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ameydireads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
“Trauma doesn't have to lead to destruction. Trauma can be the guiding point into something better, something stronger.”
First of all, the historical aspect of this book is really interesting. The previous books focused on the Kuomintang and the Communists. Now, the Kuomintang took over and the communists are also on the down-low. The political tension is still higher than ever due to the imminent danger of Japanese invasion.
The main character is Rosalind. I wasn’t particularly invested in her in ‘These Violent Delights’ and ‘Our Violent Ends’, but that really changed with this book. She’s such an interesting character mainly because of her internal struggles. And this girl can run whilst wearing heels?! Meanwhile here I am struggling to walk on heels. The fantasy part of this story is great too. Rosalind is supposed to be dead so she now lives her life as Janie Mead. She is also Lady Fortune, an immortal assassin working with the Kuomintang to save her city and to right her wrongs. A side effect of being immortal is that she doesn’t have to sleep anymore. Imagine not having to sleep and being able to read all night long, that’s the dream…
Anyway, Rosalind knows she made some bad decisions in the past and regrets it deeply. After someone she loved and trusted betrayed her, she finds it hard to put her trust in someone again, let alone love someone again. She gets paired with Orion for an undercover mission. They have to pose as a couple and so they get married. Orion is easygoing and very social. Rosalind on the other hand is very reserved and panics as soon as he gets a little too close. The trauma is still fresh, even after all these years. Enough to say that it’s definitely not love at first sight.
“All her love seemed to emerge in an identical manner. It wasn't that it would be absent one day and then present the next. It would move in without her notice and get comfortable and conquer more and more space, and she wouldn't even know that there was a new occupant in her heart until she started wondering where all this furniture had come from and love flashed its dazzling grin at her to say hello.”
But their love story is definitely blooming and it’s indescribably cute.
“She was his guiding saint, the Polaris of his heart.”
“Your life is mine as mine is yours.”
I’m loving it!
But let’s not forget about Celia! She has been a favourite of mine from the start and one thing she mentions really resonates with me.
“Celia had never been very good at making demands. Something about it had always felt fundamentally wrong to her, she could never rid herself of the feeling that being difficult would drive people away.”
The ending though… Even if it wasn’t completely unexpected, I was a little shocked to find out who was responsible for all the misery.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Grief, Car accident, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Sexual harassment
Minor: Gun violence, Infidelity, Misogyny, Torture, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and War