These Violent Delights

 

(picture from Goodreads.com)

1.       Bibliography

 

Gong, Chloe. 2020. THESE VIOLENT DELIGHTS. New York, NY: Margaret K.. McElderry Books.
              ISBN 978-1-5344-5769-0

2.       Plot Summary

In a fun play on “Romeo and Juliet,” Gong’s novel takes place in 1926 Shanghai. Keeping the rivalry between two gangs a prominent story line, the book focuses on Juliette Cai, an eighteen-year-old young woman who is heir to the Scarlet Gang and her rival Roma Montagov, the heir to the White Flowers.

The blood feud between these two gangs dates back generations, and the rivalry makes anyone involved in illegal trades have to pick sides. When a contagion starts infesting their people, making them claw out their own throats, Roma and Juliette find themselves forced to solve the mystery together. The problem is, they have to put aside their family’s feuds, and also their past relationship.

As the two work to unravel the mystery to save their people, the two are able to reconnect and talk about their past. The duo discovers the person behind the madness and fight to neutralize him. After they succeed, they are ready to work through their differences when Juliette reveals her part in his mother’s death, and then betrays him by killing his cousin. In this moment the reader is left wondering if this is the end for the couple, and also their people as the contagion is not truly eliminated.

3.       Critical Analysis

The more modern interpretation of “Romeo and Juliet,” takes an adventurous turn when Roma and Juliette have to work together to save their people. There are still common aspects to the original Shakespeare drama: gang wars, forbidden love, and rivaling cousins. This is where the similarities end.

The mystery behind the contagion adds to the love story. The reader tries to figure out who is behind releasing the monster that is causing people to claw out their own throats. This grotesque action can only be stopped if the two star-crossed lovers work together.

The novel takes place in Shanghai, 1926. The reader is immersed into this world with the accurate historical details. Talk of America and what life was like in China during this time tells the reader what opportunities the characters in the book would have had. Many of the main characters speak different languages like English, French, Shanghainese, Russian, and more with Mandarin as the primary dialect when using Chinese phrases. There is also detailed descriptions of what the characters wore and how Juliette went against the clothing of the time. You feel the glitz and glamour of their social scenes when the clubs and places they own (and live) are described.

Having a female as heir to the gang was a bold move for this novel, as women would not have been valued. A trans character is also present, despite the minor role. Gong takes some liberties with the time period to make the book more appealing to contemporary readers.

The story ends leaving you wanting more, and thankfully, Gong has written a sequel to this novel with the answers her readers are craving due to the cliff hanger ending.

4.       Awards/ Reviews

"The Bard would surely approve." -- The New York Times Book 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

"Chloe Gong’s These Violent Delights cuts to the heart of twentieth-century China with its scalpel-sharp prose and steel-spirited protagonists. Juliette Cai and Roma Montagov shine brighter than the glitz and glamour of historical Shanghai; sparks fly when they clash in this action-packed story set amidst a backdrop of blood feuds, gang wars, and political upheaval." -- Amelie Wen Zhao, author of Blood Heir

"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

"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

5.       Connections

 

For teachers or lovers of “Romeo and Juliet”. This story is a fun, more intriguing story that follows the same premise as the Shakespearian tragedy.

 

Other books like “Romeo and Juliet” (found in this article/website https://rivetedlit.com/2020/11/16/creative-romeo-and-juliet-retellings/)

 

·       “West Side Story”

·       Between You, Me, and the Honeybees by Amelia Diane Coombs

·       When You Were Mine by Rebecca Serle

·       Five Feet Apart by Rachael Lippincott

·       Noughts & Crosses by Malorie Blackman

·       City of Bones by Cassandra Clare

·       American Panda by Gloria Chao

·       Starry Eyes by Jen Bennett

·       Want by Cindy Pon

·       Compulsion by Marina Boone