Review of ‘The Ballad of Never After’ (Once Upon a Broken Heart #2) by Stephanie Garber. Discover the sequel to Once Upon a Broken Heart: a romantic fantasy full of dark curses, an expanding magic system, and the irresistible love-hate dynamic between Evangeline Fox and the Prince of Hearts, Jacks. The Ballad of Never After takes you to a world where trust is never a given, where a deadly curse raises the stakes, and where Evangeline must learn to master her own magic for the first time. If you’re a fan of this series or of morally grey characters like Jacks, this second installment is a must-read with a cliffhanger that begs for book three.
‘The Ballad of Never After’ by Stephanie Garber is a sequel with an exciting curse and a fun cliffhanger, but with characters that don’t quite convince me
Synopsis
Not every love is meant to be.
After Jacks, the Prince of Hearts, betrays her, Evangeline Fox swears she’ll never trust him again. Now that she’s discovered her own magic, Evangeline believes she can use it to restore the chance at happily ever after that Jacks stole away.
But when a new terrifying curse is revealed, Evangeline finds herself entering into a tenuous partnership with the Prince of Hearts again. Only this time, the rules have changed. Jacks isn’t the only force Evangeline needs to be wary of. In fact, he might be the only one she can trust, despite her desire to despise him.
Instead of a love spell wreaking havoc on Evangeline’s life, a murderous spell has been cast. To break it, Evangeline and Jacks will have to do battle with old friends, new foes, and a magic that plays with heads and hearts. Evangeline has always trusted her heart, but this time she’s not sure she can. . . .
Review
After Jacks, the Prince of Hearts, betrays her, Evangeline Fox swears she’ll never trust him again. Now that she’s discovered her own magic, she believes she can manage without him and wants to claim her long and happy life through her own strength. But when a terrifying, deadly curse comes to light, she’s forced to partner with Jacks once more. Although the power dynamics have shifted considerably this time, and he might just be the only one she can trust.
Let’s talk about this limited edition for a second, because wow, how gorgeous is that?? I’m genuinely amazed every time by what the team at Boekerij manages to create with these books. Definitely a must-have if you like collecting limited editions!
The storyline holds up well in this installment too: there’s a new, looming curse, old friends and new enemies show up, and the magic system gets expanded in a way I really enjoyed discovering. Just your classic YA fantasy story. Still, the whole thing felt more childish than mature to me, less layered than I expected from a sequel. That’s mostly down to the characters, who made it a bit harder for me to take the story fully seriously.
Evangeline is still so naive that it borders on irritating. She believes in the good in everyone to the point where it stops feeling believable, especially since she’s already seen proof of the opposite multiple times? And Jacks is honestly just annoying sometimes too, tbh. But I love him still haha, and that pretty much sums up why this series works: he remains that grey, unpredictable character you can’t get enough of, even when he’s acting like an annoying mysterious little brat. Lala was fine, I guess, but again not particularly memorable this time around. She adds to the story without really standing out. Chaos, on the other hand, is a character I genuinely got excited about: fun, interesting, and exactly the kind of chaotic energy (heh, small pun, always fun) this story needed.
The back-and-forth between Jacks and Evangeline is also starting to wear a bit thin for me. I get that the love-hate dynamic is a big part of this series’ appeal, but in this installment it felt just a touch too forced, like the tension was being artificially stretched rather than growing organically. I hope book three finally brings some more clarity here. And then there’s Luc, who keeps popping up out of nowhere at the most inconvenient moments. Honestly? I’d rather be rid of him lol, just go away, Luc.
What ultimately ends this review on a positive note is the cliffhanger. Garber really knows how to close out a book: exciting, unexpected, and with just enough open questions to leave you begging for book three. And it makes me so curious about the final installment that I have no choice but to read it.
Final thoughts? A decent sequel with an interesting magic system and a great cliffhanger, though the characters and the love-hate dynamic could’ve been sharper for my taste.
Rating
6/10
Details
- Trigger warnings: Blood and injury, manipulation, grief and loss, emotional trauma, curses and magic-induced pain
- Representation: The book features a predominantly white, heteronormative cast with limited on-page diversity. It focuses more on fairy-tale archetypes and emotional themes like love, betrayal, and sacrifice than on representation of marginalized identities. Luc is described as having brown skin, which adds a touch of ethnic diversity.
- Genre: Fantasy (young adult)
- Pages: 416
- Publication date: September 13, 2022
- Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
- About the author:
Stephanie Garber is the #1 New York Times and internationally bestselling author of the Caraval and Once Upon a Broken Heart series. Her books have been translated into more than thirty languages. Alchemy of Secrets is her debut novel for adults and will be published around the world.
