Once Upon a Broken Heart by Stephanie Garber is the first book in a new fantasy series that takes place in the same world as Garber's Caraval.
Evangeline Fox has always been a sucker for true love and love at first sight, so when the love of her life is to be wed to another, she does the unthinkable and makes a deal with The Prince of Hearts to stop the wedding. But The Fates are tricky and often cruel and instead of stopping the wedding, Jacks turns the wedding party to stone. Unable to face the guilt of her request, Evangeline takes on the curse, turning to stone herself.
Six weeks later, Evangeline wakes up a hero, still without love and still with a debt to be paid. She owes The Prince of Hearts three kisses or else her life is forfeit. And so begins a dangerous game where emotions are high, danger lurks at every turn and an intense attraction may just be the ruin of all.
Hmmmm. What to say about this book. I loved Caraval and I liked the second two books in that trilogy. I like the idea of The Fates and I like the games and twists and turns. The world building is neat and I even like our female characters, though they are all very, very similar--they really could be the same person. BUT the description language wears on you after awhile. Things taste like heartbreak and smell like rose colored glasses... I can't even think of any examples right now, but tying the senses to feeling and abstract things like glass castles and starlight, gets old after awhile. This type of imagery is super effective when used sparingly and I think Garber uses it just a bit too much.
That being said, I like Jacks and Evangeline. I like all the pairings Garber has made in her books. The characters play off each other really well and the reader becomes invested in them. Which is why I picked up the second book right away, even with the issues I had with the imagery.
I'm in it to find out what happens next. This one gets 3 stars from me.
That's all for now!
-M-
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