I love listening to this series as audiobooks. I find it helps pull you into the story even more.

When it comes to being a fairytale style, this retelling is one of the best I’ve listened to. the story picks up where the previous one ends, and it’s just as well written. The fast-paced story has a great flowing narration that brings the story to life.

Well deserved 5 star rating, in my opinion.

This book instantly picks up where the first one ends and now Evangeline and Jacks are searching for the 3 other stones so that they can cure the curse - as well as some hidden agendas for a few other fates.

Fleeing as a fugitive after being blamed for her new husband’s murder on their wedding night - the drama and story are just so action packed there isn’t a dull moment. Pretty sure I read this under 12 hours because I literally couldn’t put it down.

I loved the Caravel series and here in the sequel to Once Upon a Broken Heart, Evangeline had to see if she can ever trust again after being betrayed by Jacks. I love the world created by Stephanie Garber.

Rebecca Soler brings this book to life in just the best way!! I love this retelling, its very unexpected and full of plot twists and great characters. I appreciate the nod to Caraval without feeling like we're reading a fanfic. Easy Saturday afternoon into late evening adventure!

4.5/5 Stars

The second book in the Once Upon a Broken Heart trilogy.

Just like I did with the first book, I finished this in under 24 hours because the writing and story are so addictive. I can't get enough of Evangeline and Jacks, and their very complicated relationship. I love how he calls her Little Fox and their banter with one another was one of my favourite parts of the book. The will-they-won't-they vibe of it all was the cherry on the cake. Jacks is probably one of my favourite villains I've read, mostly because he never claims to be anything but the villain. I also loved getting more of a back story for Jacks, and the fates as well. There are so many reveals I truly didn't see coming that kept me on my toes the entire time while reading.

The last 50 pages or so absolutely gutted me, so get ready to feel many feels if you choose to read this. I need the third book... and I need it NOW.

I absolutely loved this book! It was one of my favorite books of the year. I gasped at the ending because Stephanie Garber caught me so off guard. I love the writing too. It feels timeless like a fairytale.

Jacks and Evangeline are back in the second installment of Once Upon a Broken Heart series. In this second book the romance and tension is cranked up and the mystery is even more deadly. Garber has a way of crafting a light fairytale but also mixing in layer upon layer with atmosphere and depth. This installment gave more depth to Jacks and a greater understanding of who he was and what lead to who he is now. This only made the story more captivating and hard to put down,

Whew!! What a whirlwind!! Leave it to Jack’s to make you feel up, down, in between, but then still just fall completely in love with him. This story was wild ride of mixed emotions and what will happen next? I devoured every bit of it. The audio was narrated fantastically! I will definitely be wanting audio on the next version and I will be very impatiently waiting for the last book. Cannot wait for more!!!

Honestly, I hate Evangeline as a character. I loved Garber's other female characters so I had high hopes for her and have held out judgement til now hoping she would improve in this book but she remains such a pitiful and lackluster character. I thought she would go through some kind of development in the book but disappointedly she remained just as irritating as the first book. Girl was so juvenile and made the dumbest decisions. She will literally fall in love with any man who shows her attention/ immediately trust everyone even though they are always trying to kill her or course her trouble. I want to love he so much because she is obviously Jacks' true love---because I did love Jacks character but they cannot just commit to their relationship which is just frustrating at this point. There is still one more book in the series but I'm not sure it is worth the torture.

I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

That ending!!!!! I need the next book right away! I still love Jacks and I dislike him too! LOL Evangeline is one of my favorite book characters. There was so much going on in this book. I didn't want to put it down. I needed to know all the things. I loved this one just as much as I loved the first one. I will be reading the next one as soon as I can. I highly recommend this series. Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the audio arc in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the audiobook arc of The Ballad of Never After by Stephanie Garber
I really didn’t think that The Ballad of Never After could outshine it’s predecessor Once Upon A Broken Heart BUT IT DID! I was hooked from the first minute. Rebecca Soler did a wonderful job bringing these characters even more to life than they already were to me. She put such emotion in her reading that it pulled deep emotions out of me. I was audibly cackling, crying, and gasping.
I’ve loved Evangeline since the first book and Jacks since we meet him in Caraval. Stephanie Garber has done so right by these characters and this book was everything I wanted it to be- including the heartbreak at times.
I’m eagerly awaiting book 3, A Curse for True Love <3
5 out of 5 stars

This was fine. I really loved the caraval series and I was hoping this series would get better with book two but sadly it was also a bit of a let down. The audiobook was incredible though

Is anyone surprised that this book was great? No? Nope! I just adore this world so much and could read about it forever.

I loved the characters in this book. I had no trouble following the plot even though I read the books out of order. I immediately recommended this book to students when I finished reading it. I’m impatiently waiting book three.

Yet another incredible book. I'm obsessed with Stephanie Garber. I love her writing style and her ability to create a world you just sink into and can totally see in your mind.

Unsurprisingly, this book was amazing. I could not put it down, to the point that I got 2 hours of sleep in order to finish it in one day.
The only thing that threw me was the ending. I had heard that the series was a duology, so I was a bit shaken when it ended with a cliffhanger. Especially since I couldn't find info anywhere about if there was going to be a third book when I initially finished it, so I was left pretty uncertain.

I finally finished 'Lightlark' the audio version. I'll admit, I'm not a huge lover of audio books, but I have only listened to a handful and so I really wanted to give this one a go. Mostly because its a Fantasy, but also there was a lot of buzz on social media. While I started listening to the audio version, I ended up borrowing the e-book from my library and finished it the old fashioned way. This is nothing against the voice actor, but I have concluded that I do not enjoy that format, nor does it hold my attention.

Now, getting into this controversial book. The first few chapters were slooooow, It is a different fantasy setting and I felt there was a lot of world building, yet by the end, I didn't really know much. The fmc is Isla, ruler of the Wildlings. She has gathered for the centennial, a 'contest' that occurs every one hundred years with the aim of breaking the curses on the six realms. The other attendees include the 5 rulers of the other realms: Celeste (Starling), Grimshaw (Nightshade), Azul (Skyling), Cleo (Moonling) and King Oro of Lightlark and ruler of Sunling. Each ruler has their own powers, with one exception - Isla was born powerless and has kept this a secret.

The rulers have to break the curse within 100 days and have a prophecy to fulfill. Alliances are made and broken, backstabbing galore and romances bloom and wither. Overall, by the time I reached the midway point, I was all in. The story is a little young (low on spice, no smut), but it still held my interest and I will warn - ended on a cliff hanger. I will likely read the second book in the series and give this one a solid 4/5 stars.

I loved the second book and I can't believe I have to wait for the third one. And that ending!!! I kind of hope in the third book we can get a dual POV. I think it would be fun to have Jack's POV.

I love audiobooks and I thought the narrator did a great job.

This book was not for me. I adored the Caraval series and enjoyed Once Upon a Broken Heart even though it seemed like a few too many concepts. Ballad of the Never After went in a direction I was hoping it wouldn’t. I was hoping it redeemed what I didn’t care for in book 1 but it seemed like it got lost down the rabbit hole. The MC seemed to complain a lot more and I just decided I could not do anymore.

Book 2 starts at the edge of Book 1’s cliffhanger, and the adventure does.not.stop - more magic, more curses, more denial of chemistry, more hilarious banter, and yes, one more heart-stopping ending. I’ll be honest, the sadness, anger, and grief I felt as I finished book 2 simmered, stewed, and boiled over. I was utterly wrecked! How could Stephanie Garber do this!?!? This duology CANNOT end like this! Then, I discovered Garber is writing book 3. YES! Now, I’ll impatiently wait to figure out who is the hero and who is the villain because right now, there’s a hot mess at the end of aisle 2.

The audiobook format is FANTASTIC! Rebecca Soler should read every fairytale ever created! Her inflection, tone, voices, and accents truly creates an unforgettable experience. Download this series today!