Reviews with content warning for Grief - Our Violent Ends

"...for however long our souls remain, mine will always find yours.”

“What was love if all it did was kill?”

“Nothing in this world is complicated, only misunderstood.”

I think this second novel surpassed the first one in terms of enjoyment. The connections to Romeo & Juliet are a little more noticeable in this novel. By the time I got about half way through and fully realized the ending to R & J and had to finish to figure out how it turned out in the end. I really appreciated how Juliette had so much more agency than the Juliet of Shakespeare's play. She was a total badass that got to call so many of the shots. I loved that change from the original. I also adored Marshall and Benedikt's story. I loved how secondary characters like Marshall, Benedikt, Celia and Rosalind had side stories that were developed so much more from the first book. There were definitely points when I cared more about their stories than the main love story between Roma and Juliette. That being said, I still really loved the love story. I love the enemies-to-lovers trope so this definitely delivered in that regard. And finally, as a history teacher, I loved the connection to real life events that occurred during the Chinese Civil War. They even name-dropped Chiang Kai-Shek! The author made a point in her author's note to note the pieces that weren't quite historically accurate (other than the fantastical elements, of course.) The political intrigue felt quite realistic for that reason. I really enjoyed all of the different factions. It felt messy and complex but it rang true. Ultimately, I really enjoyed this duology and would definitely recommend. I can't wait to see what Chloe Gong comes out with next.

Content Warnings

eddine's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging emotional funny informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

beautiful! i loved this book😭

Content Warnings

sarahna's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This will be a continuation of my review on the first book (these violent delights) and thus the duology as a whole so it'll be full of spoilers!

It's been a few days since I've finished the book and I still can't wrap my head around the ending. I knew going into this that it was a Romeo and Juliet retelling set in 1920 Shanghai and that the main characters, Roma and Juliette, were heirs of their gangs who happen to be rivals. The outcome would of course result in them having to kill each other because their love wouldn't be acknowledged by their families and violence filled city. Still, it was kept somewhat open. They died saving the city in order to destroy the disease from becoming a bio-weapon yet again but their bodies weren't found. Thombstones exist with their names on it, romantically placed next to each other, but did they actually die? Did they manage to escape the explosion somehow and live happily ever after? Who knows and honestly, I didn't care as much as I thought I would.

Their chemistry in the first book was electric and the enemies to lovers trope worked because they were equals and actually had valid reasons to hate each other but in the second book it all felt flat in my opinion. Juliette saved Mars and staged his murder in front of Roma to make him hate her again and protect him this way but at what cost? They both still pine for each other but in an infuriating way. I kept hearing Ne-Yo's -I hate that I love you in my head. Why wouldn't they just communicate with each other??

Mars and Ben on the other hand though were done so well and I was extremely invested in them. How Mars kept in the shadows and watched over Ben while he mourned the loss of his 'friend'. In turn he wondered why he couldn't get over his death and why he wanted to kill everyone in his sight in the name of Mars. When Juliette was held at gun point by Ben she was forced to confess that Mars was still alive and their reunion blew me away. The way he was angry at him at first for not contacting him and how he had to fight back the urge to confess his love not knowing if it'd be reciprocated by Mars. It felt real and vulnerable and their first kiss made me feel like i was intruding due to how intimate it was.

Meanwhile Roma and Juliette's dyi wedding felt cheesy and rushed. Granted, the political intrigue, Katherine's side plot and the gang's slowly being rot out while the Nationalists and Communists rioted didn't give them much space to be emotional. Speaking of which, I thought the political intrigue was done well and I really hated Mars' father and what he stood for. It's always a good sign when a story makes you feel many emotions, albeit bad ones.

Overall I liked this duology and would love to read a short story about Mars and Ben's live after the events in Shanghai. It made me turn the pages, there were unexpected plots and when going into this retelling not mainly for the romance it's a fun read!

Content Warnings

lynnrahm's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

miss chole can push a clawed hand into your chest and rip out your heart.

end of story.

Content Warnings

kbairbooks's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

(Spoiler review) oh my gosh. Once again horror and politics are SO not my vibe when I’m reading. BUT. There’s just something about Chloe Gongs writing that ensnared me. I HAD to know what happened and I HAD to know if Roma and Juliette ended up together! I still wish she had killed her parents, and as with a couple other things I’m not entirely sure what the ending meant so I feel… fulfilled but also not. It’s been a long time since I read something that left me with that feeling at the end of a book. I will be very intrigued to see what this author comes up with in the future.

Content Warnings

kaetheluise_nckl's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

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

Content Warnings

lainiereads's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

okay i will just die now thank u

100/100 stars perfect book love u miss chloe

after reflecting i’m definitely adding this to my tops 10 books, but it is honestly in my top 3 books right now, i am in love

Content Warnings

More...