At a glance
Pages1,248
First published2021
SettingFairytale kingdoms, the Magnificent North
AudienceYA (12-18)
ISBN9124302317
Once Upon a Broken Heart Series 3 Books Collection Set
LuvemBooks Verdict
Best for: Readers who love lush fairytale fantasy with atmospheric worldbuilding, morally complex romantic tension, and a completed trilogy arc they can binge without waiting between volumes.
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Once Upon a Broken Heart Series 3 Books Collection Set gathers Stephanie Garber's complete trilogy — Once Upon a Broken Heart, The Ballad of Never After, and A Curse for True Love — following Evangeline Fox's escalating entanglement with Jacks, the Prince of Hearts, across 1,248 pages of fairytale-inflected fantasy. Critics praised Garber for "exquisitely imagined worldbuilding and her trademark heady romance," and the complete collection is the natural way to experience a narrative built on cliffhangers, betrayal, and tightly linked dramatic momentum. Readers who prefer faster-paced action fantasy or standalone novels may find the serialized, romance-heavy structure demanding, but for fans of atmospheric fairytale worlds and morally complex antagonists, this boxed set delivers the full arc without interruption.
- Is it worth reading?
- For readers drawn to fairytale-inflected fantasy with lush worldbuilding and high-stakes romantic tension, the Once Upon a Broken Heart collection is a compelling and complete package. Critics specifically praised Garber's "exquisitely imagined worldbuilding and her trademark heady romance," and Isabel Ibañez — herself a #1 New York Times bestselling author — described the series as featuring "the swoony villain you've always dreamed about" in a world that will "leave you breathless." The collection format is particularly well-suited to the trilogy's serialized structure, since The Ballad of Never After and A Curse for True Love build directly on prior events and are best experienced without interruption. Readers who prefer faster-paced action fantasy or standalone novels may find the series a less comfortable fit.
- Similar books
- Readers who enjoy the Once Upon a Broken Heart series' blend of fairytale atmosphere, morally complex antagonists, and slow-burn romantic tension will find strong companions among the curated titles below. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab shares the themes of dangerous deals and identity tested by supernatural forces. The Cruel Prince by Holly Black offers a similarly fraught dynamic between a heroine and a wicked, compelling antagonist in a richly imagined faerie world. One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig and Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalco both deliver dark, atmospheric fantasy with romantic tension at their cores. Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo is the pick for readers who want morally grey characters and high-stakes plotting in an immersive fantasy world.
- Who should read this?
- The Once Upon a Broken Heart collection is designed for readers drawn to fairytale-inflected fantasy with a strong romantic throughline, morally complex characters, and high-stakes emotional plotting. It particularly rewards readers who enjoy a fraught protagonist-antagonist dynamic — the tension between Evangeline Fox and Jacks, the Prince of Hearts, built on betrayal, bargains, and shifting power, is the engine that drives all three books. Readers who prefer faster-paced action fantasy with less atmospheric worldbuilding, or who gravitate toward standalone novels rather than tightly serialized arcs, may find the format demanding. Existing fans of Garber's Caraval trilogy are especially natural readers.
- What age is it for?
- Best for ages 13 and up. The Once Upon a Broken Heart series is young adult fantasy featuring morally complex antagonists, romantic tension built on betrayal and dangerous bargains, and escalating magical stakes — content calibrated for confident teen readers and above. The series has broad adult crossover appeal, as reflected in its international readership and #1 New York Times bestseller status.
- About Stephanie Garber
- Stephanie Garber is an American author of young adult fiction known for the Caraval and Once Upon a Broken Heart series, which are interconnected trilogies.
- What's included in the boxed set?
- The Once Upon a Broken Heart Series 3 Books Collection Set is a paperback boxed set published by Hodderscape Ltd, released on January 23, 2024. It collects all three novels — Once Upon a Broken Heart, The Ballad of Never After, and A Curse for True Love — in a single package running to 1,248 pages across the trilogy. The set is available in English and is designed to allow readers to experience the complete story without interruption, which is particularly relevant given the tightly serialized structure that carries cliffhangers and unresolved threads across all three volumes.
- How is the worldbuilding?
- Worldbuilding is one of the trilogy's most consistently praised qualities. Critics specifically credited Garber with "exquisitely imagined worldbuilding," and the series features a fairytale-inflected world in which deals with dangerous figures carry real magical consequences and locations like the Magnificent North carry genuine narrative weight. The atmospheric, lush quality of Garber's world is frequently cited alongside her trademark romantic tension as the two pillars of the series' appeal — and the three-book format allows that world to be explored at full depth across a complete arc.
Summarize this book
Is it worth reading?
Who should read this?
What age is it for?
About Stephanie Garber
What's included in the boxed set?
How is the worldbuilding?
Summarize this book
This three-book paperback collection gathers Stephanie Garber's complete Once Upon a Broken Heart trilogy in a single 1,248-page set. The story begins with Evangeline Fox striking a desperate deal with Jacks, the wicked Prince of Hearts, to stop the love of her life from marrying someone else — setting off a chain of betrayal, forbidden alliances, and escalating magical stakes. The Ballad of Never After follows Evangeline as she reckons with Jacks's betrayal in an increasingly dangerous world, and A Curse for True Love closes the arc with Evangeline apparently married to a handsome prince in a legendary castle, yet stripped of all memory of the devastating price she paid — while her husband plots to kill Jacks. Published by Hodderscape Ltd on January 23, 2024, the set is designed to be read as one continuous narrative.
Follow up
What happens in The Ballad of Never After?
How does the trilogy end in A Curse for True Love?
Who is Jacks, the Prince of Hearts?
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Age & Reading Level
Recommended age
Ages 12–18
Reading level
Young adult
3 content notes · who it suits
Content to know about
morally complex antagonists and dangerous supernatural bargains
romantic tension involving betrayal and deception
memory loss used as a form of emotional manipulation
Best for: Ages 13+ — YA fantasy with romantic tension, betrayal, and deals with dangerous supernatural figures; content is pitched at confident teen readers and above.
Skip if you prefer fast-paced action fantasy or standalone novels with self-contained resolutions.
Editorial Review
The Once Upon a Broken Heart Series Collection by Stephanie Garber gathers all three novels — Once Upon a Broken Heart, The Ballad of Never After, and A Curse for True Love — following Evangeline Fox's dangerous entanglement with Jacks, the wicked Prince of Hearts. Garber is the #1 New York Times and internationally bestselling author whose books have been translated into over thirty languages, and this boxed set delivers the full arc of her beloved trilogy in one package.
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