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Foul Lady Fortune by Chloe Gong

Young adult

Foul Lady Fortune

Repeat author

Chloe Gong is back at Book of the Month – other BOTMs include Immortal Longings and These Violent Delights and Vilest Things.

by Chloe Gong

Excellent choice

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Volume 0
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Yes, she’s embroidered.

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Quick take

Stay alert! The first imperative in this shadowy 1930s Shanghai tale of spycraft and hijinks where death is ever near.

Good to know

  • Illustrated icon, Romance

    Romance

  • Illustrated icon, 400

    400+ pages

  • Illustrated icon, LGBTQ_themes

    LGBTQ+ themes

  • Illustrated icon, War

    War

Synopsis

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.

Free sample

Get an early look from the first pages of Foul Lady Fortune.

Foul Lady Fortune

PROLOGUE

1928

Out in the countryside, it doesn’t matter how loud you scream.

The sound travels through the warehouse, echoing once over in the tall ceiling slats, booming through the space and into the dark night. When it escapes, it merges into the howling wind until it is only another part of the storm that rages outside. The soldiers shuffle nervously toward the warehouse entrance, pulling at the heavy door until it slides closed, though the rain falls heavily enough that it has already soaked onto the flooring and stained the concrete in a dark semicircle. The faintest whistle of a train comes from the distance. Despite the infinitesimal chance they will be caught by any soul passing by, their instructions were clear: Guard the perimeter. No one can know what is happening here.

“What is the final verdict?”

“Successful. I think it is successful.”

The soldiers are spread out across the warehouse, but two scientists stand around a table at the center. They stare impassively at the scene before them, at the test subject strapped down by thick buckles, forehead beaded with sweat. Another convulsion tears through the subject from head to toe, but their voice has grown hoarse from shrieking, and so their mouth merely pulls wide and soundless this time.

“Then it works.”

“It works. We have the first part complete now.”

One of the scientists, putting a pen behind their ear, signals to a soldier, who approaches the table to release the buckles in turn: all those on the left, then all those on the right.

The buckles drop, metal clanking to the floor. The subject tries to roll over, but they panic, jerking too hard and tipping off the table instead. It is a terrible sight. The subject lands in a sprawl at the scientists’ feet and heaves for breath—heaves and heaves like they cannot fill their lungs properly, and perhaps they never will again.

A hand comes down upon the subject’s head. The touch is gentle, almost tender. When the scientist peruses their work, smoothing at the subject’s hair, their expression is set with a smile.

“It’s all right. You mustn’t struggle.”

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Why I love it

It’s hard to pin down or describe Foul Lady Fortune, but the attempt gives me a rather violent delight. I am a writer after all. So in a word, Foul Lady Fortune is thrilling. At every turn, Chloe Gong keeps us on our toes, blending equal parts action and mystery in an epic tale of loyalty, honor, and betrayal. Make sure you have a comfortable chair before you start reading.

Foul Lady Fortune is a spinoff of the These Violent Delights duology set in 1930’s Shanghai, a time when "foreign devils" were exploiting China, while civil war brewed. Rosalind Lang is an assassin with a need to atone for her past failings. After being injected with an experimental serum that gives her the ability to heal from any wound, albeit painfully, she becomes the nationalist party’s top choice to investigate a series of murders that have terrorized the population. In order to reduce suspicion, she and another spy, the handsome and infuriatingly cavalier playboy Orion Hong, are embedded as newlyweds. Each of them hold secrets which threaten to undermine their mission.

As the book progresses, allegiances are questioned at every turn, setting sister against sister, and husband against wife. The experience will have you up late flipping pages furiously. I dare you not to be enthralled.

Member ratings (4,282)

400+ pages
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Notes on a Silencing
Friends and Strangers
Evicted
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The Book of Longings
The Great Believers
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Red, White & Royal Blue
Long Bright River
When the Stars Lead to You
Ninth House
The Water Dancer
The Fountains of Silence
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Permanent Record
This Tender Land
The Reckless Oath We Made
The Boy and Girl Who Broke the World
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400+ pages
View all
The Thirteenth Child
Homeseeking
Most Wonderful
The Courting of Bristol Keats
Pictures of You
PS: I Hate You
The Road of Bones
Bloodguard
Intermezzo
The Dagger and the Flame
The Wild Huntress
The Crimson Crown
Here One Moment
Phantasma
The Pairing
All the Colors of the Dark
The God of the Woods
Same As It Ever Was
The Demon of Unrest
Five Broken Blades
Real Americans
The Reappearance of Rachel Price
Table for Two
The Familiar
A Short Walk Through a Wide World
Just for the Summer
The Wives
A Fate Inked in Blood
The Disappearance of Astrid Bricard
The Fox Wife
The Mayor of Maxwell Street
Ready or Not
Heartless Hunter
The Women
Family Family
Ruthless Vows
Gwen & Art Are Not in Love
The Frozen River
The Future
What We Kept to Ourselves
Wellness
The Fragile Threads of Power
You, Again
The Bookbinder
Happiness Falls
Shark Heart
Love, Theoretically
The Only One Left
The First Ladies
Ink Blood Sister Scribe
Warrior Girl Unearthed
The True Love Experiment
Did You Hear About Kitty Karr?
Yours Truly
Hello Beautiful
I Have Some Questions for You
Clytemnestra
The Last Russian Doll
Someone Else’s Shoes
The Shards
Hell Bent
Age of Vice
A Wilderness of Stars
Babel
The Circus Train
Before I Let Go
Bloodmarked
The Last Party
Foul Lady Fortune
Sign Here
Thistlefoot
As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow
The Attic Child
Bronze Drum
The It Girl
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow
The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle
The Change
Part of Your World
Lessons in Chemistry
The Good Left Undone
Kaikeyi
True Biz
Pieces of Her
Booth
Peach Blossom Spring
A River Enchanted
Black Cake
Will
Still Life
The Keeper of Night
The Book of Magic
The Lincoln Highway
Apples Never Fall
In Every Mirror She's Black
Damnation Spring
One Last Stop
Half Sick of Shadows
The Girl with Stars in Her Eyes
What Comes After
In a Book Club Far Away
The Four Winds
Black Buck
The City We Became
The Prophets
The Star-Crossed Sisters of Tuscany
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue
A Rogue of One's Own
Notes on a Silencing
Friends and Strangers
Evicted
The End of October
The Book of Longings
The Great Believers
Yes No Maybe So
Anna K
Not So Pure and Simple
Red, White & Royal Blue
Long Bright River
When the Stars Lead to You
Ninth House
The Water Dancer
The Fountains of Silence
The Goldfinch
Frankly in Love
Permanent Record
This Tender Land
The Reckless Oath We Made
The Boy and Girl Who Broke the World
The Gifted School
Free Food for Millionaires
Ask Again, Yes
All the Light We Cannot See
Sky Without Stars
Night Music
Small Fry
One Day in December
Nine Perfect Strangers
The Clockmaker's Daughter
The Great Alone
The Heart’s Invisible Furies
The Ministry of Utmost Happiness
A Million Junes
The Nightingale
Behold the Dreamers
A Gentleman in Moscow
The Secret History
Dead Wake
Salt to the Sea
& Sons
Palace of Treason