These Violent Delights
Chloe Gong
5/5
Picture this, 1926 Shanghai, two rival gangs, and a starcrossed romance. Roma and Juliette met when they were fifteen years old and they fell in love. It's been four years since they betrayed each other but now their gangs need each other's help and the city will fall apart without their cooperation.
It took me so long to finish this one because it's based on Romeo and Juliette and everyone knows how that ended. If a retelling was a carbon copy of the original though they wouldn't be any fun and this book really holds its own. Juliette is a beautifully ruthless protagonist, morally grey characters really hit the hardest and they're both pretty morally grey as they are the heirs to gangs. The culture in the book is also extremely well-written, not confusing as some people try to defer books with cultural representation as.
And the enemies to lovers! It's so good because it's a legitimate slow burn but also like there's still some stellar interactions. I thought this was a standalone until I got to the end and I was so thankful it wasn't. I'm so excited to see where the duology goes and I'm so amazed at the depth of it all. I can't believe that this is the author's debut and that she's the same age as me. Plus the cover is gorgeous so this author is really just hitting all the marks.
I would recommend this book strongly for fans of historical fiction, enemies to lovers, and just general action. I wish I had read this in 2020 because it would've definitely made my list of top reads then but the hold list was sooo long and obviously for a good reason. Can't wait to see where it goes in the future!
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