Since I am so often and easily underwhelmed or disappointed in finales, it is a rare thing for me to like a final book, especially even more than the first one. Our Violent Ends did that. Hats off to Chloe Gong whose writing has only improved, and that's exactly what you want in a writer - one that only gets better and better with every book they write.

More than anything, this book reminded me that at the heart of it all, daring to love is bravest thing we can ever do. Chloe Gong has built a tale wondrous enough to rival Shakespeare. Following from the events of These Violent Delights, the phenomenal retelling of Romeo and Juliet set in 1920’s Shanghai, we once again follow Juliette of the Scarlet Gang and Roma of the White Flowers as they must now navigate new dangers – powers and threats so dangerous that the two star-crossed lovers must put aside the blood feud and work again once more.
With the characters feeling the aftershocks of Juliette’s actions in the first book, I desperately wanted to see more of Juliette and Roma, especially together in the same room. I wanted to see how the two would grapple with their undeniable connection with one another amid a new vicious animosity. Where the first book simply alludes to Roma and Juliette’s lovers-to-enemies relationship in a series of flashbacks, the gift of These Violent Delights is that we have witnessed their relationship oscillate between lovers to enemies, trust to distrust, tenderness to venom. This makes their dynamic in Our Violent Ends harder-hitting and we feel their emotions and desires more tangibly and acutely. Having gone on that journey with them, we understand the complexity of their relationship – the push of their familial duties in tandem with their pull to one another – which makes every interaction between them so delicious and satisfying, the two coming together like water upon hot oil. What makes Our Violent Ends so brilliant and compelling is that Chloe knows what readers want and she knows that we are familiar with the events of Shakespeare’s play. And so she does give us what we want – except that Chloe simply takes her time with it, in a slow, teasing and deliberate way that will make you crave for more.

completely left heartbroken by this spellboubding and angsty sequel, one that draws you into the star crossed romance, the politics of 1920s Shanghai and the tense events that follow

Just want to first say a big thank you to the publisher and netgalley for this arc in exchange of an honest review.

First things first, everyone know's the story of Romeo and Juliet but this book still absolutely ruined me. I don't know why I went into reading this book hoping that we would get a happy ending to the story.

I really enjoyed reading the first book so was excited to get my hands on an arc for the second and final novel in this duology. This novel has you hooked from the very start and there was a perfect balance of world building/plot and character development that it felt like it wasn't too much and was a nice balance to keep the story going. I have to admit that this book was a lot better than the first one and can tell how much the author has grown as a writer.

Wow.

It's been such a long time I've read a book where the sequel became more of a favourite than it's predecessor. Where I've welcomed pain, and completely trusted the authors process without rushing forward to find out if what I fear is about to come true. Chloe Gong's These Violent Delights was one of my favourite books of last year, and Our Violent Ends is not only an amazing, satisfying, painful and tense read, but it's my favourite out of both books.

I'm in awe, I'm still capturing my breath, but I guarantee I'll be back to read this book again and again. At it's core, there's still the same romance, the one which reminds you to throw caution to the wind for what you want, and yet the terrifying threat of the city, the families, and the monster still looms. The pacing, the descriptions, the emotions... they're all chosen with such purpose, making it a powerful and enjoyable read. I found it so hard to walk away from when life demanded me too, but the ending was worth the wait.

I love way in which Chloe Gong reshaped both the story and characters in which we know, allowing us to be tricked and surprised as the story progresses. It puts things on it' head we think will happen, shifting and changing to keep us guessing, adding jabs and punches here and there to keep us on the edge. The angst in this, the tension littered through out almost broke me, at several points I shifted in my comfortable position, as if needing to be prepared to launch myself.

The use of character switching was much more powerful, it allowed you to get a greater view of the city and the story itself, and often rips you away from moments where you come to close to the truth before it's ruined. You also feel the city more, it becoming it's own character, breathing and thrumming through out the read, making you feel for the setting as well as the people within it.

The story hurts. The ending, as beautiful as it is, ripped my damn heart out. But, I also really enjoyed it. Every step of the way I felt so much, I was so inside the book I felt I could see everything happening. I wanted to shout and shake characters meant I was all in. I felt such a range of emotions I'm still processing from the whiplash of it all. But mainly, I'm happy, beaming almost, that I've got a new favourite to add to shout at people.

But, be prepared when you get your hands on this (which you definitely should) it's a ride. It's also painful and brilliant; emotional and downright terrifying at times. It's epic, like the source material, but with an entirely new spin and a gush of fresh air which is welcomed.

<i>“Why do you pause?” Juliette mimicked bitterly. Softly, she set him down, brushing his mussed hair out of his face. “Because even if you hate me, Roma Montagov, I still love you.”</i>

It's a masterpiece. A firm favourite of mine. Five stars, hands down.

Thank you so much to Hodder & Stoughton for the advanced copy, and also to NetGalley.

loved the follow up to this novel.
Chloe gong is set to be one of the great writers of the next generation.
The story its self felt a bit jagged at some points and a little wordy but overall a very enjoyable ready

I think there is clear improvement to Gong's writing and skill from the first book. The writing is more compelling, more absorbing. But I have a few issues even with the improvements, so here goes:

1. Plot - It was all over the place! The monster plot still did not fit well with the story. Among the clan politics, civil unrest, and messy relationships, the monster plot was just another element of chaos not handled well. The earlier plot (as in what happened the first 40%) was totally useless and they felt like filler scenes; it happened just to make the book longer.

2. Atmosphere - Inconsistent. Gong needs to sell Shanghai to me, but she failed to, and I feel sorry because Shanghai is a very real and actual place. It is more than its dirty alleys, the French Concession, and The Bund though. I feel like the setting was too ambitious for the author to pull off, which leads us to the next point.

3. Writing - I know I said the writing improved considerably, but it felt lacking to me. 1920s Shanghai was a tumultuous time (as I'm sure the author did her extensive research) but I did not feel the weight of it by the way it was written. The political climate was poorly built up and even more poorly escalated (and the monster plot did not help at all). Building up the start of the civil war is challenging, of course, and here it was executed so weakly. I fear Gong was too ambitious with the book but did not have the skills to pull it off. Also, the language changes felt like the author was trying too hard + it came off as lazy to me. Had I not understood Mandarin, I would be frustrated with the constant change of languages. Anyway, one could always show which language is being spoken by the sentence structure and writing style (I suggest Gong learn from fellow Chinese authors like Amy Tan and Janie Chang).

4. Characters - I felt like the "they were exes" was being pushed down my throat too much. I found the dialogue and actions repetitive between Roma and Juliette. It was fun at first, but then it got old because I knew they would not harm each other, and so it felt performative and annoying to me. It also felt like they only did these actions and said these words just to fulfill some role thrust upon them by the author, and not like they were their own characters.

Gong is a debut author so improvement is always possible. Anyway, I look forward to her growth as an author and hope her skills improve more!

THIS BOOK. THIS BOOK. JUST... WOW.

These Violent Delights was in my top 3 books of 2020, so when I was approved for an arc of the sequel I couldn't contain my excitement. And it DID. NOT. DISAPPOINT. Our Violent Ends builds on the events of the first book and somehow makes it even better, and I am still reeling hours after finishing the book.

As with the first book, the number one thing that made me fall in love with it was the characters and their relationships. Roma and Juliette own my whole heart, every single one of their scenes had me screaming (often out loud) with all the beauty and tragedy, love and pain mixed into one. I once again loved the side characters too, loved that they had their own storylines that tied into the main plot but allowed them space to breathe as their own fully formed characters, and I spent the whole book wishing I could reach into the pages and keep each one of them safe.

Of course, it's not all about the yearning, with our characters thrust into a revolution that was looming throughout the first book but is now fully in motion. Chloe Gong perfectly balances the politics with the personal storylines, the political landscape fleshed out without ever feeling too info-dumpy. It's heavy at times, this conflict that is consuming the whole city, and the stakes are so much higher than they were in the first book.

And that ending? Woah. I was left guessing right up until the very end, my heart beating way too fast throughout the last couple of chapters. I knew going into the book that it was going to cause me pain, but I wasn't sure of the exact form that pain would take, but it certainly delivered. But even as it was ripping my heart out, I was still utterly in love with this book.

Our Violent Ends made me laugh, made me cry, made me smile so wide my face hurt, and left me curled in a ball wondering how I'm supposed to ever read another book after this. It is absolutely a new all-time favourite, and I will be eagerly devouring anything and everything Chloe Gong writes from this point on.

Thank you NetGalley for sending me this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.
One of the things that truly sets this book apart from other Romeo and Juliet retelling is its unique ability to reshape the borrowed characters and make them anew. While this book maintains a high stakes conflict, the characters still drive the book. The balance of plot and character development was extremely well done, and if I thought I loved the characters after reading the first book, I was proved completely wrong. Our Violent Ends had me so insanely invested in this characters I was holding my breath every time something seemed to go wrong.
this book was woah… like really wow. if you liked these violent delights, your mind is going to be blown reading this book. it was AMAZING. Chloe gong’s writing is so beautiful and i can’t describe how it made me feel except that it was just so good. the characters and relationships between them were so well written and the scenes they all had were perfect and i am going to miss them all so much. i can’t wait for everyone else to read this book because you guys are going to lose your mind and you know how i know that?? because i did the exact same thing. i honestly can’t remember the last book that made me feel this many emotions all at once and i so was anxious to see what happens at the end the whole time and that ending ,, well i can’t say much without spoiling but wow Chloe gong I will be mailing you my therapy bills ☺️ anyway, I am so excited to read foul lady fortune now and finally, 5 stars is honestly not enough it deserves more

Wow!! What a phenomenal conclusion to the duology! I found the first book to be a decent start but Gong managed to up the stakes and wrote a fantastic ending for our beloved characters, Juliette, Roma, Marshall, and Benedikt. I was blown away at how the plot twist and turned. This retelling was original and I loved the allusions to the original Romeo and Juliet source material, without relying too much on its plot twists.

As with the first book, I loved the Chinese history that was interwoven within the novel. As well as the social commentary throughout. I loved that Gong brought awareness to those issues.

The writing was fantastic as always. The prose is so evocative and I’m always left mulling over some of the passages because they were so beautiful and thought-provoking.

The ending was bittersweet but it was one of the best endings I’ve ever read. It was a punch to my gut but in a good way, if that makes sense?

Overall, this was a fantastic conclusion to the duology and I can say that this cements Chloe Gong as an author everyone should keep an eye on.

A huge, huge, thank you to Hodder & Stoughton and to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC! Honestly when I got the email I just stared and then laughed. I was in shock.

On to the book! Wow. When I read These Violent Delights I was unsure whether I wanted to pick up Our Violent Ends. I had enjoyed the first book but I felt like it dragged a little. I think I was just having a bad week when I read it. Marshall was the main reason for me wanting to continue the series, especially when I realised he had survived and hadn't died as his counterpart had (thank you Chloe!). I loved Mercutio in the original works too and I don't think I would have continued on if Marshall had died.

ANYWAY.

Our Violent Ends. I started it yesterday and I finished it yesterday. I was hooked! The story was amazing, the characters were amazing. I was so invested in everybody. At one point I thought the blackmailer might have been Rosalind and Kathleen's father, he seemed very suspicious but gradually I worked out who the true culprit was and I was not disappointed. Roma and Juliette exasperated me so much, it was clear how much they loved each other and they just wouldn't see it. I felt like screaming at them to just kiss and damn everyone else. I am so happy that I read this book and there is a definite spot on my bookshelf for these star-crossed lovers.

Also don't even get me started on Benedikt and Marshall. Those two own my heart.

You can find my review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4258420347

Thank you, Netgalley and publisher, for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted to love this one; however, I could not get into it; To me, the story felt very much the same apart from a few minor changes. Overall I felt underwhelmed and a little bored whilst reading.

The characters felt the same, and the politics felt a little slow and tedious.

Thank you to Hodder & Stoughton for an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I am not kidding when I say this is the best book of the year that I have read. If you thought These Violent Delights was amazing then Our Violent Ends will blow you away. Chloe Gong has fully cemented herself as one of my favourite authors ever and I will buy absolutely anything she writes.

This books picks up pretty much from where the first book ended and takes you on a whirlwind ride of monsters, politics, romance, betrayal and so much more. Each aspect was perfectly balanced with one another to create a phenomenal book.

I'd first like to start off with the politics and the intrigue surrounding that. The book delved a lot deeper into the Communists vs Nationalists (which involved many a plot twist!) as well as the rising tensions and conflicts between the Scarlets and White Flowers; as well as tying it in with the monsters. I loved the spying and the betrayal! The amount of betrayal in this book shot me in the heart every other page, it was expertly done and created so much tension and depth to the plot.

As for the romance, we had various romantic sub-plots (all of which were infused with action, weapons and violence.) RomaJuliette will forever be a favourite ship of mine, there was so much tension and many beautiful quotes between them, though as this is an arc I cannot share any. Those who have read book one will also know another romance that was involved in the cliffhanger of book one and while I will say that one scene left me super disappointed with how it turned out, though under the circumstances I guess it makes sense, it was redeemed majorly throughout the rest of the book.

The number of plot twists in this book was crazy, my nerves were turned up all the way during the last 100 pages. Many tears were involved, too. This book has a lot of well written action which has you on the edge of your seat in fear for the characters, I was so unsure as to how each scene would end and some of them ended in my jaw dropping.

The ending of this book was so beautifully done and I wouldn't have it any other way. So a warning for potential readers: prepare yourself for the last 100 pages. I mean it. You. Are. Not. Ready.

Finally, I would also like to say that the epilogue does set up for Foul Lady Fortune (which I will sell my soul for an arc of.)

Overall, this was an incredible book which I will without a doubt reread many times over. - 5* (and all the other stars in the universe.)

‘Our Violent Ends’ was one of my most anticipated releases of 2021 and it did not disappoint! After reading ‘These Violent Delight,’ like many other people, I was DESPERATE to get my hands. And when I did, it did not let me down. Chloe Gong’s writing has only grown stronger since her first book and leaves you with vast amount of heartbreak. Personally, I think that rating this book less than 5 stars would be a disservice to it. I absolutely adored this Romeo and Juliet retelling—Juliette and Roma’s story was one that I very much enjoyed, and I am so thankful to have been able to read it!

Thank you netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the arc. I absolutely love this book so much and I will continue to let it break me over and over again. The book had such a good balance between the mystery, politics and romance. I love how we got a little bit of everyone’s point of view, that gave a lot of insight on their actions.
Another thing Chloe Gong absolutely nailed is the undeniable chemistry between the characters, sometimes I look back and doubt if certain characters really had chemistry but the love between Roma and Juliette was palpable. I love following along the characters thoughts and emotions and this book only solidified my love for them even more. There were twists which took me by surprise and added to the whole brilliance of the book. Definitely a new all time favourite book, Chloe Gong could not have made my heart any more full.

Thank you to netgalley and chloe gong for allowing me to read this book early it was a dream and honour

A sequel just as good if not better then the first. Waw this was absolutely amazing full of everything I was looking for, violence and romance and plot twists .
I am in awe of chloe's writing
The ending was very well done and open to interpretation and it will stay on my mind forever


I cannot wait for everyone else to read this

Thank you to Netgalley for a E-Arc in exchange for an honest review.

Let me just start and say that this duology is one of the best Shakespeare retellings I have ever had the pleasure of reading. Chloe Gong is incredibly skilled at just slipping in references and character arcs that are just stunning and only just recognisable to the point where she is truly making this recognisable story and making it her own.

My favourite characters in this one again are undoubtedly Marshall and Ben! Charming and funny but also highlights the inner workings of gangster life.

I enjoyed the political intrigue in this book as this is set in a very real time in history where thousands of people were massacred for the Nationalists to take control of Shanghai and reading this from the many points of view of the gangsters was seriously intriguing and I just LOVED it.

It only didn't get a full 5 star review because in general I don't need to read the romance, I know it's a Romeo and Juliet retelling and that's the point but for me it wasn't the main focus point for me. Otherwise, this book is perfect. That ending is powerful man and I just think Chloe Gong is a masterful writer and I can't wait to read whatever she writes next!

I still don’t know how to properly review this book. ‘Our Violent Ends’ was an absolutely brilliant conclusion to Chloe Gong’s duology, but it has also broken me, and I can’t stop think about this book even if it’s been days since I finished it. I feel so lucky that I got to read it earlier, but I will be definitely re-reading this duology.

‘Our Violent Ends’ was an emotional rollercoaster. There’s been so much happening throughout the whole book, and it felt even more instance than the book 1 in the series. But it was more than action, we get to know here even more the brilliant cast of the characters, and I loved them so much. It was a great spin on ‘Romeo & Juliet’ that became such a unique and brilliant story.

Without giving too much, it was both heartbreaking and mindblowing, and I would totally recommend this book to everyone.

This is a book of epic proportions. It has something for everyone, I think - and manages to weave in original sentiments from Shakespeare’s play while maintaining that vivid originality otherwise lost in most retellings. There is a perfect split between the romance, the fantasy and the politics of it all, making it almost impossible to attribute just one genre to this future classic.

Our Violent Ends is the gloriously decadent follow up to Chloe Gong’s spectacular (and bestselling) Romeo and Juliet reimagining, These Violent Delights— Which is even more thrillingly heart-stopping and unputdownable than the first!

“These violent delights have violent ends…you have always known this”

It’s 1927 and Shanghai teeters on the edge of revolution. After sacrificing her relationship with Roma to protect him from their families’ blood feud, Juliette has been on the warpath. One wrong move and her cousin will gladly usurp her. The only way to save the boy she loves from the wrath of her family is to have him hate her for murdering his best friend—if she were actually guilty maybe it’d sting less.

Still reeling from the death of his best friend and with his cousin barely speaking to him, he knows it’s his fault for letting Juliette back into his life. But he’s determined to make things right, even if it means killing the first girl he’s ever loved.

When a new monstrous danger emerges in the city (as well as whispers of civil war and the annihilation of the city’s gangster rule), Juliette and Roma are forced together to once again end the threat —but neither are prepared for the biggest threat of all: protecting their hearts from each other…

This was absolutely incredible! The setting was still phenomenally detailed and just as decadent and gritty as These Violent Delights but, the pacing was definitely faster (as was the tension-filled, action packed plot) and I absolutely LOVED it!

Everything was bigger—the stakes much higher and it was a rollercoaster of emotions the entire way, honestly I couldn’t put it down.

Roma and Juliette were exquisitely written though, more complex than the first book. The level of detail in the emotions and motivations of not just them but, several characters (Rosalind and Benedikt in particular) really brought them to life and gave realism to the narrative/plot. This may just have surpassed the Bard’s as my favourite depiction of Romeo and Juliet—EVER!

Overall, Our Violent Ends was heart-stoppingly explosive, bittersweet and utterly unmissable. I urge all YA historical fantasy lovers and Shakespearean aficionados to give this series a read, you won’t be disappointed!

Also thanks to Hodder&Stoughton and NetGalley for the e-arc.