I really enjoyed Chloe’s debut into adult fiction! This one is a lot faster paced than tvd and I’m here for it! I enjoyed the hunger games but played in the real world vibe and I have so many questions about the end! Like I need to know what really happened lol. Can’t wait for the next one!

I love Chloe Gong and will read her grocery list if she lets me. I will say that I can understand why people might be confused by the magic system, and to that I say: just go with it. The gaps will fill themselves over time. It is not the best world building in the world, but I promise it does make sense. I really recommend giving this book a shot if you are someone who enjoyed These Violent Delights. It does read YA still, even though it is marketed as an adult debut.

I really wanted to like this book. I was so excited for Chloe's adult debut but unfortunately this one just fell flat for me. First of all, unlike her previous works this one was a bit dry. I didn't feel like I could get in the heads of the characters or understand them emotionally. Second of all, the world building has so much protentional but ultimately felt very similar to world's we've seen before. The hunger games-esque competition, the altered carbon-esque approach to body swapping. I know this is meant to be a retelling, but retellings should ideally bring something new to the table and I just didn't feel like anything new was there. Thirdly, it was just dense. The info dumps had me reeling. I barely understood what was going on half the time, and I 'm a seasoned fantasy reader. I really did think that there was potential here but the execution could've used some work.

This is a story about immortal lives not worth living forever.

I’m so happily surprised by how much I enjoyed this! I don’t see the Antony & Cleopatra elements at all, but ignoring that it’s definitely worth picking up. The 3 alternating view points worked nicely, and it was fun to explore the dystopian land space while the characters try to survive the hunger games style city wide competition. Looking forward to book 2!

Thank you @netgalley & @sagapressbooks for the eArc!

Very fast paced from start to finish with rotating POVs that keep you thoroughly entertained. I did not expect the cliff hanger ending but this was a nice novel that transcended being age appropriate for older teens into adulthood. It read like something you have read before but then you would feel like it was something completely new and unique. This is so important when so many books are released each year.

Fun mashup of Anthony and Cleopatra and The Hunger Games. At least this time, most of the combattants are adults. Lots of body-swapping and assassinations.
Told from several POVs, it was fascinating seeing the difference in how a character saw themselves and what other people think. Everyone is a hero of their own story.

While not familiar with Shakespeare's Anthony and Cleopatra, I was immediately sucked into the world of San-Er and the deadly tournament. Calla, Anton, and August made an interesting triad. I did find it a bit jarring when they were suddenly speaking in paraphrased Shakespearean about 75% of the way through. I'm definitely interested in the sequel and seeing how the world continues to grow.

I wasn't sure how I felt about this book at first, but it quickly became a GREAT read for me! I love the concept, and having never read Cleopatra & Antony before, I didn't know the references, other than the 2 main characters' names, so it was a journey for me! I'm looking forward to the next ones!

I’m so disappointed.

Immortal Longings was one of my most anticipated summer reads. I was thrilled when I received a beautiful hardcover copy from the publisher.

But…

First, I’m not even sure what kind of world this is supposed to be. Is it sci-fi (body jumping), historical fantasy (Olympic-like games, kingdoms, rulers), or some modern infusion of all of it (computers, pagers)? I just couldn’t picture this place at all.

Then we have the characters, who are not likable, but also don’t have enough personality to dislike. They’re just sort of people on a page.

And the body jumping. How does that even work? All I could picture was random bodies lying around alleys and city streets, lifeless, because the person inhabiting that body had jumped into someone else’s body and taken over.

Finally, the info dumping is way too much. Ugh. Pacing is agonizing, at least in the first quarter, which was all I could manage.

Life is short. My reading list is long. I’m moving on.

DNF

*My thanks and apologies to the publisher!*

This was a really really good, creative story. The most compelling aspect was the bleak place that Chloe Gong wrote, which was based off of a real place. I’d never heard of the Kowloon Walled City, but have looked it up since reading the book and it was so unreal and surprising. And Gong did such a good job describing it in the book, that it felt familiar when I looked at pictures of the real place. Gong showed us a community full of complex people who don’t always do the right thing and are trying to survive, but they take care of people around them. It’s dark, tragic, and tense. Not to mention the more fantastical elements of the book which involves the ability to jump from body to body, with some people being completely lost from their original body. It was a really cool element, because it made everything feel so unmoored and chaotic.

This is only my second book I’ve read by Chloe Gong, but I’m already sensing similarities that I imagine are across her other work as well. And I’m already thinking Immortal Longing might be her best work yet. If you can’t tell, I recommend this book.

I enjoyed this book and I could not put it down. I really enjoyed the characters and the writing was really well done. It made you want to keep reading.

Thank you so much to Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read one of my most anticipated books of the year!

As someone who had trouble getting into Gong's previous duology, I was pleased with the more mature, well-fleshed out world-building and characterisation in this new foray into adult fantasy. This exciting new sci-fi fantasy reimagines the classic story of love, betrayal, and heartbreak of Anthony and Cleopatra in a futuristic dystopia. Fast-paced, sleek, and sexy, past fans of Chloe Gong will not be disappointed and new fans will find the tension excellent.

For fans of other sci-fi Shakespeare retellings like The Stars Undying, this is one not to miss.

Took me a little while to get into this book because I haven’t read fantasy in a while. Chloe Gong is so good at world building that it makes reading fantasy so manageable and still so fun.

Set in a dystopian future or past this is a book that’s hunger games meets a court of thorns and roses with sci fi elements. The characters are so good and fleshed out.

Thanks Net Galley for the ARC

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the review copy of this book.
I loved the setting of this book, the world building was beautifully done. and I enjoyed the characters, though since this is a planned trilogy, this book didn't go too in depth yet. I look forward to learning about, and growing to enjoy more, the characters.

Immortal Longings is a refreshingly unique urban fantasy with an immersive setting, strong characters, political intrigue that sucks you right in. Moreover, that writing style is solid. I loved Gong’ world-building. Couldn’t get enough of it

I’ve yet to meet a Chloe Gong book that didn’t sweep me away; Immortal Longings is no exception. Though I will admit that the sweeping did take a bit longer to occur than in any of her Secret Shanghai novels.

Take Antony and Cleopatra, add in the (creepy) ability to send one’s soul into another’s body, wrap it up with a competition that ends with a fight to the death in an arena strongly resembling the Roman Colosseum, and there you have it. There’s of course a taste of foolhardy romance, royal vs. rural politics, and a mysterious supernatural force threatening to ruin everything. While slightly reminiscent of a lot of different things, I have to say that Immortal Longings does come across as its own thing. (At least from the books I’ve personally consumed.)

This retelling seems much less copy-paste than Gong’s takes on Romeo & Juliet or As You Like It; though I’m admittedly less familiar with this particular source material, the main inspiration seems to come from character arcs as opposed to plot points. The world building is EXTENSIVE – sometimes coming off a bit dense as it is frontloaded – you just kinda gotta go along with it, but once you have, and all has been revealed, everything does click into place and I had a hard time putting it down. There is a sense that the dynamics of San-Er are about to be upended (and the world of the novel is much larger than we are led to believe), but I have to assume that will be further explored in the next two books of the trilogy.

I really enjoyed the revolving 3rd person POV; there’s the bloodthirsty (former) Princess Calla, desperate-to-win Anton, and the sly and surprising Prince August. How they interact and oppose and support is a constantly shifting battle, full of twists that I most certainly did not expect, but there was no one perspective that I dreaded stumbling upon, as is often the case with multiple POV novels. I’m very intrigued to see how they will continue to play out in book 2.

With a mix of urban fantasy feel and SciFi-ish paranormal elements, I think this would appeal to a wide variety of readers. Just be prepared for a slower start, character-focused action, plenty of subterfuge, and an ending that will shake absolutely everything up.

Content warning (taken from author’s website): on-page death, death of a child, blood, explicit violence, explicit sex, mass death, gore, description of corpses, description of bodily harm, weapon use, alcohol consumption, body-swapping, description of torture.

I was so excited to get an arc of Immortal Longings. It was a good book but there were things I did not like. The narration and plot at times were confusing and hard to grasp. The pacing also was an issue with wanting to keep reading.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing an advance copy in exchange for honest feedback. Looking forward to the sequel.

Chloe gong creating a adult fantasy setting was exactly what we needed. After my major obsession of these violent delights and foul lady fortune, I expected nothing less from this incredible author. To create a world filled with magic, romance, and culture. Badass fmc and a story to always remeber. It was just perfect.
Thank you NetGalley!

“Do not mistake my tolerance for weakness, August,” she says quietly. “Do not forget who you’re talking to. You’ve gotten used to ordering people around, I know. Day in and day out, they must heed what you say, because you are the crown prince, and they cannot offend such a man.” Her eyes flicker back to him. “But I am Calla Tuoleimi…I am a princess who sacrificed my own throne for this kingdom. You do not order me around.”

IMMORTAL LONGINGS is unlike anything I’ve ever read, and I absolutely loved it. It's tough to write a review without spoilers, but I'll say that the book took me by surprise more than once. I felt that there was a perfect balance of action and emotion, with sections creating tension and others allowing the reader to get to know the characters. Told from Calla, Anton, and August's POV, I didn't feel that the story ever lagged. Additionally, I haven't ever read the original Anthony and Cleopatra story, but I quickly Googled the plot summary and felt that it was more than sufficient for my understanding and enjoyment of the story.

The only thing that wasn't perfect for me was the way that consent was handled, especially when it came to intimacy. Gong briefly addresses it in a sentence or two, but I had so many questions about unwanted consequences. I truly hope a map of both San-Er and all of Talin is available with book two (a true shocker to everyone that knows me). A massive thank you to Gallery/Saga Press for the complimentary copy in exchange an honest review. I've already added this to my "2023 Favorites" shelf on Goodreads, and I have no doubt that it will be in my top 10 at the end of the year.

This was a #fantasyfrenemies selection, and I can't wait for our discussion!
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As a side note, I wanted to address the negative reviews, which I found extremely disheartening. I get that not all books are for everyone, and IMMORTAL LONGINGS will probably be a bit more divisive than others. That said, there are several lengthy reviews that seem to extend beyond a thoughtful, constructive review into a territory that could be deemed unkind. My hope is that those will not serve as a deterrent to those thinking about picking this one up, but rather, formulate their own opinion(s).