Scan barcode
claudiamacpherson's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Moderate: Death, Gore, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child death, Cursing, Drug use, Sexual content, Kidnapping, and Alcohol
nodogsonthemoon's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail
meredith_williams_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Death, Gore, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Murder, and War
Moderate: Kidnapping and Suicide attempt
amiably's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Gun violence, Blood, and Murder
Minor: Suicide and Suicide attempt
saoreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Gore, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Murder, and War
writingcaia's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This a slow to medium paced story, anchored both in the historical events of the 20/30’s in Shangai, revolution, communists, nationalists, foreign invaders, gangsters all making the streets of the town run red with the blood of the people, and it’s also a retelling of the famous Shakespearean love tragedy Romeu and Juliet.
I’ve to say it wasn’t the easiest book to dive into, thankfully there’re the Montagov and Marsh who were all so endearing and made me keep going, eventually I came into syntony with the story albeit dreading how close to the original it would stick to.
Soon it became a riveting read and continued until the end, with plenty of bloodshed, monsters, hate, betrayal, murder, and of course love to conquer all odds.
I can’t say how close it cut to the original tale without spoilers, I can only say there’re a few plot twists related and unrelated with the Shakespearean tragedy.
Overall a 4.5⭐️ duology and if you like YA retellings, with dark mystery, gangs, history and tragedy this is for you.
Moderate: Body horror, Death, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Racism, Self harm, Suicide, Torture, Blood, Grief, Murder, and Alcohol
Minor: Transphobia
aklovekorn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Death, Gore, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
zzlzibair's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
I had an amazing time reading it and even gave the duet to one of my closest friends so we could both talk about how good it was. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves romance, (specifically the trope, enemies to lovers) mystery, adventure, and suspense.
I love the world and the characters Chloe Gong has created, and I'll be keeping them close to my heart until the day I die. I'll be rereading this for sure.
Graphic: Gun violence, Violence, and Murder
andromeda_1998's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Characters
I really enjoyed reading about Juliette. She’s a strong female character that know what she wants. The thing I like the most about her is that she isn’t stripped of her femininity. She will save the world in dresses and she doesn’t need your opinion about that. She makes questionable choices but she is a morally gray character. It makes her believable. I liked Roma a bit less. He can be a bit whiny but he is still decent I guess.
The story
The story is about Roma and Juliette, two gangster heirs in the streets of Shanghai. They have loved each other in the past but there relationship ended because of mutual betrayal. It’s a enemy to lovers, action packed, unique story with some darker plot twists. I’m not a big romance reader but I still enjoyed this book tremendously. The story is written with a medium/fast pacing and is really well thought out. The writer is able to take you with her on a journey through history (with a twist) in this Romeo and Juliette retelling. The ending was dramatic but it fits the setting.
The worldbuilding
The author has thought up an amazing world. Yes it’s older days Shanghai but it also has an unique flair to it. It’s an interesting read because of the world that is created.
100% recommend this book for loves of romance, drama and gangsters.
Graphic: Death, Eating disorder, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Blood, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
offbrandclubsoda's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Death and Gun violence
Moderate: Xenophobia, Grief, and Colonisation
Minor: Homophobia, Suicidal thoughts, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail