ARC Review: Foul Lady Fortune (Foul Lady Fortune #1) by Chloe Gong
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Series: Foul Lady Fortune #1
Author: Chloe Gong
Published September 27th 2022 by Hodder & Stoughton
Goodreads Synopsis
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.
Goodreads
Review
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher. This in no way impacted on my view.
Finding herself brought back from the brink of death years ago, Rosalind Lang has had to reinvent herself, and carve her place in a society following the fall out of the Scarlet Gang and White Flowers feud. Her penance for her life was the fact that she could no longer sleep, or age, and any wound would heal, creating the perfect assassin for her people. When a Japanese invasion is imminent, she needs to join forces with another Nationalist spy, Orion Hong, and pose as a married couple to uncover the culprit behind a wave of deaths. As they grow close, it's harder for the two spy's to keep their secrets, and protect themselves from both danger, and heartbreak.
Well, this was fantastic! I was a little late to the party for These Violent Delights, but adored them when I read the series, so learning that their would be a sort of companion series, set 4-5 years later, with many of the remaining characters, I couldn't wait to read it. As soon as I picked up my review copy, I was hooked. Rosalind was a character who had always intrigued me when we met her previously, and I felt like she had a story to tell, to explain some of her actions, and why she was that way. I loved the dynamic between her as Lady Fortune, and with Orion as a 'couple' who didn't trust each other initially, until they relied on each other like nothing before. Their romance wasn't perfect, and there were so many twists and turns, until the final page, that I was on the edge of my seat. Seeing so many characters again, such as Celia and Alisa, and meeting the new cast, was great. This book was full of action, and intrigue, and hit all my expectations. I'm just in awe of Chloe's work, and can't wait for the sequel!
Dates Read:
August 22-24, 2022
Rating
4 Stars
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