Chloe Gong is unbelievably skilled at keeping readers hooked to the page. Even though the pacing dragged slightly in the middle, it was a lightening quick, sizzling action-filled story.

THE ROMANCE (ANTON X CALLA)

1. “Listen,” he says, an edge to his voice now. Though he cannot see her, Calla smiles, finally liking where this is going. There’s a hardness to his tone, a sense of ferocity that has been whetted into a weapon. This is more like someone who would enroll himself in the games. “You’ve seen my kill numbers. My ability to jump. You know that I’m an asset to have on your side. We can work together, then break our alliance at the end. Only at the end.”
2. Calla teeters sideways. He catches her immediately, his shirt staining with red where she presses close. “I’ve got you,” he promises. “I’ve got you, Princess.” And Calla passes out.
3. Anton draws closer. His hand lifts, brushing along her face, fingers burying into her hair. It’s not the same soft gesture as when she was asleep. He is not try-ing to soothe her; he is holding her in place to get a good look like an investor putting his prize up to the light.“You’re a wild, terrifying thing, do you know that?” he asks, a tremor in his voice.
4. In a blink, he’s slammed her up against the wall, pressed against her to keep her still. The plaster trembles. There’s a nail jutting out from it, probably where the picture frame had been hanging, and as Calla’s head spins, she wonders if she hit her head too hard before and that’s why she can’t get a single thought in order.“Calla,” he tries, his breath warm against her neck. “Stop this.
5. Throat exposed, heart facing out. Now he is hers to take. Calla heaves for breath. One of her hands is braced on his chest, the other reacquainting with the blade that has landed on the floor. As soon as she has secured the handle, she raises the dagger high, imagining how its arc will come down. She can feel his heart thudding beneath her touch: fear and something else. “Calla,” Anton says again, desperation creeping into his voice, and Calla wants to tear him apart. Because she has him completely under her mercy, pinned like prey, but all he can do is look up at her like that. “Don’t even try it,” Calla spits.
“What?” Anton asks. His eyes trace along her face. His pupils have blown so large that Calla can’t see the usual purple that rings his black irises. In an effort to keep him down, she presses upon his hips harshly, and then she can feel him, can gauge exactly why his pulse throbs at his throat. “What am I trying?”
6. “Go on,” he says evenly. “Kill me. Fall not a tear. Be the murderous princess they say you are.”
7. Calla can handle pain. She can handle blood. But this—this is somehow all and none of that at once, a wrenching in her very soul. This is tenderness. And she is more afraid of it than anything else in their forsaken kingdom.
8. She could kill him right here if she wanted. The apartment hosts only the two of them. The rest of San-Er sleeps within its own walls. He would have nowhere to jump. But she won’t. She trusts her life in his hands, and for that, she wants to deserve his trust too, offer him safety in her embrace.
9. Suddenly, Anton turns, nudging his shoulder closer toward her. Calla snatches her hand back with a start, but he’s not stirring against her touch. He has not awakened at all: he only adjusts until he is facing her, eyes still closed. Before Calla can react, Anton draws her near, seeking her body amid the sheets. He reaches for her, an arm curling around her waist, solid and steady. Even asleep, he reaches for her
10. “Calla,” she echoes, putting on a tone of reverence. She makes a thoughtful noise. “Would you know me in another body?”
“In any body,” Anton promises, “you would still be the same terrifying princess.
”That draws a laugh from her, and the sound sends an unexplainable thrill shooting along his body. He would give anything to keep her like this next to him, her every gesture of approval like a line of narcotics wired directly into his veins. When she lifts her chin to grin at the look on his face, he can’t help but feel that he is giving away more than he should, yet he can’t stop himself.
11. She lets him, and he knows she catches the exact moment his jaw clenches tight and his voice hardens. “Who cares if you stole her? You deserve this power more than the girl who was born into it. Forget your name and adopt the title instead. Calla. Soon, people will be saying it just as they whisper God.”
12. Calla extricates her arm without niceties, and Anton blinks, taken aback. One of the factories nearby must be rumbling to a start, because there’s smoke rising through the gaps between the buildings, low-hanging clouds misting around them. He blinks again because of the smoke in his eyes, but also at himself, at the dip in his stomach that comes without warning. Seven years without Otta, and he would have thought he had gotten better at this. Would have thought that leaving his youth behind meant outgrowing his need to hold on too tightly to people once he has them. Yet Calla pulling away makes his skin prickle as if he’s been given a slap on the wrist without knowing what he did wrong.
13. Calla removes the cigarette from her lips and, with the puff of smoke still in her lungs, leans forward and kisses him. Despite his words, he lets her release right into him, taking the toxins down his throat. He’ll let her poison him, swallow everything down like this is the sweetest liquor he has ever tasted.
14. Anton isn’t sure if he still loves Otta, but he thinks he loves Calla. He loves her quick temper, and her sharp words, even when they’re directed at him. He loves the rush every time he turns her scowl into a grin, or her grin darkens into a glare. Is that love? It’s not as if he ever really learned what love is supposed to feel like.
15. “Kiss me,” he says. “Kiss me and make every dreadful second here worth it.”Calla only needs to be asked once. She presses her lips to his, and the rest of San-Er drowns out, fades to nothing, shrunken into oblivion by sheer will. All Anton can hope is that this is enough—that this time around, outsmarting the cities with a plan pinned on love will finally succeed.
16. Let it bruise. Let him mark her skin permanently as a memory of what divine agony is. “Calla,” Anton murmurs when their mouths separate for a moment, “I won’t hurt you. I refuse.

THE WORLD/THE CITY

1. In a way, the wall is not protection against the outsiders who flock en-masse into the twin cities, but for these outsiders, to spare them just one second longer from laying eyes on the ruin within. No one wants to move to San-Er. No one prefers to be kept awake at night by persistent clanging and neighbors arguing and brothels screaming, instead of wild, open skies in quiet, rural Talin. But with peace comes quicker starvation; with open ground comes no money. It is either their children’s graves lined up one by one in a row outside the willow trees or a factory job in San-Er, and the choice is easy. Rural civilians make the slow shuffle through the guarded gates of San-Er, clutching their citizenship passes to their chest and blinking in awe at the colossal mess that awaits inside. People starve in San-Er too, but at least they can say they tried.
2. A compact, concentrated world of food hawkers splashed with oil and metalworkers clanging on blades and technicians fixing up unwieldy computers to resell. San-Er spends each moment functioning off the fumes of its last. There is no other way to survive.

CALLA

1. Now, so close to a second chance to strike, she cannot sink into her anger, or she might never emerge. She has spent too long compartmentalizing every terrible impulse and smoothing them down to be palatable. When the time comes to confront the blistering shards that live inside her, it will have to be in one big swallow.
2. Calla has never claimed to be good. She has never wanted to be good. But she seeks it in every corner of the twin cities, a sign that goodness is something Talin is capable of. Every day, she wakes up and she begs for what she has done to mean something, for the kingdom to tell her she is right to believe it could be honorable, that it’s befitting to spill blood until there is nothing left of her, until all the pieces are gone, until she cannot feel this twinge of doubt each time her blade slips in and out. There is peace at the end of this. There must be.
3. Take the cuts. Take the burns. You will heal, and you will be braver. Braver? I want to be stronger. Strength is a conscious effort. First, you will be braver, and then you will be stronger. They trained her for war. And she rose up to wage it on them.
4. Each time she sees him, he wears someone new. His eyes change shape and his nose changes length, his hair alters long and short, and his height moves up and down. Yet no matter the body, his same set of expressions remains, and Calla wants to make a game of collecting them. She has seen smug. She has seen eerily calm, a feigned indifference. They are not enough. Anton Makusa is hiding a lifetime’s worth of deceit under his skin, and she wants to pick him apart, and see what lies beneath. She wants to see his fullest contempt. She wants to see rage.
5. “This is Kasa’s rot,” Calla continues steadily. “And when he’s gone, no child will go hungry again.” Anton examines her. She must know that this is unrealistic. Calla Tuoleimi is too clever to be fooled into such elementary thinking, too sensible to believe that a kingdom could change so wholly by merely swapping one mortal man for another. Though perhaps . . . perhaps she is simply weary enough to be fooled. She looks at the cities with such duty, the weight of the kingdom hefted upon her shoulders by her own appointment. Allowing August’s heroics to swoop in means reprieve from the never-ending, immeasurable task of keeping watch; a savior to replace a tyrant, and justice restored so long as one cruel king bears the burden of his whole lineage’s wrongs.
“Do you want to stop Kasa from letting another child go hungry again?” Anton broaches slowly. “Or do you want to punish him for letting you go hungry?”
A spark of ire flashes in Calla’s eyes. Then, that glint fades just as fast a

ANTON MAKUSA

1. Anton leans his body up against the alley wall. He readies himself. All he knows is this: He’ll always choose the easiest path. Not the most honorable, not the cleanest, not the messiest. If he’s offered an opportunity, he will take it
2. Pampi smiles. Sometimes she feels a thousand years old, like an ancient god who has been sleeping in wait, ready for her moment to come. Her mother called it narcissism, but who’s the one still around?

AUGUST SHINGZHI

1. August takes the ornamental crown off his head with a sigh. Without its weight there, he runs a hand through his hair, tugging at the knots that have formed in the wind, easing the tension in his scalp. He doesn’t protest when he feels Galipei drop a hand onto the base of his neck. He tips his head down, letting Galipei work his fingers instead.
2. Good kingdoms don’t need good soldiers. A good soldier dies on the battlefield and lets the people cry for him. Good kingdoms need loyal soldiers, terrible ones.

Thank you Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for an ARC of this book.

This was different from Chloe Gong's other books, but not in a bad way. And as with many new fantasy worlds, it took some time to get used to. But when i did, I really liked this world and story, and i can't wait to read more.

This book is giving a little hunger games vibes with similar kind of games that go throughout the book. The contestants fight for their life, and there can only be one winner. Only this game is going on in the city of San-Er, with the civians right there. So, how do you know who the other players are?

In this world, your birth body doesn't really mean much as you can jump to a new body. If you are stronger than the other person, you can even take over a body that there is already someone in. I feel like this could be confusing, and you never quite know who anyone really is. The only thing that can identify you are your eyes.

One thing that was different for me this time compared to Chloe Gong's first series was that I don't know anything about Anthony and Cleopatra, which this story is inspired by. So I had no idea what to expect, though I had my suspicions after her other series.

Parts of the ending were expected, but also welcome, I am really excited to see what will happen now. A lot of things are possible for the next book, and I'm here for it.

Though, one thing i need to know now is how Calla's cat is doing. I need answers.

I really struggled to get into this book, I know that fantasy novels have that small air of mystery around them but the somewhat lack of explanation just wasn’t it for me. I felt like I needed to read another book before reading this one, which I don’t enjoy in a book.

Honestly I could not get into this book at all. I really wanted to, as I am a big fan of fantasy fiction, but not only was it not engaging me, I felt confused most of the time, questioning whether I'd skipped pages as nothing seemed to make sense. I decided life is too short to force myself to keep reading, so in light of me not finishing the book it is possible it gets better, but I will never know.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC.

Such a unique book, I loved the plot, and oh my god the characters we're so amazing!! I definitely will be recommending it!!

Chloe Gong take all of my money!

Although Immortal Longings is a fantasy retelling of Antony & Cleopatra, there is also a very dystopian feel to it. Historical fiction and dystopia are not two genres that work together often, but in this fantasy setting that’s exactly what it feels like and I love it.

The dual city of San-Er with its densely packed population and survival of the fittest attitude, kept making me imagine the city setting of Total Recall.

And then of course there’s the games. Eighty eight people fight to the death Hunger Games-style for the chance to win a life changing prize. Oh and they can body jump.

I loved the body jumping aspect, because it begs so many moral and ethical questions - none of which seem to be a problem for the main characters, or in fact anyone in the city.

Ah, our morally grey main characters. We all know our favourite colour is morally grey. It’s hard to know who you’re really rooting for for most of the book because they all have equally dubious motives and a moral compass that hasn’t seen north for a while. So of course I love them.

This one is for fans of :
- The Hunger Games
- Retellings
- Enemies to lovers
- Morally grey characters
- Grumpy and grumpier trope
- Secrets
- Plot twists
- Historical fantasy with a feel of dystopia

A solid 5/5 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

"Can't I be curious about how far your love stretches?' "You would have to find new skies and new earth, or else it would never stop stretching."

This Antony and Cleopatra-inspired fantasy is Chloe Gong's first foray into a novel aimed at adults. Every year, the city of San-Er hosts a game, a kind of trial. Eighty-eight players are selected to participate. Kill them all and King Kasa will grant you riches beyond your imagination.

But rogue Princess Calla wants to win for a different reason: she wants to kill the King. She's already murdered her parents and has been in hiding for five years. Now, she wants to make sure the King is replaced by his adopted son, August, who'll hopefully make for a better king, one who'll look after the poor and miserable. Anton Masuka wants to win so he can pay the mounting hospital bills for his childhood love, Otta, who's been in a coma for seven years.

Both Calla and Anton are fierce warriors and soon come up against each other. Evenly-matched, they decide to band together until only the two of them are left. But that means one will eventually have to kill the other. And their growing closeness will make that near-impossible. There can only be one victor though.

I won't lie, I struggled to get into this book. The world-building is complex and long (it's an urban fantasy in which magic and familiar technology blend) and I was about 40% into the ARC before I found myself really getting invested in it. I'm glad I did though. I fell in love with Anton and Calla. I wanted so much for them and the book broke my heart and then wow, what a cliffhanger. I have no idea when the second book in what I believe is a trilogy is coming out but I need it yesterday! Hopefully, I don't forget everything I've read as I usually do. This book sets the scene for what could be something really epic.

Ohhhhhh, so THAT’s why it’s called the Flesh and False Gods trilogy.

Wow. This was fantastic. Miss Chloe Gong does not miss. Her adult fantasy debut was just as flawless as her Secret Shanghai series, only upping the stakes, the tension, and the gore. I flew through Immortal Longings in only two sittings as I couldn’t put it down. As with TVD and FLF, I really love Chloe’s ability to so clearly callback to Shakespeare’s Anthony and Cleopatra and the detailed connections between the plot and the names, as well as remaining wholly original and keeping her readers on their toes. The ending has left me reeling.

Thank you to Hodder & Stoughton, NetGalley and Chloe Gong for providing me with an eARC. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to netgalley and th epublisher for accepting my request to read and review the ebook for this, and to Harper Collins NZ for sending me an ARC!

I was so so excited when I heard about this book, I ADORED the These Violent Delights books by Chloe Gong so much and knew an adult book by her would be even better.

However, sadly this was such a let down for me personally and I had to DNF it as I ended up dreading picking it up and it felt like reading a text book not a fiction.

I was interested in this idea of a deadly game, but upon readng the book found it too similar to the world and premise of the hunger games. I think to pull this premise off these days a little MORE originality is needed.

But my main reason for DNF'ing the book was the sheer amount of info dumping. I felt like I was studing for a test reading this book, and despite SO MUCH info dumping I felt like I came out of it unerstanding LESS about this city. I couldnt invisage it. I alaso didnt feel intrigued by it at all.

I also felt zero interest in the main characters and knew I was not going to be able to root for them, nor care for what happens.

So sadly this one jsut fell flat for me and instead of forcing myelf over weeks to finish this and rate it low I decided to mark as DNF and not give a star rating on goodreads.

*Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. *

oh my.wow. I am honestly without words. I absolutely loved this and I devoured it. this was my first book from this author and now I understand the hype. It was truly amazing.the plot and the characters .the world building. I cannot wait for the second book.In the meantime I'll read the other work by this author. 5 stars.

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

“Princess,” he calls, and Calla curses him: curses him in the name of every old god, because even looking at him makes her flesh and blood and guts hurt like they are being strewn apart. It doesn’t take a blade to carve open a heart. It only takes a soft glance.

She has done it again! Chloe Gong, the woman that you are.

I said it before, Chloe Gong writes cities that she loves, and you can feel it through the pages. Every description tells you how much she loves San-Er. In the Secret Shanghai series, she takes you back in time to a real place in this world, but with Immortal Longings, she has created a whole new world, and I can only imagine how hard the whole process is. San-Er is the capital twin-cities of Talin, a metropolis that has grown to its land's limit, the great wall that separates itself from the rural part of the kingdom, so now it grows up. Buildings are stacked one over another, they have connections midair, it felt like a mix between Coruscant from Star Wars and the Republic City from The Legend of Korra but more crumpled. I LOVED IT.

So that's the setting and the thing I liked the most. Let's talk characters. Our main characters, Princess Calla Tuoleimi and Anton Makusa, are inspired by Shakespeare's play Antony and Cleopatra, and unlike Romeo and Juliet, which is a pretty well-known story, I know nothing about this, so I can't say much about the retelling aspects of the book, but that didn't keep me from enjoying it and falling in love with Calla and Anton. Their chemistry and banter are spot on, and since in this world people can jump from body to body (yes, they can), Chloe relies more on non-physical descriptions about everyone, and I think it was a good resource to make us connect with the character on a deeper level.

This is Chloe's first adult work, and it has way more violent descriptions and one explicit sex scene, but regarding themes, I find it pretty similar to her young adult works. She has always dealt with these themes. I want to see how she'll tackle Calla's morals and intentions towards the monarchy. This time it felt a little naive to believe replacing one tyrannical king with a prince would solve the kingdom's problems, but we'll have to wait and see because not everything may work out the way she thinks it will.

The story still has a few loose threads, but this is not my first rodeo. I believe everything that's still not tackled will be in the next books, and as with all of Chloe's other works, the ending left me shocked, but this time I HAD predicted it. I was just not sure she would do it.

I highly, highly recommend Immortal Longings and its later sequels to someone looking for a Shakespearean tragic, politically intriguing, and hopelessly romantic fantasy. I adore this book, and its characters, and although I’d never want to call San-Er my home, Chloe’s writing has always been a safe and comforting escape to me, so even though it hurts to even think about IL, I’ll be returning time and time again.

Chloe Gong has become so known for her badass female characters that aren't afraid to fight (literally) for what they want. Men and whoever be damned.
This book was no different.
It's a retelling that'll leave you hooked. Fans of the Hunger Games, Divergent and the Maze Runner will adore the nostalgic feeling of a dystopian novel. You won't regret picking this up and the ending alone will leave you wanting more!
There were a few moments where I felt like the plot felt long-winded. However, this book is definitely a marathon and not a race. You're constantly being fed little bits of information and when they all come together? You'll be left speechless.

I had to sit with this book a while to write this review and I'm glad I did. I'll be looking out for the next book when it comes!

Also, this cover is gorgeous!

Wasn't sure if I'd like this. And tbh, I didn't love it and I didn't hate. I thought it was a decent story with a decent plot. I haven't read this author's other books but I would definitely consider it to see where I land.

Thank you to NetGalley and the published for the e-arc. I was looking forward to this adult debut having enjoyed the secret Shanghai series. However, I found this book lacking in almost very aspect. The tone throughout was very young adult although the book is marketed as adult. The world building was flimsy and at many points did not make sense. In particular in regard to the rules around 'jumping'. I also find the concept of having intimate relationships in a body where the original occupant is trapped and unable to resist very disturbing even though the author claims that bodies are seen as objects clearly that is not the case for all as a decent percentage of the population are stated to be unable to jump. The concept of the games themselves was also flimsy, despite it being compared to the hunger games this book was far less successful in selling the concept of the games and why they exist. I also found the characters rather one dimensional and I did not enjoy the romance aspect.

thank you NetGalley and HodderBooks for the e-ARC!

4.3-4 stars.

this is chloe gongs adult debut, and from the first chapter itself you can see the difference from her other works. the writing was so different but so beautiful; i loved the descriptions of everything you could truly imagine how everything was and how san-er looked.

the plot is SO complex, and has soo many layers, as do the characters. the magic system was truly very unique, but, not going to lie, it did take me some time to understand it. chloe gong books always make me feel like making one of those crime board things where you connect different things with red string, and this book absolutely delivered on that.

i could never guess what was going to happen next, and the plot twists got me reeling and staring at the wall ahead of me in disbelief.

the romance did happen a bit too fast, but i still really liked them together. they are both such complex characters and go through a lot. we are definitely going to get a lot of development for them, particularly anton because that ending oh my GOD i still cant get over it.

now, as much as i enjoyed this book, there was still something missing. this is definitely not one of my favorite of her books, because for some reason there was something that just didn't click. i dont know what it is, but something is just keeping me from loving this book.

anyway, to sum it up, this was one heck of a journey and i am in desperate need for the next book. i really hope we get more mao mao (callas cat) in the next book <3

Thank you to netgalley and Hodder& Stoughton for an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Rating:5+/5
Absolutely mind-blowing...... I have found a new all time favourite! I've really enjoyed Chloe Gong's YA works before, with Foul lady fortune being another one of my all time favourites, but her adult debut was fantastic on a whole another level. It was a little hard to get into because of the complicated world building and the magic system, but once I got fully invested, I couldn't stop reading!
Immortal Longings is a retelling of the Shakespearean tragedy Antony and Cleopatra, inspired by Kowloon walled city. I loved the morally grey characters and, of course, MAO MAO!!! I want more of him in the next book. Immortal Longings is completely different (and much darker) than Gong's previous works.
And that ending.........not to spoil anything but I NEED BOOK 2😭😭.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an Arc in exchange for an honest review.

This book was one of my most anticipated reads and I was so happy to receive an Arc months before this book is supposed to come out.
Going in to this I had a lot of expectations as I had read and loved all books the author released before. And I think because of these high expectations I was really let down a lot. The story was really slow to begin and I felt detached from the world. So I had a hard time reading this up to the 60% mark. Then came a plot twist that had me in a grip until the very end. And I am saying “a” plot twist instead of “the” plot twist because the ending was on a whole different level!! Honestly, the ending and the very first plot twist were the reason for the 3.5 stars.
Suffice to say: this was not the authors best book I’ve read but I liked the ending and will definitely read the second book.

A princess who murdered her family wants to finish the job by killing the king, and her only way to get close enough is by winning a vicious fight to the death known as the games. But there are others who need to win at any cost, and they may just be skilled enough to stop her.

This book was such a drag. About 20% longer than it needed to be, I spent so much time bored and just wanting it to get to the point. The only reason I stuck it out was because I LOVED the magic system - jumping between bodies is intriguing and the rules around it fascinating. Unfortunately, it just wasn't executed in a way that I found particularly gripping. Maybe it's time to give up on this author, because her books just don't seem to be to my taste!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Ooooh. That was good.
At one point I had very strong Hunger Games vibes, but this went in a very different direction.
Packed full of action, with some great twists thrown in, this one is destined to be a crowd pleaser, much like the games around which it revolves. You can feel the dust and the grime of the streets of San-Er as the contestants snake around the dimly lit streets, squinting through the darkness and trying to stay one step ahead of each other. Of course, they’re not the only players in the games, because this is entertainment for the masses, and as we all know, the odds are never in your favour.
There’s just the right amount of suspense to keep you guessing but with the satisfaction of being able to pick up on enough clues to make some educated guesses too.
Calla, Anton and August make for three solid main characters, and the tension between them builds all the well to the very last line.
Whatever you do, DO NOT read the final page first!
With thanks to NetGalley and Hodder and Stoughton for the ARC, Immortal Longings publishes on the 25th July.