FOUL HEART HUNTSMAN By Chloe Gong
I received this book for free from Reviewer Purchase in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Foul Heart Huntsman by Chloe GongSeries: Foul Lady Fortune #2
Published by Margaret K. McElderry Books on 9/26/23
Genres: Fantasy & Magic, Historical, Romance, Young Adult
Pages: 560
Format: Ebook
Source: Reviewer Purchase
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Winter is drawing thick in 1932 Shanghai, as is the ever-nearing threat of a Japanese invasion.
Rosalind Lang has suffered the worst possible fate for a national spy: she’s been exposed. With the media storm camped outside her apartment for the infamous Lady Fortune, she’s barely left her bedroom in weeks, plotting her next course of action after Orion was taken and his memories of Rosalind wiped. Though their marriage might have been a sham, his absence hurts her more than any physical wound. She won’t rest until she gets him back.
But with her identity in the open, the task is near impossible. The only way to leave the city and rescue Orion is under the guise of a national tour. It’s easy to convince her superiors that the countryside needs unity more than ever, and who better than an immortal girl to stir pride and strength into the people?
When the tour goes wrong, however, everything Rosalind once knew is thrown up in the air. Taking refuge outside Shanghai, old ghosts come into the open and adversaries turn to allies. To save Orion, they must find a cure to his mother’s traitorous invention and take this dangerous chemical weapon away from impending foreign invasion—but the clock is ticking, and if Rosalind fails, it’s not only Orion she loses, but her nation itself.
Short and Sweet Review
The worst thing has happened to Rosalind Lang as a national spy, her cover has been blown and now everyone knows she’s the infamous Lady Fortune. Orion is still under his mothers control and Rosalind thinks that the best thing to do is to go on a national tour and get him back. Of course the tour goes awry and now the only way to save Orion is with the help from a lot of unsuspecting characters.
The first book in this duology was amazing but I think this sequel takes the cake. Rosalinds world is crashing down, her identity is no longer a secret, and Orion is gone and has no memory of her. Rosalinds goal is to get Orion back and to do that she decides to go on a national tour which goes wrong and ends up meeting with the mysterious JM who sent her a message in the last book. Rosalind works with Celia, Oliver, Alisa, Phoebe, and Silas. My favorite thing was seeing characters from the These Violent Delights duology especially Juliette and Roma. The book takes a lot of twists and turns and the group may make plans but nothing is straight forward. We see a lot of character growth from Rosalind, she isn’t as cold as she was in the previous book and she’s also coming to terms with what she did in These Violent Delights and also realizing its okay to show her emotions. I did like the relationship between Rosalind and Orion, I loved how she was willing to fight to get him back and was even patient with him when he didn’t remember her. There’s still a lot of political things going on around the characters and it was interesting to see how it impacted things around them. I think Alisa was an amazing character and she may have been a side character but she has main character energy, she brings it and I wouldn’t mind a book that focused on her. Phoebe was also a good character, she had a secret identity but she was willing to save her brothers even if it meant crossing her mother.
Foul Heart Huntsman is a great ending to this series, I loved these characters and the plot of this book, my favorite thing was seeing current and past characters work together. Gong does an amazing job of writing characters you care for and can connect with. The Foul Lady Fortune duology has made its way into my favorite series list, I can’t wait to see what Gong releases next!