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4.29 AVERAGE
4.29 AVERAGE
This one is a 3.5 star - I liked it considerably more than the first in the series. The magical realism was still driving me crazy, but other parts honestly were able to distract me from it. First, I was living for the true enemies-to-lovers nature of this book. The tension made the story, and the ending, that much better and I appreciated how the conditions of Roma and Juliette's relationship were constantly changing. Then, the setting was still absolutely fabulous. It felt almost like a history lesson wrapped into the story, which I greatly enjoyed. I think the author did a great job describing the chaos and destruction that Shanghai underwent during this time frame, and it made the political science girlie in me giddy. Last, the last 100 pages of this book were great. Obviously, as a retelling, you think you know where the story is going, but the author did a great job of trying to throw you off the scent. Romeo and Juliet is such a classic story, and seeing how she interwove elements of that plot into the new setting was so fun. I outwardly gasped at some points and thoroughly enjoyed the ending. However, I genuinely did not like a single character in this book except for Marshall and Benedikt and found both the magical elements to be unbearable. Had this been without the magic, it probably would have been a 4-star. Again, people who love that genre will LOVE this book, but it wasn't for me and I probably will not pick up the companion series.
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4.75 stars
i have so many thoughts… but romajuliette and benmars were everything to me. the romajuliette angst to benmars angst and their confession scenes? the foreshadowing goes a bit too crazy… some things just felt so obvious but the ending? well deserved.
i am so excited and manifesting chloe’s next book is about celia? because kathleen/celia has been so interesting to watch and see her make her own path.
—
“To have and to hold, where even death cannot part us, Juliette whispered.”
“In this life and the next, Roma returned, for however long our souls remain, mine will always find yours.”
i have so many thoughts… but romajuliette and benmars were everything to me. the romajuliette angst to benmars angst and their confession scenes? the foreshadowing goes a bit too crazy… some things just felt so obvious but the ending? well deserved.
i am so excited and manifesting chloe’s next book is about celia? because kathleen/celia has been so interesting to watch and see her make her own path.
—
“To have and to hold, where even death cannot part us, Juliette whispered.”
“In this life and the next, Roma returned, for however long our souls remain, mine will always find yours.”
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The only reason I didn’t give the first book a 5 was because it was a slow start. This duology was perfection in every way. The writing, the world building, and the characters were so beautifully tragic. I usually dislike Romeo and Juliet retellings, but this was simply amazing.
Bueno, tengo bastante para decir
Desde el principio de esta biología que amé completamente la ambientación y cómo la autora pudo colocar la historia de Romeo y Julieta dentro de un contexto histórico que nunca antes había leído en la literatura juvenil.
Amé los personajes, sus conflictos personales, sus relaciones y como sobrevivían como podían al gran enfrentamiento entre los dos clanes.
Para quienes no conocen esta historia nos situamos en la ciudad de Shangai en el año 1926 donde tenemos a dos bandas mafias enemigas que se enfrentan por el poder.
Nuestros protagonistas, Roma y Juliette, son herederos de sus respectivos clanes, pero por más de que les enseñen a odiarse en el pasado tuvieron un romance difícil de superar.
Este segundo libro me gustó pero no logró enamorarme tanto como el primero. Creo que en parte se debe a que ya no había un único conflicto que uniese toda la historia y que llegó un punto en donde sentía que había demasiado relleno y yo solo quería conocer el final de la historia.
Sin embargo voy a recomendar mucho esta biología porque considero que tiene un planteo sumamente original dentro de la literatura juvenil. La autora evidentemente conoce mucho todos los temas que trata en su novela.
Me llegué a encariñar con varios de los personajes y por eso estoy muy entusiasmada por seguir leyendo las novelas dentro de este mismo mundo que la autora fue sacando. Tiene muy buenos personajes pertenecientes a la comunidad LGBT+ y es otro punto que quiero destacar si o si. Ninguno de ellos se ve forzado y todos tienen re buenas historias.
Recomendada la bilogia, espero que puedan darle una oportunidad.❤️
Yo leyendo finales violentos:
Desde el principio de esta biología que amé completamente la ambientación y cómo la autora pudo colocar la historia de Romeo y Julieta dentro de un contexto histórico que nunca antes había leído en la literatura juvenil.
Amé los personajes, sus conflictos personales, sus relaciones y como sobrevivían como podían al gran enfrentamiento entre los dos clanes.
Para quienes no conocen esta historia nos situamos en la ciudad de Shangai en el año 1926 donde tenemos a dos bandas mafias enemigas que se enfrentan por el poder.
Nuestros protagonistas, Roma y Juliette, son herederos de sus respectivos clanes, pero por más de que les enseñen a odiarse en el pasado tuvieron un romance difícil de superar.
Este segundo libro me gustó pero no logró enamorarme tanto como el primero. Creo que en parte se debe a que ya no había un único conflicto que uniese toda la historia y que llegó un punto en donde sentía que había demasiado relleno y yo solo quería conocer el final de la historia.
Sin embargo voy a recomendar mucho esta biología porque considero que tiene un planteo sumamente original dentro de la literatura juvenil. La autora evidentemente conoce mucho todos los temas que trata en su novela.
Me llegué a encariñar con varios de los personajes y por eso estoy muy entusiasmada por seguir leyendo las novelas dentro de este mismo mundo que la autora fue sacando. Tiene muy buenos personajes pertenecientes a la comunidad LGBT+ y es otro punto que quiero destacar si o si. Ninguno de ellos se ve forzado y todos tienen re buenas historias.
Recomendada la bilogia, espero que puedan darle una oportunidad.❤️
Yo leyendo finales violentos:
And in the end, I gobbled up this book after a long, stressful day. I almost never say this, but this book? I will 100% be rereading, probably with a highlighter in my hand, taking my time and savoring every page for a delightful second read. Thank you, Chloe Gong, for being brave, and for writing a story for the world. You may never read this, but on the off-chance you do: reading about you as an author inspired me to change my own life; to be brave. Thank you.
I worship the ground miss Gong walks on! It’s true. She is what the YA genre needs right now. The fact that she absolutely delivered on her debut series is embarrassing to other authors who have been in the game for awhile. I seriously am in awe.
The character work is truly phenomenal. Gong’s distinction between characters and their voice is very impressive. Every pov you follow has a very unique line of thought and interpretation of the world. I loved getting to know these characters and follow their arcs. There is something to be said about the way Chloe Gong makes every point of view engaging and immersive. The subtle, and extremely positively diversity, was excellent. It’s a shame that this is even such a big plus but bitch, the bar is fucking low for diversity when it comes to popular books in YA.
One of the highlights of both books in this series, but especially book 2, is the slow burn, complex plot. Gong weaves together politics, world building, action, and drama seamlessly. Everything comes together in such a fully realized way. You can tell she put her BACK into thinking everything through. Also, the plot twist were WILD and they had me gasping at my book. When I tell you this book had me STRESSED, I mean it.
One of Gong’s best strength is definitely her prose. It is so entrancing and almost elegant? The descriptions of Shanghai were fucking beautiful! Even the gory, visceral scenes were stunning. I was glued to the page during these damn descriptions. Everything was perfectly laid out and gave me a very bright image of everything going on.
It was definitely a bold move retelling a story as notorious as Romeo and Juliet but damn, she did it. And she did it so fucking well. Adding Chloe to my auto-buy list and I cannot wait to read anything else she writes!
The character work is truly phenomenal. Gong’s distinction between characters and their voice is very impressive. Every pov you follow has a very unique line of thought and interpretation of the world. I loved getting to know these characters and follow their arcs. There is something to be said about the way Chloe Gong makes every point of view engaging and immersive. The subtle, and extremely positively diversity, was excellent. It’s a shame that this is even such a big plus but bitch, the bar is fucking low for diversity when it comes to popular books in YA.
One of the highlights of both books in this series, but especially book 2, is the slow burn, complex plot. Gong weaves together politics, world building, action, and drama seamlessly. Everything comes together in such a fully realized way. You can tell she put her BACK into thinking everything through. Also, the plot twist were WILD and they had me gasping at my book. When I tell you this book had me STRESSED, I mean it.
One of Gong’s best strength is definitely her prose. It is so entrancing and almost elegant? The descriptions of Shanghai were fucking beautiful! Even the gory, visceral scenes were stunning. I was glued to the page during these damn descriptions. Everything was perfectly laid out and gave me a very bright image of everything going on.
It was definitely a bold move retelling a story as notorious as Romeo and Juliet but damn, she did it. And she did it so fucking well. Adding Chloe to my auto-buy list and I cannot wait to read anything else she writes!