The Testaments

Told in three voices this is the story of what happened 15 years after Offred was taken by the eyes. Welcome back to Gilead.

I had reviewed The Handmaid's Tale recently so what better time to review the sequel?

Testaments takes place 15 years after the events of The Handmaid's Tale. It follows three different characters, Aunt Lydia, a girl who grew up in Gilead, and a girl who grew up free in Canada. These stories are woven together seamlessly, and end up intertwining at points.

I personally liked all of the additional information about Gilead, seeing part of the rise, how the schools for the young girls work, how the aunts lived and how life was in Canada outside of Gilead but almost too close for comfort. All of this information made this more interesting but it also made it less realistic. The way they took over the government in particular, its just not plausible, the manpower they would have needed is enormous and there is no realistic way they could have gathered those numbers without getting shut the heck down.

For my favorite perspective I fall with the majority and prefer Aunt Lydia's. Her story is more rounded and provides most of the backstory on Gilead that we get. The more mature perspective is a refreshing change after a couple of chapters from one of the girls.