The highly anticipated conclusion to Chloe Gong’s Shanghai Shakespearian romance has arrived, and you are not ready for the pain of Our Violent Ends!
In the year following the events of These Violent Delights, Roma is reeling after the death of Marshall at the hands of Juliette. Devastated over her betrayal, he swears vengeance on the one who took Marshall’s life, even if it means he has to kill the woman he loves. Meanwhile, Juliette has made up her mind to protect Roma from the blood feud of their rival gangs, even if that means that he believes her responsible for Marshall’s death. She must also be careful to watch her back around her cousin Tyler, lest he attempt to usurp her as the heir to the Scarlet Gang.
All the while, Shanghai is on the verge of collapsing into total chaos. The Nationalists have increased their efforts, both gangs are confronted with their forces being obliterated, and there are new sightings of a monstrous creature. Roma Montagov and Juliette Cai must join forces once again to combat the threats to their lives, all the while fighting against their love for each other.
A sequel with more tension, love, and agony
Our Violent Ends is the explosion that we needed to end 2021 with.
From beginning to end, there is never really a moment of reprieve. Gong masterfully keeps you at the edge of your seat, fixated on what happens next. Our Violent Ends packs so much in its plot, full of twists and emotional ups and downs.
Roma and Juliette’s romance, familiar in relation to Shakespeare’s work, is an incredibly fresh and beautiful take on the famed star-crossed lovers.
Gong had made the decision in These Violent Delights to introduce Roma and Juliette as former friends/lovers turned enemies, which only adds to the increasing mound of tension that looms over the pair. Our Violent Ends exacerbates these emotional stakes with the added conflict of Juliette’s “responsibility” in killing Marshall.
The circumstances were never in their favor, but Juliette and Roma come together in the end anyway, proving that love is something that is absolutely worth fighting for.
Advertisement
Chloe Gong makes us mourn Shakespeare’s tragedy all over again
One of the most devastatingly genius elements of this book is that we know what is going to happen by the end. If you are at all familiar with the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet–which, by this point, many of us should have read in freshman year of high school–you know how this story plays out. Everyone knows the ending.
Yet, Gong somehow makes us forget about the inevitable tragedy that befalls her characters, captivating us with a completely original narrative and gripping us with thrills, emotions, and an investment in Roma and Juliette’s romance.
The ending of Our Violent Ends was incredibly stunning to read, and it speaks volumes of Gong’s abilities as an author that she was not afraid to honor how the original play ended. The ending absolutely wrecked me, but I applaud Gong’s devotion to her characters and to Shakespeare’s story.
If you thought These Violent Delights was phenomenal, you are not ready for Our Violent Ends.
Advertisement
Our Violent Ends by Chloe Gong was released on November 16th, 2021. Read our interview with Chloe here.
Advertisement