Once Upon a Broken Heart
Ratings309
Average rating3.9
El libro me encantó muchísimo, la creación de los destinos se me hizo algo genial y como su poder va acorde a su maldición, y los valor son otra genialidad aunque en este libro apenas y se mencionan, pero el ilustrarlos como seres casi omnipotentes es algo woow. Por otro lado todo lo que le dijo Jacks a evangeline sobre Luc tenía total razón y el final con lo que evangeline deduse espero que no sea verdad, pero si lo es entonces será algo formidable. Me encanto que evangeline se diera cuenta de la verdadera naturaleza de sus verdaderos deseos y sobre todo el hecho de que tras ese descubrimiento se deja los estándares de la doncella en peligro. Estoy ansiosa por leer los otros libros.
Este libro me ha encantado porque me ha hecho volver atrás en el tiempo, a un tiempo en el que adoraba la fantasía y quedaba fascinaba con libros como Harry Potter, Las crónicas de Narnia, Oscuros, Crepúsculo o Los juegos del hambre. Hacía años que yo no me adentraba en ese mundo por miedo, miedo a no saber si me seguiría gustando (la presión de hacerse mayor). Ahora estoy abierta a mil recomendaciones de fantasía porque no sé ni por dónde empezar. Siempre habrá un hueco en mi corazón en mi corazón para este libro y su autora porque me hicieron volver a creer.
Si te gustó en algún momento la fantasía y no sabes si probar, prueba con este. Creo, CREO, que no te arrepentirás. La única pega que le puedo sacar es que es juvenil y no estoy acostumbrada a todo lo que eso conlleva.
Cassandra Clares review was spot on: “a sugar-crusted, poison spiked romp through a vibrant world of fairytale intrigue, tangled romance, and forbidden magic.” I loved the weaving of classic fairytale motifs into this story with bright Disneyesque imagery. Evangeline is a bit naive I hope to see a little character development throughout the series.
You know when you've JUST finished a book and you're still riding that emotional high that the book caused? That is exactly what happened! Granted it was also midnight at the end of a VERY long day BUT I will say the author surprised me by how much she captured my attention.... I did start to suspect certain things were gonna happen based on yknow events and stuff, however it's the WAY she did it
Also her imagination is just
I loved it! Sure, the first 52% of the book waa boring, but after that? Oh boy. I LOVED IT! The cliffhanger? Chief's kiss.
Actually gets a 3.5/5 stars... idk if I will pick up the second book. TBH I probably will because Jacks is hot asf
dnf at 50%. i am honestly not sure what to rate this because it reads like a fanfiction and paces like a fanfiction, in the style of skipping over a lot but giving 10000x detail to things like character outfit descriptions and what the male lead's eyes look like. so i would have absolutely loved this book at 15 years old. additionally, for the 50% that I did read, I had a great taylor swift song on and i honestly was enjoying the vibes. i'm caught between two stars and five stars and there is no in between. if i ever have a teenage daughter she can rate this for me
Really fast paced imo, okay story. definitely not the best thing ive read but I still enjoyed it
Contains spoilers
I really want to start by saying I do not agree with the people who say you can skip reading the Caraval trilogy before starting this. If you do skip Caraval I think you will find it difficult to be drawn into this trilogy because you won’t have the background knowledge or feelings for Jacks, as an already established character. I could see this causing some disconnect and disinterest in Once Upon a Broken Heart because of the pacing and plot set up. You need those residual feelings to keeping driving you forward during the set up.
I enjoyed how the book started the connection between Jacks and Evangeline. How they met and the deal they made was a great opening. With the exception of the plot including / being driven by Tella and Scarlett sending Evangeline to the magnificent north. This would have been fine IF this part of the plot had a check in at some stage or some sort of wrap up in the last instalment. It kind of just became a plot hole.
I loved the new location in this world and the imagery was lovely. The story curse was interesting and I enjoyed this theme through out the trilogy.
Over all I really enjoyed my time with this one, and it had me excited to see where this trilogy was going.
3.5/5 ✧･ﾟ: ✧･ﾟ:
I don't even know what to say yet - I did like this, but I don't think I loved it as much as everyone else does (please don't hate me) - it's definitely not the book, it's a me thing
RTC
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score card:
plot: 3/5
characters: 3/5
world/setting: 4.5/5
pacing: 4/5
enjoyment: 3/5
total: 3.5/5ੈ✩‧₊˚
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₊˚⊹♡ reading log
28/04 5:27pm ୨ৎ
ok so are we team jacks or are we team rhysand i need to know - what are these men doing to me what is GOING ON
28/04 3:17pm ୨ৎ
aw jacks that's not cool man i did not see that coming am i blind?
28/04 11:33am ୨ৎ
marisol don't betray me please i was really starting to like you - we've switched over to the audiobook
27/04 6:30pm ୨ৎ
ok damn jacks why you gotta do me like that DAMN
26/04 2:17pm ୨ৎ
omg i love everyones enthusiasm for this and i'm only 13% in but i get it? there's some sort of drug in this i swear it's very magical, it reminds me of like, tinker bell/the og barbie movies (swan lake in particular)
₊˚⊹♡ pre-reading
oh my god guys i'm buying into more romantasy books i can't believe it - i have a feeling im not going to like this as much as ACOTAR but we'll see everyone says this is like fairy tales in a bottle which i'm not toooooo sure about but i'm trying to have an open mind, i know so many people adore this
4.5 Stars
I loved it. Though the story was not straight to the point (and was overly whimsy at times) so some points got lost on the way and were there for a pick up later on, I quite enjoyed Evangeline and Jacks.
Happy to binge the rest of the series.
Overall I liked this book more than Caraval, although it suffers from the same kind of repetitive internal conflict/monologue and descriptions of people and places taking up entire pages. Also I think I got spoilers for what happens next in the Caraval series? Which is kind of a bummer since I still have to read 2 books and like 800 pages and now I know where the story (most likely) ends. I didn't even realise it was the same universe before Scarlett and Donatella were mentioned 😅 Oh well my bad
3.5 o 4.0
Entiendo un poco el hype que tiene el libro pero queda corto en varios aspectos, me encantó no digo que no pero ni mayor disgusto es Evangeline, me exaspera muchísimo, creo que de haber tenido que aguantarla como lo hizo Jacks la hubiera entregado a los vampiros o yo misma me deshacía de ella. Seguramente lea los otros dos libros pero por Dios, ojalá la pelaita está abra los ojos y no sea tan pendeja, me enoja.
Enjoyable, especially in the beginning since I was flying through it. However in the ending my interest in the story slowed down a bit. I will be reading the second book though!
This book does 100% not deserve the hype it's getting.
I can see why people are initially intrigued - the whimsical setting draws you to the book but it ends right there.
The characters make zero sense and are completely flat. The decisions they make are illogical and stupid which is especially frustrating when large sections are written in this stream of thought style that just makes you skim and skip. To illustrate: in 3 pages we go from “Oh I don't know this person really, even though I just tried to ruin their life for my own benefit. Well but then I tried to undo it so it must be fine right? Ah yeah I do feel kind of bad about that. And after all they are so sweet and had it so rough. Yeah. I'm a terrible person. So I should totally make amends. Or should I? On the other hand they totally might have screwed me over before. Maybe. Totally. Nah, probably not. And they are so important to me after all. Even though I don't know them. But whose fault is that really? Ok maybe theirs too a little. But also mine I guess. But I've had it rough too.....” and it just goes ON AND ON AND ON like this with nothing happening. And Evangeline as a main character is far too stupid, naive, twisted and egocentric for me to want to read page after page about her decision elaboration process.
Then let's move on to the plot. The plot is an utter disaster. Like those videos of 10 cars slowly spinning out of control on an icy day and crashing simultaneously. Everything seems super sudden, we go from A-B-C-ha! Jk - back to B- and so on. Nothing made sense, everything is just reversed if it fits where the story line decides to go at random and sections that would have been interesting to be elaborates on are skipped entirely.
And lastly, the writing style. To be fair, it is extremely hard to pull off a whimsical writing style. And other than Erin Morgenstern I have yet to come across an author that does this well and does not make me wonder what the hell I just read (I had the same problem with Gracekeepers). In this book, ever color has to have a food or feeling component to a point where it takes me out of the reading experience because I start to wonder how these components can be connected. And sadly this dreamy style is interrupted with really poor and cringy dialogue between characters to illustrate:
Jacks and Evangeline pull up at this castle thing that - naturally- looks all purple and shiny and fairy tale-y:
“Evangeline imagines this was the place where fairytales were formed. Then she immediately hoped she was wrong, given that Jacks would only ruin whatever was inside. “Did you bring me here to destroy someone's happily ever after?” She asked”
And I cannot help but imagine her voice in this squeaky whiny tone.
So a big nono for me. The ideas where there but the plot, characters and writing just did not bring them across.
03/01/24: I have picked this already once, read the first part and decided it wasn't for me. The motivation of the MC was for me somehow to weak to even start with. I decided I would pick it up again, mainly because Vippi loved the trilogy and kept talking about it. I hope it will work for me this time.
Review:
From the premise I had started off biased. The idea that the bargaining chip with a potentially dangerous being was kissing had given me the idea that the story was only focused on romance and love triangles or polymers. Until 30% I still wasn't entirely convinced because even though the falling in love was fictitious, the dynamic had the feel of a love triangle. once I got past that hurdle, I was hooked on the story, its mysteries and characters. But let's go in order.
The book is set in a fantasy world. It seems that the continent is divided into a northern part that takes a bit of inspiration from a Nordic and Harry Potterian setting (cold climate, fairy-tale atmosphere, creatures like dragons, lots of legends and magic - with lots of shops selling potions and spell books and very fairy-tale names). Not having read caraval I can't say whether the setting was described in more detail in the trilogy, but I would have preferred more depth and cohesion. Perhaps a map of the whole continent where the events of Caraval and Once Upon a Broken Heart take place would have come in handy. I note that there is a map of the magnificent North (very nice and in fairy tale style) but not of the Middle Empire (southern part of the containing where the story begins). In short, world building is very interesting but lacks cohesion.
The plot has a strong build-up (tension) and kept me on my toes until the end. I really want to know where and how it will end. The story is told in 3rd person by Evangeline, so it is one of those situations where you either like or dislike the voice of the protagonist. Evangeline is naive and stubborn, but the author in my opinion was good at reworking all the doubts and insecurities of the protagonist, because in the end I cared about her as well as all the secondary characters.
The secondary characters I found them sufficiently characterised and many still remain a mystery, considering the length of the book, perhaps the reason why I'm interested to know more about them and what role they will play in the following books.
In short, this story, the world and the characters are all shrouded in an aura of mystery, with Disney-style curses distorting the truth. Every piece of information is cleverly revealed to the reader drop by drop with a good balance between mystery and characterisation. It all contributes to building up this tension of wanting to unravel mystery after mystery and gives one a thirst for answers.
Unexpectedly, I really enjoyed the book and devoured it. I will definitely read the second one. I hope the second one delves further into the world and setting, bringing us closer to the cause of all the curses and I hope Evangeline matures by learning from her experiences. Recommended!
PS. Jacks & Chaos are in my heart. I hope a prequel spin-off is made about Chaos (unless this has already been done with Caraval).
Recensione:
Dalla premessa ero partito prevenuta. L'idea che la merce di scambio con un essere potenzialmente pericoloso fossero dei baci mi aveva dato l'idea che la storia fosse concentrata solamente sul romance e su triangoli e polimeri amorosi. Fino al 30% non ero ancora del tutto convinta perché anche se l'innamoramento era fittizio, la dinamica aveva il sapore di un triangolo amoroso. una volta passato questo scoglio mi sono appassionata alla storia, ai suoi misteri e ai personaggi. Ma andiamo con ordine.
Il libro è ambientato in un mondo fantastico. Sembra che il continente sie diviso in una parte a Nord che prende un po ispiratione de un' ambientatione nordica e harrypotteriana (clima freddo, atmosfera fiabesca, creature come draghi, tante leggende e magia -con tanto di negozi che vendono pozioni e libri di incantesimi e con nomi molto fiabeschi). Non avendo letto caraval non posso dire se l'ambientazione fosse stata descritta più in dettaglio nella trilogia, pero avrei preferito avere più profondità e coesione. Magari una mappa di tutto il continente dove si svolgono le vicende di Caraval e once Upon a broken heart avrebbe fatto comodo. Noto che c'è una mappe del magnifico Nord (molto carina e in stile fiabesco) ma non dell'impero di Mezzo (parte sud del contenente dove la storia inizia). Insomma, world building molto interessante ma manca di coesione.
La trama è caratterizzata da forte build-up (tensione) e mi ha tenuto sulle spine fino alla fine. voglio proprio sapere dove e come andra a finire. La storia è raccontato ine 3º persona da Evangeline, quindi è una di quelle situazioni in cui la voce della protagonista vi piace o non vi piace. Evangeline è ingenua e testarda, però l'autrice secondo me è stata brave a rielaborare tutti i dubbi e le insicurezze della protagonista, perché al fine mi importava di lei come di tutti i personaggi secondari. I personaggi secondari li ho trovati sufficiente mente caratterizzati e molti rimangono ancora un mistero, considerando la lunghezza del libro, forse ragione per cui mi interessa sapere di più su di loro e che ruolo andranno a ricoprire nei libri successivi.
Insomma, questa storia, il mondo e i personaggi sono tutti avvolti da un'aura di mistero, con maledizioni in stile disneyano che distorcono la verità. Ogni informazione viene sapientemente rivelata al lettore goccia per goccia con un buon equilibrio tra mistero e caratterizzazione. Il tutto contribuisce a costruire tutta questa tensione di voler svelare mistero dopo mistero e dà sete di rsiposte.
Inaspettatamente il libro mi è piaciuto molto e l'ho fivorato. sicuramente leggero il secondo. Spero che il secondo approfondisca ulteriormente il mondo e l'ambientazione, portandoci + vicini alla causa di tutte le maledi zioni e spero che Evangeline maturi imparando dalle sue esperienze. Consigliato!
Jacks & Chaos nel cuore
PS. spero che venga fatto 1 spin-off prequel su Chaos (a meno ciò sia già stato fatto con Caraval).
