"SHE WANTED TO BE A GIRL WHO WAS DESERVING OF THE WORLD"

     It’s 1931 in Shanghai, and the stage is set for a new decade of intrigue. Four years ago, Rosalind Lang was brought back from the brink of death, but the strange experiment that saved her also stopped her from sleeping and aging—and allows her to heal from any wound. In short, Rosalind cannot die. Now, desperate for redemption from her traitorous past, she uses her abilities as an assassin for her country. 

Code name: Fortune. 

But when the Japanese Imperial Army begins its invasion march, Rosalind’s mission pivots. A series of murders is causing unrest in Shanghai, and the Japanese are under suspicion. Rosalind’s new orders are to infiltrate foreign society and identify the culprits behind the terror plot before more of her people are killed. 

To reduce suspicion, however, she must pose as the wife of another Nationalist spy, Orion Hong, and though Rosalind finds Orion’s cavalier attitude and playboy demeanor infuriating, she is willing to work with him for the greater good. But Orion has an agenda of his own, and Rosalind has secrets that she wants to keep buried. As they both attempt to unravel the conspiracy, the two spies soon find that there are deeper and more horrifying layers to this mystery than they ever imagined.

publication date: September 27th, 2022 | source: owned 

page count: 528 pages | genre: fantasy, historical fiction, mystery/thriller

This book has confirmed that I will always read anything Chloe Gong writes because they’re all just too good. I loved the unique retelling of Romeo and Juliet’s story through These Violent Delights and Our Violent Ends and I’m pretty sure I screeched like a pterodactyl when I found out that there would be a series expanding this incredible world she built. This book was said to be a retelling of Shakespeare's As You Like It and honestly I had no idea what that is but I still loved this book regardless. Chloe Gong's retellings are literally perfect and that's coming from a bubble tea obsessed potato who loved her Romeo and Juliet retelling despite thinking the play was kinda dumb (I was forced to watch a 40 something minute video in like 7th grade as a substitute for not actually reading the play due to COVID and I low key remember just playing it in the background and then doing something else cause I didn't want to watch it lol). That being said, grab some bubble tea and let’s chat about some undercover butt kicking assassins in the world of 1931, Shanghai, China. 

The book opens up a few years after Our Violent Ends leaves off and starring none other than Rosalind Lang, Juliette’s cousin. Four years ago, she was brought back from the brink of death and for some unknown reason, can’t die. Now she’s a kick butt assassin for her country. Her code name? Fortune. (literally gorgeous by the way dksjfdlsfjlkdsjflds) But when a series of murders start to appear with the Japanese under suspicion, Rosalind has a new mission. Pose as the fake wife of another Nationalist spy, Orion Hong, and identify the culprits behind the terror plot while infiltrating a foreign society. The problem? Both Rosalind and Orion have secrets they don’t want the other to find out and this mission will uncover more horrifying things then they ever could’ve imagined. Cue the double and triple agents and a plot line that’ll blow your mind because Chloe Gong said so.

Even after reading all 500 pages of its spectacular glory, I still don't know who the goddamn antagonist is. Nationalist? Communist? Who the heck is who and does what? I have no clue. This book did a fantastic job exploding my pea sized brain though. I had so much fun reading about Orion and Rosalind’s mission together and following them as they unravel the mystery of the murders in their city—which by the way, was super interesting so kudos to that. Watching two polar opposites being forced to pose in a fake marriage with no strings attached (totally) was absolutely my cup of tea and I really should know better by now when reading romance books and watching romance k-dramas because damn do I feel single. 

Speaking of which, the romance here was absolutely mf’ing adorable and I need more like right now. She finds him infuriating and he pushes all her buttons regardless. Literal chefs kiss. I loved Rosalind and Orion’s fake relationship because I am a sucker for those types of things and seriously they fit each other so well. Their feelings only grew the more time they spent with each other and the moment when they started to see the other in a different light had me beaming so hard my face hurt. Y’all keep your eyes peeled because Rosalind and Orion aren’t the to-be couple out there and I can confirm that I am so goddamn invested in every single one of them.

One of the best 500 something pages I’ve ever read people and I do not regret for even a second picking this book up. Chloe Gong gives us a chance to explore and reunite side characters from These Violent Delights and Our Violent Ends and I couldn’t have picked a better cast.  I loved the reemergence of old characters and the introduction of new characters and watching them all grow and develop throughout the book made me want to ball up and cry. How dare you Miss Chloe. Nonetheless, this book was mf’ing amazing and it was worth reading all 500 something pages so go read it right now and cry about it with me in the comments!

FINAL RATING: 

What's your favorite Shakespeare play?