Hi everyone!! I know I’ve been MIA but I’m here to make up for it with a review of Foul Lady Fortune, one of my most anticipated releases of this year after I read These Violent Delights and Our Violent Ends last year and absolutely fell in love with them.
I’d like to thank Netgalley for providing me an eARC in exchange for this review.
Book: Foul Lady Fortune
Author: Chloe Gong
Genre: Fantasy
Pages: 528 pages
Publishing Date: 27 September, 2022
Content Warnings: Death, Murder, Gore, Violence, Blood, Medical Content
Representation: Chinese MC and SCs, Demisexual MC, Bisexual Love Interest and SC, Aro-Ace SC, Trans SC, Queer SC.
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of These Violent Delights and Our Violent Ends comes the first book in a captivating new duology following an ill-matched pair of spies posing as a married couple to investigate a series of brutal murders in 1930s Shanghai.
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.
My Review
Chloe Gong does it again!! After completing the These Violent Delights duology, I had been quite excited to read Foul Lady Fortune. I had very different expectations about the main character when the novel was originally mentioned, thus Rosalind Lang being the main character completely caught me off guard. I wasn’t sure at the time if I would enjoy the novel, but after reading this one tumblr post about Rosalind’s character, my excitement for it returned.
Rosalind Lang, or Fortune, is a poison-using assassin who also possesses a particular talent. She is one of the most lethal assassins the Nationalists have because her cells never die and always return to their original state. She also never sleeps, doesn’t age, and recovers from injuries quickly. She is immortal.
Rosalind is tasked with identifying the perpetrators of these attacks after a series of sudden deaths in Shanghai follow a recognisable pattern. The Japanese imperialists are the primary suspects. However, she is required to assume the identity of the wife of Orion Hong, a Nationalist agent who at first seems to not take anything seriously, cracks jokes constantly, and repeatedly tries to woo Rosalind, which irritates her to no end.
Rosalind doesn’t particularly like Orion at first, but as she moves forward, she starts learning a lot about the assignment she is given. The Communists Oliver Hong and Celia Lang are living their own stories while on their respective missions outside the city, until they come upon the same location that is linked to all of these killings.
The romance and the plot of TVD were the main reasons I fell in love with it, and I had high expectations for this novel as well. Needless to say, it didn’t disappoint me in the least. The dialogues, the romance, and the narrative were all excellent.
The plot twists in this novel are numerous, unexpected, and I had never seen any of them coming. They caught me off guard and significantly improved my reading experience. Chloe Gong has a talent for writing people in such a detailed and endearing way that you can’t help but fall in love with them. Every single character in the novel was wonderful to me. The side characters contributed so much to the story and were so well-written. The epilogue, the damn epilogue, and the narrative were both AMAZING. I was LEFT SPEECHLESS by it! The book has just the right amounts of romance, mystery, and sweetness! Because of how fluid Chloe Gong’s language is, I never felt dissociated while reading. I need the sequel ASAP pleaseeeee
ALSO OLIVER HONG IS MY HUSBAND IMAGINE GETTING CALLED “MY SWEETHEART” ALL THE TIME
I LOVED THIS BOOK SO MUCH AND I CANNOT WAIT FOR THE SEQUEL AS WELL AS THE OTHER BOOKS THAT THE QUEEN CHLOE GONG WILL RELEASE!! Also remember to read the These Violent Delights Duology before you read this series since it has spoilers from that book!!
About The Author
Chloe Gong is the New York Times bestselling author of These Violent Delights and its sequel Our Violent Ends. She is a recent graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, where she double-majored in English and International Relations. Born in Shanghai and raised in Auckland, New Zealand, Chloe is now located in New York pretending to be a real adult. You can find her on Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok under @thechloegong.
Connect with the Author: Goodreads | Instagram | Twitter | Website
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