SuitabookOnce Upon a Broken Heart
Stephanie Garber
- Reading
- Discuss the bargain and its changing consequences as you read. Pause after frightening scenes if useful, and compare the book’s different forms of love without assuming that a happy ending makes every choice wise.
- Themes
- The pursuit of a happy ending: Evangeline has long believed in true love and happy endings, then seeks help after losing the person she loves. The story examines how heartbreak changes what Evangeline expects from love, rather than presenting one settled definition of romance.
- Power, bargains and responsibility: Evangeline promises three kisses to a charismatic but wicked immortal, then discovers that he wants more than she agreed to give. The situation invites attention to unequal power and the consequences of accepting help, while Evangeline is also described as trying to make amends.
- Agency in a magical world: Evangeline is initially influenced by a powerful magical being, then investigates the magical world and sacrifices herself for others’ wellbeing. Her movement from being a pawn towards investigation suggests developing agency, though she remains far from holding equivalent power.
- Worth knowing
- Be aware of deaths or near-deaths, including poisoning, curses, a wolf attack, a vampire bite and a curse turning a wedding party to stone. Kissing, groping and alcohol use also occur.