A Curse for True Love

Compare and contrast Apollo and Aurora as antagonists. What makes each of them uniquely antagonistic? Is one more of an antagonist than the other? If so, which and why? If not, why are they both equally villainous, especially as it relates to Jacks and Evangeline’s happy ending? Support your answer with evidence from the text.

Using the mechanics of the story curse, explore the harmful effects of misinformation. How does the ability to change narratives give the curse power? What effects does the curse have on the characters and events of the novel, and how might the characters have acted differently if they knew the truth?

Compare and contrast Jacks and Apollo in terms of Evangeline. Do either of them truly have Evangeline’s best interests at heart? Why or why not? Does Jacks feel like the right choice for Evangeline, either in terms of the story arc or her wellbeing?

Compare and contrast how Evangeline acts and thinks before and after she gets her memories back. What do the similarities and differences between her two states say about memory, emotion, and How Experiences Shape Us? Is Evangeline the same person with and without her memories?

Analyze the magic of the Tree of Souls. Does Apollo’s ending feel justified and expected for his character? Why or why not? Based on the tree taking Apollo’s life, speculate about the other faces in the tree’s trunk. Given what the tree offers, are all these other faces people who tried to sacrifice someone else, only to be taken? Why or why not? Either way, what does this say about Apollo and others willing to pay the tree’s price for power?

Choose three actions characters take because they believe that action is right and discuss whether each is actually right, paying special attention to how that action affects others. Then, analyze whether that action is good, and discuss how each action is either both right and good, only one, or neither. What factors make an action right and good, right or good, or neither right nor good?

Throughout the book, Jacks removes himself from Evangeline’s life, citing that he is only a danger to her wellbeing. Are Jacks’s actions noble, selfish, or both? Why? Since Evangeline is in more danger from Apollo than she ever was from Jacks, does Jacks’s avoidance make him complicit in Apollo’s violation of Evangeline’s life? Why or why not?

Prices for magic are a common component of fairy tales. Choose three instances of magic present in A Curse for True Love and explore the cost of each. Do the characters who use magic pay the proper price for the magic’s outcome and strength? Discuss the similarities and differences between prices and consequences. What warnings or lessons does magic offer the characters through the prices and consequences it requires?