story was out there until I saw it trending on TikTok. Manacled is hands down the best book I have read in all of 2023. This story is so well written and an interesting take on the Potterverse.

SenLinYu has written the most heartwrenching masterpiece of torture, despair, and longing which is the ultimate enemies-to-lovers story.

While there are a lot of strong themes in this story (read and re-read the trigger warnings), the story is unique while also not being completely unrelatable or irrelevant to the main storyline. This story is extremely dark in some parts and may not be for every reader, but the emotional damage is worth it in the end.

Bawling my eyes out, this touched me deeply.
I can't stop thinking about this...
I never read fanfics before, so detailed, perfectly written.
Is never going to be the same I will never see the movies or read the books the same way.
This was magical.
Draco and Hermione all the way.

Absolutely heart-wrenching masterpiece.

I never write reviews, but I need to leave this review for future me. THIS BOOK, OMG! I did nothing other than reading this for 3 days. It completely wrecked me, made me feel anxious and sad, but in a sort of good way?! I'll never stop thinking about this story and these characters. The author did such a good job exploring trauma during war times, and what it feels like to be lonely. Also, how the world building was expanded beyond the HP books was incredible. I truly don't have words to describe this book, it is now one of my favorite books of all time! Please go read it if you don't mind bawling your eyes out and having this book consume your life lol

You know that feeling you get when you finish something and you're never going to experience it for the first time ever again and it's absolutely devastating. Finishing this feels like a breakup, I really really didn't want this to be over and it's a long ass book

It was absolutely beautiful, from the writing to the plot. You can really feel everything the characters are going through. There's always something happening, you're never bored and it doesn't slow down.

I don't even know how to review this rn, I'm just speechless and sad.

***If anyone wants to know (because I did before picking this up) you don't have to read/watch Harry Potter to understand this book, you can follow just fine.

A MASTERPIECE I TELL YOU!!!
I didn't want this book to end

This was.. surprisingly great. I really really enjoyed it. Well, it's dark, full of drama and I was absolutely depressed while reading it. BUT, it was good.

If you want to read what would have happened if Harry Potter lost the war and Voldy was to rule, then give this one a go. I don't believe I'll ever be able to read Harry Potter now, it has broken it for me!

This was.. surprisingly great. I really really enjoyed it. Well, it's dark, full of drama and I was absolutely depressed while reading it. BUT, it was good.

If you want to read what would have happened if Harry Potter lost the war and Voldy was to rule, then give this one a go. I don't believe I'll ever be able to read Harry Potter now, it has broken it for me!

I have no words....

A fucking masterpiece. Better than 90% of published works I've read. I hate to think that I'll never read anything as well thought out, complex, emotional, and gut wrenching as this again.

This was honestly better than the original HP books. I loved it so much and I have a new found love for the Dramione ship. This FF is 18+ and I would read up on the trigger warnings before getting into it. It is definitely a verryyyy dark romance. I plan on reading some of SenLinYu's other AO3 reads now!