In this follow up to Immortal Longings, Calla and Anton continue to attempt to hide their true identities. I liked it as well as I liked the first in the series and can't wait for the next book after that cliffhanger!

Special thanks to Netgalley and Saga Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Content Warning: This book includes: on-page sexual content: (Insinuations and jokes, lots of tension, and sexual thoughts and scenes). A good bit of profanity. Lots of familial issues, mentions of murder, war, grief, betrayal, adn political sabotage.

After reading Immortal Longings, I knew I needed the sequel as soon as possible. Unfortunately, the timing was not perfect and I got to it super late. The politics, the secrets, and the betrayal are all bundled into the perfect segway for the next book in the series. I will not go in-depth since it is a continuation of an ongoing series, but if you have not picked up Chloe Gong’s books, what are you doing? Every book of hers that I’ve read (all of them) has effectively kept me interested in the plot and romance. Did I even talk about the romance? It made me want to pull my hair out in the best of ways.

I would recommend Vilest Things to anyone who loves Fantasy. Recommended reading would be Gong’s other works, like Immortal Longings and These Violent Delights. I would also recommend A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang (Historical Fantasy), and Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan (Fantasy/Romantic/Political).

Sad to say, this follow up was not for me. I love Gong’s other work, especially Immortal Longings. This pacing was my biggest issue. It took me so much longer than usual to get through this book, often putting it down and coming back to it weeks later after a few other reads. Still a Chloe Gong fan though! Thank you for the opportunity to read this as an ARC!

Wow . Phenomenal follow thru from the first book. This is everything you would expect from a sequel. Like the one before amazing story, love the world building and the development in the book. Definitely want more.

SO good! Vilest Things surpasses Immortal Longings for me, which was completely unexpected.

The characters seeing each others’ “true” selves at the end of book 1 set this up perfectly for distrust and grudging alliances. It was so well done!!

So hard for me to put in plot strengths without including spoilers for the first book, so I won’t. I’ll just say that this I’ve read everything Chloe Gong has ever published, and this is my favorite.

I really enjoyed the first book.
Less so this one.
what charmed me about the characters seemed to be missing in this follow up, it was chaotic (but not it a good way) and I just found myself uninterested.

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

I loved the follow up to Immortal Longings 🐈. Mao Mao and Calla are my favorite characters, of course. Bebe had me questioning her, but I think I'm gonna like her and can't wait to see where book 3 takes her. Thank you to Saga Press for sending me a physical copy of Vilest Things! #SagaSaysCrew

Anton and Calla are at odds after the events of book 1, especially after his long lost love, Otta, awakes from a years-long coma. I was fighting for them to find their way back to each other the whole time.

The twists and turns that the story takes in book 2 kept me hooked and that cliff hanger 😮 Chloe, I need book 3 immediately!

The audiobook was performed phenomenally by Jeena Yi! She did an amazing job, once again.

3.5/5. This felt like a middle book in a series. There was a lot of political intrigue and setting up throughout for the next book. It was interesting, but it did make the plot pretty slow and reduced my enjoyment a little bit. There was just a lot of information overload in a small amount of time. I did like the development of the characters. They are very complex, and I really like how real they feel. They aren't archetypes of a "good" or "bad" person. The author does an excellent job with the pining between Anton and Calla. The angst was very good and not overdone. The last 50 pages really gripped me, so I am intrigued to see how the story concludes.

Thank you to Netgalley and Saga Press | S&S/Saga Press for the eARC in exchange for a review!

This book was really enjoyable!! Chloe Gong do such a great job weaving an intriguing story that readers will fall in love with like I did!! I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves fantasy books!!

The second book of the Flesh & False Gods trilogy finds Anton in August's body, ruling San-Er, and Calla as an advisor. Throwing an even bigger wrench in things is that Otta Avia has woken up. As things start to become more chaotic across the kingdom, Anton and Calla must overcome the events of the arena to try to stop worse things happening.

This one started a little slower than the first book for me. However, about halfway through it really picked up and I wanted to just keep reading! I didn't realize this was going to be a trilogy (thought it would be a duology like the other two series), so I was like how is this going to wrap up??? With like 50 pages left I finally realized there must be a third book that would occur. This one does end on a big twist, one that I definitely didn't see coming. It will be really interesting to see how this story ends in the next book!

I received my copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Vilest Things suffers from classic middle book syndrome. The bones of the book were interesting with a plot twist introduced at the end and a bit of much needed world building after book 1 focusing mostly on the tournament, but i feel like it took almost 60% of the book for any action to happen.

Vilest Things is book two in the Flesh and False Gods series. I kind of struggled through this one a little bit. While I usually love books with lots of politics, it felt like there was just a lot of information to digest before I really was able to get into the plot of the story. The pacing was pretty off for most of the book, but definitely picked up towards the end where it felt like everything finally came together. The cliffhanger has me excited for book three in this series!

Thank you to Saga Press and Netgalley for the ARC!

Thanks to NetGalley and Saga Press for the eBook.

Calla Tuoleimi has won San-Er’s bloody games and eliminated King Kasa, her tyrant uncle and the former ruler of Talin. She serves now as royal advisor to Kasa’s adopted son, August Shenzhi, who has risen to the throne. Only Calla knows it isn’t really August. Anton Makusa is still furious about Calla’s betrayal in the final round of the games. In an impossible feat, he took over August’s body to survive, and has no intention of giving up this newfound power. But when his first love, the beautiful, explosive Otta Avia, awakens from a years-long coma and reveals a secret that threatens the monarchy’s authority over Talin, chaos erupts. As tensions come to a boiling point, Calla and Anton must set their conflicts aside and head to the kingdom’s far reaches to prevent anarchy… even if their empire might be better off burning. 

4.25* It wasn't perfect, but it was very entertaining, so I give it that. I liked the characters, even if they are insane. There were so many unexpected twists and turns that I obviously didn't see coming. There's a lot of politics and conspiracies, and we jump from place to place and situation to situation, which honestly left me confused at times, but let's ignore that. I still don't know what Otta's ultimate goal was, other than being a pain in the ass, but I guess we'll have to deal with that later. I'm excited to see where the series goes.

Anything that Chloe Gong writes I will absolutely eat up. The first book completely blew me out of the water, everything was fresh and new and I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. After it ended I was distraught and have been so patiently waiting for what else could happen and it was nothing like I expected. The way the world building was expanded was stellar and so interesting. Every time Calla and Anton were on the page I was yelling for more, it was just enough to tease but written so well I couldn't even complain. Their story draws you in and when I tell you my jaw dropped by the end! While the direction we took shocked me I can't wait to see where else we can go with the rest of the series.

Even better than the first book! Kind of slow start, but that’s usually to be expected in fantasy books. Absolutely love Calla. The plot, the romance, the twists. Can’t wait to read more by the author.

With its deadly competition and body jumping, the first book in this series hooked me. I couldn't wait to see what happened after the mind-blowing cliffhanger.

Calla won the game and eliminated King Kasa. The general public believes she also killed Anton - but only she knows he jumped into August's body. Now Otta (Anton's first love) is awake after a long time coma, shocking secrets threaten the monarchy, and Calla and Anton have some real issues to work through (you know, since she supposedly killed him) if they're going to set things right.

This is a sequel, so no spoilers here. I'm still a big fan of the body hopping, and it gets even more creative in this novel. You'd have to know someone extremely well to figure out they were "invaded", and a couple of these characters have their suspicions. It makes for some interesting situations. Calla is just as stubborn and determined this time around, but she also learns uncomfortable truths about herself. Anton's loyalty continues to be a strength, but he wonders if his is misplaced. Who can he really trust?

Some readers aren't fans of the political scheming, but it only increases my interest in the plot. So much betrayal and backstabbing. August and Galipei don't get as much page time, but Otta wins the award for most surprising revelation. I knew something was up with her, but the secret came as a surprise. I'm sure it will be a driving force for the next book - which will be among my most anticipated reads for next year.

Recommended for readers who enjoy sci-fi intertwined with fantasy, political chaos, and plot-driven stories.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The Vile Things by Chloe Gong totally delivers on all the drama, twists, and feels you'd expect. Her writing is so lush and vivid—it just pulls you right into the story. The characters? Messy, intense, and impossible not to root for (or scream at). The plot had me flipping pages like crazy, though I’ll admit some parts dragged a tiny bit. But those twists? Chef’s kiss. It’s got betrayal, ambition, and all the dark vibes we love. If you’re into books that keep you up way past bedtime, this one’s for you. Definitely worth the hype!

Plot twists, betrayals, enemies to lovers back to enemies to lovers? say no more.

This sequel gave us a better look into the magic system, and even more world building and background information.

Solid sequel with another cliffhanger for an ending. Can’t wait until book 3.

Thank you Saga Press and Net Galley for this eARC.

This was a very mixed read for me. I really enjoyed the first book in this series and I did fell like I enjoyed this second book just a bit more than the first but there were still parts of it that I didn't 100% love. I struggled with getting invested on the plot and for it to hold my attention as I went through the story. I also didn't feel as strong of a connection to the characters in this book compared to the previous one. But overall an enjoyable continuation the the first book that tied itself together in the end.