Our Violent Ends

Firstly thank you to NetGalley, PUBLISHER & Author Chloe Gong for giving me the opportunity to read and review this fantastic book.

I will admit I have been sitting on my copy of “These Violent Delights” for some time patiently awaiting “Our Violent Ends” so that I could read them in succession.

I’m glad I waited. This fabulous re-telling of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is cativating and magical. The authors attention to detail spins a world the reader can become entirely engrossed in and allows for the story to flow effortlessly.

Our main characters are centred around two rival gangs, we meet “The Scarletts” Juliette, Kathleen and Rosalind and on the other “The White Flowers” Roma, Benedikt and Marshall. These characters are brought to life in the story by means of their personalities and quirks which makes each easily likeable.

Throughout this duology I laughed, cried and had warm fuzzy feelings along side the characters. What more can you look forward to in a good book?

I was on edge at parts during this book with not knowing what would come next. I wish I could time travel to 1920s Shanghai just to experience it. In fact I’m adding Shanghai to my bucket list of places to visit.

Fantastic read. 😊

“Eyes, look your last! Arms, take your last embrace! And lips, O you The doors of breath, seal with a righteous kiss A dateless bargain to engrossing death!”

#Fantasy #YoungAdult #YA #Romance #HistoricalFiction #RomeoAndJuliet #Shakespeare #Retelling #Fantasy #ForbiddenLove #StarCrossedLovers #Bookstagram #BookLife #NetGalley #Duology #BookLove #ScottishBookstagrammer

I have no words right now. I didn’t think it was possible, but I love it even more than These Violent Delights.
This book is beyond beautiful and I somehow fell even more in love with the characters than I already was.
Nothing could be done or added to it that would make it any more perfect, and I honestly cannot get over how BEAUTIFULLY IT IS WRITTEN!!!
This has set the standard for all YA books and I don’t think another one will come close. Ever. It has to be one of the best duologues I’ve ever read/will ever read.
The ending has left me needing more. When I say needing, I mean it.
I don’t think I’m going to stop thinking about this book for years (no, I’m not exaggerating) and if Chloe Gong doesn’t continue writing masterpieces I think I might die (maybe a slight exaggeration).

wow. WOW. okay. i’m pretty sure i am in shock right now after /that/ ending so this review maybe be absolutely all over the place but, oh my god, did i love this book. i personally struggled a bit with the first book and this book felt a lot more put together, maybe because the various layers of plot had been given the time to develop in the first book. as ever, chole gong’s writing style is phenomenal, and the combination of the scarlet gang and white flowers, the monsters and the communist and nationalist revolutions made for a complex and genuinely interesting plot, regardless of what the characters added to it. that being said, the characters in this book were incredible and messy and loveable, getting to see everyone deciding what their “destiny” was was so satisfying and so much better than anyone becoming a puppet of the revolution. i loved both rosalind and kathleen’s plots, seeing them decide what family, love and loyalty means to them was a wild and wonderful ride. i’m very happy with the path ben and mars took, but i was even more obsessed with roma and juliette’s relationship. there were some simply amazing moments with them in all different aspects (which i CANNOT wait to gush about when everyone has read ove), they have to be one of my most favourite book couples just from how perfectly they’re written here. this is a book full of love, hate and so, so many surprise twists that i could never guess - it’s a masterpiece.

I absolutely loved These Violent Delights, and had been looking forward to its sequel. It did not disappoint!! I absolutely loved it and was hooked from the start. Highly recommend

⭐️ Our Violent Ends Review ⭐️

I have such mixed opinions on this book. Was it the plot or was I just not in the mood for it during reading?

I loved the first book and I do still love the majority of the characters, but some of them felt so different. I just didn’t really connect to the characters like I did with the first one. Rosalind’s plot line and arc especially just felt off.

From a plot perspective a LOT happened, but at the same time it managed to drag in places.

The ending will probably split opinions. Personallly I thought it concluded the duology perfectly.

Overall, I recommend it if you enjoyed the first, but it just didn’t quite hit the mark for me. I’ll probably give it another go when I get the finished copy at some point

⭐️ 3.5/5 stars ⭐️

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
• “It was this city, divided by names and colours and turfs, but all bleeding the exact same shade of violence”
• “Lovers turned to strangers, and it cut deep enough to bleed”
• “These violent delights have violent ends”
• “And what was love when all it did was kill?”
• “Nothing in this world is complicated, just misunderstood”
• “It is love that will survive after everything else has perished”

Wow. Even waiting a few hours after reading this, I’m still shocked by the ending.
This sequel was everything I was anticipating and more. There was so so much happening and I loved it! I was a little late to read TVE - I read it only 3 months ago!! I thoroughly enjoyed diving back into Roma and Juliette’s world. ☺️
The pace of the book was perfect, equally fast but slow when it needed to be. I really liked the multiple POV’s from each main character and I really liked Alisa’s take on the plot too :) Each character was so carefully constructed and I loved the intensity of each one too.
There were so so many plot twists I did not see coming at all which made me more excited to continue reading! This is such a good duology and it had the perfect ending too (even if it is shocking!) It was the perfect way to say goodbye to the characters and now I’m super excited to see everyone else read it too!!
Juliette, the one and only, was amazing - I loved her growth throughout the book too and how she grew up too, wanting to trill defend her city and fight for love. Roma, the king, was also amazing!! I loved reading his POV so so much and seeing him also fight for what he believed in too.
Ahhhh Ben and Marshall - BEAUTIFUL! I love their scenes and their ending was also perfect (I’m trying so hard not to spoil anything here)

I only have a few minor cons and these are probably only because I read it as an e-book. The chapter lengths were quite long, which I’m not a huge fan of… I did however, like how they were separated slightly by the multiple third person POVs throughout each chapter. I’m also annoyed to say but I really disliked reading it on my phone - I’m very grateful to have been accepted to read this arc but it just took some of the joy of reading the book on such a small screen. I can’t wait to read it in a physical copy ahh 😆😆

I will end my review here for fear of giving anything awayyyy
It is sad to say goodbye to these amazing characters but this book is 100% the way to do it 😌
THANK YOU MISS CHLOE FOR THESE OUTSTANDING BOOKS I am incredibly excited for more of your books :) 🤍

“What’s a little light stabbing between lovers?”

Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The year is 1927, and Shanghai teeters on the edge of revolution. After sacrificing her relationship with Roma to protect him from the blood feud, Juliette has been a girl on the warpath. One wrong move, and her cousin will step in to usurp her place as the Scarlet Gang’s heir. The only way to save the boy she loves from the wrath of the Scarlets is to have him want her dead for murdering his best friend in cold blood. If Juliette were actually guilty of the crime Roma believes she committed, his rejection might sting less. Roma is still reeling from Marshall’s death, and his cousin Benedikt will barely speak to him. Roma knows it’s his fault for letting the ruthless Juliette back into his life, and he’s determined to set things right—even if that means killing the girl he hates and loves with equal measure. Then a new monstrous danger emerges in the city, and though secrets keep them apart, Juliette must secure Roma’s cooperation if they are to end this threat once and for all. Shanghai is already at a boiling point: The Nationalists are marching in, whispers of civil war brew louder every day, and gangster rule faces complete annihilation. Roma and Juliette must put aside their differences to combat monsters and politics, but they aren’t prepared for the biggest threat of all: protecting their hearts from each other.

Juliette, as always, is QUEEN. Still unapologetically herself, she fights tooth and nail to keep her place and title in the Scarlet Gang, whilst balancing the heartache of pushing her love away in such a brutal way, accepting his hatred with a heavy heart. I loved getting to see the sassy Juliette we know and love, but this story really brought out more of her vulnerability and really added to her character. She loves her family, loves her people, but would gladly turn against them for the greater good. Juliette is certainly put through her paces in OVE.
Roma is on the warpath, desperate to enact revenge on Juliette for murdering one of his own. But his head and his heart are in permanent conflict that has him second guessing himself. He had a rough edge to his character but there was always a hesitancy in joining in with the harsher moments. Well, that hesitancy is gone! There’s this roguish, tough edge to Roma now and it’s refreshing to see him in such a way. There are moments of the softer Roma too - I’ll admit, he was melting my heart - that just gripped me.

I really loved that we got to see more of Rosalind and Kathleen on the Scarlets side, and more of Alisa, Benedikt and Marshall on the White Flowers side as well. I felt like we saw mainly glimpses of them before but this time around, we really got to look into their heads, see how they tackled the trepidatious events that popped up.

My biggest thought after finishing OVE is this: HOLY CRAP. I laughed. I cried. I sobbed. I went on a rollercoaster of emotion and I loved every bloody second of it. Numerous times the rug was pulled out from under me - even when I had an inkling that something was going on, I’d find myself utterly shocked at each revelation as it unfolded. The violence in this book, perfection. The grief and anguish and fear? Brilliant. The romance? MY HEART IS A PUDDLE OF GOO AND I’M LIVING FOR IT. The ending got me too. I found myself just utterly overwhelmed in the very best way. I didn’t want it to end, I wanted there to be more and more to see, more and more to delve into.

There’s no words that can adequately describe this story but here’s one that’ll do: masterpiece.

Overall, Our Violent Ends is another FANTASTIC book from Chloe Gong that just has me desperate to read more!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Thank you again to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an advanced copy of this book. Review will be live on my blog on 15/11

I was incredibly fortunate to receive this book in return for a honest review.

Our Violent Ends really set itself apart from other Romeo and Juliet retellings and hooked me from the first page. Gong included elements of the play that we all know and love while crafting a new story that kept the reader on their toes for the entire novel. Additionally, it also improved upon the first in the series, which, while being an incredibly enjoyable read did have a slower start than its sequel. This novel certainly did not have this problem and had an expert control over its pace. There was an incredible balance of plot, conflict and a development of such loveable characters. The tension remains at a constantly high pace while rewarding its reader with not one but two engaging romances. It is inclusive, has rich world building and maintains its well thought out plot.

The author has become an instant buy for me from now on with a use of well loved tropes and excellent characters. I can not wait to see what is next for Gong - I will be preordering this book when it is released and all releases after this one.

This book was incredible in so many ways. It may be the most stressful book I have ever read, but in the best way possible - I simultaneously could not pry my eyes away from the page and could not read any further for fear of what would come next. From the very first chapter I was completely hooked, the writing is so immersive I felt as though I was along side Roma and Juliette in Shanghai, feeling their pain, their happiness, their worries. The balance between plot and character development is so well done, and only made my love for the characters grow exponentially, I am completely certain that they will live in my heart for much longer. The POV switches give the reader such great understanding of each side, and are done so seamlessly throughout the book, creating the perfect emotional rollercoaster.

The ending of this book tore my heart in two and changed the trajectory of my life forever, and Chloe Gong managed to do it so perfectly I can't even complain.

Our Violent Ends exceeded my every expectation; it is a truly phenomenal sequel and a brought a beautiful end to this duology. I was so deeply invested in this story and its characters, I was holding my breath anytime something went wrong, I cried, I laughed, I screamed, overall I loved it - I cannot see another book making me quite as emotive as this did.

"Because five years ago, juliette was the one tracking these all over the house."
"She had to stop growing so fond of White Flowers. It would be the death of her."
I SOMEHOW LANDED MYSELF AN ARC OF OVE AND I AM SOBBING AND DYING AAAAAH
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Firstly thank you to netgalley and hodder and stoughton for giving me an arc! all the opinions in this review are my own.
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CW: blood, violence, gore, character deaths, explicit description of gouging self (not of their own volition), murder, weapon use, insects, alcohol consumption, parental abuse
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5 FREAKING STARS OBVIOUSLY AND MY WHOLE HEART AS WELL TO OVE.
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OKAY NOW WHERE DO I START- OVE ENDED ME IN THE BEST AND WORST WAY EVER AND I MEAN IT WHEN I SAY THAT I SHALL NEVER RECOVER. THIS BOOK HAD EVERYTHING FROM ROMANCE, POLITICAL INTRIGUE, ROMA-JULIETTE *sob*, BENSHALL *sobs*, ALISA MY QUEEN, SO MUCH BLOODSHED, EPIC CHARACTER ARCS AND MINDBLOWING PLOT TWISTS. now where do i start sigh, *trying to form coherent words* asdfghjklzxcvbn
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deep breaths, here we go
OVE is a lot romance heavy when compared to its predecessor, and rightfully so, the spotlight on the couples did not overpower any part of the plot at point of the book. Chloe gong is a master at storytelling, and the action and intrigue clubbed with our benshall, roma-juliette soft moments and alisa and kathleen being absolute queens makes this book the BEST successor to the masterpiece that was these violent delights.
PLOT: the plot almost felt like an extension of tvd, which was absolutely amazing. so much happening and never a dull moment throughout the story. the multiple povs throughout made the story so much cinematic (istg miss chloe with her descriptions SLAY ME) and multidimensional. one of my absolute favourite parts of the plot was how all the side characters got so much screentime and was given almost equal importance as our protagonists. finally, the entire journey from 1926 shanghai to 1927 shanghai was so well developed and thrilling, along with so many plot twists along the way. i am not gonna lie i called majority of them in ove but that might just be my skills, I really do think they were pretty solid plot points which played a major part in deciding the course of the story.
ROMANCE: i think i speak for everyone when i say that we are *thriving* for more roma juliette and benshall content after tvd, and we just want our babies to be fine and happy and be soft TOGETHER. so im pleased to announce that ove delivered this in spades. SO MUCH CONTENT I CRY-
CHARACTERS: While tvd was mostly about Roma being soft and angsty about juliette, ove follows our badass queen being oh-so-soft and loving. the complete character arc of juliette cai from being stabby and emotionless to the end of ove will have you crying your heart out of love and so much pain. Roma was as usual the sweetest boy, ready to sacrifice everything for juliette but he also learned how to accept himself as who he is and not think he is any less that dmitri or the other white flowers. Benedikt gives me pain, he went through so much and like a freaking king, you cant help but be proud of ben and want to give him the biggest hug. MARSHALL MY MAN WILL WIN YOUR HEART IN OVE. HE IS EVERYTHING. PERIOD. ALISA AND KATHLEEN WENT THROUGH SO MUCH AS Roma's sister and Juliette's cousin respectively, but the growth we see in both of them as individual strong women is massive and so well done. the other characters also played equally important roles and were portrayed so well.
FRIENDSHIPS: I needed to do a separate part to mention the absolute best found family and friendships we get to see in ove. I KID YOU NOT when i say this but all our babies are so wholesome together and you will want so much more.
ENDING: we dont talk about that. period.
without spoiling anything, i will say that the ending is bittersweet to say the least (kashvi's roma juliette fanfic is the the only thing keeping me alive now-) and it is absolutely foolish of you if you think that things are not gonna be pain especially for a book named *OUR VIOLENT ENDS*
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finally, ove was an emotional rollercoaster from the start to the end and even though it was sheer pain and i have no tears left now but i shall keep rereading and sobbing to help mY tvd heart thrive. THIS IS THE BEST SEQUEL AND FOR SURE ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF 2021 AND PROBABLY OF ALL TIME. chloe's growth in writing was so evident in this book and i am so grateful that this exist. CHLOE GONG IS THE QUEEN AND OVE IS A FREAKING MASTERPIECE. PERIOD.
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quick advice: go in prepared and have an emotional support group ready to scream after things go down. @paperplanes_plottwists on ig, hit me up to scream <3
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(pardon typos, my emotions about ove and all over the place)
rep: ownvoices Chinese protagonist and characters, Chinese trans girl main character, gay main character, Korean main character

I was really lucky insofar that I could dive right into this sequel after reading the first book in the duology, "These Violent Delights". No waiting times, no agony after the cliffhanger. I was really excited to see where this sequel would take me. Suffice to say, this is a very fitting second book. It does the same things really well that the first book excels at, but has the same issues I've found in "These Violent Delights", too.

Chloe Gong's writing is just wonderful and once again she manages to really make Shanghai come alive. The setting is lush, dirty, vivid, dark, and as cliche as it sounds, the city of Shanghai really is its own character. I absolutely loved visiting it and the political background and intrigues it struggles with. This duology often feels like historical fiction, just with an added touch of Shakespeare reimagining and horror fantasy. It made me want to google and find out more which is ALWAYS a big win. I do feel like Gong sometimes goes a little overboard with the descriptions, using some Jay-Kristoff-style metaphors and smilies that sound great but actually say nothing at all or don't make sense if you think about them for more than a second, but the rest of her writing makes up for it.

The characters are just wonderfully morally grey and complex, making me both root for them and wanting to smack them over the head sometimes. I really really appreciate that, while this book is marketed as YA, the characters are more in the NA age range so I don't have to mentally age them up for the story to make sense (looking at you, Six of Crows). While yes, you still have to suspend your disbelief at times as is usual for the genre, it's a lot less prevalent.

In my review of the first book, I criticised that all of the characters that aren't Juliette don't feel very fleshed out, that there is a lot of potential in them but they are sidelined until the end. I was very much hoping for this to change in the sequel, for Gong to give all these characters (that ARE marketed as the cast of main characters after all) the spotlight they deserve. Sadly, this didn't really happen. While I do feel that she spends a liiiiiittle bit more time on these characters, This duology is very much The Juliette Show, with Roma getting a fair share of pov chapters (but not even close to equal treatment compared to Juliette) and the rest of the characters getting their little chapter parts here and there that allow for a nice side romance and a deeper look into the communist faction. This will definitely be totally fine especially for people who really love Juliette, but as someone who likes her a lot but felt more drawn to other characrers I was left just a bit disappointed.

Another issue I had with the characters was the fact that they just... never really became the kind of found family group that both the marketing and the fandom lead me to expect. They rarely even work as a group and the relationships between the characters aren't fleshed out at all, nor have they time and space to develop. It felt like they all had their seperate storylines that sometimes met but mostly unfolded parallel to each other. Celia's storyline was so interesting, but felt completely detached. And Rosalind, a character I was so eager to learn more about (especially when it comes to her and Celia's sister bond), never really becomes more than an unfortunate side note with a surprising lack of agency. Ah, that wasted potential. Juliette and Roma's romance was absolutely beautiful though, and I rooted for them until the very end. Once they finally get over all that drama keeping them apart, they are a POWER COUPLE let me tell you, it was a joy to see.

I found the pacing in this book superior to the first one, the focus sharper, the storytelling denser. It was a wild ride from start to finish with twists and turns that I'm sure won't surprise most readers but are still well done and fit the story and world. At some points during the story, I actually felt like the pacing was a little tooooo fast (the "Juliette's death" storyline comes to mind which gave us both the problem and its solution within like, one page). I couldn't put the book down until the conclusion, which I actually really liked! It was a very nice way to use Shapespeare's story but turn it all around and it was wonderfully bittersweet.
There were really just two things I thought that could have been better when it comes to the meat of the story. One, I thought that the cliffhanger of the last book wasn't resolved in a satisfying, coherent way. In the end, the whole cliffhanger (the note, but especially the scream) was a throwaway line without much payoff at all insofar that the sequel basically starts the same way its predecessor does. They are back to square one and the note could have easily been found in the sequel. It was a cliffhanger just to have a cliffhanger and to set up something that could have easily and more satisfyingly be set up in this second book. This is a personal thing, I just don't like cliffhangers that kind of jerk me around. The scream made us think of horror and doom, but meant absolutely nothing.
Secondly, a lot of the drama that keeps Juliette and Roma apart is just wayyyyyy too dragged out. Remember that epic hospital scene at the end of "These Violent Delights"? It made sense and it was SUCH a great way to play on Mercutio's death. I actually would have preferred the twist to not be presented so soon afterwards (something that Gong seems to do regularly, she does the same in the aforementioned "Juliette's Death" scene). It made sense for Juliette to keep this twist to herself - but not for so forking long. After a while it just stopped making any sense for both the story and the characters and is so obviously just there to add drama and turn this romance into even more of a slow-burn.
Other than that, the story is a blast to get through and exciting until the end.

Overall, this is a serious case of More Of The Same. "Our Violet Ends" doesn't improve on its predecessor, but it's also just as good. It's chock full of great storytelling, imaginative ideas and potential to be spectacular, but unfortunately has a lot of issues too that made me not enjoy it as much as I wanted to. All of these are issues that can be worked on, though, because I absolutely believe Gong can write masterpieces in her genre. I'm still surprised this is a debut duology because it definitely doesn't read like it, it excels at so many things.
3,5 stars, rounded up to 4, which is at the same time my rating for the whole duology.

‘I still love you so much that I hate you for it.’

Ever read a book you didn’t like at first? Struggling to get through and in the end longing for the sequel? And then loving the sequel tremendously?

In These Violent Delights, I found the pacing too slow, and the writing too lyrical for an action-packed book, but I simply devoured the pages of Our Violent Ends. It was so much easier readable then its prequel, and I was immediately engaged to this story and couldn’t let go. There was such a thin line between love and hate throughout the book, and I constantly sat on the edge of my seat. I adored Roma and Juliette, and rooted for them to finally be able to love each other, instead of continuously wanting to kill another. Although I cared for them so much, Kathleen stole the show, taking more and more charge of her own life, being who she wanted to be, becoming such a powerful girl! And last but not least, those two cute cinnamon rolls I have a soft spot for. One of them being in so much pain, the other one protecting the other as much as he could. I loved the missing, the aching, the longing and I wanted to know desperately if they’d finally kiss. Small spoiler alert: YES, they did 🥰!!!

Thanks so much Chloe Gong for drawing me into this series while at a certain point, I almost DNF’d These Violent Delights. So glad I didn’t though!

WOW.
Chloe Gong has done it again; she never ceases to amaze me. Her writing style is just immaculate and I never once felt bored throughout the book. Our Violent Ends is a great sequel and I couldn't have asked for a better way for the duology to end. The angst in the first half of the book, *chefskiss*. My heart will forever ache for Roma and Juliette.
I do wish Benedikt and Marshall's relationship was explored a little more in depth.

Our Violent Ends is a raw and powerful retelling of a classic and, in my opinion, you MUST read this duology at least once in your life. Chloe Gong has created a special place in my heart for her books after this duology, so you can bet I will read anything and everything by her.

a HUGE thank you to Hodder & Stoughton for sending an eARC via NetGalley in exchange of an honest review.

This is the perfect follow- up to an already perfect story, dropping us back in where the first book left us. Although a retelling, the twists and reveals in this book did nothing but catch me by surprise again and again, to the point where I had to set my kindle aside and just process the reveals I was reading. Her writing is phenomenal once again, the character development just so fun to read and the angst... No one is doing enemies to lovers, mutual "unrequited" love and blood feuds quite like Chloe Gong is. I literally lost track of how many times I cried in the week I read this, just moved by the story she handed us on a silver platter.

"Father, I crave violence"

Author: @thechloegong
Genre: Historical & Fantasy Fiction 💖

Thank you @netgalley for the arc copy, i don't know how i would've survived waiting till november. I didn't know how net galley worked but with my amazing friend, I built up my profile for 2-3?? days and then requested our violent ends. they know many books i read in those days 😭😭

I think you all know how much I loved These Violent Delights. I loved the setting, the characters,the romance, everything. I didn't think that the sequel would surpass that love. OH BUT IT DID! Gong hit it out of the park with this explosive sequel! ❤❤

As the city decended into chaos once again, this time, the stakes were much higher.
The romance was mind blowing and the plot will never make you feel even a little bit bored. Some shit was going down in every chapter and I was here for it 👀 The characters development bro- 🤌🏼🤌🏼

Chloe Gong SNAPPED with this book! TVD eas already a masterpiece and to outdo it? it's truly remarkable 🙌

At the end of this book, I was left well, broken. I cried an embarrassing amount of time in the duration of the book and the end.Then scream about the "how, why, PLEASE GOD WHY" to my friends who also got the arc. 😭😭 @thechloegong I'm sending you my therapy bills and the bill for the empty box of tissues that my mum threw at my head for being a weirdo. 😀

If you have not read tvd, i suggest you go now or else I'm coming over to beat you up. I'm kidding... unless? no, im kidding... un- 😳
pre-order our violent ends coming out in november besties<333

"So, we incite chaos."

Please take in mind it’s my opinion, and everyone is allowed to have one.

I wanted to read Our Violent Ends due to how things ended in These Violent Delights. But this whole serie wasn’t my cup of tea.. This book started off just as dragging as the first one for me. A lot of things were predictable, so I didn’t enjoy it as much.

Also Juliette her character wasn’t it for me in this book, I just didn’t enjoy her as much as I wanted.

The ending was one I didn’t expect, kinda a bummer of how it ended.

This is…. A masterpiece??

Miss Chloe has a way with words that rips your heart right out of your chest, throws it against the wall and then scrapes the remains together and places it back in your chest with just a dash of hope left over.

This book and duology is my favourite of the year, without a shadow of a doubt. It’s slick and gut wrenching and heart breaking and sumptuous.

Thanks Chloe, for the beauty that is this book and these characters. I will carry them with me for always.

After a harrowing cliffhanger at the end of These Violent Delights, needless to say I was very excited to get stuck into Our Violent Ends. Chloe Gong is a master at political intrigue and layered plotlines and OVE was no exception on that front. My favourite element of the book was the historical elements interwoven into the more fantastical elements and gang rivalry. OVE sees our main characters Juliette and Roma thrown together once more as the plot from its predecessor is ramped up in the sequel. Although I was a fan of their relationship and the tension between them was so thick you could cut it with a knife (literally, knowing these two characters!), personally I found OVE lacking a bit on the romance front. I just didn't buy the connection between them as much and found myself less interested in their relationship than the other plot points, namely the tension between the rival gangs and the political intrigue. Nevertheless, I greatly enjoyed OVE and it was a satisfying end to the duology.

Telling you that I absolutely love These Violent Delights means I don't have words to left to express how much I loved Our Violent Ends. I finished Our Violent Ends few days ago, and I feel like I could write 30 pages long thesis about this duology, yet at the same time I have no words. Anyway, I will do my best to describe my feelings.

After finishing the duology I can safely say that I consider Chloe Gong to be a writer-genius. Her storytelling captivates me, makes me hold my breath, makes my heart ache and my soul full of joy at the same time. Honestly, since I finished the book, I don't know what to do with my life. I have an urge to shout from the rooftops, turn around and scream, laugh enough to woke all my neighbors. I honestly can't wait for everyone to read this masterpiece, so I have someone to talk to and get it all out. Reading a book this great early is a blessing and a curse at the same time because I need to keep my mouth shut when in fact I want to talk about Our Violent Ends 24/7. The most perfect storm is raging inside my heart now.

Juliette, Roma, Benedict, Marshall and more grew into my heart. There they took root, and I am never going to let them go. Juliette is such a great protagonist. I love the fact that she is the baddest B out there. She is not afraid to act. She does not hesitate to make touch decisions. I love her strength and resolve. She follows her heart to do what was is best for her people and for her city. Overall, she is a girl who would do anything to save the people she loves. She cares more for Roma, his sister, her cousins and the friends she made along the way, than the blood feud and being a gang leader. ​I absolutely root for that.

Benedict and Marshall, aka. Benshall have been engraved into my heart as well. Yeah, Chloe Gong writes the best couples.

Roma and Juliette's relationship takes the whole enemies-to-lovers trope to the next level. I love their dynamics. Their bickering is to die for. They are a couple which makes you to be on the edge of your seat the whole book and desperately hope for a happy ending. No, I'm not going to tell you if they get it. I can just say that it is a retelling after all and that the ending was absolutely perfect. Ominous and confusing, I know. I don't want to spoiler anyone, and I think it's the best to go into this hell of a ride totally unprepared. And you are not prepared for what's coming. Trust me on that.

The second book has it all. There is pain, there is anger, yet there is also longing and hope. Since the very beginning, the blood has been shed, betrayal has cut deep and sides have been chosen. Our lovebirds seem to be finished with each other, no longer wearing their hearts on their sleeves, yet they are not allowed to escape each other and quit playing the game. Their masks are back in place as a new threat torments both Scarlet gang and White flowers, and ultimately the whole Shanghai. There is not a single moment for them to take it easy and rest. Stakes are high. Revolution is coming. Chaos is unleashed and Roma with Juliette are in the center of it. There is a lot of tension and heartache between them because of what Juliette did in TVD.

Roma. Oh, my sweet boy. He definitely grew some claws here. Due to the previous events, he became much darker. He seems cold on the outside, but there is an invisible storm raging inside him, which occasionally shows throughout the book. He just can't figure Juliette out. Her actions seem so conflicting for him. In sum, nothing adds up. Roma questions everything he knew about Juliette, or at least thought he knew about a girl he loved and worked with, and that truly haunts him. He is devastated by the previous events and the current situation. Juliette and Roma are on the opposite sides again, and Roma knows Juliette has to be eliminated. But for him, that’s easier said than done, as his feelings are not completely gone yet. Overall, conflicted - ruthless and kind - Roma is my favorite thing.

These two are an enemies-to-lovers couple that are... mad for each other. Importantly, they are also deeply rooted into me. I feel like they own my soul, and I don't mind. I'll never ever let them go.

I can say without a shadow of a doubt that if someone loved These Violent Delights, they are going to devour Our Violent Ends with a bated breath. While reading, I laughed, I cried, I almost forgot to breathe. Our Violent Ends and Roma and Juliette's circling of one another kept me on my toes. It is perfect. It is tense. It is everything I could wish for and more. It's everything I ever wanted ❤️❤️❤️. I don't know what to do with my life now when the duology is over 😭.


Thank you Hodder & Stoughton for sending me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review! You made my year!

3.5/5!
Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with the eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Plot:
In the end of first book, Juliette takes a calculative decision that puts Roma and her in war path again. But, the people of Shanghai are under serious threat from not only the monster but also the outsiders. So, feud means nothing when no one remains to fight. Once again Juliette and Roma team up in finding the larger force in action. They overcome their differences, face terrible betrayal from inside their gangs and before an outsider could wreck them, they themselves wreck a havoc to save the people and stop the feud once and for all
My Thoughts:
I liked this book better than the first because, the characters plunge into action rather than just being on the sidelines.
The idea of monsters did not delight me in the first book and did not delight me now. I would have preferred to not have the monster at all.
Many characters got good role and showed some depth in their thoughts and actions.
I liked the inclusion of queer characters in the classic telling.
Like in the first book here too the plot dragged in some places.
Romeo and Juliet are known for their romance but in this series there are barely a handful of situations where they allow themselves to feel their love for each other.
The betrayals that both of them face was not bloody enough considering the violence throughout the book.
The ending gives room for further exploration of the series which am seriously not interested in if it happens.
I would've loved if the epilogue were conclusive and more about the situation from Roma's friend and cousin's point of view.