Once Upon A Broken Heart by Stephanie Garber

Read Dates: May 9, 2023 – May 9, 2023
Publication Date: September 28, 2021
Source: Owned hardback

Goodreads — Amazon

Alright sooooo ya know those books that TEAR YOU APART but you kinda like it and you immediately seek out book two so your heart (or the pieces that are left) can be further burned to ash and stomped into oblivion? Yea. That was this book.

I was seeking a series that wouldn’t tear me apart like the Throne of Glass series was actively doing to me more severely with each book I picked up… and I found a different series to absolutely gut me.

At the time of writing this, I have read all three books in the series. And I can tell you, all three will crush you. It’s beautiful. It hurts… but it’s beautiful.

Always promise less than you can give, for Fates always take more.
Do not make bargains with more than one Fate.
And, above all, never fall in love with a Fate.

So the idea behind this book… a girl is in love but her love ends up snubbing her and becoming engaged to another woman. On the day of the wedding, our FMC seeks out the door to the Prince of Heart’s church and makes a wish. Now, like most villains (think Ursula) a wish is granted but in a way that comes with unwanted circumstances. In this case, the wedding is, indeed, stopped but all the attendees (bride, groom, priest, townspeople…) turn to stone. Our FMC, Evangeline, is selfless, though, and sacrifices herself to save the lot of them, turning herself to stone instead. Evangeline is then saved from the curse by another Fate, beings who are magical but also a bit cursed. Evangeline and her step-sister are then invited to Nocte Neverending where the Crown Prince of the Magnificent North, Apollo Acadian, will choose a wife. The story goes wild from there. There’s Apollo, there’s Jacks, there’s Evangeline’s step-sister, Marisol… there are so many moving parts and so much… ughhh. My heart just gets tugged this way and that.

“I believe there are far more possibilities than happily ever after or tragedy. Every story has the potential for ininite endings.”

Apollo is alright. But he’s the good guy kinda guy. Ya know? Wants to keep Evangeline safe and sees to her needs and whatnot. Which is great! But it’s just not for me. I like a morally gray kinda guy. Which is cool because we also have…

Jacks! He’s just delightful. And by delightful, I mean there’s nothing delightful about him other than the way he’s an absolute MENACE. I love it. I loved reading chapters with him in them and I was absolutely OBSESSED with the bond they share. You see, when Jacks grants her wish for the wedding to stop, he also bestows upon her three hearts scarred onto her wrist representing three kisses for him to call upon at any time. But YOU SEE, anyone Jack’s kisses… dies.

“It wasn’t that long ago that I saw you in my church, willing to promise me almost anything to make the pain stop. Was that a lie? Or have you already forgotten the way heartbreak rips apart the soul piece by piece, how it turns you into a masochist, making you long for the thing that just eviscerated you until there’s nothing left of you to be destroyed?”

Ughh, this was just such a good book. So well-written and the plot was just *chef’s kiss*. The beginning was a bit slow while we waited for Evangeline to make her way to The Magnificent North but the entire book after that was golden.

There are twists and turns and love stories and incredibly interesting characters with entrancing backstories. I just loved this book so much. So much so that I immediately jumped into book two and then cursed myself as I had to wait half a year for the third and final book to come out.

This one is definitely worth it. Go read it. It’s beautiful. Just make sure you get all three before you start. Ya gon’ need ‘em. 

He held on to her as if she were a grudge, his body rigid and tense, as if he really didn’t want her there, and yet his arms were tight around her waist as though he had no intention of ever letting her go.