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A review by mackenzierm
Immortal Longings by Chloe Gong
medium-paced
5.0
IMMORTAL LONGINGS marks my first experience with Chloe Gong's writing and I am thoroughly impressed. I was quickly hooked into the fantasy world she has created within the first few chapters and entirely enamoured with the concept of qi and body jumping as magical aspects.
This is an adult fantasy debut for Chloe inspired by Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra. San-Er, the capital city of the kingdom of Talin, is the the annual host of a set of deadly games where 88 players are chosen to battle each other to the death in hopes of becoming the victor and winner of unimaginable riches. Five years ago, Princess Calla slaughtered her family and has been in hiding since. Her goal is to kill King Kasa in order to bring down the monarchy and the only way to achieve this is to enter in the games. Anton Makusa is an exiled aristocrat, entering the games in hopes of winning in order to pay hospital bills for his childhood love, whom has been in a coma for the last seven years. Calla and Anton form an unexpected alliance, each with their own goals but both vying for victory.
IMMORTAL LONGINGS is told in multiple POVS using the third person, mostly in Calla's perspective which I truly loved. She is a strong, cunning, and feisty FMC. She's got loads of history and I loved learning more about her as the story progressed. I enjoyed the views into some of the other central characters (Anton and Prince August) while learning a small bit about their pasts and current motivations.
The alliance that forms between Anton and Calla is tense and full of angst as they transition from enemies to lovers and back again. I never knew what to expect in respect to their alliance/relationship and what may come to pass. As an adult debut, there is one spicy scene but is not too graphic/explicit. Loved the spark of chemistry here!
The world-building is a touch on the more simplistic side but I really didn't mind that because it was easy to understand and didn't take too much away from the plot or the characters. I am truly interested in learning more about the main magical/fantasy aspects: qi and body jumping, which Chloe has indicated she will take a deeper dive into (in her interview found at the back of my digital ARC) in the next two books in the trilogy.
The plot starts off slow as we are introduced into this world. By the 50-60% mark, the pacing picks up as the action intensifies, keeping me interested and wanting more.
I was simultaneously heartbroken and vindicated by the ending. I was shocked and pleasantly surprised by the outcome. Very excited to read book 2 when it publishes in 2024!
<i>I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher, Simon and Schuster Canada, of this advanced digital copy for the opportunity to read this novel in exchange for an honest review! All opinions shared are my own.</i>
This is an adult fantasy debut for Chloe inspired by Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra. San-Er, the capital city of the kingdom of Talin, is the the annual host of a set of deadly games where 88 players are chosen to battle each other to the death in hopes of becoming the victor and winner of unimaginable riches. Five years ago, Princess Calla slaughtered her family and has been in hiding since. Her goal is to kill King Kasa in order to bring down the monarchy and the only way to achieve this is to enter in the games. Anton Makusa is an exiled aristocrat, entering the games in hopes of winning in order to pay hospital bills for his childhood love, whom has been in a coma for the last seven years. Calla and Anton form an unexpected alliance, each with their own goals but both vying for victory.
IMMORTAL LONGINGS is told in multiple POVS using the third person, mostly in Calla's perspective which I truly loved. She is a strong, cunning, and feisty FMC. She's got loads of history and I loved learning more about her as the story progressed. I enjoyed the views into some of the other central characters (Anton and Prince August) while learning a small bit about their pasts and current motivations.
The alliance that forms between Anton and Calla is tense and full of angst as they transition from enemies to lovers and back again. I never knew what to expect in respect to their alliance/relationship and what may come to pass. As an adult debut, there is one spicy scene but is not too graphic/explicit. Loved the spark of chemistry here!
The world-building is a touch on the more simplistic side but I really didn't mind that because it was easy to understand and didn't take too much away from the plot or the characters. I am truly interested in learning more about the main magical/fantasy aspects: qi and body jumping, which Chloe has indicated she will take a deeper dive into (in her interview found at the back of my digital ARC) in the next two books in the trilogy.
The plot starts off slow as we are introduced into this world. By the 50-60% mark, the pacing picks up as the action intensifies, keeping me interested and wanting more.
I was simultaneously heartbroken and vindicated by the ending. I was shocked and pleasantly surprised by the outcome. Very excited to read book 2 when it publishes in 2024!
<i>I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher, Simon and Schuster Canada, of this advanced digital copy for the opportunity to read this novel in exchange for an honest review! All opinions shared are my own.</i>