.png)
Our Own Violent Ends.
- Jhanya&Ria's Corner
- Dec 11, 2021
- 10 min read
"Keep fighting for love. It's worth it." - Kathleen Lang
Our Violent Ends
Chloe Gong
Amazon Kindle and Leading Bookstores.
16 November 2021
494 Pages
Synopsis:
The year is 1927, and Shanghai teeters on the edge of revolution.
After sacrificing her relationship with Roma to protect him from the blood feud, Juliette has been a girl on the warpath. One wrong move and her cousin will step in to usurp her place as the Scarlet Gang’s heir. The only way to save the boy she loves from the wrath of the Scarlets is to have him want her dead for murdering his best friend in cold blood. If Juliette were actually guilty of the crime Roma believes she committed, his rejection might sting less.
Roma is still reeling from Marshall’s death, and his cousin Benedikt will barely speak to him. Roma knows it’s his fault for letting the ruthless Juliette back into his life, and he’s determined to set things right—even if that means killing the girl he hates and loves with equal measure.
Then a new monstrous danger emerges in the city, and though secrets keep them apart, Juliette must secure Roma’s cooperation if they are to end this threat once and for all. Shanghai is already at a boiling point: The Nationalists are marching in, whispers of civil war brew louder every day, and gangster rule faces complete annihilation. Roma and Juliette must put aside their differences to combat monsters and politics, but they aren’t prepared for the biggest threat of all: protecting their hearts from each other.
content warning: violence, gore, blood, death, abuse, racism, mentions of drug use, grief
SPOILER-FREE Review
Before we get on to the review, we just want to say that this will be our last review of the year 2021!!! Can you guys believe it? 2021 flew by so fast and I’m actually kind of happy because this year sucked for a lot of us, with the COVID-19 still prevalent. Anyway, we just hope that our reviews have made your days a bit brighter. And even though this may be the last review of 2021, we still have some final things coming your way before the year officially ends, so stay tuned! Also, comment down below your favorite review of the year <3
Table of Contents:
Prelude
Prelude
Jhanya: I think I just had MY OWN VIOLENT END after reading this book. No joke, I don’t know if I should cry, clap, laugh, or just do all three together. Similar to the first book, Our Violent Ends, was one heck of a roller coaster ride and I LOVED IT. Chloe Gong has officially made it to my list of favorite authors EVER and I absolutely love her for it. You can really see how she improved in terms of writing through this 2nd book because it just pulls you in, refuses to let you go, and then leaves you an emotional wreck at the end of it.
Ria: GUYS!! Book two is out and I am absolutely sobbing because I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA WITH WHAT I JUST READ. I MEAN WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT?!?!?!? After reading the first book, I had crazy high expectations for the second, and Chloe Gong just surpassed all those. I’m not sure if I’m biased at this point, but I just loved this book so much. I swear Chloe Gong has such a way with words and she has my whole body, mind, soul when I was reading the book. And when she’s finally really got you, she just breaks your heart into pieces. Do you guys know that meme that has the subtitle “I like seeing people weep with despair”, yes, that is Chloe Gong.
Story + Pacing
Jhanya: In regards to the story, it’s very similar to the outline of events in the first book, BUT in a way that even the characters themselves know and acknowledge it. It’s also not bad because, in a way, it’s a step up from These Violent Delights which was already great. Fight from the beginning, we dive right into the story and I was a ball of anxiety all throughout the book. In terms of pacing, it’s still kind of slow but way more balanced compared to the first book. The climactic ending of the previous book also plays a big role in that aspect as it feels like “we never left”. To be honest though, the more I think about it, if the two books were merged into one long book, I wouldn’t be complaining about the pacing of the first book.
Once again, similar to the first book, I loved the many twists it had on the original Romeo & Juliet. I just couldn’t put the book down and kept getting mad every time someone distracted me. The things that I loved in the first book were leveled up in Our Violent Ends, making it an even more satisfying read.
Ria: The deviations from the original Romeo and Juliet is what makes this book shine. The uniqueness and the different twists that Chloe Gong has come up with have been weaved into the book so flawlessly. I kind of want to go into her mind and see what’s in there, to be honest. I feel like it would just be such a wonderful place to live in. Anyways, this book was so satisfying. It was never stagnant and it both hooked me and kept me on my toes.
Romance
Jhanya: Talk about enemies-to-lovers-to-enemies. The previous book didn’t focus on the romance aspect but in this sequel??? I think I was melting almost every chapter because of how swoon-worthy Juliette and Roma’s thoughts were for each other, even when they were not together. BUT WHEN THEY WERE SAYING IT TO EACH OTHER, I was a puddle at that point tbh. At the start, the tension was killing me, and I was slowly dying because of it for about 3/4ths of the book because it’s a slow burn as expected LMAO. Once Roma and Juliette got over the lethal tension though, I really just felt like the most single person in the world and wondered if I could ever have what they have xDDD. The angst was too much for my poor heart.
Ria: This book is fully on Romance. I mean, just from the first chapter, I knew about it already and I am heeeere for it!!!! Similar to what I said earlier, this is not an ordinary Romeo and Juliet romance. It has so many twists and turns that you wouldn’t expect. And as two book characters, their chemistry is off the charts. The lethal tension but their love for each other was just mixed so well. Definitely the bulk of the romance from the original Romeo and Juliet by Shakespeare but it’s a loooot better. I really can’t say more since it would spoil the book, but just *chef’s kiss*.
Writing Style
Jhanya: Our Violent Ends has to be one of the few books that escaped the 2nd book syndrome. At first, I was convinced that I like the 1st book more, but by the end of it, I wanted to bow down to the book (or Chloe Gong) for being so good. Chloe Gong’s writing IMPROVED and it’s evident from how the book just drew me from the get-go. I was hooked immediately. Right from the start, I was immersed in the plot and the city of Shanghai (Chloe Gong is a QUEEN). The writing in the first book was already good, especially for a debut novel, but this was really just on a whole nother level. I highlighted a ton of paragraphs in the book because of how beautifully written they were. One part of the book that shows Gong’s improvement would be Chapter 3. The narrative was just so detailed and insightful that I was visualizing every scene that took place. You’ll see it when you read it haha
Ria: I definitely missed the way Chloe Gong has a way with words. Compared to the first book, the obvious growth of Gong’s writing is clearly seen. Her descriptive writing is out of this world. It’s so vividly beautiful that it can make even the goriest things good. Compared to the first book, the obvious growth of Gong’s writing is clearly seen. However, the descriptions aren’t tiring and repetitive. It’s the right amount of visual explanation with a tiny part free for imagination. I honestly don’t know how she does it. And what I loved what also the consistency. She was able to do it from start until the end.
Characters
Ria: From the first book, we’ve already established that each character in the book was developed very well. Since we have a point of view of omniscient, we get a view of all the characters. With their established strengths and flaws and through their interactions, we see the differences among them and how their upbringing has shaped them to be who they’ve become. It’s a lot more fleshed out though and it’s like they’re actual, living people, rather than characters of a book.
Jhanya: The characters in this book were definitely more fleshed out compared to the first book. Everyone in Our Violent Delights had me invested in their stories. I never thought I could love them even more than I did in the first book. I also grew to like some of the characters I wasn’t really a fan of in TVD
Ria: Let's start with our queen, Juliette Cai.
Jhanya: Was Juliette Cai an absolute queen in TVD? Yes. Did I think that she would be even more so in the sequel? No. But was she? YES.
Oh my gosh. Juliette Cai just climbed to my top list of favorite female characters EVER. I loved her in the first book, but I love her even more now. We saw the pain and discrimination she faced in the past during TVD, but now we go through the pain with her. Making Roma hate her for “killing” Marshall, just to make sure Tyler doesn’t kill him was one thing, but actually having to face Roma after all that they’ve been through was just painful. Seeing Juliette also trying to go through all the pain (She’s such a strong queen ;-;) throughout the book made me want to give her one big comforting hug.
Ria: Honestly, at this point, I’m living vicariously through Juliette. I mean, she’s so awesome, badass, has awesome friends, and at least has some kind of love life. She’s probably of the best female characters written also. She has a balance of strengths and weaknesses making her real and true. Juliette, queen, I love you, you’re so great, and I hope that if there’s a person like you in this world, we get to be friends.
Jhanya: ROMA I LOVE YOU. He was just too precious throughout this whole book. The hurt, anger, and love he felt for Juliette also hurt my soul while reading it. I also love that despite how much he wanted to kill Juliette because of what she did, deep down, he knew that there was more to what she did. Some may say that it was him in denial, and sure it was, but it also showed how level-headed Roma is as a character. He always had to know the whole picture first before acting on something to make sure that no one gets hurt unnecessarily.
(Side note: Juliette mentioned at some point that Roma was wearing an all-white suit and I imagined it, and I just remember swooning ahahahahaha)
Ria: Roma is all swoon. He’s so swoon-worthy that I have to keep reminding myself that he’s fictional. He’s one of the best male characters I’ve read. And I think the more I have to say has already been said by Jhanya, so let’s not dwell more on it.
Jhanya: As I’ve mentioned earlier, I was invested in everyone in this story. But the one that stood out the most was Marshall. After what happened to him in TVD, I really wanted to see how his story would turn out and I was not disappointed. Marshall and Juliette’s friendship had to be the highlight for me. I love Roma and Juliette together, but the closeness that arose after Marshall’s alleged death in TVD was so wholesome. Marshall was like the brother Juliette never had and vice versa. Their banters and conversations were so sweet and beautiful UGH.
Ria: My heart definitely broke for Benedikt. The obvious despair that he was in was so moving and touching that I cannot believe he had to go through that. He, first of all, definitely did not deserve that feeling. Anyways, what I did love was the subplot that was given to Benedikt. I’m definitely not saying what it is, but watch out for it.
Jhanya: Kathleen Lang, the other queen. I can’t wait for her book to come out (tho I feel like Alisa will be the MC of Foul Lady Fortune ;-;). Like, how can someone be so kind, full of heart, and morally good no matter what? HUGE respect to Kathleen for being one despite all the things she has been through. How she also looked out for her sister Rosalind throughout the book despite them fighting most of the time just hit me straight through the heart, being an elder sister myself.
Ria: And let’s not forget our antagonists. I won’t be mentioning who the main antagonists are here but I just really wanted to state the depth of those characters as well. Chloe Gong was able to make me absolutely loathe them and wish that they’d just die. Is that too violent?? Probably. Do they deserve it? Yea, they do. It’s just so great to see and read books with antagonists that are also so well thought out and makes sense. Ugh, Chloe Gong, I love you.
Final Thoughts
Jhanya: Chloe Gong blew me away in These Violent Delights and she threw me off the cliff with Our Violent Ends by taking this book to another level. I’m still not over the ending and I don’t think I ever will be but I still absolutely love this book. This duology has to be my favorite out of all the ones I’ve read so far (I’m so sorry Six of Crows). As I’ve mentioned in our review on TVD, I was very hesitant to read this book because it’s a retelling of my book nemesis Romeo and Juliet, but I have no regrets at all as these two books were absolute gems and were way better than the original LOL. I loved this duology from start to finish and I want to thank Chloe Gong for writing such a beautiful story. I definitely can’t wait for more of her books in the future <333
I’m not sure if it will be my favorite for the year because I still have a few books lined up to read before the 2021 ends, but we shall see in the next few posts ;D
Ria: I have no words. I actually really don’t, but I’ll be pulling some out. This book is most probably one of the best that I’ve read both this year and ever. All aspects of the book just tie in together and complement each other so well. I’m probably going to reread this second book over the Christmas break just to really soak up and analyze the whole book. I feel like with the amount of content packed into the book, I might’ve missed something. And yes, even though I’m not over the ending of the book yet, I will read it again. Why am I making myself go through it again? I also don’t know. I definitely recommend this to anyone – not just romance lovers, but anyone, really. This duology is *chef’s kiss* and I honestly can’t wait for more of Chloe Gong’s works to come.
Rating
Criteria | Jhanya | Ria |
|---|---|---|
Story/Plot (2) | 2 | 2 |
Characters (2) | 2 | 2 |
Writing (2) | 2 | 2 |
Morale (1) | 0.5 | 0.5 |
Originality (1) | 1 | 1 |
Relevance (1) | 0.75 | 0.75 |
Reread Value (1) | 1 | 1 |
TOTAL | 9.25 | 9.25 |
Final Score | 92.5 | |
FINAL RATING:
Comments