These Violent Delights

These Violent Delights has an interesting premise, and frankly, one I liked more than the original Romeo and Juliet tale (sorry, I've never been able to get into Shakespeare...), but I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought I would. My reasoning ultimately boils down to being the wrong demographic.

Set in Shanghai in 1926, the book is reminiscent of the West Side Story take on Romeo and Juliet with gangs, forbidden love, and tragedy. Juliette and Roma serve as our protagonists in this dystopian-like setting.

This had more fantasy elements than I anticipated. I'm picky with this genre, but what got to me the most was the gore. Not for me. The writing was definitely geared toward a younger audience. Of course, I was prepared for this given it's marketed as YA. The setting was fantastic, but the characters were completely unrelatable to me. I continued on due to it being a book club read. If this looks like something you'll enjoy, you probably will.