Gail Barth

Ms. Atwood says she kept getting asked how Gilead fell (and we know from the ‘symposium notes’ at the end of the original that it did fall), and this sequel provides the answer. I struggled a bit with the Aunt Lydia of this book versus the original, but it wasn’t so jarring that I couldn’t appreciate it. And she retains much of the toughness and all of the steely resolve. I wasn’t expecting the ending but, again, I could appreciate it. The unexpectedness made it hard to put the book down, especially the last hundred or so pages. And finishing it on the same day that so much politically happened in the US made it especially timely: Gilead fell to corruption; what will now happen to us? Overall, a satisfying sequel and a good read.