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3.87 AVERAGE
3.87 AVERAGE
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
What I Loved
-The ~atmosphere~ There's a lot of grubby, gritty scene setting so sharp you can almost hear the waters of the Hangpu.
- The fun to be had with dropping Shakespeare references and working the plots together
- Side characters. The funny friend, the quiet artist, the brash dissenter, the downtrodden but not out... I do love a few comforting tropes.
- The rivalries inside the gangs. Both heirs have someone eyeing their crown, and the tensions between them burn.
What I Noticed
- Body horror. I did not anticipate this. Really not my thing.
- The romance felt a little less than it could have been to me, maybe because it relies on us being told "they were lovers" rather than seeing or feeling it(and I don't get why Juliette lets Roma anywhere near her if he was responsible for a massacre of her gang - the chemistry between them didn't feel enough at that point if she's become a ruthless killer)
- This historical setting could be a little confusing. Without context, I wasn't sure what I was supposed to make of the warring factions.
- The prose could stray into the purple a bit.
TL;DR: I'd read the other books in the Secret Shanghai series for closure. It's not exactly my cup of tea, but I wouldn't want to put anyone off reading it unless any of the content warnings sound too much.
-The ~atmosphere~ There's a lot of grubby, gritty scene setting so sharp you can almost hear the waters of the Hangpu.
- The fun to be had with dropping Shakespeare references and working the plots together
- Side characters. The funny friend, the quiet artist, the brash dissenter, the downtrodden but not out... I do love a few comforting tropes.
- The rivalries inside the gangs. Both heirs have someone eyeing their crown, and the tensions between them burn.
What I Noticed
- Body horror. I did not anticipate this. Really not my thing.
- The romance felt a little less than it could have been to me, maybe because it relies on us being told "they were lovers" rather than seeing or feeling it
- This historical setting could be a little confusing. Without context, I wasn't sure what I was supposed to make of the warring factions.
- The prose could stray into the purple a bit.
TL;DR: I'd read the other books in the Secret Shanghai series for closure. It's not exactly my cup of tea, but I wouldn't want to put anyone off reading it unless any of the content warnings sound too much.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Gun violence, Blood, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Gore, Racism, Transphobia, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Lesbophobia
other writers: spring is coming
chloe gong: "The calendar was rolling closer and closer to the end of the season, the pages of each date ripping free and blowing away quicker than the browning tree leaves"
alright honestly this was one of my most anticipated books of 2020, like come on! a romeo and juliet retelling set in 1920's shanghai and now the rival families are rival gangs? WHO WOULDN'T BUY THAT
honestly i've never been more thankful i had to read romeo and juliet in high school, i was bursting with excitement every time i understood a reference. i think the way in which the author rearranged all the events from Romeo and Juliet to fit the book's narrative was brilliant. I also loved the prose, it was utterly poetic and the fact that this is chloe's first book still amazes me. so excited for her future works and for these violent delights's sequel!
btw roma and juliette stole my heart, poor things they deserve a break and nothing but happiness. ALSO, they served lovers to enemies to lovers EXCELLENCE!!!
chloe gong: "The calendar was rolling closer and closer to the end of the season, the pages of each date ripping free and blowing away quicker than the browning tree leaves"
alright honestly this was one of my most anticipated books of 2020, like come on! a romeo and juliet retelling set in 1920's shanghai and now the rival families are rival gangs? WHO WOULDN'T BUY THAT
honestly i've never been more thankful i had to read romeo and juliet in high school, i was bursting with excitement every time i understood a reference. i think the way in which the author rearranged all the events from Romeo and Juliet to fit the book's narrative was brilliant. I also loved the prose, it was utterly poetic and the fact that this is chloe's first book still amazes me. so excited for her future works and for these violent delights's sequel!
btw roma and juliette stole my heart, poor things they deserve a break and nothing but happiness. ALSO, they served lovers to enemies to lovers EXCELLENCE!!!
I enjoyed this! The connections to Romeo and Juliet were fun.
So I am late to the party but after seeing everyone rave about this I had to get it not only that but it gave me Peaky Blinders vibes.
I’m so glad I picked this up, I love retellings and this had my emotions going up and down.
I’m so glad I picked this up, I love retellings and this had my emotions going up and down.
I enjoyed this but it did take me an age to read. It was a fun premise and had some fun moments of gore/body horror. Also chuckled to myself at every Shakespeare reference. I'll definitely read the sequel at some point.
This book was super fun and suspenseful. I believed the relationships, and then though it was veryyyyy unrealistic to have gay and trans characters partially out in the 1920s, I was willing to suspend disbelief. Main issue for me is I didn’t feel super endeared to the characters (I loved Benedict and Marshall tho) and I’m confused by the historical fiction type vibes and then a monster? Is it a fantasy? Do these characters believe in monsters?
reminder to future self: dont attempt another read. you would think that u love a historical fantasy with shakespearean elements, but you dont. you tried. its not written well and the world building is not what it should be. dnf’d.
adventurous
dark
emotional
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