The Testaments review: Continuing the story of The Handmaid’s Tale

The Testaments is the dazzling, informative sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale. We waited for years for the sequel, but is it worth it?

For years, we’ve had questions about Gilead, what became of Offred, and how the totalitarian society fell. The Testaments offered a way to answer some of those questions. And yes, just some. not all of my questions have been answered, but that’s okay.

The dazzling sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale is certainly worth a read (or listen if you opt for Audible and audiobooks). In fact, I listened through Audible and loved the fact that Ann Dowd was the one narrating all of Aunt Lydia’s chapters. It brought the character to life in a way that the Hulu series, The Handmaid’s Tale, has managed to do.

What makes the sequel worth your time? Is there a way The Testaments could be improved upon? Here are my thoughts after reading the novel.

Enough questions answered

I will repeat that not all of my questions were answered. However, they don’t need to be. After all, The Handmaid’s Tale and now The Testaments are more of items in history, documents that have been left behind to listen to, read, and study. History doesn’t offer a complete tale. We’re left with a lot of questions about how societies fell and why some people come to power and others don’t.

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That’s what made The Handmaid’s Tale so special, and it’s what continues to make The Testaments special. The two books go hand-in-hand, creating this world almost like an interesting historical study.

And it’s even scarier knowing that this could be possible. We just have to look at the world today, some of the societies out there, and know that Gilead could be real.

Leaving some of the questions unanswered makes us think. We’re left assuming, dissecting, and exploring.

Understanding the earlier days

One of the questions we always have when it comes to these societies is how people can join them. The Man in the High Castle recently answered some of those questions. Why did John and Helen Smith join with the Nazis instead of fighting against the racist society?

The Testaments offers the same through Aunt Lydia’s eyes. We’re taken back to the time when Gilead began. Women were rounded up and degraded. Some would crumble under the pressure and be executed. Others would flourish through inner strength and the willingness to concede.

Aunt Lydia was one of those women, agreeing to do the bidding of men. There were elements of compassion within her as she tried to do right by her girls, but she was also cunning and ruthless when necessary. She was a survivor, which is something The Handmaid’s Tale has been able to show us.

The Testaments does offer more heart to the character. There are human qualities to her, with chapters devoted to her story—her telling of her own story. There’s no reason for her to lie, and she does admit her faults along the way.

Getting to know Lydia more is essential. We need to see why she takes the path she does, understand her next moves, and get to know why she cares so deeply for young women.

Two young and idealistic girls

Set 15-16 years after The Handmaid’s Tale, we get a story of two young girls. They’re stories told through testimony, and its clear that eventually they make it through the story. We also learn that they’re sisters, daughters of Offred, which isn’t all that surprising.

What’s so brilliant about the book is that we see these two young girls who have grown up in different cultures. Agnes (Aunt Victoria) has grown up with an inability to read and write. She has to learn it when she becomes an aunt, which causes some doubt in her mind. Then there’s the issues of believing that Gilead is right.

There are always questions of how these types of societies can survive, and it all comes through teachings. Agnes is sure that she’s lesser than her male counterparts. She believes that the place she is in is right and continually follows the rules. There are times she struggles, as would anyone, but she believes the words of Gilead.

Then there’s Daisy/Nichole/Jade. The younger daughter of Offred has grown up in Canada, which gives her freedoms and a voice of her own. She grows up with entirely different views on life and her place in society compared to Agnes.

In a way, I wished The Testaments could focus on this more. I would love to see a story post-The Testaments on the two young women, finding their way around Canada together with their mother. I want to see how their two views of the world clash but how they can grow an understanding of each other.

This is my own negative thought of the book. It told a story but not the real story. It shared who helped bring Gilead down, but not the entire fall of the regime, and it didn’t go into the lives of the two girls. But then, it was never meant to. After all, their story is told through testimony. They stick to facts more than feelings, and that leaves so many unanswered questions.

Explaining the novel

One of my favorite parts of The Testaments on Audible was Margaret Atwood’s ending. She shares about the creation of the novel, why it came about and how it was created.

We get this insight into a novel that many authors don’t get to share. There’s a chance to share when it was written, which included during a mudslide!

But more importantly, it’s a reminder that something like Gilead could happen. In fact, it’s happened in the world, whether in the current day in various parts of the world or in the past. There’s the threat of it happening again now more than it was in 1985 when The Handmaid’s Tale was written.

Atwood waited to bring this book out, although not all by choice. She took her time to develop a tale that felt raw and honest, and a scary look at what could be.

Was the book needed? Is The Handmaid’s Tale on Hulu enough? The Testaments adds more to the world of Gilead, showing that people are always plotting, that the wrong people in power won’t always last. There’s always some sort of light at the end of the tunnel, but not everyone will see it. This is certainly a necessary sequel to flesh out the world more and offer a deeper story to the world than just from the point of view from one character.

What did you think of The Testaments? Which books are you ready to read? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

The Testaments is now available to purchase on Amazon. Get it with two-day free shipping or on Kindle Unlimited with a 30-day free trial of Amazon Prime.