Chloe Gong has published her debut novel These Violent Delights! It's a Romeo and Juliet retelling set in 1920’s Shanghai with a turf-war and a classic enemies-to-lovers trope! A blood feud between two gangs, the White Flowers and the Scarlet Gang, leaves the city in chaos. Juliette Cai is at the center of it, along with the White Flowers’ heir, and Juliette’s first love, Roma Montagov. But when a madness takes over the city that leaves gangsters from both sides dead, Juliette and Roma must set aside their grudges and work together to stop the chaos or there will be no Shanghai left for either to control. I’m not much of a Romeo and Juliet fan, but this book definitely changed my perspective on that.
This is so far my favorite book of 2021. Gong maintained the essence of Romeo and Juliette, but added her own riveting spin that made her retelling so magical. The writing was phenomenal and really immersive. Gong incorporated a lot of history with a wonderful balance of information about Chinese culture, the effects of Imperialism and Westernization in Eastern countries, and the aftermath of the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia. The plot was really well-done and I never found a dull moment (I quite literally didn’t put the book down until 2 a.m.). Juliette and Roma are both morally grey characters, meaning that they act more on their own needs and wants than being ruled by morals or doing what’s right. Both are smart, cunning, headstrong, and will do what they must to survive. I recommend this book for ages 15 and up, as it does contain some violence, murder, and alcohol consumption. I rated this book a 5/5 stars because of how well the writing, characters, and plot came together in a strong, compelling story. The sequel, These Violent Ends, will be coming out November 16th, 2021.
See you next time! -Kylie Quigley