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bee94's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Gore, Gun violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Violence, and Body horror
Minor: Transphobia
m_________'s review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Characters
There was a fairly large cast of main characters/significant side characters, so I was a bit worried that some of them would fall a bit flat, especially since this is the first book in the duo-logy so there is less opportunity to develop them. This is not at all the case! All of the characters are very vibrant and well-crafted: I especially loved Juliette, Roma, Kathleen, Benedikt, and Alisa. This will be a repeated theme throughout the review, but I adored how Gong used the source material of Romeo and Juliet as a starting point, but was unafraid to further expand and even alter elements in order to better service her story. Overall, this made the book super fun to pick apart and examine which elements were directly retold, which were expanded, and which were completely new. I definitely felt as though the characters here were even stronger versions of their Shakespearian selves: her Juliette is markedly confident and convicted, whereas Roma is more subtle and rational (also less annoying). As well, the additional characters not in Romeo and Juliet , especially Kathleen and Alisa, were wonderful .
I do love the enemies to lovers trope, but I am pretty picky about it - it has to be done right for me to enjoy it. A lot of the time, especially in more recent YA books, I think this trope is thrown in just for marketing and is resolved in an underwhelming and unsatisfying way. Thus, I was also a but nervous about that when I picked up the book. Again, Gong delivers in this regard. The main characters hate each other, but also love each other so much , and the reasons for this are convincing. Their antagonism doesn't ever immediately disappear and is still very unresolved; it will certainly be a major component of the second book . In a way, it reads more as the enemies in love trope, which I have zero complaints about, since it is less often done than enemies to lovers, and is, in my opinion, far better, more interesting, and, in an odd way, realistic(?).
Also, I love the couples so much. Benedikt and Marshall are the sweetest, and it broke my heart when Benedikt thought Marshall had died. I have a haunting suspicion that his lingering grief is certainly going to cause issues and violence, at least at the start of the next book when he doesn't know yet that Marshall in fact did not die. RomaJuliette is my absolute favourite types of couple: the very aggressive one, and the one who has a tough exterior but is actually very sensitive and a major simp and thinks that everything the other does, including (especially?) their unhinged tendencies, are simply magnificent. For m/f couples, the has girl is the first one, and the boy the second, which is what happened here!
I think my one minor issue with the characters is in the shifting point of views of the novel. I would say that the novel is principally narrated by Juliette, and it shows in her narratorial voice. Namely, I found the sections from her PoV had a very vibrant voice, which was clearly Juliette's, but the other characters' perspectives and voices in narration were a bit less distinctive. Sometimes, it made it seem as though the other characters' PoVs were more in place to fulfill a technical role of filling in the reader on events that Juliette realistically couldn't detail.
Plot, World-building, etc.
Gong’s world building was absolutely fantastic and her writing skills really shines through in the novel - especially in the “zoom out” scenes from the perspective of Shanghai. These scenes in particular had such elegant prose and I loved the imagery and literary devices which she employed! I also like how her writing incorporates humour within the prose - it is at times sarcastic and sardonic, which I found enjoyable and entertaining.
Overall, the pacing was super consistent and solid, especially for a first published book. There were a few chapters, that certainly moved at a slower pace, but I think virtually all books fall into that category. The world-building was fantastic, but it never occurred at the expense of the plot, which moved forward in an exciting, fast-paced manner. There were shocks and surprises from middle to end! I remember being about half-way through the book and being curious about how Gong would continue to increase tension as the ending neared, since it was already so climactic (needless to say, she again delivered). The plot with the monster and the madness was very disgusting and very well done. It was a great and unexpected way to incorporate a fantastical element to the book. I also love books which draw on historical events, whether directly (ie they are historical fiction to some extend) or as an inspiration for the history/current events of their fantastical world (ie The Poppy War ). Gong's discussion of the horrors of colonialism and the tension leading up to the Chinese Civil War was so well-crafted and nuanced - definitely an important read in that regard!
Our Violent Ends And Overall Thoughts
I am so excited for Book 2 (obviously)! The book ended on such a cliffhanger, and apparently the second one has a small time skip so I am dying to know what happens next - I don’t know how I will manage waiting until November to read it. I’m excited to see the political plot evolve and for the stakes to rise even higher! And for the yearning and angstfrom Roma, Juliette, and Benedikt of course.
I think Rosalind is the spy, although I feel like that may be too obvious? But I'm not sure who else it could be, who is named. Obviously not Juliette, and it is unlikely to be Kathleen (we have so many scenes from her perspective, although it could be that Gong was purposely withholding information from them to lead us astray). It would be interesting if Tyler was collaborating specifically to take down Juliette though, although that would sort of feel like a cop-out in a way.
My brain: You know what happens in the original play Romeo and Juliet - everyone dies - so you should really be anticipating that for Our Violent Ends . It will cause it to hurt less when there is no one left alive at the end.
Also my brain: Roma/Juliette/Marshall/Benedikt/Kathleen/Rosalind/Alisa happy ending when ?????
It would be even worse if only one of the Roma and Juliette dies, though. And one of them is left to try and repair what has happens. nope nope nope NOPE NOPE please Chloe I am begging
Anyways , this book is clearly awesome and you should absolutely pick it up! It's not everyday you find such a unique and well-written YA fantasy novel, and Gong's work is really something special. Can't wait for Book 2, as well as whatever writing she has planned for the future!
There was a fairly large cast of main characters/significant side characters, so I was a bit worried that some of them would fall a bit flat, especially since this is the first book in the duo-logy so there is less opportunity to develop them. This is not at all the case! All of the characters are very vibrant and well-crafted: I especially loved Juliette, Roma, Kathleen, Benedikt, and Alisa. This will be a repeated theme throughout the review, but I adored how Gong used the source material of Romeo and Juliet as a starting point, but was unafraid to further expand and even alter elements in order to better service her story. Overall, this made the book super fun to pick apart and examine which elements were directly retold, which were expanded, and which were completely new. I definitely felt as though the characters here were even stronger versions of their Shakespearian selves: her Juliette is markedly confident and convicted, whereas Roma is more subtle and rational (also less annoying). As well, the additional characters not in Romeo and Juliet , especially Kathleen and Alisa, were wonderful .
I do love the enemies to lovers trope, but I am pretty picky about it - it has to be done right for me to enjoy it. A lot of the time, especially in more recent YA books, I think this trope is thrown in just for marketing and is resolved in an underwhelming and unsatisfying way. Thus, I was also a but nervous about that when I picked up the book. Again, Gong delivers in this regard. The main characters hate each other, but also love each other so much , and the reasons for this are convincing. Their antagonism doesn't ever immediately disappear and
Also, I love the couples so much.
I think my one minor issue with the characters is in the shifting point of views of the novel. I would say that the novel is principally narrated by Juliette, and it shows in her narratorial voice. Namely, I found the sections from her PoV had a very vibrant voice, which was clearly Juliette's, but the other characters' perspectives and voices in narration were a bit less distinctive. Sometimes, it made it seem as though the other characters' PoVs were more in place to fulfill a technical role of filling in the reader on events that Juliette realistically couldn't detail.
Plot, World-building, etc.
Gong’s world building was absolutely fantastic and her writing skills really shines through in the novel - especially in the “zoom out” scenes from the perspective of Shanghai. These scenes in particular had such elegant prose and I loved the imagery and literary devices which she employed! I also like how her writing incorporates humour within the prose - it is at times sarcastic and sardonic, which I found enjoyable and entertaining.
Overall, the pacing was super consistent and solid, especially for a first published book. There were a few chapters, that certainly moved at a slower pace, but I think virtually all books fall into that category. The world-building was fantastic, but it never occurred at the expense of the plot, which moved forward in an exciting, fast-paced manner. There were shocks and surprises from middle to end! I remember being about half-way through the book and being curious about how Gong would continue to increase tension as the ending neared, since it was already so climactic (needless to say, she again delivered). The plot with the monster and the madness was very disgusting and very well done. It was a great and unexpected way to incorporate a fantastical element to the book. I also love books which draw on historical events, whether directly (ie they are historical fiction to some extend) or as an inspiration for the history/current events of their fantastical world (ie The Poppy War ). Gong's discussion of the horrors of colonialism and the tension leading up to the Chinese Civil War was so well-crafted and nuanced - definitely an important read in that regard!
Our Violent Ends And Overall Thoughts
I am so excited for Book 2 (obviously)! The book ended on such a cliffhanger, and apparently the second one has a small time skip so I am dying to know what happens next - I don’t know how I will manage waiting until November to read it. I’m excited to see the political plot evolve and for the stakes to rise even higher! And for the yearning and angst
My brain: You know what happens in the original play Romeo and Juliet - everyone dies - so you should really be anticipating that for Our Violent Ends . It will cause it to hurt less when there is no one left alive at the end.
Also my brain: Roma/Juliette/Marshall/Benedikt/Kathleen/Rosalind/Alisa happy ending when ?????
It would be even worse if only one of the Roma and Juliette dies, though. And one of them is left to try and repair what has happens. nope nope nope NOPE NOPE please Chloe I am begging
Anyways , this book is clearly awesome and you should absolutely pick it up! It's not everyday you find such a unique and well-written YA fantasy novel, and Gong's work is really something special. Can't wait for Book 2, as well as whatever writing she has planned for the future!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Death, Death of parent, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Medical trauma, Murder, Racism, Transphobia, Violence, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Medical content, Misogyny, and Sexism
Minor: Alcoholism, Stalking, Toxic relationship, and Vomit
marisreadsagain's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
What a stunning debut! These Violent Delights was an intricate portrait of an evolving Shanghai, the mounting political upheavals of the early 1900s, and the struggle between old vs. new.
I don’t think the book was perfect by any means — it has a handful of scenes that dragged and a whole lot of exposition — but as a whole, Chloe Gong did a great job with her debut novel. I loved the social commentary, the dynamic and distinctive characters, and the Easter eggs that Gong wove throughout that called back to the original play. I actually didn’t mind that the romance wasn’t at the forefront of the story (although it did help that I wasn’t expecting a lot of it to begin with, courtesy of friends who had read it before me) and Gong instead chose to focus on other strong thematic elements. The insight on familial loyalty was really notable.
If you come into this read knowing that there won’t be a lot of romance and that it’s a bit of a slow burn, I think the reading experience is better! I just really loved the whole world that was built, even if it did mean an ambling plot and a softer romantic undertone.
I don’t think the book was perfect by any means — it has a handful of scenes that dragged and a whole lot of exposition — but as a whole, Chloe Gong did a great job with her debut novel. I loved the social commentary, the dynamic and distinctive characters, and the Easter eggs that Gong wove throughout that called back to the original play. I actually didn’t mind that the romance wasn’t at the forefront of the story (although it did help that I wasn’t expecting a lot of it to begin with, courtesy of friends who had read it before me) and Gong instead chose to focus on other strong thematic elements. The insight on familial loyalty was really notable.
If you come into this read knowing that there won’t be a lot of romance and that it’s a bit of a slow burn, I think the reading experience is better! I just really loved the whole world that was built, even if it did mean an ambling plot and a softer romantic undertone.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Death, Gun violence, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Violence, and Xenophobia
Minor: Torture
readerette's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I'm not sure I'm a Romeo and Juliet fan, so undoubtedly that impacts my enjoyment of any retellings. I like the world building and all the factions represented and the energy of the city. The two main characters were mostly enjoyable but ultimately tiring for me to keep caring about, with all their gangster antics and anguish. The story was predictable (even having only a rudimentary understanding of R&J) and the fantasy element completely unnecessary and not really believable as part of a world and a history based heavily on our own reality (but I do prefer an element of believability in my fantasy stories). The descriptions were overwrought in many places, which made the book feel less polished and overly long.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Death, and Violence
Minor: Gore, Gun violence, Medical trauma, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Transphobia, and Xenophobia
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