Once Upon a Broken Heart (Once Upon a Broken Heart, #1)

by Stephanie Garber

But Evangeline’s heart was already broken. And she understood the risks she was taking. She knew the rules for visiting Fated churches:

Who done already done had herses???

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.

During her search for the missing door, she’d read that the Prince of Hearts’ church held a different aroma for everyone who visited. It was supposed to smell like a person’s greatest heartbreak. But as Evangeline entered the cool cathedral, the air did not remind her of Luc—there were no hints of suede or vetiver. The dim mouth of the church was slightly sweet and metallic: apples and blood.

Is this foreshadowing?? Who smells lk dat

In one elegant move, the young man reached into the inner pocket of his ripped burgundy coat, pulled out a pure white apple, and took one bite.

Apple??? True love!! My god this book is insufferable already

The Fates weren’t dangerous because they were evil; the Fates were dangerous because they couldn’t tell the difference between evil and good.

So these fates are demigods?

Poison was the Poisoner. A Fate, just like Jacks. “I thought all of the Fates had disappeared,” Evangeline blurted.

Evangeline heard a lot of what a pretty color of hair, it was just like that princess—of course no one could remember that princess’s name or which prince she’d been married to, but almost everyone remarked on it.

Huh??

Apollo took both of her hands in his warm grip. “I want you, Evangeline Fox. I want to write ballads for you on the walls of Wolf Hall and carve your name on my heart with swords. I want you to be my wife and my princess and my queen. Marry me, Evangeline, and let me give you everything.”

Damn calm down u dont even know her

“The arches were one of the most incredible things that the Valors created. They can serve as portals to faraway and unreachable places, and as doors they are impenetrable. Once locked, an arch can only be opened with the proper type of key. If a sealed arch is destroyed, there’s no finding what’s on the other side.”

Evangeline approached, and just like with all the other arches, another rasping whisper came from the stones: You could have unlocked me as well.

Whyyy

“How did I not see it?” The older woman gasped, staring at Evangeline as if she were the most dangerous one in that vault. “You’re the one who will open the Valory Arch.”

WHY.......who is she

“You will know her because she will be crowned in rose gold,” the woman chanted. “She will be both peasant and princess.”

Her hair!!!!

“You cannot marry the prince! The Valory Arch can never be opened!” the matriarch cried.

why does jacks wantthe vallory arch opened?? Was he in love with one of the valors

“The Valory Arch is believed to be the gateway to the Valory. In one version of the story, the Valory was a magical prison built by the Valors. Magic cannot be destroyed, so the Valors said they created the Valory to lock away any dangerous magical objects of power, or foreign captives with magical abilities. They said the Valory was built to protect the North from forces who would wish to destroy it, but…”

“the Valors lied. They didn’t build the Valory to protect the North from its enemies. They built it to lock up an abomination that they’d created. No one knows exactly what the Valors made, but it was so terrible that all the Great Houses turned on the Valors and chopped off all their heads.

“The way I always heard it told is that the lines of a prophecy work like the ridges and the notches of a key. A number of prophetic lines are strung together by a diviner, and then they are carved into a door—or, in this case, an arch. Once this is done, the arch will remain locked until each line of the prophecy has been fulfilled to create the key that will allow the arch to be opened again. It’s rather ingenious. If done well, a prophecy can ensure something stays unopened for centuries.”

“The second version of the story is entirely different. This one claims that the Valory wasn’t a prison for a terrible magic but a treasure chest holding the Valors’ most powerful magical objects. Some believe this was really why the Valors were killed, because the Great Houses wanted to steal their magic and treasure. In this account of the story, the Wardens, those who had remained loyal to the Valors even after their death, locked the arch with the prophecy so that the Valors’ powers and treasures would be prevented from falling into the wrong hands.”

Was Jacks hoping to find the Valors’ greatest treasure, or free their greatest terror?

Dun dun duuuunnnnnnn

Evangeline’s stomach roiled. Any doubts she had about kissing him tonight disappeared. She had to end this spell, no matter how hard it might be for her afterward. “You’ve kept me waiting, wife.” He dragged a flower petal up and down his oiled chest.

At least consumate the marriage first!!

Before she lost her nerve, Evangeline closed her eyes and kissed him.

Baby girl why??? Ur a queen just accept the spell and move on and be rich and powerful

“What have you done, Evangeline?” His harsh words weren’t quite a yell, but they were certainly loud enough that the guards on the other side of the door probably heard. “Why do I feel as if you’ve stabbed me in the heart?”

Love her!!!

Then all at once, he dropped her hand, his skin went gray, his shoulders slumped, his eyes rolled back, and he collapsed onto the bed.

Wtf is going on

If anyone knows who wanted you and Apollo dead, it will be Chaos. He’s the Lord of Spies and Assassins.” “He’s also a vampire,” LaLa supplied dryly.

Vampire?! In a snow white northern kingdom?

want to feel loved. I want it so badly that I cry poison tears, even though I know every time I find someone to love me, it never lasts—it

Evangeline only knew pieces of Jacks’s history, but she knew what he was made to be: a Fate who killed any potential love with his kiss.

“Jacks actually has hope of finding his true love someday. His story promises there’s one girl who’s immune to his kiss. So, I imagine the urges he experiences are even stronger than mine.”

Hmmmm wonder cwho

“His curse is his kiss, and if there’s even a hint of attraction to someone, he’ll be drawn to that person in the hope that she’s the girl his kiss won’t kill. But he always kills them, Evangeline.”

Poison had warned: Even if you never want to see Jacks again, you’ll gravitate toward him until you fulfill the deal you’ve made with him.

“Why are you looking at that book as if it’s dangerous?” “Because it is,” Jacks said. “It’s a very nasty spell book,” LaLa explained. “After the Valors were killed, most magic was banned in the North. So those who still wanted to traffic in it changed the names of their spell books. It’s much easier to get away with buying or possessing books of forbidden arts when no one knows what they are.”

Marisol is evil isnt she