These Violent Delights

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What to expect

Perfect for fans of The Last Magician and Descendant of the Crane, this heart-stopping, New York Times bestselling debut is an imaginative Romeo and Juliet retelling set in 1920s Shanghai, with rival gangs and a monster in the depths of the Huangpu River.

In glittering Shanghai, a monster awakens . . .

A blood feud between two gangs runs the streets red, leaving the city in the grip of chaos. At its heart is eighteen-year-old Juliette Cai, a former flapper who has returned to assume her role as the proud heir of the Scarlet Gang - a network of criminals far above the law. Their only rivals in power are the White Flowers, who have fought the Scarlets for generations. And behind every move is their heir, Roma Montagov, Juliette's first love . . . and first betrayal.

But when gangsters on both sides show signs of instability culminating in clawing their own throats out, the people start to whisper. Of a contagion, a madness. Of a monster in the shadows. As the deaths stack up, Juliette and Roma must set their guns - and grudges - aside and work together, for if they can't stop this mayhem, then there will be no city left for either to rule.


'Heady, smart, and vicious' Tessa Gratton, author of The Queens of Innis Lear

'Deliciously dark' Natasha Ngan, New York Times bestselling author of Girls of Paper and Fire

'Dark and beautiful' Emiko Jean, author of Empress of all Seasons

'A terrific, deliciously unputdownable read' June Hur, author of The Silence of Bones

(P)2020 Tantor Media

Critics Review

A deliciously dark twist on Romeo and Juliet that feels vibrant, modern, and wholly exciting. Gong's writing brims with energy. I was swept away to her dark Shanghai from the first page and never wanted to leave!
Natasha Ngan, New York Times bestselling author of Girls of Paper and Fire
Heady, smart, and vicious, These Violent Delights strikes every note with precision, layering romance and politics into a roaring 20s Shanghai of both monsters and monstrous imperialism
Tessa Gratton, author of The Queens of Innis Lear
Chloe Gong's These Violent Delights plants a Shakespearean classic in the rich soil of 1920s Shanghai, allowing her characters to grow, flourish, and steal your heart while warring against their own
Joan He, author of Descendant of the Crane
Gong ensnares readers with a delicious tale of family rivalries and forbidden love all set against the glittering backdrop of 1920s Shanghai. Don't miss this dark and beautiful retelling of Romeo and Juliet!
Emiko Jean, author of Empress of All Seasons
Full of glitter, suspense and gore, These Violent Delights takes readers into the perilous world of 1926 Shanghai . . . Chloe Gong's debut is a terrific, deliciously unputdownable read!
June Hur, author of The Silence of Bones
These Violent Delights combines strong characterisation, skilfully interwoven political insight and an atmospheric portrayal of a Shanghai in the throes of change
Guardian
A lush, wholly original debut that will satiate Shakespeare aficionados and draw those seeking an engrossing, multifaceted historical fantasy
Publishers Weekly, Starred Review
A must-read with a conclusion that will leave readers craving more
Kirkus Starred Review
The setting's brilliant, a city split by merchant colonies and divided into gang territories, in a country itself fractured politically and on the verge of revolution
SFX
Filled with Gong's lush prose, These Violent Delights brings 1920s Shanghai to life, along with a romance that is weighed with history
BookRiot
Stylish and engrossing
Popsugar
A rip-roaring, magic-tinged epic of cabarets and speakeasies, dens and divas . . . Gong's vivid Shanghai is a place to get enjoyably lost in
Financial Times
Gong's darkly seductive YA debut transplants Romeo and Juliet to 20s Shanghai for a gripping story of rival gangs, forbidden love and a plague that threatens to tear the city asunder
The i
The Bard would surely approve
The New York Times, Book Review
These Violent Delights is a phenomenal book and a wonder of a debut . . . Chloe has written star-crossed lovers/lovers-to-enemies like I've never read before, and if you love yearning, then trust me: you'll love These Violent Delights
The Quiet Pond
This is the kind of book where I sort of just want to open my mouth and let the words expressing my love tumble out with abandon . . . I truly loved everything about this book
The Elven Warrior
More than anything, These Violent Delights is a rich portrait of a seldom-depicted time and place
NPR
An unforgettable reimagining of Romeo and Juliet
ALA Booklist, starred review
These Violent Delights is a superior fantasy novel; multi-layered, diverse and reflective in its themes, whilst at the same time offering up the kind of darkness, romance and emotion that leaves you yearning for more - not just more of this particular story and its endearing, complex characters - which we've already been promised - but more from Chloe Gong beyond her star-crossed lovers too
Culturefly
Chloe Gong does expertly what all the best retellings do. She doesn't simply transpose her source material into a new setting, she engages with the spirit of the original and in doing so crafts a story that is entirely and beautifully her own . . . I cannot recommend this book strongly enough
Chaipters
Gong's debut is not to be missed. With a dazzling setting, a mysterious series of murders, and diverse, unapologetically criminal characters, this novel ranks with the greatest YA ­retellings
School Library Journal, starred review
Top 10 fantasy reads: 'Reinvented and better than ever'
Belfast Telegraph
Gong combines classic Shakespeare with monsters and mayhem
Her Campus
As a certified Romeo and Juliet-head, this romantasy retelling of the Shakespeare classic is a personal favorite of mine
Marie Claire

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