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Manacled
Harry Potter is dead. In the aftermath of the war, in order to strengthen the might of the magical world, Voldemort enacts a repopulation effort. Hermione Granger has an Order secret, lost but hidden in her mind, so she is sent as an enslaved surrogate to the High Reeve until her mind can be cracked.
Fanfiction for Harry Potter by J. K. Rowling.
Words: 370,256
Fanfiction for Harry Potter by J. K. Rowling.
Words: 370,256
925 pages, Hardcover
First published August 19, 2019
14.8k people are currently reading
171k people want to read
About the author
SenLinYu
9 books3,994 followersSenLinYu grew up in the Pacific Northwest and studied classical liberal arts and culture. They started writing in the Notes app of their phone during their baby’s nap time. Their collected online works have garnered over twenty million individual downloads and have been translated into twenty-three languages. They live in Portland with their family. ALCHEMISED is their first novel.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 22,524 reviews
September 19, 2023
reread — upgraded to 5 stars ✩⋆
so we’re all collectively suffering again this time of year by reading dramione fics huh?
* * *
first read (2021) — 4.75 stars ✩⋆
this ✨dramione✨ fic is one of the most depressing things i've ever read and i fucking love it.
everyone- and i mean everyone was raving about this on tiktok so i was like ehh okay i'll read this. it's dark? depressing? soul-crushing? everyone died? voldy and the death eaters won the war? hell yes.
my shipping status is a mess okay? bear with me.
➵ movies: harry x hermione // there's a reason why PoA is my favorite.
➵ books: ron x hermione // that slowburn, friends to lovers, bicker like an old married couple dynamic? fuuuuck yes.
➵ fanon: DRAMIONE ALL THE FUCKING WAY // the enemies to lovers, complex anti-heroes that only have a soft spot for the person they love and has a grey moral background just hits different.
✧ p l o t
so yeah anyways, i fucking loved this. there's no point in sugar coating anything. this was, as Ronald would say, bloody brilliant. this didn't even feel like a fanfic because the writing is that good. and @SenLinYu and @AVENDELL bishhhh i fucking love y'all thank you for creating this masterpiece and the most beautiful, yet haunting fanfic/fanart i've ever seen.
➵ TW: rape, attempted rape, violence, torture, mass murder, war, physical and mental abuse, just- EVERYTHING. this book is really dark right off the bat so keep that in mind.
p.s. this is gonna be a long ass review because i have so much emotions and i need to let it out so thx for listening to my ted talk in advance ♡
\\ WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD AND MY INNER NERD IS GONNA COME OUT IN THIS REVIEW DON'T JUDGE ME //
･ﾟﾟ･｡｡･ﾟﾟ･ PART I: HANDMAIDS TALE 2.0 ･ﾟﾟ･｡｡･ﾟﾟ･．
➵ November 2004 - March 2005
of-fucking-course this book starts with Umbridge "accidentally" leaving Hermione in solitary confinement for 16 months. that bitch. you know, i've always wondered what it was like if Voldy won the war. like what would happen ya know? but then-
i aLwaYS WoNDereD whAT wOulD HapPEN iF voLdY WoN okaaaayy well shit. i never imagined it that way sheesh. and apparently Voldy avada kedavra'd Harry 6 times, hung his body up the Astronomy Tower so the Order survivors can see his rotten corpse, all the surviving females are forced to be a part of this "breeding" programs as "surrogates" for the Death Eaters because most of the pureblood females are infertile or barren and they need to procreate more purebloods so...
... yeah. this book is d-a-r-k, DARK.
my girl Hermione was so broken in this part. she lost some of her memories from the war, she was sold to Draco, had depression, anxiety, agoraphobia, ptsd, and survivor's guilt. she's also raped by Draco for 6 months (5 times a month because of the breeding program) and is being tortured by Legilimency (where someone invades your memories and apparently it hurts like a bitch), almost raped by Graham Montague, and had her eye gouged out by Draco's wife, Astoria (don't worry, he and Astoria never did anything they hated each other).
yeah... our girl has been through a lot here. and Malfoy? hated him (calm down i only hated him in this part when i didn't know wtf was going on). i just wanted to-
but also... not because High Reeve Draco is scary af.
listen. i knew something was up with him because we get glimpses of the real Draco. and his reaction when he needs to "breed"? yeah not a normal reaction. i can tell he was in pain and he was just holding it in. i knew something was up. and i was right!! when i found out what i found out- THE PAIN OH MY GOD.
anywho this part ends with Hermione getting pregnant and she gets into a coma and her memories start coming back.
･ﾟﾟ･｡｡･ﾟﾟ･ PART II: DRAMIONE >>> THE ORDER ･ﾟﾟ･｡｡･ﾟﾟ･．
➵ flashback; March 2002 - July 2003
ok ok. this is where shit really begins. so this is the part where EVERY. TEA. IS. SPILLED. we finally find out what the fuck happened and why she lost certain parts of her memories.
so we find out that Hermione is one of the main healers and dark curse specialist, so she's in charge of healing practically everybody. she's a "nOn ACtiVe MEmBer" of the Order who "doesn't fight" (lol). this begins with Kingsley and Moody secretly selling her to Draco because he offered to be their spy and he wanted her for some reason.
honestly this was my mood the whole time:
everyone was my hurting my babies and that is unacceptable.
Harry, Ron, Dumbledore's Army and the rest of the Order GOT👏ON👏MY👏NERVES. let's talk about these idiots for a sec ok? they think war is just good vs. evil, light vs. dark. there's no in between. they ignore gray areas, they want to stay in the "light" because love defeated dark in the first war so it would probably work now right? lol no.
this kind of mindset might work in the pg-13 Harry Potter world but not in the rated r world. they really think using expelliarmus and stupefy would win a war? that's funny. and Hermione, the only one with common sense, knows they need to step up their game by using dark magic because COME ON!! they're at war and Harry, Ron and the rest of the Order are treating this whole thing like a normal duel it's annoying.
y'all see this ⤴ all i see are facts. the whole time i was screaming LISTEN TO HERMIONE!!! but did they listen? no. and because of Hermione advocating for dark magic, she's ostracized and treated as a nuisance by her very own best friends!! they never thought about her and made her feel so alone asdjkhfsldkjgl it was so frustrating!! Harry and Ron even called Hermione a bitch... a BITCH. can you believe that? ugh i just wanted to-
HERMIONE CARRIED THIS WAR AND THEY ALL WOULD’VE DIED EARLIER IF IT WEREN’T FOR HER!! she was just so under appreciated here and was treated like a child and it made me so angry. they all died because they didn’t listen to her. i said what i said.
it's just so sad when the intensity of her love was not reciprocated from the very people she thinks as her family and she would die to protect them but her so-called “family” didn’t even hesitate to use her during a dangerous mission, not caring if she dies. she felt so alone and had no support from these "friends" until... Draco-fucking-Malfoy.
↠ ˗ˏˋ ♡ R O M A N C E ♡ ´ˎ˗
the parallels guys!! the parallels!! the hate to love? forced proximity? the realization that they're the same through emotional connection disguised as angry proclamations which then leads to them slowly caring for one another but denies they care for each other but shows that they do care for the other by training them combat because they don't want them to die or by healing them whenever they're hurt? ugh.
Draco really went from « i hate you. you're pathetic. i don't care if you die. lol you feel alone and depressed? good » to:
and
and you know what? he fucking did. he really razed the Order. we gotta respect a man who keeps his word. and that scene where Harry used Hermione to rescue Ron, not caring if she dies or not and treating her like she's expendable but Draco was like not today bitch and almost ruined his cover but he doesn't care so he slaughtered everyone because he actually cares if she lives??
art by @avendell
⤴ THIS scene? yeah. we love to see it.
and that scene where Hermione finally showed off her badassery and how powerful she is by blowing up the lab in Sussex killing thousands, casting a powerful patronus charm which is a MO'FUCKING DRAGON that then burned 99.9% of all the dementors (also, love how her patronus is a dragon because Draco was described as a dragon so she probably thought about Draco while casting the patronus because she's happy with him 🥺🥺), and killed dark creatures with her knife??
THAT'S MY QUEEN 😤✊
i just love how both of them would literally do anything just to keep the other safe and when they finally got together, it was so passionate and sweet ugh them whispering « i'm going to take care of you. i'm always going to take care of you » to each other rejuvenated my soul.
･ﾟﾟ･｡｡･ﾟﾟ･ PART III: SPAIN WITHOUT THE S ･ﾟﾟ･｡｡･ﾟﾟ･．
➵ June 2005 - and beyond
sooo now that we know wtf happened... haha ha awkward
okay first of all can we just talk about Draco's pain for a sec.
! ! ! CAN YOU IMAGINE LOOKING FOR THE LOVE OF YOUR LIFE FOR 3 FUCKING YEARS NOT KNOWING IF SHE'S DEAD OR GETTING TORTURED BUT NEVER GIVING UP AND THEN YOU FIND OUT SHE WAS IMPRISONED BY UMBRIDGE THIS WHOLE TIME AND THEN SHE'S BEING SOLD OFF AS A SEX SLAVE FOR YOU AND THE FIRST TIME YOU SEE HER IN 3 YEARS YOU ARE FORCED TO RAPE THE WOMAN YOU LOVE AND PRETEND TO BE THIS COLD ASSHOLE?? HUH?? CAN YOU IMAGINE THAT ! ! !
right. anyways. this was painful.
honestly, i'm just glad once Hermione remembered what happened, she never gave up on Draco and showed him how much she loved him even though... you know.. everything that happened in part 1. they both started healing and loving one another again, but Draco was planning to die all along so that broke my heart because i 100% think this would have a bittersweet ending but thank god it did not.
Hermione and Draco went through hell and back and i'm glad my babies finally get to live in peace in their own slice of heaven with Aurore, James and Ginny. and Topsy!! can we give a shoutout to this house elf who is one of the few creatures that survived after hitting Draco? yes.
* * *
this book WRECKED me and i am still not okay.
i'm so attached to these characters and now... i'm done? just like that?? tf am i supposed to do now huh?
honestly, even though the writing was tedious at times and the beginning was hard to get through because it really was depressing af so i had to take a break from the darkness for a few days, the character/world-building, depth, romance and character development were SO good. i just- i love everything about dramione in this book.
p.s. i know a lot of people don't like, or even despise dramione but you can't deny the excellence of dramione fanfics especially this one. oh, and High Reeve Draco is the best Draco by the way don't @ me on this.
lastly, if you're gonna read this, good luck dude.
dramione fics i want to read:
#1: manacled ➵ 4.75 stars
#2: isolation ➵ tbr
#3: the fallout ➵ currently reading
#4: the auction ➵ tbr
#5: breath mints/battle scars ➵ tbr
so we’re all collectively suffering again this time of year by reading dramione fics huh?
* * *
first read (2021) — 4.75 stars ✩⋆
this ✨dramione✨ fic is one of the most depressing things i've ever read and i fucking love it.
everyone- and i mean everyone was raving about this on tiktok so i was like ehh okay i'll read this. it's dark? depressing? soul-crushing? everyone died? voldy and the death eaters won the war? hell yes.
my shipping status is a mess okay? bear with me.
➵ movies: harry x hermione // there's a reason why PoA is my favorite.
➵ books: ron x hermione // that slowburn, friends to lovers, bicker like an old married couple dynamic? fuuuuck yes.
➵ fanon: DRAMIONE ALL THE FUCKING WAY // the enemies to lovers, complex anti-heroes that only have a soft spot for the person they love and has a grey moral background just hits different.
✧ p l o t
↳ it has been at least 2 years since Voldy won the war and killed Harry Potter and tortured everyone from the Order. after 16 months of being in solitary confinement Voldy discovered that Hermione is hiding something from her memories.
he decides to put her in the breeding program where the surviving females of the Order act as a "surrogate" for his death eaters because the fertility rates are low amongst the purebloods. Hermione is assigned to Voldy's right-hand man who is none other than Draco-fucking-Malfoy aka the High Reeve aka Voldy's General.
so yeah anyways, i fucking loved this. there's no point in sugar coating anything. this was, as Ronald would say, bloody brilliant. this didn't even feel like a fanfic because the writing is that good. and @SenLinYu and @AVENDELL bishhhh i fucking love y'all thank you for creating this masterpiece and the most beautiful, yet haunting fanfic/fanart i've ever seen.
➵ TW: rape, attempted rape, violence, torture, mass murder, war, physical and mental abuse, just- EVERYTHING. this book is really dark right off the bat so keep that in mind.
p.s. this is gonna be a long ass review because i have so much emotions and i need to let it out so thx for listening to my ted talk in advance ♡
\\ WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD AND MY INNER NERD IS GONNA COME OUT IN THIS REVIEW DON'T JUDGE ME //
･ﾟﾟ･｡｡･ﾟﾟ･ PART I: HANDMAIDS TALE 2.0 ･ﾟﾟ･｡｡･ﾟﾟ･．
➵ November 2004 - March 2005
of-fucking-course this book starts with Umbridge "accidentally" leaving Hermione in solitary confinement for 16 months. that bitch. you know, i've always wondered what it was like if Voldy won the war. like what would happen ya know? but then-
"Then [Lucius Malfoy] cast a curse that turned Ron's blood gradually into molten lead. Hermione watched as the curse slowly crept through Ron's body, destroying him from the inside out... They had left Molly for last. So she'd watch all her children die... Remus had lasted hours longer than anyone else. His lycanthropy kept healing him until he just hung there, unresponsive. Finally, someone shot the Killing Curse at him out of boredom."
i aLwaYS WoNDereD whAT wOulD HapPEN iF voLdY WoN okaaaayy well shit. i never imagined it that way sheesh. and apparently Voldy avada kedavra'd Harry 6 times, hung his body up the Astronomy Tower so the Order survivors can see his rotten corpse, all the surviving females are forced to be a part of this "breeding" programs as "surrogates" for the Death Eaters because most of the pureblood females are infertile or barren and they need to procreate more purebloods so...
... yeah. this book is d-a-r-k, DARK.
my girl Hermione was so broken in this part. she lost some of her memories from the war, she was sold to Draco, had depression, anxiety, agoraphobia, ptsd, and survivor's guilt. she's also raped by Draco for 6 months (5 times a month because of the breeding program) and is being tortured by Legilimency (where someone invades your memories and apparently it hurts like a bitch), almost raped by Graham Montague, and had her eye gouged out by Draco's wife, Astoria (don't worry, he and Astoria never did anything they hated each other).
yeah... our girl has been through a lot here. and Malfoy? hated him (calm down i only hated him in this part when i didn't know wtf was going on). i just wanted to-
but also... not because High Reeve Draco is scary af.
listen. i knew something was up with him because we get glimpses of the real Draco. and his reaction when he needs to "breed"? yeah not a normal reaction. i can tell he was in pain and he was just holding it in. i knew something was up. and i was right!! when i found out what i found out- THE PAIN OH MY GOD.
anywho this part ends with Hermione getting pregnant and she gets into a coma and her memories start coming back.
･ﾟﾟ･｡｡･ﾟﾟ･ PART II: DRAMIONE >>> THE ORDER ･ﾟﾟ･｡｡･ﾟﾟ･．
➵ flashback; March 2002 - July 2003
ok ok. this is where shit really begins. so this is the part where EVERY. TEA. IS. SPILLED. we finally find out what the fuck happened and why she lost certain parts of her memories.
so we find out that Hermione is one of the main healers and dark curse specialist, so she's in charge of healing practically everybody. she's a "nOn ACtiVe MEmBer" of the Order who "doesn't fight" (lol). this begins with Kingsley and Moody secretly selling her to Draco because he offered to be their spy and he wanted her for some reason.
honestly this was my mood the whole time:
everyone was my hurting my babies and that is unacceptable.
Harry, Ron, Dumbledore's Army and the rest of the Order GOT👏ON👏MY👏NERVES. let's talk about these idiots for a sec ok? they think war is just good vs. evil, light vs. dark. there's no in between. they ignore gray areas, they want to stay in the "light" because love defeated dark in the first war so it would probably work now right? lol no.
this kind of mindset might work in the pg-13 Harry Potter world but not in the rated r world. they really think using expelliarmus and stupefy would win a war? that's funny. and Hermione, the only one with common sense, knows they need to step up their game by using dark magic because COME ON!! they're at war and Harry, Ron and the rest of the Order are treating this whole thing like a normal duel it's annoying.
"Whether you win a battle or lose it, all I see is the cost. Sometimes it seems like you and Harry don't realise how few lives we can still afford to lose. This war is bigger than Harry and his family getting to be normal afterward. What do you think will happen to the Resistance if we lose? What about the Muggle world?"
y'all see this ⤴ all i see are facts. the whole time i was screaming LISTEN TO HERMIONE!!! but did they listen? no. and because of Hermione advocating for dark magic, she's ostracized and treated as a nuisance by her very own best friends!! they never thought about her and made her feel so alone asdjkhfsldkjgl it was so frustrating!! Harry and Ron even called Hermione a bitch... a BITCH. can you believe that? ugh i just wanted to-
HERMIONE CARRIED THIS WAR AND THEY ALL WOULD’VE DIED EARLIER IF IT WEREN’T FOR HER!! she was just so under appreciated here and was treated like a child and it made me so angry. they all died because they didn’t listen to her. i said what i said.
it's just so sad when the intensity of her love was not reciprocated from the very people she thinks as her family and she would die to protect them but her so-called “family” didn’t even hesitate to use her during a dangerous mission, not caring if she dies. she felt so alone and had no support from these "friends" until... Draco-fucking-Malfoy.
↠ ˗ˏˋ ♡ R O M A N C E ♡ ´ˎ˗
the parallels guys!! the parallels!! the hate to love? forced proximity? the realization that they're the same through emotional connection disguised as angry proclamations which then leads to them slowly caring for one another but denies they care for each other but shows that they do care for the other by training them combat because they don't want them to die or by healing them whenever they're hurt? ugh.
Draco really went from « i hate you. you're pathetic. i don't care if you die. lol you feel alone and depressed? good » to:
"You're mine. You swore yourself to me. Now. And after the war. You promised it. I'm going to take care of you. I'm not going to let anyone hurt you. You don't have to be lonely. Because you're mine."
and
"I have warned you. If something happens to you, I will personally raze the entire Order. That isn't a threat. It is a promise. Consider your survival as much a necessity to the survival of the Resistance as Potter's. If you die, I will kill every last one of them."
and you know what? he fucking did. he really razed the Order. we gotta respect a man who keeps his word. and that scene where Harry used Hermione to rescue Ron, not caring if she dies or not and treating her like she's expendable but Draco was like not today bitch and almost ruined his cover but he doesn't care so he slaughtered everyone because he actually cares if she lives??
art by @avendell
⤴ THIS scene? yeah. we love to see it.
and that scene where Hermione finally showed off her badassery and how powerful she is by blowing up the lab in Sussex killing thousands, casting a powerful patronus charm which is a MO'FUCKING DRAGON that then burned 99.9% of all the dementors (also, love how her patronus is a dragon because Draco was described as a dragon so she probably thought about Draco while casting the patronus because she's happy with him 🥺🥺), and killed dark creatures with her knife??
THAT'S MY QUEEN 😤✊
i just love how both of them would literally do anything just to keep the other safe and when they finally got together, it was so passionate and sweet ugh them whispering « i'm going to take care of you. i'm always going to take care of you » to each other rejuvenated my soul.
･ﾟﾟ･｡｡･ﾟﾟ･ PART III: SPAIN WITHOUT THE S ･ﾟﾟ･｡｡･ﾟﾟ･．
➵ June 2005 - and beyond
sooo now that we know wtf happened... haha ha awkward
okay first of all can we just talk about Draco's pain for a sec.
! ! ! CAN YOU IMAGINE LOOKING FOR THE LOVE OF YOUR LIFE FOR 3 FUCKING YEARS NOT KNOWING IF SHE'S DEAD OR GETTING TORTURED BUT NEVER GIVING UP AND THEN YOU FIND OUT SHE WAS IMPRISONED BY UMBRIDGE THIS WHOLE TIME AND THEN SHE'S BEING SOLD OFF AS A SEX SLAVE FOR YOU AND THE FIRST TIME YOU SEE HER IN 3 YEARS YOU ARE FORCED TO RAPE THE WOMAN YOU LOVE AND PRETEND TO BE THIS COLD ASSHOLE?? HUH?? CAN YOU IMAGINE THAT ! ! !
right. anyways. this was painful.
honestly, i'm just glad once Hermione remembered what happened, she never gave up on Draco and showed him how much she loved him even though... you know.. everything that happened in part 1. they both started healing and loving one another again, but Draco was planning to die all along so that broke my heart because i 100% think this would have a bittersweet ending but thank god it did not.
Hermione and Draco went through hell and back and i'm glad my babies finally get to live in peace in their own slice of heaven with Aurore, James and Ginny. and Topsy!! can we give a shoutout to this house elf who is one of the few creatures that survived after hitting Draco? yes.
* * *
this book WRECKED me and i am still not okay.
i'm so attached to these characters and now... i'm done? just like that?? tf am i supposed to do now huh?
honestly, even though the writing was tedious at times and the beginning was hard to get through because it really was depressing af so i had to take a break from the darkness for a few days, the character/world-building, depth, romance and character development were SO good. i just- i love everything about dramione in this book.
p.s. i know a lot of people don't like, or even despise dramione but you can't deny the excellence of dramione fanfics especially this one. oh, and High Reeve Draco is the best Draco by the way don't @ me on this.
lastly, if you're gonna read this, good luck dude.
dramione fics i want to read:
#1: manacled ➵ 4.75 stars
#2: isolation ➵ tbr
#3: the fallout ➵ currently reading
#4: the auction ➵ tbr
#5: breath mints/battle scars ➵ tbr
January 1, 2025
Goodbye to the best fanfic of all time. Thank you for this masterpiece SenLinYu 💕
-
∞ ⭐ A Masterpiece - the most heartbreakingly beautiful story I've read in my entire life 💔
Word Count: 370,502 | Chapters: 77
Trigger Warning (18+): This story is extremely dark with scenes that show rape, sexual assault, self-harm, violence, torture, gore, and character death.
I have never read anything that's moved me as deeply as Manacled. This dark story dives deep into the terrible nature and psychological effects of war. The trauma and loss experienced by these characters are unfathomable, and due to the phenomenal writing, you'll find yourself sucked into this world and grieve alongside them.
It's easy to lose yourself to this story. I've read it twice now, and each time I sob uncontrollably during multiple scenes and am left feeling emotionally damaged for weeks. Fair warning, if you are an empathetic person, you may experience second-hand trauma.
But for all those who are wondering, there is a Happily Ever After (HEA) ending, but it's not quite like the fairytales. It's basically the best you could hope for, all things considered.
Summary:
"Once upon a time... there had been a girl who fought. Who believes that books and cleverness and friendship and bravery could overcome all things.
But now - that girl was gone.
She'd been all but killed during the war."
It's been 8 years since Dumbledore died and 2 years since Voldemort won the Second Wizarding War. Harry Potter is dead. Everyone part of The Order was killed - all except Hermione Granger.
After spending 16 months in sensory deprived solitary confinement, Hermione is brought out for a medical exam. Due to low fertility rates amongst purebloods, Voldemort enacted a breeding program where surviving females of the Resistance with strong magical signatures will act as 'surrogates' for important pureblood families.
However, during Hermione's exam, the healers discover an anomaly. While imprisoned, Hermione managed to isolate and magically protect parts of her mind where she no longer can remember or access certain memories surrounding the war. Voldemort believes Hermione is hiding Order secrets and tries to use legilimency to crack her mental shields, but is unsuccessful. The healers assure Voldemort a magical pregnancy is key to corroding the calcification of magic around her memories, so Hermione is assigned as a surrogate to Voldemort's most trusted general, The High Reeves, aka Draco Malfoy.
This story is broken up into three parts. The first and third sections are two years post-war where Hermione is living as a surrogate with Draco, and the second section is a series of flashbacks that recount Hermione's lost memories during the war.
Dark Alternate Universe | Voldemort Wins | Death Eater Draco | Healer Hermione | Forced Pregnancy | Imprisonment | Memory Loss | Flashbacks | Espionage | Mystery | 18+
My Thoughts:
How does one describe perfection? Where do I even begin? I could honestly write an entire essay about this story, but I'll try to keep things simple.
Regardless of the dark themes, Manacled is the most beautiful story I've ever read. This is a wartime story. It's horrifying and bleak, with very few moments of happiness. Yet somehow, in the darkness, two broken people find their way to each other and cultivate a passionate love that stands the test of time. Even though the world has failed them, they refuse to fail each other. The circumstances surrounding their love are tragic, yet their devotion to one another is beautiful.
The world-build is f*cking insane! Of course, since this is a Harry Potter fanfic, a lot of the groundwork was laid out by JK Rowling in the original books. However, SenLinYu takes it to a whole different level. The amount of depth and description surrounding topics like magical pregnancy, the manacles, legilimens and occlumency, runes, potions, spells, healing magic, unbreakable vows, and the use and long-term effects of dark magic is astounding. I am blown away at SenLinYu's creativity to seamlessly expand upon the fantastical world of Harry Potter.
*SPOILERS AHEAD*
The moral quandary of what actions are and are not acceptable during a time of war will have you questioning everything you thought to be true. I have never read a book where I felt such confusion over the main character's actions. Throughout the entire story, Hermione and Draco both make decisions that go against 'good' morals. For example, Hermione willingly whores herself out for The Order and uses dark magic in order to heal injured Resistance members. Draco kills thousands of people and hurts the woman he loves all to maintain his cover with Voldemort to destroy him and ultimately save Hermione. For both Hermione and Draco, the ends justify the means. Their questionable and somewhat unforgivable actions saved the entire world, so at what point do we excuse evil if the outcome is good?
Hermione is the strongest fictional character I've ever encountered. Since the beginning of the war, Hermione did what was necessary and the things no one else was willing to do. She became a healer because there were no healers to aid The Order. She left to study abroad in Europe for two years to learn as much about war injuries to better assist The Order. She started using dark magic to find counter curses to injuries inflicted by Death Eaters. Without hesitation, Hermione agreed to be owned during and after the war by Draco Malfoy so The Order stood a chance against Voldemort. And finally, Hermione hid and forgot her memories of Draco to protect him.
Every single thing Hermione did, was to protect the people she loves - even if that meant losing herself in the process. Hermione wanted to win the war and save a world she knew she could never be a part of. The selflessness, courage, loyalty, and devotion it takes to do all these things, especially when your friends turn away from you . . . I'm in awe.
And at the end of this story, the only reason the 'light' side won was because Hermione’s light went out. She gave herself to the darkness and found salvation in the dark with Draco Malfoy.
Draco is such a fascinating character. How far would you go to protect the ones you love? While Hermione wants to save her friends and the world, Draco is driven by a possessive instinct to save what he believes is 'his'. First, it was his mother who was tortured by Voldemort and then killed in an accidental fire. Then, it was Hermione. Draco is willing to sacrifice himself physically and morally to the 'dark' side, to not have any needs or wants of his own, to protect the person he loves. Unfortunately, because of his circumstances, the only way he can protect his love is by succumbing to evil.
Draco is not a hero to anyone but Hermione. Even after the war, Ginny observes that Draco doesn't care about anything in the world except Hermione. But Hermione says,
“Love isn’t always as pretty or pure as people like to think. There’s a darkness in it sometimes. Draco and I go hand-in-hand. I made him who he is. I knew what his runes meant when I saved him. If he’s a monster, then I’m his creator.” - Chapter 76
Everything Hermione does is for the world. But everything Draco does is for Hermione because she is his world. There is no line he wouldn't cross to protect Hermione. We may not forgive Draco for the terrible things he did; however, we can understand and justify his actions.
My favorite moment was when Hermione burns the Sussex lab to the ground! What a BOSS! Not only does it just show off her incredibly brilliant mind (she literally created a new area of magic to make the bombs), but it shows she would go to the ends of the world for Draco. And as proof of her love, not only is she able to cast a corporeal Patronus, but it changed into a dragon for Draco. ❤️
Overall, Manacled is a literary masterpiece. The world-building is genius, the characters are complex, the storyline is heartbreaking, and the moral quandary is thought-provoking. My heart repeatedly broke, but somehow by the end, it was put back together - albeit with some cracks. This story has a way of making you feel things you never knew you could. Absolutely a MUST READ whether you read fanfiction or not.
Favorite quotes:
"If I'd known what pain toys cause me, I never would have taken you. But, at this point, I suppose I deserve to burn. I wonder if you'll burn too."-Chapter 23
-----------------------------
She didn’t know how to fix herself anymore, and no one else seemed inclined to even notice she was breaking.” - Chapter 38: Flashback 13
-----------------------------
"You're like a rose in a graveyard, I wonder what you could have turned into without the war." - Chapter 40: Flashback 15
-----------------------------
"I have given myself to this war, Ginny. When it's over - there won't be anything left of me." - Chapter 46: Flashback 21
-----------------------------
“I can’t—I can’t do this again—,” he gasped. “I can’t care for someone again. I can’t—I can’t take it.”
Hermione rested a hand on his cheek and felt his tears slide across her skin and down her wrist.
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry, Draco.” She said the words again and again. She was apologizing for everything. - Chapter 48: Flashback 23
-----------------------------
“You are not replaceable,” he said. His hands were shaking as he gripped her. “You are not required to make your death convenient. You are allowed to be important to people. The reason I took that fucking Vow was to keep you alive. To keep you safe." - Chapter 52: Flashback 27
-----------------------------
"When he kissed her, it felt like the beginning of something that could be eternal." - Chapter 53: Flashback 28
-----------------------------
“You’re mine. You swore yourself to me,” he said in her ear, as he slipped out of her and dragged her tightly against himself. “Now. And after the war. You promised it. I’m going to take care of you. I’m not going to let anyone hurt you. You don’t have to be lonely. Because you’re mine.” - Chapter 54: Flashback 29
-----------------------------
“With Draco, she felt alive. like she was breathing again after years of forgetting how to do anything but survive." - Chapter 55: Flashback 30
-----------------------------
" 'Someone will come for you. Someone always comes for you."
No one came.
Everyone was dead. She'd seen them die. No one was going to come for her.
The walls of her cell were all she had.
Everything else was darkness." - Chapter 63: Flashback 38
-----------------------------
"You don't get to have everything, Granger. There's a point when you have to realize you aren't going to get everything you want, and you have to choose and let it be enough for you."
"I don't want to choose. I always have to choose, and I never get to choose you. I'm so tired of not getting to chose you." - Chapter 67
-----------------------------
“Love isn’t always as pretty or pure as people like to think. There’s a darkness in it sometimes. Draco and I go hand-in-hand. I made him who he is. I knew what his runes meant when I saved him. If he’s a monster, then I’m his creator.” - Chapter 76
-----------------------------
"She was a non-active member of the Order of the Phoenix and she did not fight." - Chapter 77
——————————————
My Current Dramione Fanfic Rankings
⭐ = Must-Reads
🌶️ = Best Smut
Novels (150,000+ words):
1. Manacled - SenLinYu ⭐
2. Remain Nameless - HeyJude19 ⭐🌶️
3. Cruel and Beautiful World - Lena Phoria
4. The Disappearances of Draco Malfoy - Speechwriter ⭐
5. Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Being in Love - thisisselfcare ⭐
6. Various Storms and Saints - ViridianAtNight
7. Isolation - Bex-Chan ⭐
8. Bring Him To His Knees - Musyc 🌶️
9. The Auction - LovesBitca8 ⭐
10. All You Want - SenLinYu 🌶️
11. Breath Mints / Battle Scars - Onyx_and_Elm 🌶️
12. The Right Thing To Do - LovesBitca8
13. Beginning and End - MightBeWriting
14. The Gloriana Set - ThebeMoon
15. Love In A Time Of The Zombie Apocalypse - RizzleWrites
16. All The Wrong Things - LovesBitca8
17. Hunted - Bex-Chan
18. The Fallout - EveryThursday (DNF)
Novellas (less than 150,000 words):
1. Hot For Teacher - MotherOfBulls ⭐🌶️
2. Apple Pies and Other Amends - ToEatAPeach ⭐
3. Thirteenth Night - Nelpher ⭐
4. Sex Ed - MrBenzedrine89 🌶️
5. Still Life - monsterleadmehome
6. A Second Look - RiverWriter
7. The Best Of Me - MrsRen
8. Silencio - AkashaTheKitty
9. Wait and Hope - MightBeWriting
10. Between Certifiable and Bliss - HeyJude19
11.Atonement - Lunamionny
12. Incomplete - Niffizzle
13. Love and Other Misfortunes - SenLinYu
14. An Indefinite Amount of Forever - MotherOfBulls (sequel)
15. Making Amends - slytherin_prince27
Short Stories (less than 50,000 words):
1. Movements, Contrived and Improvised - HeyJude19 ⭐
2. Best Shot - AccioMjolnir ⭐
3. The Library of Alexandria - SenLinYu ⭐
4. The First Rule of Fight Club… - LadyKenz347
5. Until The Ink Runs Dry & Indelible Ink - AccioMjolnir
6. Break For Me - Ada_P_Rix 🌶️
7. Call It What You Want - HawthorneWhisperer
8. Under The Wings of The Shadow - AccioMjolnir
9. The Watergaw - smokybaltic
10. Amends - thelashjedi
One Shots (less than 15,000 words):
1. Your Lonely Calls To Me - SenLinYu ⭐
2. The Unbearable Tedium of Romance - smokybaltic
3. For Her - dirtymudblood
4. Because You’ll Like it - BedtimeFantasies 🌶️
5. Stupid Games - SenLinYu 🌶️
6. A Patient Man - LadyKenz347
7. Between Pages - DarkoftheMoon
8. An Unlikely Companion & An Unlikely Family - happy_valley
9. Potions, Perfume, and Apples - ellywolf111
10. Les Pelerins - PacificRumbaud
11. Like A Dagger To The Heart - hxllowsandhorcruxes
12. Fantasy - krissyxkat 🌶️
13. Head over Dragonhide Thigh High Heels - rubykrishna
14. Coming Down - nikitajobson and raven_maiden
15. A Matter of Practicality - OlivieBlake
16. Mistletoe - CatmintandThyme
17. Elevator - its_banannaz
18. Preface - ephemeraltoxic
19. Red or Green - SenLinYu
20. Friends - poppyclocks
-
∞ ⭐ A Masterpiece - the most heartbreakingly beautiful story I've read in my entire life 💔
Word Count: 370,502 | Chapters: 77
Trigger Warning (18+): This story is extremely dark with scenes that show rape, sexual assault, self-harm, violence, torture, gore, and character death.
I have never read anything that's moved me as deeply as Manacled. This dark story dives deep into the terrible nature and psychological effects of war. The trauma and loss experienced by these characters are unfathomable, and due to the phenomenal writing, you'll find yourself sucked into this world and grieve alongside them.
It's easy to lose yourself to this story. I've read it twice now, and each time I sob uncontrollably during multiple scenes and am left feeling emotionally damaged for weeks. Fair warning, if you are an empathetic person, you may experience second-hand trauma.
But for all those who are wondering, there is a Happily Ever After (HEA) ending, but it's not quite like the fairytales. It's basically the best you could hope for, all things considered.
Summary:
"Once upon a time... there had been a girl who fought. Who believes that books and cleverness and friendship and bravery could overcome all things.
But now - that girl was gone.
She'd been all but killed during the war."
It's been 8 years since Dumbledore died and 2 years since Voldemort won the Second Wizarding War. Harry Potter is dead. Everyone part of The Order was killed - all except Hermione Granger.
After spending 16 months in sensory deprived solitary confinement, Hermione is brought out for a medical exam. Due to low fertility rates amongst purebloods, Voldemort enacted a breeding program where surviving females of the Resistance with strong magical signatures will act as 'surrogates' for important pureblood families.
However, during Hermione's exam, the healers discover an anomaly. While imprisoned, Hermione managed to isolate and magically protect parts of her mind where she no longer can remember or access certain memories surrounding the war. Voldemort believes Hermione is hiding Order secrets and tries to use legilimency to crack her mental shields, but is unsuccessful. The healers assure Voldemort a magical pregnancy is key to corroding the calcification of magic around her memories, so Hermione is assigned as a surrogate to Voldemort's most trusted general, The High Reeves, aka Draco Malfoy.
This story is broken up into three parts. The first and third sections are two years post-war where Hermione is living as a surrogate with Draco, and the second section is a series of flashbacks that recount Hermione's lost memories during the war.
Dark Alternate Universe | Voldemort Wins | Death Eater Draco | Healer Hermione | Forced Pregnancy | Imprisonment | Memory Loss | Flashbacks | Espionage | Mystery | 18+
My Thoughts:
How does one describe perfection? Where do I even begin? I could honestly write an entire essay about this story, but I'll try to keep things simple.
Regardless of the dark themes, Manacled is the most beautiful story I've ever read. This is a wartime story. It's horrifying and bleak, with very few moments of happiness. Yet somehow, in the darkness, two broken people find their way to each other and cultivate a passionate love that stands the test of time. Even though the world has failed them, they refuse to fail each other. The circumstances surrounding their love are tragic, yet their devotion to one another is beautiful.
The world-build is f*cking insane! Of course, since this is a Harry Potter fanfic, a lot of the groundwork was laid out by JK Rowling in the original books. However, SenLinYu takes it to a whole different level. The amount of depth and description surrounding topics like magical pregnancy, the manacles, legilimens and occlumency, runes, potions, spells, healing magic, unbreakable vows, and the use and long-term effects of dark magic is astounding. I am blown away at SenLinYu's creativity to seamlessly expand upon the fantastical world of Harry Potter.
*SPOILERS AHEAD*
The moral quandary of what actions are and are not acceptable during a time of war will have you questioning everything you thought to be true. I have never read a book where I felt such confusion over the main character's actions. Throughout the entire story, Hermione and Draco both make decisions that go against 'good' morals. For example, Hermione willingly whores herself out for The Order and uses dark magic in order to heal injured Resistance members. Draco kills thousands of people and hurts the woman he loves all to maintain his cover with Voldemort to destroy him and ultimately save Hermione. For both Hermione and Draco, the ends justify the means. Their questionable and somewhat unforgivable actions saved the entire world, so at what point do we excuse evil if the outcome is good?
Hermione is the strongest fictional character I've ever encountered. Since the beginning of the war, Hermione did what was necessary and the things no one else was willing to do. She became a healer because there were no healers to aid The Order. She left to study abroad in Europe for two years to learn as much about war injuries to better assist The Order. She started using dark magic to find counter curses to injuries inflicted by Death Eaters. Without hesitation, Hermione agreed to be owned during and after the war by Draco Malfoy so The Order stood a chance against Voldemort. And finally, Hermione hid and forgot her memories of Draco to protect him.
Every single thing Hermione did, was to protect the people she loves - even if that meant losing herself in the process. Hermione wanted to win the war and save a world she knew she could never be a part of. The selflessness, courage, loyalty, and devotion it takes to do all these things, especially when your friends turn away from you . . . I'm in awe.
And at the end of this story, the only reason the 'light' side won was because Hermione’s light went out. She gave herself to the darkness and found salvation in the dark with Draco Malfoy.
Draco is such a fascinating character. How far would you go to protect the ones you love? While Hermione wants to save her friends and the world, Draco is driven by a possessive instinct to save what he believes is 'his'. First, it was his mother who was tortured by Voldemort and then killed in an accidental fire. Then, it was Hermione. Draco is willing to sacrifice himself physically and morally to the 'dark' side, to not have any needs or wants of his own, to protect the person he loves. Unfortunately, because of his circumstances, the only way he can protect his love is by succumbing to evil.
Draco is not a hero to anyone but Hermione. Even after the war, Ginny observes that Draco doesn't care about anything in the world except Hermione. But Hermione says,
“Love isn’t always as pretty or pure as people like to think. There’s a darkness in it sometimes. Draco and I go hand-in-hand. I made him who he is. I knew what his runes meant when I saved him. If he’s a monster, then I’m his creator.” - Chapter 76
Everything Hermione does is for the world. But everything Draco does is for Hermione because she is his world. There is no line he wouldn't cross to protect Hermione. We may not forgive Draco for the terrible things he did; however, we can understand and justify his actions.
My favorite moment was when Hermione burns the Sussex lab to the ground! What a BOSS! Not only does it just show off her incredibly brilliant mind (she literally created a new area of magic to make the bombs), but it shows she would go to the ends of the world for Draco. And as proof of her love, not only is she able to cast a corporeal Patronus, but it changed into a dragon for Draco. ❤️
Overall, Manacled is a literary masterpiece. The world-building is genius, the characters are complex, the storyline is heartbreaking, and the moral quandary is thought-provoking. My heart repeatedly broke, but somehow by the end, it was put back together - albeit with some cracks. This story has a way of making you feel things you never knew you could. Absolutely a MUST READ whether you read fanfiction or not.
Favorite quotes:
"If I'd known what pain toys cause me, I never would have taken you. But, at this point, I suppose I deserve to burn. I wonder if you'll burn too."-Chapter 23
-----------------------------
She didn’t know how to fix herself anymore, and no one else seemed inclined to even notice she was breaking.” - Chapter 38: Flashback 13
-----------------------------
"You're like a rose in a graveyard, I wonder what you could have turned into without the war." - Chapter 40: Flashback 15
-----------------------------
"I have given myself to this war, Ginny. When it's over - there won't be anything left of me." - Chapter 46: Flashback 21
-----------------------------
“I can’t—I can’t do this again—,” he gasped. “I can’t care for someone again. I can’t—I can’t take it.”
Hermione rested a hand on his cheek and felt his tears slide across her skin and down her wrist.
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry, Draco.” She said the words again and again. She was apologizing for everything. - Chapter 48: Flashback 23
-----------------------------
“You are not replaceable,” he said. His hands were shaking as he gripped her. “You are not required to make your death convenient. You are allowed to be important to people. The reason I took that fucking Vow was to keep you alive. To keep you safe." - Chapter 52: Flashback 27
-----------------------------
"When he kissed her, it felt like the beginning of something that could be eternal." - Chapter 53: Flashback 28
-----------------------------
“You’re mine. You swore yourself to me,” he said in her ear, as he slipped out of her and dragged her tightly against himself. “Now. And after the war. You promised it. I’m going to take care of you. I’m not going to let anyone hurt you. You don’t have to be lonely. Because you’re mine.” - Chapter 54: Flashback 29
-----------------------------
“With Draco, she felt alive. like she was breathing again after years of forgetting how to do anything but survive." - Chapter 55: Flashback 30
-----------------------------
" 'Someone will come for you. Someone always comes for you."
No one came.
Everyone was dead. She'd seen them die. No one was going to come for her.
The walls of her cell were all she had.
Everything else was darkness." - Chapter 63: Flashback 38
-----------------------------
"You don't get to have everything, Granger. There's a point when you have to realize you aren't going to get everything you want, and you have to choose and let it be enough for you."
"I don't want to choose. I always have to choose, and I never get to choose you. I'm so tired of not getting to chose you." - Chapter 67
-----------------------------
“Love isn’t always as pretty or pure as people like to think. There’s a darkness in it sometimes. Draco and I go hand-in-hand. I made him who he is. I knew what his runes meant when I saved him. If he’s a monster, then I’m his creator.” - Chapter 76
-----------------------------
"She was a non-active member of the Order of the Phoenix and she did not fight." - Chapter 77
——————————————
My Current Dramione Fanfic Rankings
⭐ = Must-Reads
🌶️ = Best Smut
Novels (150,000+ words):
1. Manacled - SenLinYu ⭐
2. Remain Nameless - HeyJude19 ⭐🌶️
3. Cruel and Beautiful World - Lena Phoria
4. The Disappearances of Draco Malfoy - Speechwriter ⭐
5. Draco Malfoy and the Mortifying Ordeal of Being in Love - thisisselfcare ⭐
6. Various Storms and Saints - ViridianAtNight
7. Isolation - Bex-Chan ⭐
8. Bring Him To His Knees - Musyc 🌶️
9. The Auction - LovesBitca8 ⭐
10. All You Want - SenLinYu 🌶️
11. Breath Mints / Battle Scars - Onyx_and_Elm 🌶️
12. The Right Thing To Do - LovesBitca8
13. Beginning and End - MightBeWriting
14. The Gloriana Set - ThebeMoon
15. Love In A Time Of The Zombie Apocalypse - RizzleWrites
16. All The Wrong Things - LovesBitca8
17. Hunted - Bex-Chan
18. The Fallout - EveryThursday (DNF)
Novellas (less than 150,000 words):
1. Hot For Teacher - MotherOfBulls ⭐🌶️
2. Apple Pies and Other Amends - ToEatAPeach ⭐
3. Thirteenth Night - Nelpher ⭐
4. Sex Ed - MrBenzedrine89 🌶️
5. Still Life - monsterleadmehome
6. A Second Look - RiverWriter
7. The Best Of Me - MrsRen
8. Silencio - AkashaTheKitty
9. Wait and Hope - MightBeWriting
10. Between Certifiable and Bliss - HeyJude19
11.Atonement - Lunamionny
12. Incomplete - Niffizzle
13. Love and Other Misfortunes - SenLinYu
14. An Indefinite Amount of Forever - MotherOfBulls (sequel)
15. Making Amends - slytherin_prince27
Short Stories (less than 50,000 words):
1. Movements, Contrived and Improvised - HeyJude19 ⭐
2. Best Shot - AccioMjolnir ⭐
3. The Library of Alexandria - SenLinYu ⭐
4. The First Rule of Fight Club… - LadyKenz347
5. Until The Ink Runs Dry & Indelible Ink - AccioMjolnir
6. Break For Me - Ada_P_Rix 🌶️
7. Call It What You Want - HawthorneWhisperer
8. Under The Wings of The Shadow - AccioMjolnir
9. The Watergaw - smokybaltic
10. Amends - thelashjedi
One Shots (less than 15,000 words):
1. Your Lonely Calls To Me - SenLinYu ⭐
2. The Unbearable Tedium of Romance - smokybaltic
3. For Her - dirtymudblood
4. Because You’ll Like it - BedtimeFantasies 🌶️
5. Stupid Games - SenLinYu 🌶️
6. A Patient Man - LadyKenz347
7. Between Pages - DarkoftheMoon
8. An Unlikely Companion & An Unlikely Family - happy_valley
9. Potions, Perfume, and Apples - ellywolf111
10. Les Pelerins - PacificRumbaud
11. Like A Dagger To The Heart - hxllowsandhorcruxes
12. Fantasy - krissyxkat 🌶️
13. Head over Dragonhide Thigh High Heels - rubykrishna
14. Coming Down - nikitajobson and raven_maiden
15. A Matter of Practicality - OlivieBlake
16. Mistletoe - CatmintandThyme
17. Elevator - its_banannaz
18. Preface - ephemeraltoxic
19. Red or Green - SenLinYu
20. Friends - poppyclocks
June 15, 2022
★ If an assassin’s blade ★ were made into a man,★ it would take the form of ★ Draco Malfoy★
Not me being stupefied by the fanfic written better than half of the published books I read last year.
A̶l̶s̶o̶ ̶n̶o̶t̶ ̶m̶e̶ ̶w̶a̶n̶t̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶a̶g̶r̶e̶s̶s̶i̶v̶e̶l̶y̶ ̶s̶h̶o̶v̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶f̶i̶c̶ ̶d̶o̶w̶n̶ ̶m̶y̶ ̶G̶R̶ ̶f̶r̶i̶e̶n̶d̶s̶'̶ ̶t̶h̶r̶o̶a̶t̶s̶ ̶b̶e̶c̶a̶u̶s̶e̶ ̶i̶t̶ ̶w̶a̶s̶ ̶T̶H̶A̶T̶ ̶G̶O̶O̶D̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶I̶ ̶d̶o̶n̶'̶t̶ ̶w̶a̶n̶t̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶b̶e̶ ̶h̶e̶a̶r̶t̶b̶r̶o̶k̶e̶n̶ ̶a̶l̶l̶ ̶by myself
What did I learn about myself when I finished reading this story? I'm not dead inside. 💀
One of the most soul-wrenching, beautiful and epic love during wartime stories with a superb plot that I've ever laid my eyes on.
P. S. If you want to be blown the fuck away, it's better to dive in the story without readingtoo many any spoilers... though my tags are full of them and for that I'm not sorry.
P. S. NOT hinting at anything, but there is the link to the story you might want to download:
Manacled
While I'm off to crying myself to sleep. I refuse to review this particular book properly. 😭
Not me being stupefied by the fanfic written better than half of the published books I read last year.
On the cover of the Daily Prophet was a picture of Malfoy calmly disemboweling Graham Montague in the middle of the St Mungo’s waiting room.
“So many schemes,” he said as he straightened and tilted his head back, appraising her with cold, mocking eyes. “Then again, I’d feel disappointed if you weren’t entertaining at least one plot to try to kill me and escape. I can’t wait to see what you’ll come up with next.”
What did I learn about myself when I finished reading this story? I'm not dead inside. 💀
Finally, Malfoy was standing over her, his face white, his eyes glittering with rage, “I have warned you. If something happens to you, I will personally raze the entire Order. That isn’t a threat. It is a promise. Consider your survival as much a necessity to the survival of the Resistance as Potter’s. If you die, I will kill every last one of them.”
One of the most soul-wrenching, beautiful and epic love during wartime stories with a superb plot that I've ever laid my eyes on.
“You’re mine. You swore yourself to me,” he said in her ear, as he slipped out of her and dragged her tightly against himself. “Now. And after the war. You promised it. I’m going to take care of you. I’m not going to let anyone hurt you. You don’t have to be lonely. Because you’re mine.”
P. S. If you want to be blown the fuck away, it's better to dive in the story without reading
P. S. NOT hinting at anything, but there is the link to the story you might want to download:
Manacled
While I'm off to crying myself to sleep. I refuse to review this particular book properly. 😭
Read
January 1, 2024876 pages??? damn right i’m adding it to my read shelf.
i also hate to admit this was very good.
i also hate to admit this was very good.
October 21, 2023
The last line breaks my heart every time I reread this book
June 26, 2023
”I always have to choose, and I never get to choose you. I’m so tired of not getting to choose you.”
im going to need a couple days or weeks
im so in love im so in pain im so in awe and i may never recover
July 30, 2020
The Harry Potter Version of the darkest timeline. I could not stop reading, forgot to drink, eat and sleep.
December 21, 2024
if you’re planning to pick this up, i have only one piece of advice for you: breathe in. breathe out. try not to cry. try not to howl with the injustice of it all in the end.
“I’m going to take care of you.” She held his hand tighter and pressed it against her chest. “I’m yours, as long as you want me.”
His hand slid up to cradle her face. He stared at her, his silver eyes intent. “Always. As long as I live.”
this was long. dreary. dark. mad. but i loved it with all my heart. i drank up all the craziness and it was so delicious.
this was draco + hermione “i’ll kill for you” “i’ll die for you” “i’ll take care of you” “i’ll do anything to keep you safe” perfection. i loved how they ran away together 🥹 they truly gave somewhere only we know vibes. they’re so dear to me i can’t express it in words.
“Let’s love each other forever, Draco.”
She felt him kiss the top of her head.
“Alright.”
the first part was certainly the darkest, but after that it almost seemed hopeless to me at times. in the war time. the part that hooked me the most. i always did love the angst ❤️🩹 i adored how draco and hermione found each other in the middle of the night and became each other’s everything. their shelter, their loves, their lives. how draco’s only condition was “save her” and he did everything to follow through on that promise.
both of them were so lonely, so broken inside, but then they found each other. they found themselves together.
hermione granger. the dreamer. the broken. the brave. the lonely. how she wanted to save everyone, everything, even at the cost of her own life was so so heartbreaking. all i can say is, no one deserved her except for draco. no one. she kept breaking herself to save everyone. even though no one truly acknowledged her opinions, no one cared about about her enough. she still stayed so strong, so brave, so unmoving in her beliefs. and draco was her safety net, the one she leaned on. 😩
Mine. She could feel it in his touch, but he didn’t say it.
Mine.
His eyes weren’t like a wolf’s. They were a dragon’s, deadly and possessive. He stared at her as though she were all that mattered in the world. It made her blood burn.
draco malfoy. he was the epitome of “he set the world on fire around him but never let a flame touch her”. he was all ice outside and never showed a single emotion, but he was fire inside fr - he burned for hermione. all because he didn’t trust himself to feel anything. and when he did, he loved so deeply. possessed so madly. it was glorious.
the way he didn’t believe he deserved her at all. the way he was so tortured and ruthless. the way he would comfort her, the way he’d save her, the way he’d kill everyone in the entire world and damn them for eternity if it meant keeping her safe. it was ⚡e v e r y t h i n g⚡
“Perfect.” “Beautiful.” “Mine.” “Mine.”
this was killing me and keeping me alive at the same time and i could not stop reading. it was so addictive and just ✨P A I N✨ all over.
draco and hermione were so fucking perfect for each other i swear. they were the DEFINITION of soulmatism. they would die for each other, kill for each other, would do anything to save each other - at the cost of anything. they were each other’s forever in a way that was so beautiful to see, end of. they were it for each other.
Draco sat frozen.
Hermione watched him and recognised the expression in his eyes as he looked down at the little person who was clinging tenaciously to him.
Possessive and adoring.
the way draco was with his daughter?? 😩 stop that was too cute i think it just broke me a little. after so many years of never getting what he wanted, who he longed for, he finally had everything he deserved and more. and please, the way they couldn’t believe it when they were safe even for a minute because they’d gone through so much - they deserve the world.
“Love isn’t always as pretty or pure as people like to think. There’s a darkness in it sometimes. Draco and I go hand-in-hand. I made him who he is. I knew what his runes meant when I saved him. If he’s a monster, then I’m his creator. What did you think was the source of all his rage?”
the sacrifices they made for each other. the sacrifices hermione made for the world were so fucking shattering and in the end, she was nothing but a foot note i was crying 😭 aurore truly spoke nothing but the truth. history was always written by the heroes, after all. and the unsung heroes, the one who truly did all the heavy-lifting, they’re left forgotten in the shadows of it all. it’s so fucking unfair but it is the way it is.
She was a non-active member of the Order of the Phoenix and did not fight.
😭😭 stop. when she did everything to save the world. stop. not me languishing so much over all of them.
bottom line; i love them. officially a dramione convert.
“I’m going to take care of you.” She held his hand tighter and pressed it against her chest. “I’m yours, as long as you want me.”
His hand slid up to cradle her face. He stared at her, his silver eyes intent. “Always. As long as I live.”
this was long. dreary. dark. mad. but i loved it with all my heart. i drank up all the craziness and it was so delicious.
this was draco + hermione “i’ll kill for you” “i’ll die for you” “i’ll take care of you” “i’ll do anything to keep you safe” perfection. i loved how they ran away together 🥹 they truly gave somewhere only we know vibes. they’re so dear to me i can’t express it in words.
“Let’s love each other forever, Draco.”
She felt him kiss the top of her head.
“Alright.”
the first part was certainly the darkest, but after that it almost seemed hopeless to me at times. in the war time. the part that hooked me the most. i always did love the angst ❤️🩹 i adored how draco and hermione found each other in the middle of the night and became each other’s everything. their shelter, their loves, their lives. how draco’s only condition was “save her” and he did everything to follow through on that promise.
both of them were so lonely, so broken inside, but then they found each other. they found themselves together.
hermione granger. the dreamer. the broken. the brave. the lonely. how she wanted to save everyone, everything, even at the cost of her own life was so so heartbreaking. all i can say is, no one deserved her except for draco. no one. she kept breaking herself to save everyone. even though no one truly acknowledged her opinions, no one cared about about her enough. she still stayed so strong, so brave, so unmoving in her beliefs. and draco was her safety net, the one she leaned on. 😩
Mine. She could feel it in his touch, but he didn’t say it.
Mine.
His eyes weren’t like a wolf’s. They were a dragon’s, deadly and possessive. He stared at her as though she were all that mattered in the world. It made her blood burn.
draco malfoy. he was the epitome of “he set the world on fire around him but never let a flame touch her”. he was all ice outside and never showed a single emotion, but he was fire inside fr - he burned for hermione. all because he didn’t trust himself to feel anything. and when he did, he loved so deeply. possessed so madly. it was glorious.
the way he didn’t believe he deserved her at all. the way he was so tortured and ruthless. the way he would comfort her, the way he’d save her, the way he’d kill everyone in the entire world and damn them for eternity if it meant keeping her safe. it was ⚡e v e r y t h i n g⚡
“Perfect.” “Beautiful.” “Mine.” “Mine.”
this was killing me and keeping me alive at the same time and i could not stop reading. it was so addictive and just ✨P A I N✨ all over.
draco and hermione were so fucking perfect for each other i swear. they were the DEFINITION of soulmatism. they would die for each other, kill for each other, would do anything to save each other - at the cost of anything. they were each other’s forever in a way that was so beautiful to see, end of. they were it for each other.
Draco sat frozen.
Hermione watched him and recognised the expression in his eyes as he looked down at the little person who was clinging tenaciously to him.
Possessive and adoring.
the way draco was with his daughter?? 😩 stop that was too cute i think it just broke me a little. after so many years of never getting what he wanted, who he longed for, he finally had everything he deserved and more. and please, the way they couldn’t believe it when they were safe even for a minute because they’d gone through so much - they deserve the world.
“Love isn’t always as pretty or pure as people like to think. There’s a darkness in it sometimes. Draco and I go hand-in-hand. I made him who he is. I knew what his runes meant when I saved him. If he’s a monster, then I’m his creator. What did you think was the source of all his rage?”
the sacrifices they made for each other. the sacrifices hermione made for the world were so fucking shattering and in the end, she was nothing but a foot note i was crying 😭 aurore truly spoke nothing but the truth. history was always written by the heroes, after all. and the unsung heroes, the one who truly did all the heavy-lifting, they’re left forgotten in the shadows of it all. it’s so fucking unfair but it is the way it is.
She was a non-active member of the Order of the Phoenix and did not fight.
😭😭 stop. when she did everything to save the world. stop. not me languishing so much over all of them.
bottom line; i love them. officially a dramione convert.
May 22, 2024
⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢୭ৎ⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢
warning~ this review will contain my full uncensored controversial opinion + explicit language (↓)
trigger warning: rape
⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢୭ৎ⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢
( finished. ) 𓆩🍀𓆪 . . . 1 8 / 0 5 / 2 4 ! this is the worst fucking book (if it can even be called that) i've ever fucking read. how the hell does this have a 4.65 avg rating ?
"manacled" by senlinyu is a dark harry potter fanfiction set in an alternate universe where voldemort has won the war. the plot centers on hermione granger being enslaved (a sex slave) and used as a breeding tool by draco malfoy under voldemort's repopulation mandate. the story explores themes of power, control, and survival, and features intense depictions of violence, self harm, suicide, death, abuse, torture, gore, psychological manipulation, and trauma. the graphic depictions of rape and torture throughout the book are excessive and gratuitous, serving no purpose other than to shock and unsettle the reader + infuriatingly being used to add "angst."
i'd like to preface this by saying i've never been a dramione shipper, and i don't usually dabble in dark romance or fanfics so (1.) this was out of my comfort zone (2.) i didn't actively seek out to read this, but came across it multiple times which was enough to pique my interest. i went into this aware of its content, but nevertheless i am still coming out absolutely appalled, horrified, disgusted, disturbed.
"manacled" takes the beloved harry potter universe and characters (which i grew up with) and transforms it into a grotesque, dystopian nightmare that completely butchers every single character but more specifically: hermione. this story is not just dark; it's disturbingly bleak and needlessly brutal. frankly, i am offended, not only bc the author created such horrendous characters which share nothing in common with the original cast, other than their names, but also because this book fucking sucks.
then pray tell, what exactly is this ?
i'm giving you the cold hard truth, THIS IS TRAUMA PORN. the portrayal of draco and hermione's "relationship" is utterly irredeemable. there's nothing romantic or redemptive about a narrative that forces a victim to bond with her rapist. the justification of draco's actions and the twisted depiction of hermione's suffering being framed as a love story is morally repugnant AND FRANKLY, STUPID.
moreover, the writing itself is mediocre at best. i recognize that this is fanfiction, so i won't critique the writing too harshly. the plot is dragged out over unnecessary, lengthy chapters filled with repetitive and graphic scenes that desensitize rather than engage. this fanfiction fails to offer any meaningful commentary on the themes it exploits and instead sensationalizes violence and abuse. + it is 1000 pages ?? although the world-building is commendable, the story's foundation is built on a disturbing and problematic premise. the concept of a genocidal monster winning the war and using characters who were children in the original books as pawns in such a grotesque manner feels incredibly icky to me.
this perpetrates rape culture. it's not some dark tropey book filled with angst. it is not a "harrowing tale," this is plain cold hard rape being glorified, being excused. i know that this is a theme that's prevalent in dark romance, but i refuse to sit here idly and say "that is okay." this is not okay, and i will die on that hill.
you want me to sympathize with a rapist ? i’d much rather eat my own arm.
the overwhelming praise it receives from some corners of the fandom baffles and concerns me. this fanfic is a stark reminder of why critical thinking and responsible reading are more important than ever. this should never have seen the light of day, and it is infuriating that this will be traditionally published ( 0★ ).
⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢୭ৎ⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢
warning~ spoiler section (↓)
throughout act 2 and act 3, the story reveals draco's rationale behind his repeated rape, assault, manipulation, and mental abuse of hermione. the narrative suggests that draco's actions were driven by a twisted sense of protection. the claim is that if draco hadn't acted as he did, hermione would have been in a far worse situation, as he wouldn't have been able to get her to safety. his cruelty was supposedly a facade to prevent voldemort from discovering his true intentions through legilimency. once hermione was pregnant and draco was freed from voldemort's direct control, he became "nicer," indicating his abusive behavior was a calculated measure to maintain his cover. the story attempts to justify his actions by portraying him as a reluctant participant who was also victimized and coerced into this behavior. he had no choice. but it's okay because he is not a sadist. he loves her. he does it clinically. and do not forget that he doesn't want to do it, SO IT MAKES IT OKAY. right ?
rape with a reason is still rape. rape with excuses afterwards is still rape. rape with miscommunication and memory issues is still rape. rape is still rape. rationalizing these actions by claiming they were done out of necessity does not absolve the perpetrator of the crime. no amount of post-facto excuses or explanations can mitigate the severity and impact of such violations. so don't sit there and try to convince me otherwise.
major applause to the author for writing something that resonates with many, but i personally didn't like this one bit. i really only finished this so that i could give a full unbiased opinion. i was fully expecting the ending to be hermione earning her freedom and killing off draco, which would have been much more suitable and rather poetic, but no this bitch gets pregnant and has his child. dipped my toes into dark romance, and now, never doing that again hehe fun.
⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢୭ৎ⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢
⌗ ◌ 🍶𓂃 𓈒𓏸 pre-review
﹙started﹚ㅤ𓈒ㅤׂ 1 4 / 0 5 / 2 4 ⊹
thank yew to irha for listening to me verbally destroy this atrocity.
warning~ this review will contain my full uncensored controversial opinion + explicit language (↓)
trigger warning: rape
⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢୭ৎ⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢
( finished. ) 𓆩🍀𓆪 . . . 1 8 / 0 5 / 2 4 ! this is the worst fucking book (if it can even be called that) i've ever fucking read. how the hell does this have a 4.65 avg rating ?
RAPE
[ verb ]
to force someone to have sex when they are unwilling, using violence or threatening behaviour.
"manacled" by senlinyu is a dark harry potter fanfiction set in an alternate universe where voldemort has won the war. the plot centers on hermione granger being enslaved (a sex slave) and used as a breeding tool by draco malfoy under voldemort's repopulation mandate. the story explores themes of power, control, and survival, and features intense depictions of violence, self harm, suicide, death, abuse, torture, gore, psychological manipulation, and trauma. the graphic depictions of rape and torture throughout the book are excessive and gratuitous, serving no purpose other than to shock and unsettle the reader + infuriatingly being used to add "angst."
i'd like to preface this by saying i've never been a dramione shipper, and i don't usually dabble in dark romance or fanfics so (1.) this was out of my comfort zone (2.) i didn't actively seek out to read this, but came across it multiple times which was enough to pique my interest. i went into this aware of its content, but nevertheless i am still coming out absolutely appalled, horrified, disgusted, disturbed.
"manacled" takes the beloved harry potter universe and characters (which i grew up with) and transforms it into a grotesque, dystopian nightmare that completely butchers every single character but more specifically: hermione. this story is not just dark; it's disturbingly bleak and needlessly brutal. frankly, i am offended, not only bc the author created such horrendous characters which share nothing in common with the original cast, other than their names, but also because this book fucking sucks.
“ for anyone wondering, this story is not being improvised. it is long and complex and the plot was carefully laid out months before i started posting it. i'm not writing emotional torture-porn or throwing in elements for shock-value. there is a reason for everything. ” - senlinyu (the author)
then pray tell, what exactly is this ?
“ i'm being raped and my body is enjoying it, she thought bitterly and wanted to curl away. ”
“ he'd healed her, far more than he needed to. he didn't even want to rape her. ”
“ malfoy wasn't kind; he simply wasn't cruel. he wasn't as awful as he could be. he possessed the meagerest shreds of decency. ”
“ she couldn't let her mind rationalise into falling for her rapist simply because he wasn't as much of a monster to her as he could be. ”
i'm giving you the cold hard truth, THIS IS TRAUMA PORN. the portrayal of draco and hermione's "relationship" is utterly irredeemable. there's nothing romantic or redemptive about a narrative that forces a victim to bond with her rapist. the justification of draco's actions and the twisted depiction of hermione's suffering being framed as a love story is morally repugnant AND FRANKLY, STUPID.
moreover, the writing itself is mediocre at best. i recognize that this is fanfiction, so i won't critique the writing too harshly. the plot is dragged out over unnecessary, lengthy chapters filled with repetitive and graphic scenes that desensitize rather than engage. this fanfiction fails to offer any meaningful commentary on the themes it exploits and instead sensationalizes violence and abuse. + it is 1000 pages ?? although the world-building is commendable, the story's foundation is built on a disturbing and problematic premise. the concept of a genocidal monster winning the war and using characters who were children in the original books as pawns in such a grotesque manner feels incredibly icky to me.
this perpetrates rape culture. it's not some dark tropey book filled with angst. it is not a "harrowing tale," this is plain cold hard rape being glorified, being excused. i know that this is a theme that's prevalent in dark romance, but i refuse to sit here idly and say "that is okay." this is not okay, and i will die on that hill.
you want me to sympathize with a rapist ? i’d much rather eat my own arm.
the overwhelming praise it receives from some corners of the fandom baffles and concerns me. this fanfic is a stark reminder of why critical thinking and responsible reading are more important than ever. this should never have seen the light of day, and it is infuriating that this will be traditionally published ( 0★ ).
⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢୭ৎ⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢
warning~ spoiler section (↓)
throughout act 2 and act 3, the story reveals draco's rationale behind his repeated rape, assault, manipulation, and mental abuse of hermione. the narrative suggests that draco's actions were driven by a twisted sense of protection. the claim is that if draco hadn't acted as he did, hermione would have been in a far worse situation, as he wouldn't have been able to get her to safety. his cruelty was supposedly a facade to prevent voldemort from discovering his true intentions through legilimency. once hermione was pregnant and draco was freed from voldemort's direct control, he became "nicer," indicating his abusive behavior was a calculated measure to maintain his cover. the story attempts to justify his actions by portraying him as a reluctant participant who was also victimized and coerced into this behavior. he had no choice. but it's okay because he is not a sadist. he loves her. he does it clinically. and do not forget that he doesn't want to do it, SO IT MAKES IT OKAY. right ?
rape with a reason is still rape. rape with excuses afterwards is still rape. rape with miscommunication and memory issues is still rape. rape is still rape. rationalizing these actions by claiming they were done out of necessity does not absolve the perpetrator of the crime. no amount of post-facto excuses or explanations can mitigate the severity and impact of such violations. so don't sit there and try to convince me otherwise.
major applause to the author for writing something that resonates with many, but i personally didn't like this one bit. i really only finished this so that i could give a full unbiased opinion. i was fully expecting the ending to be hermione earning her freedom and killing off draco, which would have been much more suitable and rather poetic, but no this bitch gets pregnant and has his child. dipped my toes into dark romance, and now, never doing that again hehe fun.
TL ; DR : this is an affront to the harry potter universe and to good taste. i think that we as a society should kill off all these possessive men. #staysafe
⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢୭ৎ⌢⌢⌢⌢⌢
⌗ ◌ 🍶𓂃 𓈒𓏸 pre-review
﹙started﹚ㅤ𓈒ㅤׂ 1 4 / 0 5 / 2 4 ⊹
thank yew to irha for listening to me verbally destroy this atrocity.
October 12, 2023
OMG.
What.
Thefuck.
Was.
That?
All of the fucking stars. All of them. 😭 This was THE BEST THING I'VE EVER READ. The most heartbreaking, yet beautiful story ever. 😭
✅✅ Morally grey characters 🖤
✅✅ Fleshed out and complex characters
✅✅ Angst and dark vibe
✅✅ Plot
✅✅ Hate-to-love / Tension
✅ Pace
✅ Twists
✅ Amazingly well-done flashbacks
✅ Writing
❗️❗️ Trigger warning: on-page rape, torture, mutilation, gruesome killings, and self-harm. Mention of attempted suicide. This is a very dark dystopian fiction.
Definition of a book hangover: the way you feel after obsessively reading Manacled for 2 days straight, and now have to go on with your life, but cannot because 95% of your brain is still busy thinking about Manacled and Dramione and your emotions are fucked up and don't know how to go back to normal.
Harry died at Hogwarts' battle, Voldemort won and killed almost all the members of the Order. Hermione has been a prisoner since Harry's death, with no contact with anyone, and no access to her magic. Being one of the only living Order's members remaining, she holds important secrets that would allow Voldemort to finally eradicate the Order, but her memory was affected by her 16 months of captivity, and now she can't remember. She is sent to the High Reeve, Voldemort's right hand and most efficient killer, so he can work on her and bring her memories back.
I have read a lot of FanFictions when I was a teenager and didn’t have much money to buy “real” books. This is not a FanFiction. It’s a fucking masterpiece that completely wrecked me.
I was not ready for this. I was so not expecting a fanfiction to be this addictive and amazingly well written. I started reading the first chapter two days ago before I went to bed, just to see what all the fuss was about, and here I am, having read over 1200 pages in two days, having sacrificed a few hours of sleep, and wondering how the hell I was supposed to survive this FanFiction with my heart intact. I know that I will obsess and think about this fiction for a looooooong time.
I felt SO MANY emotions while reading this story. The angst-lover in me was more than well-fed with this dark and dystopian adventure. There is so much angst, hurt, and despair, but also courage, passion, and love weaved through all the darkness and hopelessness. The way the story unfolded with the flashbacks allowing us to finally understand how Hermione and Draco got into this situation, was out of this world! I am not usually a fan of flashbacks, but I am giving a standing ovation for the way it was done in this book.
The first part of the book is the darkest. Read the trigger warnings before you jump into this one because it gets pretty dark and twisted. There are many scenes with physical abuse, rape, torture, anxiety attack, suicidal thoughts, and gruesome killings.
The second part is a series of 38 flashbacks that finally show us how Hermione and Draco survived during the war, and what sacrifices they had to make. It's also the part that brings everything together. The part that allows us to understand why they ended up being this way and why a hate-to-love relationship between them could feel natural and logical, against all odds. The attention to the details and the connections between the "present" and the events shown in the flashbacks is insane. I was flabbergasted.
I was never a huge fan of Harry Potter FanFictions for some reason, so I did not read a lot of them, but this one is just phenomenal. I always loved Hermione much more than Harry (she clearly is the MVP in this series), and I also found Draco to be much more intriguing and complex than Harry, so having this Dramione epic story was everything that I didn’t know I needed. This story is the ultimate and most perfect dark Malfoy redemption story there is.
Seriously this story is heartbreakingly beautiful and just tragically heartbreaking at the same time. The fantastic plot and the pace made it SO addictive! It’s been a long time since I had the “one last chapter” syndrome that bad. I had to refrain so many times from skimming in the second half of the book because I was just so anxious to know what would happen, but at the same time, I wanted to enjoy it while it lasted because I was so afraid of the way it would end. There was a 50/50 chance of having a happy ending or a tragic one, and I couldn't know for sure until the epilogue.
The hate-to-love relationship between Hermione and Draco is one of the best I've read in my whole life. I was a little skeptical at first: how can she possibly develop feelings for him after he's killed so many of her friends? After everything that he's done and said? How can he love her after despising her for so many years? How on Earth could that possibly happen without feeling forced and unrealistic? But the way their story developed, and the way their feelings evolved makes so much sense once you get to know this new version of Hermione that is just exhausted by the war and this new version of Draco that is full of self-hatred.
Seeing how Hermione felt all alone because she was one of the only members of the Order advocating for the use of Dark Magic when fighting against Voldemort's army, and how it created a rift between Harry, Ron, and herself broke my heart. She was willing to do anything to save them, and she was repaid with contempt and insults. Also seeing how Draco was one of the only one who really saw her and her worth, and discovering what he was willing to do to save her felt comforting and tragic at the same time. Seriously, I've had so many feelings while reading this fiction, it was a freaking non-stop roller coaster.
Discovering why Draco had become such a ruthless and cold killing machine, and how he saw no hope of redemption for himself was painful. The author did an AMAZING job with him and with this darker and more ruthless version of Hermione, and I love this broken version of them so much more than the original version. Seriously, this one Fanfiction is better than the whole series.
I know the author had a part of the job already done for her since this is a FanFiction and she used the world-building and characters that JK Rowling created, but the way she gave a new life to Hermione and Draco leaves me speechless. The writing level of this Fanfiction is way above the level of many published novels I’ve read. I am still shocked that this jewel is free and was written by a fan and not a published author. This is, hands down, one of the best stories I've read. Ever.
There are so many quotes that I adored and sometimes I just had to take a break to absorb all the intensity and feelings and to reread those few lines that meant so much for the characters... I am totally fangirling about this fiction. It's even worse than when I discovered Twilight when I was 14 years old.
OMG. That last line broke my heart. 😭😭😭
Fanart by ksenita_art
Avendell also created such gorgeous and intense artwork to go with this Fanfiction, it made everything even more captivating and dark.
Follow me on Instagram 🙂
What.
Thefuck.
Was.
That?
All of the fucking stars. All of them. 😭 This was THE BEST THING I'VE EVER READ. The most heartbreaking, yet beautiful story ever. 😭
“Let your Gryffindor die, Hermione. Don’t try to be brave. Don’t try to be clever. Just keep your head down.”
✅✅ Morally grey characters 🖤
✅✅ Fleshed out and complex characters
✅✅ Angst and dark vibe
✅✅ Plot
✅✅ Hate-to-love / Tension
✅ Pace
✅ Twists
✅ Amazingly well-done flashbacks
✅ Writing
❗️❗️ Trigger warning: on-page rape, torture, mutilation, gruesome killings, and self-harm. Mention of attempted suicide. This is a very dark dystopian fiction.
Resignation and hopelessness had entwined themselves with her soul since the moment she watched Harry die.
After watching most of the people she loved die in agony, she’d known her turn to suffer was lying in wait.
Now it had come.
Definition of a book hangover: the way you feel after obsessively reading Manacled for 2 days straight, and now have to go on with your life, but cannot because 95% of your brain is still busy thinking about Manacled and Dramione and your emotions are fucked up and don't know how to go back to normal.
One upon a time… there had been a girl who fought. Who believed that books and cleverness and friendship and bravery could overcome all things.
But now-
-that girl was gone.
She’d been all but killed during the war.
Harry died at Hogwarts' battle, Voldemort won and killed almost all the members of the Order. Hermione has been a prisoner since Harry's death, with no contact with anyone, and no access to her magic. Being one of the only living Order's members remaining, she holds important secrets that would allow Voldemort to finally eradicate the Order, but her memory was affected by her 16 months of captivity, and now she can't remember. She is sent to the High Reeve, Voldemort's right hand and most efficient killer, so he can work on her and bring her memories back.
I have read a lot of FanFictions when I was a teenager and didn’t have much money to buy “real” books. This is not a FanFiction. It’s a fucking masterpiece that completely wrecked me.
Survivor’s guilt, she tought, that was the Muggle term for it. Such a paltry description. It didn’t capture even a fraction of the breadth of agony in her soul.
I was not ready for this. I was so not expecting a fanfiction to be this addictive and amazingly well written. I started reading the first chapter two days ago before I went to bed, just to see what all the fuss was about, and here I am, having read over 1200 pages in two days, having sacrificed a few hours of sleep, and wondering how the hell I was supposed to survive this FanFiction with my heart intact. I know that I will obsess and think about this fiction for a looooooong time.
“It was always the last thing she said to him.
The moment before he apparated away, as he stood in his Death Eater robes, she’d say it rather than goodbye. She’d catch his chin in her hand and stare up into his eyes.
“Be careful. Don’t die.”
I felt SO MANY emotions while reading this story. The angst-lover in me was more than well-fed with this dark and dystopian adventure. There is so much angst, hurt, and despair, but also courage, passion, and love weaved through all the darkness and hopelessness. The way the story unfolded with the flashbacks allowing us to finally understand how Hermione and Draco got into this situation, was out of this world! I am not usually a fan of flashbacks, but I am giving a standing ovation for the way it was done in this book.
The first part of the book is the darkest. Read the trigger warnings before you jump into this one because it gets pretty dark and twisted. There are many scenes with physical abuse, rape, torture, anxiety attack, suicidal thoughts, and gruesome killings.
“I always have to choose, and I never get to choose you. I'm tired of not getting to choose you”
The second part is a series of 38 flashbacks that finally show us how Hermione and Draco survived during the war, and what sacrifices they had to make. It's also the part that brings everything together. The part that allows us to understand why they ended up being this way and why a hate-to-love relationship between them could feel natural and logical, against all odds. The attention to the details and the connections between the "present" and the events shown in the flashbacks is insane. I was flabbergasted.
Malfoy wasn’t kind; he simply wasn’t cruel. He wasn’t as awful as he could be. He possessed the meagerest shreds of decency.
I was never a huge fan of Harry Potter FanFictions for some reason, so I did not read a lot of them, but this one is just phenomenal. I always loved Hermione much more than Harry (she clearly is the MVP in this series), and I also found Draco to be much more intriguing and complex than Harry, so having this Dramione epic story was everything that I didn’t know I needed. This story is the ultimate and most perfect dark Malfoy redemption story there is.
He was cruelest when he was vulnerable.
She had never hated Draco Malfoy before.
He had simply been an indoctrinated bully, a symptom of a disease which others were responsible for. Now – she hated him. For what he had become. For what he had done
Seriously this story is heartbreakingly beautiful and just tragically heartbreaking at the same time. The fantastic plot and the pace made it SO addictive! It’s been a long time since I had the “one last chapter” syndrome that bad. I had to refrain so many times from skimming in the second half of the book because I was just so anxious to know what would happen, but at the same time, I wanted to enjoy it while it lasted because I was so afraid of the way it would end. There was a 50/50 chance of having a happy ending or a tragic one, and I couldn't know for sure until the epilogue.
“Just live, Hermione.” His voice was shaking. “That's all I am asking you to do for me.”
“He pressed his lips against her forehead. “You’re better than anyone,” he said quietly, the words brushing against her skin. “This world doesn’t deserve you at all.”
The hate-to-love relationship between Hermione and Draco is one of the best I've read in my whole life. I was a little skeptical at first: how can she possibly develop feelings for him after he's killed so many of her friends? After everything that he's done and said? How can he love her after despising her for so many years? How on Earth could that possibly happen without feeling forced and unrealistic? But the way their story developed, and the way their feelings evolved makes so much sense once you get to know this new version of Hermione that is just exhausted by the war and this new version of Draco that is full of self-hatred.
“I’m sorry—I’m sorry—I’m so sorry. I’m sorry for everything I did to you,” he said, his voice hoarse and broken. “I love you. You left, and I’d never told you.”
Seeing how Hermione felt all alone because she was one of the only members of the Order advocating for the use of Dark Magic when fighting against Voldemort's army, and how it created a rift between Harry, Ron, and herself broke my heart. She was willing to do anything to save them, and she was repaid with contempt and insults. Also seeing how Draco was one of the only one who really saw her and her worth, and discovering what he was willing to do to save her felt comforting and tragic at the same time. Seriously, I've had so many feelings while reading this fiction, it was a freaking non-stop roller coaster.
You are so much more than what the war has made you into.” Her voice shook slightly.
Her fingers stopped at the onyx ring, and she stared at it, replaying their past.
Blinding pain and burning devotion in equal parts.
Discovering why Draco had become such a ruthless and cold killing machine, and how he saw no hope of redemption for himself was painful. The author did an AMAZING job with him and with this darker and more ruthless version of Hermione, and I love this broken version of them so much more than the original version. Seriously, this one Fanfiction is better than the whole series.
You are without a doubt the most exceptional asset the Order possesses.
I am sorry for that.
I know the author had a part of the job already done for her since this is a FanFiction and she used the world-building and characters that JK Rowling created, but the way she gave a new life to Hermione and Draco leaves me speechless. The writing level of this Fanfiction is way above the level of many published novels I’ve read. I am still shocked that this jewel is free and was written by a fan and not a published author. This is, hands down, one of the best stories I've read. Ever.
There are so many quotes that I adored and sometimes I just had to take a break to absorb all the intensity and feelings and to reread those few lines that meant so much for the characters... I am totally fangirling about this fiction. It's even worse than when I discovered Twilight when I was 14 years old.
I want to make the world I wanted to live in.
She was a non-active member of the Order of the Phoenix and did not fight.
OMG. That last line broke my heart. 😭😭😭
Fanart by ksenita_art
Avendell also created such gorgeous and intense artwork to go with this Fanfiction, it made everything even more captivating and dark.
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August 2, 2021
5 STARS, each a shard of my heart ★★★★★
⤐ Overall.
This story. My goodness, this story. It maimed me, mauled me, made me hope and fear and grab my chest to calm my beating heart. I'm honestly doubting whether any of the 800 books I've read in my life made me feel and cry the way this book did. There were tears rolling down my cheeks as I was writing the pre-review. No review in the world will ever do this story justice. I'm not even going to try.
After finishing Manacled yesterday evening I sat on my bed, unmoving, tears streaming down my face. This book destroyed me on some level. It proofs that we NEVER know the whole story and that history is ALWAYS written by winners, clueless historians and pretentious scientists. It was the last sentence of this book that tore me apart:
The pieces that are me will never fit together as they did before reading this. Hermoine was an active member and she did fight. More than anyone will ever know.
⤐ What’s happening.
Despite what the history books of the future will write about Draco and Hermione, it is save to say that, in this fanfiction, they are just as much heroes of the Second Wizarding War as all the other people who lie beneath the ground or were torn to ash and dust, remembered, forgotten, honoured or cursed.
Harry is The Boy Who Died. He was killed by Voldemort who now rules Britain and is attempting to stretch his realm beyond the limitations of the isle. But that's not his only plan. He wants to repopulate the isle and is using female war prisoners as sex slaves for his loyal and most trusted Death Eaters in order to replenish the population. Among them Hermione, with distinct loss of memory, no allies or friends, the last living member of the order. She is given to the High Reeve, a figure that has provoked almost as much fear as the Dark Lord himself. His name is Draco Malfoy.
_____________________
5 STARS. Absolutely loved it. Memorable read that I'm likely to return to. Takes up space in my mind long after I've finished it. Oftentimes a particularly insightful read. Will recommend it with my last breath.
This book is for… mature Dramione fans who can handle dark narratives. TW: mental, physical and sexual abuse. War. Torture. The whole plate basically
⤐ Overall.
This story. My goodness, this story. It maimed me, mauled me, made me hope and fear and grab my chest to calm my beating heart. I'm honestly doubting whether any of the 800 books I've read in my life made me feel and cry the way this book did. There were tears rolling down my cheeks as I was writing the pre-review. No review in the world will ever do this story justice. I'm not even going to try.
After finishing Manacled yesterday evening I sat on my bed, unmoving, tears streaming down my face. This book destroyed me on some level. It proofs that we NEVER know the whole story and that history is ALWAYS written by winners, clueless historians and pretentious scientists. It was the last sentence of this book that tore me apart:
‘The Hogwarts Trio, Christmas 2002. Harry Potter with friends Rond Weasley (See: Weasley, Ron, chapter 7) and Muggle-born witch Hermione Granger. Granger left England at the start of the second Wizarding War to study healing abroad. She survived the war but died during imprisonment while a surrogate in the Repopulation Program. She was a non-active member of the Order of the Phoenix and did not fight.’
The pieces that are me will never fit together as they did before reading this. Hermoine was an active member and she did fight. More than anyone will ever know.
⤐ What’s happening.
‘I wish you luck, Miss Granger. You are a better friend than Harry Potter will ever deserve.’
Despite what the history books of the future will write about Draco and Hermione, it is save to say that, in this fanfiction, they are just as much heroes of the Second Wizarding War as all the other people who lie beneath the ground or were torn to ash and dust, remembered, forgotten, honoured or cursed.
Harry is The Boy Who Died. He was killed by Voldemort who now rules Britain and is attempting to stretch his realm beyond the limitations of the isle. But that's not his only plan. He wants to repopulate the isle and is using female war prisoners as sex slaves for his loyal and most trusted Death Eaters in order to replenish the population. Among them Hermione, with distinct loss of memory, no allies or friends, the last living member of the order. She is given to the High Reeve, a figure that has provoked almost as much fear as the Dark Lord himself. His name is Draco Malfoy.
_____________________
5 STARS. Absolutely loved it. Memorable read that I'm likely to return to. Takes up space in my mind long after I've finished it. Oftentimes a particularly insightful read. Will recommend it with my last breath.
May 26, 2024
they’re finally somewhere only they know!! (I can’t breathe)
January 14, 2025
➳ cheers to my first introduction to hogwarts ☆
this is my first introduction to harry potter. i have NEVER read the books or watched the film, so i am unsure how to feel about this. right now i am right at a 3 rating, and this could be subjected to change. while it is nice that i went into the story blind and with no prior knowledge, i also feel like this was jarring for me as i did not have the same emotional attachment to the plot/world. this is an objectively well written story, and i can see why many people enjoy/love it. i am somewhere in the middle of my feelings for the book.
i will not go into the boring details and explain the synopsis and break down characterization as i am not the best person to do so. there are so many better reviews that will do justice to that HAHA. i have read many five star and one star reviews of this fan-fiction and i can see both sides of the argument. i don't think you NEED to be acquainted with the characters before reading this, however, i do believe it can help your enjoyment or emotional reaction/response of the narrative. since this follow draco and hermione, as the main leads, i think that the story was adequate enough for consumption. while a lot of people say this is DARK romance, i personally don't think the romance is at the forefront and is rather a side plot. i am however, glad i did not listen to anything or anyone before reading, because i do believe i would've lowered my rating even further.
lastly, my besties keep asking if i cried... i am sorry to say—i am a cold hearted bitch. no matter how hard i force my self to shed tears for anything, they don't come. i instead look constipated. i would not read this if you are TRYING to cry, but rather go into it with an open mind and you may enjoy the plot? i would probably never read this again though, if i am being honest with everyone.
“i’ll take care of you,” she whispered. “i’ll do everything i can to be a good mum. there’s a potion i can make when you’re older. then—then i’ll be able to go outside with you sometimes. you won’t be trapped with me. when you grow up and want to go, i’ll let you go, i promise.”
this is my first introduction to harry potter. i have NEVER read the books or watched the film, so i am unsure how to feel about this. right now i am right at a 3 rating, and this could be subjected to change. while it is nice that i went into the story blind and with no prior knowledge, i also feel like this was jarring for me as i did not have the same emotional attachment to the plot/world. this is an objectively well written story, and i can see why many people enjoy/love it. i am somewhere in the middle of my feelings for the book.
“you did everything you could. more than anyone should have ever asked.” “i’d rather die in your arms.”
“my entire life is comprised of emotional fallout.” he looked feral. “sometimes—i don’t have the capacity to handle any more of it.”
“you have done more than anyone should have ever asked from you. let me save you now. please, take the risk of believing that i can.”
i will not go into the boring details and explain the synopsis and break down characterization as i am not the best person to do so. there are so many better reviews that will do justice to that HAHA. i have read many five star and one star reviews of this fan-fiction and i can see both sides of the argument. i don't think you NEED to be acquainted with the characters before reading this, however, i do believe it can help your enjoyment or emotional reaction/response of the narrative. since this follow draco and hermione, as the main leads, i think that the story was adequate enough for consumption. while a lot of people say this is DARK romance, i personally don't think the romance is at the forefront and is rather a side plot. i am however, glad i did not listen to anything or anyone before reading, because i do believe i would've lowered my rating even further.
she was a non-active member of the order of the phoenix and did not fight.
“if you don’t want me to kiss you, you should say so now.”
“i thought we’d both suffered enough that we’d get to have each other”
“but”, he said after a minute, “at this point, i suppose i deserve to burn. i wonder, if you'll burn too.”
lastly, my besties keep asking if i cried... i am sorry to say—i am a cold hearted bitch. no matter how hard i force my self to shed tears for anything, they don't come. i instead look constipated. i would not read this if you are TRYING to cry, but rather go into it with an open mind and you may enjoy the plot? i would probably never read this again though, if i am being honest with everyone.
April 13, 2021
I couldn’t get past chapter 58. This book was the most slowest thing I’ve ever read. It didn’t even feel worth it. Overhyped honestly. AND GUESS WHAT? it wasn’t even the triggers that got me. I didn’t mind those. It was the fact that the book was BORING.
June 21, 2021
fuuuuuckkkkkk i’m NOT CRYING I’M NOT EMPTY INSIDE I’M NOT IN PAAAAAIIINNNN
February 15, 2025
the most famous dramione fic on ao3!! i tried reading it 2x before but never made it past the first few paragraphs but... idk why lol i think it was the prose? i gave it a second chance bc i'm now used to the shitty prose fanfic authors have + it's summer break and i was bored and wow. i could sort of see why it was hyped up so much because the first 60 chapters were super entertaining and interesting.
i only have a few problems with the start, such as voldemort conveniently forgetting about hermione, the last of the 3 biggest thorns in his side, for 16 months until he has to be reminded. like let's all be serious his ass would never forget LMFAO not to mention how the entire plot falls apart if you think about it for over 2 seconds. this entire war was fought so they could genocide a certain group of people whom they hate for being dirty and stealing their magic etc etc but now they're like, "great idea guys let's have kids with these people we despise so much and think of as trash!" like... what? the whole point of being a "pureblood" is to have the aforementioned pure blood, which you keep pure by. you know. not procreating with non-purebloods.
there's also the fact that WOW this is super dark. at the start i was like !??!?! the entire time bc i had no idea how this man draco was going to redeem himself, and i was intrigued to find out how exactly that would happen! but the way his redemption went really disappointed me. there's nothing wrong with a dark story, don't get me wrong, it's just the way this was all handled at the end.
tl;dr read if you like rape being used as a shiny little accessory!
i only have a few problems with the start, such as voldemort conveniently forgetting about hermione, the last of the 3 biggest thorns in his side, for 16 months until he has to be reminded. like let's all be serious his ass would never forget LMFAO not to mention how the entire plot falls apart if you think about it for over 2 seconds. this entire war was fought so they could genocide a certain group of people whom they hate for being dirty and stealing their magic etc etc but now they're like, "great idea guys let's have kids with these people we despise so much and think of as trash!" like... what? the whole point of being a "pureblood" is to have the aforementioned pure blood, which you keep pure by. you know. not procreating with non-purebloods.
there's also the fact that WOW this is super dark. at the start i was like !??!?! the entire time bc i had no idea how this man draco was going to redeem himself, and i was intrigued to find out how exactly that would happen! but the way his redemption went really disappointed me. there's nothing wrong with a dark story, don't get me wrong, it's just the way this was all handled at the end.
tl;dr read if you like rape being used as a shiny little accessory!
August 12, 2022
... well. *ahem*
Some people love dark romance. I am not one of those people because either:
1) the fall-out isn't handled well / believably and I get frustrated with the lack of realism and repercussions, or
2) the fall-out is handled well and I'm exhausted by the realism and repercussions.
This book fell into the #2 category and, let me tell you, I was EXHAUSTED by the last 1/3 of the book.
I recently had a discussion with my oldest about how I (personally) rate books and whether I rate them as a publisher or an author or a reader or both or what. Reader trumps all, and if I love a story and get swept away, it doesn't necessarily matter whether the prose if perfect or if there's repetitive word choices, etc. I'll give that book 5 stars because it has succeeded.
But sometimes I read a book and I give it 5 stars because I'm so impressed by it as an author-- the depth and intricacy of the plot and character development, but I didn't necessarily *love* the story.
I did not love this story. I loved parts of it, scenes, sections. But some of it was just too much and my brain wouldn't let me disassociate and lose myself. Call it self-preservation. The beginning of the book is very much this way. The middle part of the story was phenomenal, and I was able to read it fluidly. But then, in the end, we were back to reading it at a distance so I could find out what happened without getting too involved.
All of that said, if you enjoy Dramione fanfic and don't mind dark elements, but you haven't read this one yet (or are afraid to) then you REALLY need to read it. It's so passionately written, a story crafted with the purest love for the characters.
I may not have loved this story, but I certainly did adore it.
Some people love dark romance. I am not one of those people because either:
1) the fall-out isn't handled well / believably and I get frustrated with the lack of realism and repercussions, or
2) the fall-out is handled well and I'm exhausted by the realism and repercussions.
This book fell into the #2 category and, let me tell you, I was EXHAUSTED by the last 1/3 of the book.
I recently had a discussion with my oldest about how I (personally) rate books and whether I rate them as a publisher or an author or a reader or both or what. Reader trumps all, and if I love a story and get swept away, it doesn't necessarily matter whether the prose if perfect or if there's repetitive word choices, etc. I'll give that book 5 stars because it has succeeded.
But sometimes I read a book and I give it 5 stars because I'm so impressed by it as an author-- the depth and intricacy of the plot and character development, but I didn't necessarily *love* the story.
I did not love this story. I loved parts of it, scenes, sections. But some of it was just too much and my brain wouldn't let me disassociate and lose myself. Call it self-preservation. The beginning of the book is very much this way. The middle part of the story was phenomenal, and I was able to read it fluidly. But then, in the end, we were back to reading it at a distance so I could find out what happened without getting too involved.
All of that said, if you enjoy Dramione fanfic and don't mind dark elements, but you haven't read this one yet (or are afraid to) then you REALLY need to read it. It's so passionately written, a story crafted with the purest love for the characters.
I may not have loved this story, but I certainly did adore it.
December 13, 2024
If I could give this 10 stars I would. I’ll be thinking about this one for a long time (or probs forever).
I picked this book up out of the blue not thinking I was going to enjoy it, but it ended up altering my brain chemistry & became one of my favorite books of all time. It was tragic & beautiful & I lost count at how many times I completely sobbed. As heartbreaking & difficult as it was to read at times, it was also written incredibly carefully & beautifully. These characters are everything.
So glad I picked this up- especially when I did. It was addicting, it moved me, & I will never be the same.
**SPOILERS BELOW**
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FIRST!! This book was so incredible that I think it’s ruined a lot of books for me moving forward. I’m sorry, but I dare someone to give me a book with a better enemies to lovers. It was absolute perfection. I hated Draco & then fell madly in love with him.
To go along with that, I loved how I questioned Draco’s actions (& even Hermione’s at times) for it to then start to make sense in such a beautiful & twisted way.
DRACO & HERMIONE together is my fave but also separately. Their characters were so complex. I loved it. I feel like most men in a fantasy enemies to lovers books are way too similar. Draco is a different breed. He’s soooo different & fascinating.
I think I fell in love with this book so much because even though the characters were put through things I can’t imagine, I saw a sliver of myself in Hermione & my husband in Draco.
The ending of this book was the best mix of happy & sad. Aurore & Draco & Hermione are my favorite trio. My mom heart couldn’t handle the epilogues. And Ginny getting the final kill was ICONIC. I NEED AN AURORE & JAMES BOOK NOW.
I picked this book up out of the blue not thinking I was going to enjoy it, but it ended up altering my brain chemistry & became one of my favorite books of all time. It was tragic & beautiful & I lost count at how many times I completely sobbed. As heartbreaking & difficult as it was to read at times, it was also written incredibly carefully & beautifully. These characters are everything.
So glad I picked this up- especially when I did. It was addicting, it moved me, & I will never be the same.
**SPOILERS BELOW**
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FIRST!! This book was so incredible that I think it’s ruined a lot of books for me moving forward. I’m sorry, but I dare someone to give me a book with a better enemies to lovers. It was absolute perfection. I hated Draco & then fell madly in love with him.
To go along with that, I loved how I questioned Draco’s actions (& even Hermione’s at times) for it to then start to make sense in such a beautiful & twisted way.
DRACO & HERMIONE together is my fave but also separately. Their characters were so complex. I loved it. I feel like most men in a fantasy enemies to lovers books are way too similar. Draco is a different breed. He’s soooo different & fascinating.
I think I fell in love with this book so much because even though the characters were put through things I can’t imagine, I saw a sliver of myself in Hermione & my husband in Draco.
The ending of this book was the best mix of happy & sad. Aurore & Draco & Hermione are my favorite trio. My mom heart couldn’t handle the epilogues. And Ginny getting the final kill was ICONIC. I NEED AN AURORE & JAMES BOOK NOW.
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January 6, 2025“I always have to choose, and I never get to choose you. I’m so tired of not getting to choose you.”
apparently i wanted to start 2025 off in the most unhinged way possible (going back to my earliest internet roots reading hp fanfic). but i was very influenced from booktok telling me i had until dec 31th, 2024 to download this (which also made me extra curious to read before this gets reworked and traditionally published).
i do not think i am going to rate fanfiction on here, but this is one of the best i've ever read, truly. senlinyu is a really good writer, and story teller, and i was inhaling this every night unable to stop until way past midnight for the first five nights of the new year. with equal time spent kicking my feet, screaming, and rolling around my bed like a maniac.
i can't wait to read whatever senlinyu does with this story without the cursed nostalgia ip that truly started enemies to lovers for me.
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February 21, 2024“You’re like a rose in a graveyard. I wonder what you could have turned into without the war”🖤
“He’d set fire to the world around him but never let a flame touch her” 🖤
The HP story diverges from canon following the conclusion of Order of the Phoenix- inspired by The Handmaids Tale as well..
I've waited far too long to start this one... 😩
“He’d set fire to the world around him but never let a flame touch her” 🖤
The HP story diverges from canon following the conclusion of Order of the Phoenix- inspired by The Handmaids Tale as well..
I've waited far too long to start this one... 😩
December 27, 2021
4 1/2✨
did you know. the book that actually introduced me & made me obsessed to the romance genre was some dramione fanfic i read years ago on wattpad? no one cares but bear with me. that book really influenced my reading life and i'm forever in debt to this particular couple, dramione.
weirdly enough tho, i've never gotten the chance to read any of their fic since then. until this book.
this book is bleak bleak. (it is set in war after all) it's gruesome & awesome
i rarely includes summaries on my reviews, and i'm not gonna here. just go in knowing this is a dark & slow building book, set in the darkest world of the harry potter series.
✨
#1 : the order were filled w/ morons.
look, i’m a very neutral person. i always tries to understand other people’s different point of view and i did get where they were coming from, why they did what they did, or lack of. but it’s just that they were fucking blinded by what they thought was right, they ignored the only sensical option in their condition
ex 1 :
ex 2 :
#2 : the romance wasn’t the best aspect of this book
surprisingly, it wasn’t (it’s the plot). i mean, of course i always paid most attention whenever draco-mione interact, and i loved them as a couple still (a romance reader after all), but i just thought the execution of their relationship could've been done better & i wanted moreeee.
but here, few of my favorite interactions of theirs :
#3 : draco needs to be protected at all cost 😩🥺
this one touched my heart (u prolly won't get it unless u've read it) :
dude is whipped. dude is intense af. dude is one of the best hero out there. once he loved someone he'll risk literally everything for em, like he did w/ hermione. the fact that he told her he'll give her anything she wanted no matter how irrational they are and followed through, even when the thing she wanted will put him in the most vulnerable position. and the fact that he was freakin resigned / couldn't care less bout his fate, only thing he asked hermione in exchange was her well being. there's many example, but one i really admired was him taking care of ginny & james per mione's wishes, while still looking for her whereabouts and being crucio'd by voldy daily. stan a king who keep his word
this book was not sad in my personal opinion, however i kept shedding a tear or two whenever hermione got a panic attack over draco's well being
#4 : i couldn’t connect w/ hermione
i admired her strength of course. but the connection between us was lacking. she was too emotionally detached for me. im being a bitch ik but hear me out. i get the war's eating her, but she sometimes felt like a robot imo (despite the fact that she cried nonstop daily).. even draco who had more reasons to be apathetic over things, feel way more deeply than her
not judgin' her at all. but after what draco's been through, he deserved affections and love more than hermione seemed to able to give in this book (personal opinion kay). hence more reason why i felt the couple was lacking something (and why not 5 stars)
#5 : lucius is one sadistic bloke.
but i just wanna shout out to this one scene where he killed astoria
also fun fact : that scene was actually orchestrated by draco mf malfoy 👏 (but the point is, i stan lucius in this one)
a song that came on my mind during reading
rape : yes there was rape performed by our H, but it's not what it seemed, so bear w/ this book till u figured out what's going on
all in all : this was brilliant and has got to be one of the best fic i've ever read (not that i've read many to compare to). also one of the best book i’ve read this year. (or ever maybe). i did skimmed some, but not rlly coz i was bored. it was simply slow-building & the opposite of fast-paced
this dope ass scene :
this is random but i just thought what a sight this would be, a smth foot elf gathering a 2 yo in her arms after kicking draco malfoy lolll. GO TOPSY 📣
FINAL NOTE : THIS WAS FANTASTIC AND I THINK EVERYONE SHOULD READ IT WHETHER U LIKE DRAMIONE OF NOT
THE ORIGINAL HP SERIES WILL NEVER BE THE SAME
“James Potter used to say that war is hell. I used to agree with him. But now—I think he was wrong. War is far worse than hell. You’re no sinner; this is not a fate you deserve."
did you know. the book that actually introduced me & made me obsessed to the romance genre was some dramione fanfic i read years ago on wattpad? no one cares but bear with me. that book really influenced my reading life and i'm forever in debt to this particular couple, dramione.
(idk which fic that is from btw, anyone who does plz lmk coz it looks dope)
weirdly enough tho, i've never gotten the chance to read any of their fic since then. until this book.
Lucius Malfoy had been standing mere feet from where Hermione was caged when he looked up at Ron and snarled “This is for my wife!”
Then he cast a curse that turned Ron’s blood gradually into molten lead. Hermione watched as the curse slowly crept through Ron’s body, destroying him from the inside out. She’d been helpless to do anything—helpless to spare him in any way.
Arthur Weasley had been left permanently addled by a curse during the war. He cried, not even understanding why he was in pain or that he was dying.
They had left Molly for last. So she’d watch all her children die.
Remus had lasted hours longer than anyone else. His lycanthropy kept healing him until he just hung there, unresponsive. Finally, someone shot the Killing Curse at him out of boredom
this book is bleak bleak. (it is set in war after all) it's gruesome & awesome
i rarely includes summaries on my reviews, and i'm not gonna here. just go in knowing this is a dark & slow building book, set in the darkest world of the harry potter series.
✨
now my thoughts (spoiler here & there)✨
#1 : the order were filled w/ morons.
look, i’m a very neutral person. i always tries to understand other people’s different point of view and i did get where they were coming from, why they did what they did, or lack of. but it’s just that they were fucking blinded by what they thought was right, they ignored the only sensical option in their condition
ex 1 :
“I would do almost anything to have saved them. But when it comes to Light and Dark Magic, it matters. It’s never worth giving into the Dark Arts, no matter what you think you’ll get from it. The Order is going to stay Light.” (harry says)
Something inside Hermione snapped. “You’re not Light if you let people sacrifice themselves in order to keep your hands and soul clean.” She sneered at him.
ex 2 :
"You don’t think Good can just win,” Harry said. The reproach in his voice was heavy.
“Everyone who wins say they were good, but they’re the ones who write the history. I haven’t seen anything indicating that it was actually moral superiority that made a difference,” she said as she murmured the spells to repair the fractures.
#2 : the romance wasn’t the best aspect of this book
surprisingly, it wasn’t (it’s the plot). i mean, of course i always paid most attention whenever draco-mione interact, and i loved them as a couple still (a romance reader after all), but i just thought the execution of their relationship could've been done better & i wanted moreeee.
but here, few of my favorite interactions of theirs :
1. “Worrying about me, Mudblood?” he said with a sneer. “I have to admit I never thought I’d see the day.”
“Don’t take it as a compliment,” Hermione said stiffly. “I felt sorry for Umbridge when he tortured her too but I’d gladly dance on her grave.”
His mouth quirked with amusement. “Unfortunately, the snakes ate her.”
Hermione found herself smiling before she could stop herself. Malfoy gave a barking laugh.
“You are a bitch,” he said with a faint shake of his head.
2. “I’m training you,” Malfoy said abruptly
“Fine,” she snapped, her expression twisting in faint derision.
“You look so bitter,” his expression was vicious with mockery. “You’d think I just demanded you fuck me rather than not. Disappointed?”
“Only in your dreams,” she said, shooting him a glare.
“Every night.”
She rolled her eyes
3. "You’ve got several fractured ribs, a concussion, and internal bruising. It’ll take me ten minutes to fix it. Strip—from the waist up.”
“I thought that was my line,” he finally said as he reached up stiffly and unfastened his cloak, letting it pool in a careless heap on the floor. “If you wanted me so badly, you only needed to ask.”
“Yes. Nothing gets me going like the sight of an abdomen mottled with purple and green bruising.”
“I always knew you were a sadistic bitch.”
4. The corner of her mouth quirked sadly, and she looked down. Draco rested his forehead against hers, and she closed her eyes. It felt as though their souls were touching
5. “Love isn’t always as pretty or pure as people like to think. There’s a darkness in it sometimes. Draco and I go hand-in-hand. I made him who he is. I knew what his runes meant when I saved him. If he’s a monster, then I’m his creator. What did you think was the source of all his rage?
#3 : draco needs to be protected at all cost 😩🥺
1. “Draco stared at her. “So who cares for you, Granger, if Potter doesn’t?”
She blinked.
“I don’t need anyone to care for me,” she said stiffly, but her voice shook. “It wasn’t an accident, Draco. I chose to reduce my casualty value.”
His expression hardened. “You let yourself become expendable to Potter.”
“The more weaknesses Harry has, the more vulnerable the entire Resistance is.”
She hadn’t thought Draco could look angrier than he already did, but he suddenly looked ready to explode.
“When I think I can’t hate Potter more, he finds a new way to prove me wrong,”
2. “Despite how cold he acted, his name was apt; he was a dragon. He kept walls of ice around himself, but there was fire in his heart"
3. "Draco, who worried about her more than anyone else did. Who had devoted time he couldn’t possibly have trying to train her and keep her alive. Because he just wanted her to be alive" (once they succeded in escaping voldy)
4. “She saw his hand twitch before he gripped his wand in a fist. His eyes were suddenly boyish and uncertain.
He had no idea how to do anything but be a soldier."
5. “He didn’t sleep if she left.
She tried slipping quietly into the next room to explore the bookshelves, but he appeared in the doorway within two minutes, wand in hand. She grabbed several books off the shelves and returned to their bed"
this one touched my heart (u prolly won't get it unless u've read it) :
His tone was freezing. “After all, not every single horror that I’ve ever imagined has happened yet. Losing you and spending sixteen months trying and failing to find you. Finding you tortured and broken. Keeping you as a prisoner in this house. Raping you.” His voice was growing raw with grief and rage. “Having to hold you in my hands, and feel you in my head while your mind was ravaged. Finding someone raping you in my garden—”
“He didn’t,” Hermione said quickly, her chest constricting. “He didn’t. You got there in time.”
His eyes flooded with relief, but his mouth sharpened into a razor-edged smile. “Well, there’s that.”
He gave a short laugh and looked down at the floor. “Where was I? Ah yes. Finding you with your eye nearly gouged out because my wife had attempted to blind you. Finding you bludgeoning yourself against a window. Watching you waste away because I’d gotten you pregnant. Arriving to see you collapse and then learn that the damage from your Occlumency and the foetal magic was so severe you might not ever wake up—that I might have killed you.”
He had turned white. His lips thinned as his mouth twisted and then curved into a sneer. “Is that not enough? There are, undoubtedly, still unexplored depths to the potential misery between us. Should we endeavor to achieve all of it?”
dude is whipped. dude is intense af. dude is one of the best hero out there. once he loved someone he'll risk literally everything for em, like he did w/ hermione. the fact that he told her he'll give her anything she wanted no matter how irrational they are and followed through, even when the thing she wanted will put him in the most vulnerable position. and the fact that he was freakin resigned / couldn't care less bout his fate, only thing he asked hermione in exchange was her well being. there's many example, but one i really admired was him taking care of ginny & james per mione's wishes, while still looking for her whereabouts and being crucio'd by voldy daily. stan a king who keep his word
“Hermione, I’m tired.”
this book was not sad in my personal opinion, however i kept shedding a tear or two whenever hermione got a panic attack over draco's well being
#4 : i couldn’t connect w/ hermione
i admired her strength of course. but the connection between us was lacking. she was too emotionally detached for me. im being a bitch ik but hear me out. i get the war's eating her, but she sometimes felt like a robot imo (despite the fact that she cried nonstop daily).. even draco who had more reasons to be apathetic over things, feel way more deeply than her
“Have you seen yourself, Granger? There’s hardly anything left of you.” His eyes were wide as he stared intently at her. “Living is not worth it to me if you’re the one who keeps paying the price for it.”
not judgin' her at all. but after what draco's been through, he deserved affections and love more than hermione seemed to able to give in this book (personal opinion kay). hence more reason why i felt the couple was lacking something (and why not 5 stars)
i mean look at these lifeless eyes
#5 : lucius is one sadistic bloke.
but i just wanna shout out to this one scene where he killed astoria
“Your father has to go. He can’t stay here.” She choked. “He—he—he—”
She gestured down at herself. “The entire foyer is covered in blood. There were things hanging from the chandelier—intestines, I think. It’s on the portraits and all the orchids I brought back from France, and my new robes! The whole room is ruined. Mrs. Thicknesse was supposed to come to tea with her daughters and several other ladies planning for the celebration—now I’m going to have to cancel because most of the house is smeared with blood, and Bobbin says there are corpses piled by the gate. Make him go.”
“Get off this estate!” Astoria nearly shrieked. “Get off. Get off! Get—”
A razor-fine line of scarlet suddenly bloomed across the pale skin of Astoria’s neck.
Hermione watched, eyes wide with horror. A sort of gasping, burbling sound emerged from Astoria’s throat as her head toppled off her shoulders, and her body sank to the ground.
Lucius stared down at the fresh corpse at his feet, and his eyebrows arched approvingly. “You’re much quieter now,” he said, bending over and cocking his head at Astoria’s face where it lay in the white gravel. Her expression had gone limp and blank.
Lucius wagged a finger towards her. “Stay like this and, in time, perhaps my opinion of you shall improve.”
Hermione peered around Draco in shock.
Lucius straightened, sighing and tilting his head back in the sunlight. “The estate feels better already. My father used to say there’s nothing like fresh blood to fertilise the roses.”
also fun fact : that scene was actually orchestrated by draco mf malfoy 👏 (but the point is, i stan lucius in this one)
a song that came on my mind during reading
rape : yes there was rape performed by our H, but it's not what it seemed, so bear w/ this book till u figured out what's going on
all in all : this was brilliant and has got to be one of the best fic i've ever read (not that i've read many to compare to). also one of the best book i’ve read this year. (or ever maybe). i did skimmed some, but not rlly coz i was bored. it was simply slow-building & the opposite of fast-paced
🛼🛼🛼🛼🛼🛼others🛼🛼🛼🛼🛼🛼
ew why so cute
this dope ass scene :
”The newspapers around the world featured a picture of Ginevra Weasley emerging from the rubble of a castle, her face filthy and streaked with blood. The brutal scar on her face was the first thing the photo clearly made out. She tossed her head back, her expression a mixture of exhaustion and cold triumph as she stepped into view, dragging Voldemort’s corpse behind her”
i was like :
’When Topsy finally let go of Draco, she went over to gather James into her arms and carried him away, still sobbing’
this is random but i just thought what a sight this would be, a smth foot elf gathering a 2 yo in her arms after kicking draco malfoy lolll. GO TOPSY 📣
FINAL NOTE : THIS WAS FANTASTIC AND I THINK EVERYONE SHOULD READ IT WHETHER U LIKE DRAMIONE OF NOT
THE ORIGINAL HP SERIES WILL NEVER BE THE SAME
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 12, 2023
Amazing. Stunning. Heartbreaking. Literally want to cry every time I think about the ending. I loved how obsessed Draco was with Hermione and how deep their romance was. I just can't stop thinking about them or their story. If you're even thinking about picking this up, YOU HAVE TO. This is as if the Order lost the war and Hermione is placed in a breeding program and placed with Draco, who is Voldemort's right hand man. Her only job is to have a baby with him, even though he's already married (Handmaid's Tale inspired). But there's so much more to their story.
READ THIS NOWWWWWWWW.
READ THIS NOWWWWWWWW.
February 6, 2024
In what may go down as one of the worst decisions I've ever made, I read this immediately after Crescent City #3 in an effort to avoid a book hangover. Which I now know is a lot like drinking 15 Jager bombs to ward off a hangover from a glass of wine. I am unwell.
This was arguably one of the best, most well-constructed, and intelligent fantasy books I've ever read. It is also one of the most devastating. I typically read to escape and my brain clears its cache after every couple of books so while I might have deeply enjoyed a book while I was in it, it's typically unlikely I'll remember many of the details a few weeks down the road. This will not be the case with Manacled. I'm pretty certain it's already started replacing the original HP cannon in my head.
There is so much to rave about with this book especially regarding the character development and plot but the things I find myself most impressed by are the meticulousness with which the system of magic was laid out and the absolute and shocking credibility of the romance between two traditionally non-romantic characters. It was immaculate. I want to say that I would read anything this author writes BUT I frankly don't know that I could afford the necessary accompanying therapy.
This was arguably one of the best, most well-constructed, and intelligent fantasy books I've ever read. It is also one of the most devastating. I typically read to escape and my brain clears its cache after every couple of books so while I might have deeply enjoyed a book while I was in it, it's typically unlikely I'll remember many of the details a few weeks down the road. This will not be the case with Manacled. I'm pretty certain it's already started replacing the original HP cannon in my head.
There is so much to rave about with this book especially regarding the character development and plot but the things I find myself most impressed by are the meticulousness with which the system of magic was laid out and the absolute and shocking credibility of the romance between two traditionally non-romantic characters. It was immaculate. I want to say that I would read anything this author writes BUT I frankly don't know that I could afford the necessary accompanying therapy.
April 22, 2022
All the stars. All of them. Perfection.
This is one of the most spectacular feats of literature I have ever had the honour of reading.
I really could write a thesis on this opus. Don't worry, I won't, but I will say this: I have never read a more magnificently paced story in my entire life. I have no idea how Sen did, especially given this is no short fanfic, but I was suspended in a state of such intensity the entire way through, from start to finish. It was like being grabbed at the throat and then instead of that grip loosening over time, it tightened.
I hope one day Sen is able to remake and publish this as original work because she deserves a veritable treasure trove of riches for her talents.
Now excuse me while I go cry about this again xx
This is one of the most spectacular feats of literature I have ever had the honour of reading.
I really could write a thesis on this opus. Don't worry, I won't, but I will say this: I have never read a more magnificently paced story in my entire life. I have no idea how Sen did, especially given this is no short fanfic, but I was suspended in a state of such intensity the entire way through, from start to finish. It was like being grabbed at the throat and then instead of that grip loosening over time, it tightened.
I hope one day Sen is able to remake and publish this as original work because she deserves a veritable treasure trove of riches for her talents.
Now excuse me while I go cry about this again xx
December 27, 2021
« She was a non-active member of the Order of the Phoenix and did not fight. »
Merci Clara 😭
Merci Clara 😭
December 23, 2021
seriously this fanfic messed me up and brought me to tears. i don't read fanfics but im so happy that i came across my friend's review (Irunia, thanks for bringing this amazing thing to my attention😍) and decided to give it a try! i recommend the story to anyone who wants a deep, tragic tale about war, survival and love❤️ it took me the whole WEEK to finish and I don't regret a single minute I spent on reading it.
June 11, 2024
2nd try: Finished
yes, this is a sign of mental illness.
------
1st try: DNF
A deeply disturbing thought experiment: Victorious Voldemort alternate universe + make it Handmaids Tale + Draco as Love Interest/Rapist/Forcible Impregnator
I can't imagine what possessed the author to put pen to paper—Really, this sort of thing is meant to be left to rot in your google drive.
The writing is not great besties; and no, we can't blame fanfiction authors not having access to editors, because I can list off like ten other fanfictions that have better style, characterisation, dialogue, etc.
Beyond that, I find the basic premise of this book to be so unsettling and weird?? It's easy to forget that Harry Potter is a children's series since most fanfictions focus on them in adulthood, but in times like these, I think it's important to be given a reminder. This is a children's/Young Adult book series about Wizards.
Imagine how you'd feel if you heard this premise if you weren't an avid fanfiction reader: Some grown woman loves Harry Potter, so decided to write a fanfiction centring on a (barely)grown-up version of Hermione Granger getting raped by Draco Malfoy and eventually impregnated in a Repopulation Programme. But it's actually a tragic love story.
So much had to be done to create the conditions for this story to exist. But why? Why feel the need to make a Rape AU for Hermione and Draco? Why was this so necessary?
There are Yanagihara levels of graphic rape depictions practically in every chapter. The blossoming romance between Hermione and Draco does not get me going at all.
Don't read it. There's really no need. There are a million other fanfics more worth your time.
PSA to the Manacled fans out there: angst rape and violence packaged neatly under the guise of "harrowing storytelling," does not a good book make. Get help.
yes, this is a sign of mental illness.
------
1st try: DNF
A deeply disturbing thought experiment: Victorious Voldemort alternate universe + make it Handmaids Tale + Draco as Love Interest/Rapist/Forcible Impregnator
I can't imagine what possessed the author to put pen to paper—Really, this sort of thing is meant to be left to rot in your google drive.
The writing is not great besties; and no, we can't blame fanfiction authors not having access to editors, because I can list off like ten other fanfictions that have better style, characterisation, dialogue, etc.
Beyond that, I find the basic premise of this book to be so unsettling and weird?? It's easy to forget that Harry Potter is a children's series since most fanfictions focus on them in adulthood, but in times like these, I think it's important to be given a reminder. This is a children's/Young Adult book series about Wizards.
Imagine how you'd feel if you heard this premise if you weren't an avid fanfiction reader: Some grown woman loves Harry Potter, so decided to write a fanfiction centring on a (barely)grown-up version of Hermione Granger getting raped by Draco Malfoy and eventually impregnated in a Repopulation Programme. But it's actually a tragic love story.
So much had to be done to create the conditions for this story to exist. But why? Why feel the need to make a Rape AU for Hermione and Draco? Why was this so necessary?
There are Yanagihara levels of graphic rape depictions practically in every chapter. The blossoming romance between Hermione and Draco does not get me going at all.
Don't read it. There's really no need. There are a million other fanfics more worth your time.
PSA to the Manacled fans out there: angst rape and violence packaged neatly under the guise of "harrowing storytelling," does not a good book make. Get help.
February 26, 2025
➼ 5★
i’d never read a fan fiction before, i didn’t know what to expect from it either.
⤷ the first part is the darkest, the most difficult to read. the pain, the suffering— the most cruel, evil, despicable things happened. but if you think things couldn’t go worse, there are the flashbacks. 38 flashbacks that give you hope. which is the worse emotion one could feel during war time. i had so much hope for draco—to be free of the role he’d never wanted, but forced him into; and for hermione—our brilliant, strong, and brave heroine, who sold her soul for the order just to be a foot note in the end.
the order of the phoenix never appreciated hermione enough, never respected her, protected her, cared for her like she deserved. reading what they did to her during the war was devastating. reading about her being called a bitch by her best friends was heartbreaking.
i wanted to scream to the injustice of it all. but i think that deeply, i’ve always known hermione was the best of the lot of them.
⤷ the flashbacks was what i enjoyed the most. i appreciated the repetitiveness, since hermione wasn’t a reliable narrator in the first chapters due to her lacking memories. i absolutely loved how draco and mione’s relationship was born and grew all throughout the war. it felt like watching a flower bloom. what pained me the most was how the world seemed to be always against them.
they went through hell, both trying to save each other from a terrible fate. it felt like they had an expiration date, which they both were aware of, but they still tried their best to take care and protect the other. the way they both would die and kill for each other; the way draco was obsessed and protective and possessive, like a dragon with its treasure. the sacrifices they both made for each other were so fucking shattering, they broke my heart and put it back together.
nobody’s son. nobody’s daughter.
both alone in the world.
both forced to do things they didn’t truly want to.
they found a safe place in each other.
it’s kinda poetic, isn’t it?
hermione granger
you will always be famous.
my heart breaks for her every time i think about how people mistreated her, while she deserved the world and more. i think the only person who truly deserves to be loved by hermione granger is draco malfoy, and i’ll die on that hill. she was so lonely, misunderstood, forgotten, used… it was devastating. it truly destroyed me to see that even though her loved ones kept treating her life the dirt under their shoes, she didn’t stop taking care of them.
you can clearly see what the war did to her. how she lost her spark. she deserved to be loved and cherished. she deserved to be more than a foot note at end of a book.
i’m glad someone did appreciate her. and i will too, forever.
draco malfoy
cold. cruel. mysterious.
draco is the ice for the world, but he burned for hermione. his rage was so powerful, it was glorious. the lengths he would go to ensure nothing bad happened to hermione. possessive and adoring.
he might be the villain in your story, but he’s not in mine. and he never was. he’s more than an aristocratic who shows off daddys money; more than the death eater, or the high reeves. he was just misunderstood. his father was a piece of shit who never cared enough about his son, but he did care more about politics and power. draco is not shallow, or detached. he feels deeply. he thinks he’s undeserving of good things, especially hermione, but he deserves the world. and he’s fucking fascinating!
⤷ the last part was the slowest in my opinion. i mean, the whole book is slow as fuck, but the last part was the worst because you know everything is about to go to shit, but you still have hope.
overall, this story is a masterpiece. it’s genius, and the characters are complex, the plot is mind blowing.
⤷ the drawings were EVERYTHING.
bottom line: this is a must read, so do yourself a favor and read it.
“I’m sure there is something poetic in it all, but right now all I feel is a new set of manacles.”
this? this is a masterpiece. i’m not sure i’ll be able to find the right words to explain what i’m feeling right now.
i grew up with harry potter. my family is obsessed with it—we do rewatches all the time. basically harry potter is my roman empire. but this story? this is everything i’ve never known i needed.
this is the biggest “what if?” in the history of what-ifs—what if harry potter didn’t win the war, but voldemort did? what if hermione didn’t marry ron? i’ve always asked myself these questions. this book is the answer.
“I felt a Funeral,
in my Brain.”
i’d never read a fan fiction before, i didn’t know what to expect from it either.
⤷ the first part is the darkest, the most difficult to read. the pain, the suffering— the most cruel, evil, despicable things happened. but if you think things couldn’t go worse, there are the flashbacks. 38 flashbacks that give you hope. which is the worse emotion one could feel during war time. i had so much hope for draco—to be free of the role he’d never wanted, but forced him into; and for hermione—our brilliant, strong, and brave heroine, who sold her soul for the order just to be a foot note in the end.
the order of the phoenix never appreciated hermione enough, never respected her, protected her, cared for her like she deserved. reading what they did to her during the war was devastating. reading about her being called a bitch by her best friends was heartbreaking.
“I wish you luck, Miss Granger. You are a better friend than Harry Potter will ever deserve.”
i wanted to scream to the injustice of it all. but i think that deeply, i’ve always known hermione was the best of the lot of them.
⤷ the flashbacks was what i enjoyed the most. i appreciated the repetitiveness, since hermione wasn’t a reliable narrator in the first chapters due to her lacking memories. i absolutely loved how draco and mione’s relationship was born and grew all throughout the war. it felt like watching a flower bloom. what pained me the most was how the world seemed to be always against them.
”The world was never kind to them.”
they went through hell, both trying to save each other from a terrible fate. it felt like they had an expiration date, which they both were aware of, but they still tried their best to take care and protect the other. the way they both would die and kill for each other; the way draco was obsessed and protective and possessive, like a dragon with its treasure. the sacrifices they both made for each other were so fucking shattering, they broke my heart and put it back together.
nobody’s son. nobody’s daughter.
both alone in the world.
both forced to do things they didn’t truly want to.
they found a safe place in each other.
it’s kinda poetic, isn’t it?
“I think I’ve nearly memorised you. Especially your eyes.”
“I memorised yours too.” He sighed. “I should have known—the moment I looked into your eyes, I should have known I would never win against you.”
hermione granger
you will always be famous.
my heart breaks for her every time i think about how people mistreated her, while she deserved the world and more. i think the only person who truly deserves to be loved by hermione granger is draco malfoy, and i’ll die on that hill. she was so lonely, misunderstood, forgotten, used… it was devastating. it truly destroyed me to see that even though her loved ones kept treating her life the dirt under their shoes, she didn’t stop taking care of them.
“She was so tired of being alone. She was so tired being reduced to her functions. Healer. Dark Arts Researcher. Potion Mistress. Liaison. Tool. Whore.”
you can clearly see what the war did to her. how she lost her spark. she deserved to be loved and cherished. she deserved to be more than a foot note at end of a book.
i’m glad someone did appreciate her. and i will too, forever.
“You’re like a rose in a graveyard,” he said, and his lips curved into a bitter smile. “I wonder what you could have turned into without the war.”
draco malfoy
cold. cruel. mysterious.
draco is the ice for the world, but he burned for hermione. his rage was so powerful, it was glorious. the lengths he would go to ensure nothing bad happened to hermione. possessive and adoring.
”Like a star, he was glittering and ice-cold from afar, but when the space was bridged, the heat of him was endless.”
he might be the villain in your story, but he’s not in mine. and he never was. he’s more than an aristocratic who shows off daddys money; more than the death eater, or the high reeves. he was just misunderstood. his father was a piece of shit who never cared enough about his son, but he did care more about politics and power. draco is not shallow, or detached. he feels deeply. he thinks he’s undeserving of good things, especially hermione, but he deserves the world. and he’s fucking fascinating!
”If an assassin’s blade were made into a man, it would take the form of Draco Malfoy.”
⤷ the last part was the slowest in my opinion. i mean, the whole book is slow as fuck, but the last part was the worst because you know everything is about to go to shit, but you still have hope.
overall, this story is a masterpiece. it’s genius, and the characters are complex, the plot is mind blowing.
⤷ the drawings were EVERYTHING.
bottom line: this is a must read, so do yourself a favor and read it.
”She was a non-active member of the Order of the Phoenix and did not fight.”
⤷ moments i loved:
”She was locked in the dangerous embrace of Draco Malfoy, and it felt like home.”
“Would you go now, if you could?”
He stared at her, his eyes were molten silver and unwavering. “With you, I would.”
“Then—we’ll go together. After the war.”
He was lying. They both were. It was a fairytale to think they could run together. That things would end neatly enough for that.
“You’re mine. I’ll always come for you.”
He always did.
“You are so much more than what the war has made you into.”
“Be careful, Draco,” she murmured against the corner of his mouth. “Be careful. Don’t die.”
“Of course I looked for you. I looked everywhere for you. Did you think I left you there?”
“I left a note. Did you get my note? I love you.”
When Draco was with her, he treated her like it was all a goodbye.
He looked at her like he was saying goodbye.
He touched her like he was saying goodbye.
“Hermione, I’m tired.”
“I love you. As long as there is anything of me that exists, I will love you. Always,”
“It worked, Draco. You’re free.”
“Let’s love each other forever, Draco.”
November 26, 2023
I will, quite literally, never recover.
April 15, 2023
i can shout about how obsessed i am with this book — and how I've read it like a thousand times by now and its still not enough — from every rooftop of the world, until i lose my voice, until the day i die, and it still won't be enough 😭❤️🩹
just like mdzs and wangxian — this one will have my heart, forever. nothing will ever replace this book for me, nothing will ever come close to making me feel how this one did. nothing.
just like mdzs and wangxian — this one will have my heart, forever. nothing will ever replace this book for me, nothing will ever come close to making me feel how this one did. nothing.
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