Title- These Violent Delights
Author- Chloe Gong
Series- These Violent Delights Duology
Published- 2020
Page Count- 464
Publishing House- Simon&Schuster
Genre- YA Urban Fantasy
Rating- 3.5/5 stars
Rating- 3.5/5 stars
About the Author
Chloe Gong is a Chinese-born New Zealand author and an undergraduate at University of Pennsylvania. Her debut novel, These Violent Delights (2020), is on the The New York Times Best Seller list.
Taken from Chloe's wikipedia page.
Plot
The year is 1926, and Shanghai hums to the tune of debauchery.
A blood feud between two gangs runs the streets red, leaving the city helpless in the grip of chaos. At the heart of it all is eighteen-year-old Juliette Cai, a former flapper who has returned to assume her role as the proud heir of the Scarlet Gang—a network of criminals far above the law. Their only rivals in power are the White Flowers, who have fought the Scarlets for generations. And behind every move is their heir, Roma Montagov, Juliette’s first love…and first betrayal.
But when gangsters on both sides show signs of instability culminating in clawing their own throats out, the people start to whisper. Of a contagion, a madness. Of a monster in the shadows. As the deaths stack up, Juliette and Roma must set their guns—and grudges—aside and work together, for if they can’t stop this mayhem, then there will be no city left for either to rule.
Perfect for fans of The Last Magician and Descendant of the Crane, this heart-stopping debut is an imaginative Romeo and Juliet retelling set in 1920s Shanghai, with rival gangs and a monster in the depths of the Huangpu River.
Taken from Goodreads.
Opinions
I had seen this book floating around for a while and when I learnt it was a 1920s Shanghai Romeo and Juliet with fantasy elements, it sounded like something I would love. The author is only a year older than me, we're graduating in the same year. As someone studying Creative and Professional Writing, I knew I had to support a fellow young writer. To get published at our age is a huge success. I hadn't heard of Chloe before this, though I believe she is popular in the book community.
One of my favourite things about this book was the setting. The 1920s is a historical period I adore, I'm actually writing about it for my dissertation. That was one of the elements that hooked me in. The setting of Shanghai was also an interesting one. Personally, I know very little about Shanghai. From the author profile included in the book, the author has close connections with Shanghai and that was clear in the writing. You could feel the love for the place. The world-building was also very strong. These characters had history within the city. It never felt like there was too much exposition being dumped on you. Both are elements that are hard to get right and the author succeed.
Obviously with this being a Romeo and Juliet retelling, there are certain things the audience expects from the Romeo and Juliet characters. Roma and Juliette were solid characters. I loved that Juliette was an unapologetic badass, where as Roma was the softer of the two. It created an interesting power dynamic. We knew that the two had been romantically involved in their early teens, which added to this dynamic. I liked them, but there were times that they felt a bit all over the place and inconsistent. There was just something missing and I couldn't quite place it. The supporting cast of characters were also solid. On Juliette's side, there were Kathleen and Rosalind. Kathleen is trans, which was a nice, yet subtle LGBT element. On Roma's side, there was Marshall and Benedikt. They clearly have some romance brewing and I would love to see that explored in the next book.
Oddly, the main area that didn't do it for me was the plot. I liked the setting and the characters, I just didn't care for the plot. It felt to drawn out. It took a while to get to the central plot and at times it felt a bit repetitive. The premise was interesting, I just don't feel as though it was delivered entirely. If this has been one book rather than two, that might have worked. If it wasn't for the plot, I would have given this book 4/5 stars, but it didn't feel right to give it that when I struggled with the plot.
In a Romeo and Juliet story, you expect an epic enemies to lovers. I feel that this was another area where this fell down for me. It took too long. There was very few hints that they were interested in the other, so it went straight from enemies to lovers. I love a slow burn romance as much as the next person, but this just didn't quite hit the spot for me. I am intrigued to see what happens in the next book for their romance.
Overall, I did enjoy this book. I had some issues with it, but I don't think that will stop me from picking up the next book. I am so impressed that someone my age managed to get a book published and I don't feel qualified to review this when I don't have a book published in my twenties.
What did you think of These Violent Delights?
Carenza :) x
