I adored reading about Rosalind! Chloe Gong is a phenomenal writer and I hope that one day my writing will be at least 1/3 as good as Chloe is!

Fans of These Violent Delights and Our Violent Ends, this story follows Rosalind Lang, Juliette Cai’s cousin and now fearfully known as Foul Lady Fortune. She is an assassin for the Nationalists now that her family, the Scarlet Gang, has fallen. Set 4 years after the events of Our Violent Ends, Rosalind finds herself immortal and unable to age or sleep. Suddenly, her handlers put her into a spy mission at Seagreen Press to attempt to uncover a terrorist plot fueled by the Japanese. She is one half of a spy team with the code name High Tide. Together with her (admittedly super hot) parter Orion Hong, son of a disgraced military general, the two must act the part of married couple all while uncovering the mysteries that seem to all begin from Seagreen Press. However, killings in the city are getting more and more common and High Tide is running out of time to solve the mystery.

This book was good, but definitely not as good as the previous duology. The end gave me a gasp that I was not prepared to gusp but I did feel like a lot of the story dragged. Sometimes it was difficult to keep the characters and groups straight and it was painfully slow at parts. I really liked the relationships between characters and how the twists in the story were revealed. The enemies to lovers to enemies trope is alive and well with miss Chloe Gong and PLEASE GIVE MORE. Assuming there will be a second book, I cannot wait to read it!

The last time I reviewed a Chloe Gong book was about a year ago, when I read “Our Violent Ends.” This column has come so far since then that I’m almost embarrassed to link that review, which was unbelievably short and had very little flair.
Since then, my opinion of Gong’s work has only increased, and her latest installment is a welcome addition to her growing catalog of Chinese historical fantasy Shakespeare adaptations.
“Foul Lady Fortune” picks up about four years after “Our Violent Ends” left off. Rosalind Lang, cousin of the now-dead Juliette Cai, has been working as an agent for the Kuomintang under an alias. Her secret weapon is her mysterious immortality; after an illness that nearly killed her and a treatment from a strange doctor, she now can’t age, can’t sleep and heals from injuries almost instantly.
And then Rosalind gets assigned on a new mission: find out who’s been behind a series of chemical killings taking place across Shanghai. Her partner on this mission is Orion Hong, and the two of them pose as husband and wife as they spy on the people believed to be behind the attacks. As they uncover more, though, things start to get more complicated than either of them could have imagined.
I haven’t even told you the half of this story from that little blurb.
First and foremost, you’re going to catch up with many more of the characters in Gong’s first duology. Celia Lang and Alisa Montagova play major roles in this book, as they both work for the communists along with Orion’s older brother, Oliver. (Ben and Mars also get a quick mention!) Alisa, now 17, is even sneakier than before, and Celia has grown even more into her identity, no longer the Kathleen Lang she was once known as. I was ecstatic to read more about them, and Gong definitely delivered.
I was enthralled by the rich setting and world-building in this book. My mother is from Shanghai, and I could constantly see bits of what I know about the city and its culture reflected in this book. The historical backdrop, too, adds to the effect. With the impending invasion of the Japanese and the growing tensions between communists and nationalists, I almost felt more immersed here than I did with the Scarlet Gang and the White Flowers, even though I know that Shanghai did have a lot of gang activity in the 1920s.
This is a tiny detail that isn’t important to anyone who isn’t Shanghainese, but usually when there’s food described in a book by a Chinese author, there are a few dishes I simply don’t recognize. Not the case here! Everything Rosalind ate was something I grew up eating at home. (Serious question: is it specific to Shanghai for lamb to be seasoned with cumin? Do other Chinese regions not do this?)
But for me, the highlight of this book was the amount of banter seen in pretty much every interaction between all of the characters in every setting, from high-speed chases to moments alone. Rosalind and Orion are a lot snappier with each other than Roma and Juliette were, and I ate up every minute of it. Orion’s relationship with his sister Phoebe was also extremely fun to see; I particularly had a fun time when they argued in front of Rosalind about stealing each other’s lovers.
Speaking of which: I love bisexual people. Love to see them in historical settings. I can’t go without talking about the fantastic queer representation I’ve grown to expect in Gong’s books. Most queer terminology wasn’t around yet in the 1930s, but in addition to Orion and Phoebe’s bisexuality, it’s pretty explicitly shown on-page that Rosalind is demisexual. Her internal conflict around the way she’s attracted to people — her need for a deep emotional connection — was incredibly palpable.
Obviously, I was thrilled to see that, as an asexual Chinese American; it’s extremely rare to find a-spec characters in media, and even rarer for these characters to be non-white. But “Foul Lady Fortune” does not disappoint with its queer representation. Literally every member of the main cast is queer except for Oliver; see this tweet for more details.
Most of all, though, Gong’s storytelling abilities shine through in this book. I was at the edge of my seat the whole way through. Even though she always tends to drop a few bombshells at the end of a book, I was still blown away by the sudden revelations, and I’m already hungry for the sequel.
“Foul Lady Fortune” comes out on Sept. 27, 2022. I received an early copy from the publisher, Margaret K. McElderry Books, in exchange for an honest review.

Many thanks to the publishers for an e-ARC. Goodreads people: here there be spoilers.

There are so many things I need to say about this book but I need to get one out the way first: I SEE YOU, CHLOE GONG. "JM"????? SECRET INFORMANT IN ZHOUZHANG????

(Sorry about that rather violent introduction, heh. I clearly spend too much time on Twitter. But I'm very *side eyes*. A mysterious deus-ex-machina informant who doesn't align with either side? JM = Juliette Montagova, doesn't it??? It's got to. I KNEW IT.)

Aaanyways. I used to try to be professional when I reviewed ARCs, but I think that my incoherent screeching says a lot more in this instance than a nicely-written, level-headed review ever could. It speaks to my investment in this series and its world and characters, my genuine surprise at the expertly-crafted twists and turns of the story, and the extent to which I am going to lose my marbles waiting for Book 2. (And the first one's not even officially out yet, God help me.)

I will admit that I was never particularly invested in Rosalind during the TVD duology, which made me all the more impressed that a book about her gripped me so thoroughly. My main reason for anticipating the release of Foul Lady Fortune was a desire to dive back into the world of TVD, not an interest in Rosalind - but she's the reason I can't wait for Book 2. She's grown and changed so much in the wake of her betrayal in Our Violent Ends, and the seeming futility of her desires makes me all the more hopeful that her arc will reach a happy conclusion. Her personal journey wasn't at all overshadowed by the espionage aspect of the story, which had to be hard to do. Spies have an ironic tendency to steal the spotlight like that.

But I was very glad that she wasn't the only TVD character who got significant screen time in this one. I don't feel like Celia got as much development as Rosalind, but I loved that she was /there/ (and that she got her own romantic subplot bc idk I just think everyone should have one of those) and had a role to play. Alisa also got her bit of the spotlight, and continues to be one of my favorite characters in this series, so of course I was happy to meet up with a much older, much-changed version of her here. And the new additions to the main cast were just as much fun. (Phoebe, my beloved chaos baby <3) Even though this book has a LOT of legwork to do in balancing the complexities of the plot with character and romantic development, I never felt like anyone was shunted to the side or given the short shrift as a result.

And the story itself didn't disappoint, either. My favorite thing about this world (besides its characters) has always been its political complexity, and adding espionage to that mix was an absolutely stellar decision. The spy-thriller tone of Foul Lady Fortune was extremely different than that of the TVD duology, which I think worked really well - this duology definitely takes the series in a new direction. Given how different the stakes and the central relationships are, I think that was the best possible decision. And the execution was just as good: I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. So many times, I was totally blindsided, and isn't that the fun of a spy novel? I'd always get complacent, thinking I knew what was going on, only to have the rug pulled out from under me by a stunning reveal of some kind or another a few pages later. Which...mmm. Tasty.

And let's not forget the fact that fake marriage is my very favorite trope in all of the wide world and I have literally NEVER seen it in a book. Mwah. Rosalind and Orion check all of the ship boxes. Am I gushing? Good. I ought to be. The only thing wrong with this book off the top of my head is that it ends on a cliffhanger I have to wait over a year to see the resolution of.

Pain, suffering, agony!~

Thank you to Simon and Schuster and Netgalley for sending me an early copy of this book! All opinions are my own!

I cannot even begin to describe the way in which I love this book. It was the greatest kind of spinoff in that it gave you some nostalgia from the original series, but then it was entirely it's own thing. I adored the new characters more than I could have imagined. I thought I would miss the original cast, but these new characters are all so amazing that it didn't even really phase me.

And the plot twists! I'm not a particularly good person at predicting major plot twist, but I still have to say that the plot twists in this book were ones that I never for a moment imagined. I tried my hardest to predict things, and I still was taken by surprise three separate times. I absolutely loved that about the book because it kept me on my toes and kept me unable to put the book down.

The romance is the cutest thing I've ever seen. Fake marriage but also kind of enemies to lovers? Orion is so sweet and yet mischievous and I loved watching him grow throughout this book. Rosalind has a lot to learn about herself and her love, and that makes me even more excited for the next book.

And don't get me started on how beautifully Chloe always blends culture and politics into her writing. It really transports you straight to Shanghai and plops you right in the middle of assassination schemes and espionage.

I am obsessed with this book and cannot wait to get my hands on the next one! Chloe Gong is a master in her field, and trust me when I say that you will not want to miss out on her work!

Chloe Gong creates another masterpiece! I absolutely adored this book.

The first 30% or so was a little hard to get into only because I felt like there was a lot to digest. Lots of names, lots of organizations. But I became completely engrossed once I hit 30%. I completely fell in love with all the characters, ESPECIALLY Orion *insert swoon*

There are lots of twists and turns that kept me turning the pages at breathtaking pace. I wondered if anything could beat These Violent Delights duology but, dare I say, Foul Lady Fortune has taken the challenge.

Thank you to Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing, Margaret K. McElderry Books and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review the digital ARC of Foul Lady Fortune

This was my first Chloe Gong read and it won't be the last. This book was INCREDIBLE both in story and writing style. All amazing characters that we get to know in great depth! I was very impressed with how Chloe balances intricate politics with science fiction and historical fiction. A book you won't be able to put down

feeling pretty lukewarm on this one butttt idk if it's a vibe-based thing or articulable thoughts... i'll give it my best try, though.

gong has always been stronger in concept than delivery, and foul lady fortune is no different: two undercover spies masquerading as a married couple are navigating both geopolitical complexities and fantastical bioweapons, and the scripted ribbon to tie it all together is, of course, an obligatory shakespearean retelling. it's a lot to chew, but gong bit down anyway. the result is a (pretty long) novel with none of its elements fleshed enough out, which is wild to say about a 500+ page book — but perhaps that says something about the overambitiousness of its premise.

i haven't read a lot of historical fantasy, but i think what kind of irks me about gong's storytelling in particular is that i can't be certain that it's responsible with its historical elements. it's why i wish her novel's settings were based in fantasy (even reality-based fantasy) rather than reality itself. attempting to relay the very real intricacies of japan's invasion of manchuria, the nationalist vs. communist hostilities that would later lead to the chinese civil war, and the impacts of these events on shanghai, among others, was an order too tall to be shoved under the glittering wrapping paper of a heartrending, angsty YA fake-marriage spy trope. this isn't to bash on gong's historical knowledge (as i undoubtedly have less of it), but the treatment of history in the novel was often backgrounded or devolved into trivializing plot devices. there are so many points in the book where rosalind desperately expresses her want to save her city without any nuanced explanation as to how its residents will be affected or have been affected by political threats. it's also kind of telling that gong is unwilling to assign straightforward motives to her characters' political affiliations (rosalind wants revenge, ergo she's a halfhearted "nationalist"; alisa desires easier access to high political positions, therefore she's a flighty "communist," etc.) — it seems as if she wants to remove herself from political criticism while writing about something that is inherently political. the only characters given beliefs to back up their loyalties are oliver and celia, who definitely weren't given as much page time as they deserved. it might be argued that the historical fantasy genre is generally wishy-washy like this, but after reading r.f. kuang's babel, i find this excuse hard to vindicate because kuang has proven that it can be done excellently. there's a lot to discuss here, though, and these are just initial thoughts.

aside from that, the writing of the novel itself seems to have taken itself a few notches down from the tvd duology. granted, i don't remember much of the series at all, but i feel particularly apathetic towards the prose in foul lady fortune, whereas i could find something to appreciate in gong's earlier works. i'm not sure if it's the complacency fueled by a very successful debut, or having a busy publishing schedule that jeopardizes craft, or simply my maturation as a reader, but i found myself skimming significantly more in flf.

part of this can be attributed to the novel's egregious use of tell — or, perhaps more accurately, an egregious use of meandering focalization and melodramatic free indirect discourse. it's so hard to pay attention during miles of paragraphs that unspool tired internal monologues or harp on the tragedies of gong's previous books, and the sheer volume of it all is incredible, considering i don't feel any closer to the characters for it. there's a lot of trivial dialogue and odd mid-page perspective shifts that really detract from the already-precarious cohesiveness of the book (just because it's third person narration doesn't mean it's not disorienting to switch povs that jarringly!). i wish there was half as much time spent on clarifying the plot and its relationship to history as there was on rosalind's histrionic soliloquies (sure, it's a shakespeare-ish book that maybe deserves a few soliloquies — though there were times where it seemed overbearing). there's also a point where gong inserts a saying from a well-known tumblr post (??) which was, well... putting your main couple's chemistry on the line of a borrowed one-liner from 2016 or whenever was a choice to say the least, if not a bit uninspired.

anyway, i finished reading this maybe 45 minutes ago and i can barely tell you the plot. chalk it up to my disinterestedness or inattentive reading, but the espionage, double/triple agenting, chemical k*lling plot, international politics, burgeoning fake-marriage real feelings, and army of characters — it was a lot to keep track of, and a lot of it i didn't care much for. what was supposed to be a surprising plot twist at the end became an "oh, okay," because i could barely bring myself to be invested. however, i can say that rosalind definitely gains dimension from her centralization, and i appreciated that the romance could be hinged on something other than distant childhood history and mercurial passion (cough, romajuliette, cough). there were times where the characters' declarations of love seemed too hasty (e.g. orion's confession after little explanation through a pov of his own), but i think that both rosalind and orion are more likable than their tvd counterparts, if not only slightly.

i probably have more gripes but i'm ending this now because i'm hungry, but tl;dr: for me, this book failed to deliver on its ambitious premise and was dubiously written. it says a lot about a novel that its tropey romance is one of its redeeming factors.

that being said, i’m hoping to see more growth from gong, especially as she ventures into adult fantasy with her next series. there’s potential in her ideas and concepts, and i’m looking forward to seeing how they merge with a new genre.

Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the free eARC in exchange for an honest review.

If there's a way for me to read this on my Kindle, I sure as heck can't figure it out. Even my desktop computer doesn't want me to read it unless I enable less secure intranet settings, which I won't do. So as much as I'd like to read this book, I can't. (I can't read on my phone or iPad because it's too glarey.) Sorry. The one-star review is only because I can't send this message without giving a star rating -- I'm sorry.

Chloe Gong, I did not think you could surpass my love for These Violent Delights, but you did. I was so excited to see such a diverse cast and too see multiple asexual spectrum characters in this book I was so content. Everything was so well done and I loved the human experimentation aspect of the plot as well.

Ladies. This club has EVERYTHING
-When Chloe says “it’s a Shakes retelling” she doesn’t mean she took the two lead characters and you can see it if you squint. She means it’s a SHAKES!!! RETELLING!!!!! The fact she set up As You Like It in the midst of her Rom&Jul retelling is unparalleled. The extended metaphor of Rosalind hiding beneath her other identity / hiding beneath her code name being Ganymede………..Kenneth Branagh could NEVER
-The historical and cultural details in this are just gorgeous. You are IN 1930s Shanghai and it’s an experience all its own. The way these characters feel about their country,,,,,, got me feeling some sort of way
-Chloe could not give less of a HECK about science and honestly? Same girl. Good for women in STEM but I love a novel that says “whatever it there is ??serum?? and it Does Stuff” you bet it does!!
-Violence without gore and brutality without sexual violence. This is the way.
-Character development (delicious) mostly through dialogue (even BETTER) and some of the lines in here???? Like I was supposed to SURVIVE the conversation Orion had with Rosalind after she’d been poisoned??? Like I was supposed to still be a person when Rosalind said “daffodils” shut up

Reading this book felt like Chloe stood at my table with a little pad and a little pencil and said “what’re ya havin darlin?” and I ordered one of everything on the menu and she DELIVERED
-forced proximity
-fake marriage
-childhood friends in love
-enemies to lovers
-spy antics
-physical affection for the sake of physical affection not always as a preamble to sex
-men who simp openly over their partners

Speaking of Orion Hong LOVE OF MY LIFE???
Orion is PEAK "You're stupid. I like that in a man" and it's all the people want. The people is me.

If you’re like “rach I don’t think you’ve talked about the plot at all” you’d be correct! This book is absolute chaos. It is based on a comedy and not a tragedy so I figured it would be funnier, but this is off the RAILS (affectionate). I did not follow the plot entirely (I think we got up to quadruple agents but who's counting) but let me be clear: who gives a flip. That’s the magic of a Shakespeare comedy babey. It’s all vibes until the fourth act and then it is barely contained insanity and hella plot twists and Chloe delivered on both.

BONUS ROUND BONUS ROUND BONUS ROUND
A scene where two people totally scream at each other because they care about the other person but they don't make out suddenly,,,, this was delivered hot and fresh just for me. This is so niche and Chloe gave it to me TWICE!!! PLEASE more authors allow your female characters to feel anger. Allow them to express their frustration in a way that is not immediately sexualized. IM BEGGING-

I came for the violence and ended up shipping every couple. Your honor, there are THREE different couples. That's the power of Chloe Gong everybody

Q&A for anyone who survived this review:

-do I need to read These Violent Delights first?
-I mean why haven’t you read These Violent Delights already
-technically no but again.......yes
-do I need to know the plot of As You Like It?
-not at all but if you do you’ll just be impressed she went with AYLI instead of Twelfth Night like everyone else
-will you survive Chloe’s upcoming Antony & Cleopatra retelling?
-not at all! thanks for asking

“I’d like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review” isn’t enough. I’d like to give a lil forehead kiss to the publicist at Simon & Schuster who thought "whatever it’s a Friday" and said yes to my request for this book. I only cried a very small amount because I am extremely normal

This was quite the ride! I enjoyed jumping back into the world of These Violent Delights, albeit set a few years later. I do have to admit that coming back to this world was a little bittersweet given the ending of Our Violent Ends. At the same time, I loved that I found myself rooting for Rosalind as our new main character after reading about her actions in the These Violent Delights duology. Reuniting with some of my favorite characters from this previous duology was also so much fun. Given that Foul Lady Fortune takes place a few years after Our Violent Ends, there was a lot of exposition on the historical context of the novel and what our characters had been up to since the end of Our Violent Ends. This part of the novel felt a little tiring to me, and I found myself disconnecting from the story during these info-dump moments.

My favorite aspect of the novel was definitely the tension and suspense that builds up as the story progresses, something that Chloe Gong is extremely talented at writing! I was second-guessing my theories at the end of every chapter, and the novel's ending truly left me shocked. I'm definitely excited to read the sequel to this novel, especially after the multiple cliffhangers readers are left with!

review ♥
foul lady fortune- chloe gong
★ ★ ★ ★

•enemies to lovers
•nationalist vs communist
•japanese imperialism
•fake marriage
•1930s chinese history

Rosalind Lang has tortured herself for her position in the aftermath of her cousin’s death four years ago. She believes she must fix the mess she made while trusting Dimitri Voronin. However, when she catches scarlet fever (I love this irony) and gets to the point of death, the scientist Lourens gives her a treatment that makes her immortal (to an extent). Now Rosalind remains stuck in her 19-year-old body that instantly heals after injuries and never requires sleep. After several missions of vengeance against the previous White Flowers and other enemies of Shanghai, Rosalind is paired with Orion Hong to scope out the enemy and determine which ones are causing these gruesome murders.

Chloe Gong never fails to write a plot-filled story with many twists and turns. I was on my toes the entire time, waiting to see the outcome of the terror plots happening throughout the story. I love these characters with all of my heart and am so glad they were brought back in this book. When the characters finally put all the clues together and found out the motivation for the killings, I was shocked. The betrayal and plot twists had me staring at the wall. I didn’t know what to do with myself. The whole story came together slowly but was completely worth it! Also… the truck chase scene… CHLOE YOU OUTDID YOURSELF! And the way Orion calls Rosalind “Beloved” and “Wife” makes my heart burst!! But the part that destroyed me was the ending... This book isn't even out yet and I need book 2 immediately!!

I am obsessed with this fictional take on Chinese history. I loved the background and political message in the These Violent Delights Duology, but this new addition takes it to another level. I cannot wait to see what Chloe has in store for book 2 and am crossing my fingers for a happy ending, even though I have a feeling it will again, end in tragedy.

thank you Simon and Schuster for sending me an eARC of foul lady fortune!

-foul lady fortune releases on september 26th!

This book lives rent free in my mind since I finished it. I loved These violent delights and Our violent ends so I was very excited to read Foul lady fortune and Dear God, it did not disappoint. This book is a work of art.

I can't even begin to explain the way this book made me feel. There was a lot of crying, a lot of screaming, a lot of WTF IS GOING ON??? I cannot gush about how beautifully, meticulously, and creatively written this book is. The plot was intriguing, there were multiple mysteries that our main characters had to solve. And all the plot twists and revelations had me on the floor.

Political history has much more weight in the book than it did in the duology of These Violent Delights. There is a lot of political intrigue and the historical elements are so well developed and handled in this book that I can't help but admire Chloe for it.

The characters are written in such depth its hard to believe that they are not real. After reading TVD I didn't think that the cast of characters in this book would captivate me in the same way that the ones in TVD did but how wrong I was. I LOVED each and every character in this book. Phoebe, Silas, Orion, OLIVER MY BELOVED, Rosalind, Celia and Alisa have my heart. I will protect my children at all costs. When I found out that Rosalind was going to be the main character in Foul Lady Fortune I had my doubts as she was my least favorite character in TVD. But Chloe Gong clearly knows what she's doing. Rosalind is a character that gets under your skin and it is impossible not to love her. She really has a lot of growth in this book. But my favorite character will always be Celia ♥️

Foul lady fortune was hilarious, brilliant, heartbreaking and one of the best book i have ever read.

And yes, you can read Foul lady fortune without reading the previous duology but flf spoils you the end of Our violent ends. So, be aware of that. But I highly recommend reading These violent delights first because it helps a lot to have the context of what is happening and hey, both TVD and OVE are amazing so, yes, please go read it.

Oh dear heavens, this book. When I finished reading Our Violent Ends, I thought, "hey, this was amazing, I'll now proceed to cry everyday for a whole week because I don't know any peace!". And somehow, finishing Foul Lady Fortune feels even WORSE. I finished this on friday and almost 48 hours later I can't stop thinking about it.

FLF is the story of Rosalind Lang, a former gang member that has to face her own problems and her many unsolved feelings. She's forced to work with Orion Hong, a playboy type of guy that nobody seems to take very seriously, and they have to FAKE A MARRIAGE in order to complete their new mission. But when the mission becomes even more complicated than it was, the political tension is at a burning point, and their secrets threaten to come out, they'll have to trust each other in order to succeed, or at least stay alive.

First of all, yes, you can totally read this book on its own, but I highly recommend starting with These Violent Delights. You'll have a better context of what is going on, but also, if you don't, you will be spoiled the ending of the duology. So yeah, read TVD and OVE first, cry, and then come here.

When it was announced, Foul Lady Fortune scared me. It had some characters I already loved (Celia and Alissa), but also the main character being Rosalind made me fearful. But you should always trust that Chloe Gong knows what she's doing. Rosalind shows a lot of development in this book, and you get to know better all the things she's feeling. At some point, she just becomes your favorite person in the world. She has an amazing, strong, fearless personality, but she's also filled with so many scary thoughts and emotions that you can't avoid to empathize with her. But seeing our girls Celia and Alissa again was amazing and I cannot say enough how much I ended up loving Alissa in this book. She has grown up so much and it made me so nostalgic but also, like, I couldn't be happier of the person she is in this book.

The new characters, O M G! The Hong siblings are THE CHARACTERS OF THE YEAR FOR ME. We have Orion, the middle sibling, with such an attractive attitude, just perfectly irritating. And we have Phoebe, the younger sister, a busybody that is always willing to help. But Oliver Hong? He has my whole heart now. He's a though guy with such a soft heart and I just, LOVE HIM.

Miss Chloe has an amazing way to make character descriptions and developments. You can't finish her books without loving at least one of the characters (or, like me, loving them all!). It doesn't matter if you knew them previously or not, they are all perfectly built so you can get to know them deeper as the book progresses. Maybe you think, but I'll never get over the previous main characters! And let me tell you, you shouldn't! Just open your heart and welcome these new characters into your life and love them because that's something unavoidable!

She also writes incredibly good political conflicts and schemes. I didn't feel a moment where things became boring or too descriptive. The plot is very intriguing, with new mysteries every now and them. We have spies and a lot of secrecy, three sides of a war that seems never ending and so many things to unravel that you won't want to stop reading at all until you know the whole truth! (But I did stopped after I knew the whole truth because I was SCREAMING). And the fantasy part of it I can only explain as very believable, like, if you told me these things happened in real life I'd believe you. All is so well connected and fits into place so perfectly that you end up MIND BLOWN.

So, to summarize, Foul Lady Fortune has:
-An amazing cast of characters that you'll totally end up loving
-A fake marriage !!!!!!!!!!!
-So many mysteries to be solved and so many secrets that you'll want to know
-POLITICAL CONFLICTS
-And an ending that'll keep you awake waiting for the next book (i'm totally fine yeah totally fine)

Chloe Gong really keeps doing it better with every book, and you should totally give this one a chance. Actually, give all her books a chance, preorder this one, buy the previous ones read them all and be welcomed to the amazing world that she has to offer.

Chloe Gong is masterful with her storytelling, and Foul Lady Fortune is no exception. Right away I was pulled into the story and didn't want to stop until I had read the very last word.

Foul Lady Fortune is filled with drama, action and intrigue. I had many theories throughout the book that kept changing as the story went on and was never totally sure which theory would end up being correct. In the end, I was not at all expecting it and the ending had me saying, "how did I miss this?" I already can't wait for the sequel and to see where this story goes.

*Thank you NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for the opportunity to review this ARC.*

Foul Lady Fortune is such an adventure. Rosalind Lang, who readers may remember from Gong's previous duology These Violent Delights, has taken on a new identity as Fortune: Nationalist assassin and spy who cannot die. In a new mission to uncover Japanese Imperialist plots, Rosalind, aka Janie Mead, is assigned to infiltrate a publishing company that may be a front for a terror cell - the catch is, Rosalind 1) has a partner for the mission and 2) they must act as though they are a married couple.

We get fake relationships, we get forced proximity, we get "who did this to you? I'll kill them." FLF has this action packed plot that keeps you hooked from start to finish as well as this very cute slow-burn romance in the background that sneaks up on the readers as much as the characters.

I surprised myself by loving all of the side characters and how their stories interweave to get readers to see the bigger picture. I really felt at the beginning that I wasn't going to care much about Celia's POV just because it felt so different from our main plot and I was already so invested in Rosalind and Orion. But seeing Rosalind's link to her sister as well as Orion and his interactions with his brother come together in such a seamless way was just perfect.

Only doing 4 out of 5 stars because some of the more trope-y things felt a little... inorganic? Like I'm such a sucker for the "who did this to you?" line, but after the initial confrontation it just... doesn't ever come up again? There is a lot going on in this book, so I didn't expect it to become a huge thing but it just didn't seem to change either Rosalind's nor Orion's motivations towards each other enough. I still liked the scene and their relationship as a whole, but would have loved to see them become even more protective of each other specifically because of this interaction. They get there, just not from this particular scene which was/could have been very poignant.

Truly, the only bad part about reviewing books early is that now I have to wait even longer for FLF book 2.

Chloe Gong is a super star and I will of course be buying this one for my shelves when it releases!

I do wish I could have read this one on my kindle but it didn’t give me that option for some reason!

I really enjoyed this book! It was a bit slow in the beginning, but once it picked up, it hooked me! 4 stars!

3.5/5 stars. this is a historical fantasy with a much, much more emphasis on history than the TVD duet was. i’m not a huge fan of political narratives in fantasy fiction which affected how much i liked the first 2/3 of the book but the last third was the writing and plot i know and love. the cliffhanger…. BOOK TWO NOW