This book tried to be “The theory of Everything” rewriting and connecting many plots from several comic books, Mad Love, Gotham City Sirens and some newer stories by Dini. Many events you could remember have been changed one way or another.



The combination of those plots created contradictions in the book but at the same time exist some contradictions between what Pat Cadigan was doing and what Paul Dini was writing.



The first chapters about her childhood are hard to read, they are like a cartoon for kids, really for kids. Harleen didn’t have a trauma, by the way, it was a very slight thing. Her parents have troubles and they fight often, her father was a criminal and spent some years in prison before and then he was sent to prison unfairly again until she was 17, similar to Gotham City Sirens but this time he was a nice guy. Because of her father Harley’s opinion of the police is always bad, her view that Joker was a victim is justified this way though it’s too much extreme and we need to pretend the incident described as a cartoon was traumatic so that she can’t think logically



The novel created a story behind every detail like Harley’s mallet, reasons for many things that weren’t important at all.



Some changes:

Joker is attracted to Harley: In the comic we didn’t know if Joker was attracted to her or not, some people think the Joker is asexual or even gay (though it isn’t canon) but in this novel when we have a Joker POV he thought she was sexy and beautiful. After they escaped from Arkham he says her constant hugs and general loving behavior make him to seem weak and they won’t make out unless that behind closed, locked doors.



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