Warning: This book review may contain spoilers from the prequel to this book, These Violent Delights

The year is 1927. Any time now, a revolution is about to occur and everyone knows it. After sacrificing her relationship with Roma Montagov, Juliette Cai sets on a path to find the five missing insects, the ones Paul left behind for another to make more monsters to their benefit. Seeing Roma angry at her for something she didn’t do saddens her but she knows that what she did was for the best. Her cousin, Tyler Cai, is watching her as closely as ever; with one look of sympathy toward the White Flowers, her role of heir to the Scarlet Gang will be usurped by him.

Roma, on the other hand, is more bitter than ever. Unlike how he used to be, he kills off Scarlets at a rapid pace in the name of his friend who he believed Juliette killed. But reluctantly, he will have to team up with Juliette once again to figure out who controls the five monsters and what they wish to accomplish with the monsters. Shanghai is in chaos, both from the monsters and from the conflict ensuing between the Nationalists and the Communists. It is up to the two heirs to keep Shanghai in as much control as possible.

Usually, in a series, I like the first book more than the second book. But with this duology, that isn’t true. The suspense in this book is astounding. I could barely put it down because I wanted to know what happened next! The only times I would put the book down was to prepare myself for the devastatingly emotional scenes that I knew were coming. I will never forget these beautifully written characters and this amazing plot. I highly, HIGHLY think that everyone should read this book (if you are okay with some gory scenes and emotional damage).

Our Violent Ends by Chloe Gong is available to checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. It is also available to download for free from Libby.

The year is 1926. In the city of Shanghai, two gangs have been rivals for generations. Leading the Scarlet Gang is the Cai family and leading the White Flowers is the Montagov family. Juliette Cai returns from living in America for four years as a flapper back to Shanghai to assume her role as heir when tensions are rising between the gangs. She is determined to kill all White Flowers for the sake of the blood feud but long ago, she didn’t think like this. Before she was in America, she was in love with the heir of the White Flowers: Roma Montagov. But because of how the blood feud worked, betrayal forced the two lowers apart and made them enemies once again.

News of a madness has spread across all of Shanghai after several members of both the Scarlet Gang and the White Flowers were found dead at a port, having their throats clawed out. People begin to fear its contagious manner and where it comes from: a monster lurking in the shadows. Together, Juliette Cai and Roma Montagov must set aside their hatred and work together to find the source of the madness and eradicate it before both of their gangs fall entirely victim to it. But will they be successful? Or will the entire city of Shanghai fall prey to a madness they cannot control?

This Romeo and Juliet retelling had me hooked from the beginning. I personally love books if they have a good writing style and because of the way Chloe Gong created this story, I fell in love with this book. The amount of creativity woven through her words, the memorable main characters, and the amazing plot were all reasons why I loved this book. The ending, especially, was what made the book worth it. I highly recommend it!

These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong is available to check out from the Mission Viejo Library. It is also available to download for free from Libby.