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Vilest Things by Chloe Gong

Fantasy

Vilest Things

by Chloe Gong

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Quick take

Past betrayals must be put aside to quell spreading unrest in the empire in this potent follow-up to Immortal Longings.

Good to know

  • Illustrated icon, Romance

    Romance

  • Illustrated icon, Action_packed

    Action-packed

  • Illustrated icon, Based_on_a_Classic

    Based on a classic

  • Illustrated icon, Second_in_Series

    Second in series

Synopsis

Calla Tuoleimi has succeeded in the impossible. Despite the odds, she has won San-Er’s bloody games and eliminated King Kasa, her tyrant uncle and the former ruler of Talin. She serves now as royal advisor to Kasa’s adopted son, August Shenzhi, who has risen to the throne.

Only Calla knows it isn’t really August.

Anton Makusa is still furious about Calla’s betrayal in the final round of the games. In an impossible feat, he took over August’s body to survive, and has no intention of giving up this newfound power. But when his first love, the beautiful, explosive Otta Avia, awakens from a years-long coma and reveals a secret that threatens the monarchy’s authority over Talin, chaos erupts. As tensions come to a boiling point, Calla and Anton must set their conflicts aside and head to the kingdom’s far reaches to prevent anarchy… even if their empire might be better off burning.

Free sample

Get an early look from the first pages of Vilest Things.

Vilest Things

CHAPTER 1

BEFORE

Power has a certain taste to it. A hot, golden tang slinking down the throat and trailing smoke in its wake, like seared meat or aged liquor. Something to settle the body, soothe the heart. It is the answer to every type of hunger, an addictive luxury that requires little else in accompaniment, some salve solely made to take up every bit of space it can find.

Power also has a certain taste coming back up. And Anton Makusa can’t say he finds it very pleasant at all.

He takes a shaky breath, fighting to keep his stomach under control. The guards inside the throne room peer through the gold-thread curtains, calling in concern, but Anton wipes his mouth and waves them off. His vision flickers and doubles. His skin screams with raw misery, his qi at once too big for his body and too ill-fitting in its mold. The last minute of his existence tries to escape from understanding. He’s struggling beyond belief to hold on to consciousness, to cling to life. Memories that are both his own and not flash before his eyes. He looks at his hands, and the image lurches. He’s washing blood off. Writing with old ink.

Then, in a snap, the pain eases. Though the nausea remains, his body stands intact. His surroundings register again. One guard steps onto the balcony to ask if he would like assistance to come inside now, and Anton throws his gaze out over the ledge in disbelief.

He doesn’t entirely know how he’s done it, but he has. The guard prompts him again, her eyes flickering to the sludge on the balcony floor where Anton emptied his stomach, and Anton raises a hand to stop her, barely holding down another shudder. Maybe he’s only squeamish over the gruesome image below. Princess Calla Tuoleimi—player Fifty-Seven—has just been declared the victor of the king’s annual games, having slaughtered her final opponent. The loudspeaker continues bellowing the results: A decisive battle . . . the Juedou draws to a close . . . the final challenger is dead . . . and even if Anton shuts his eyes, he can’t keep the images out. His last moments in the arena are trying to coalesce with August’s most recent memories: Calla, luring him close; the council, meeting late at night in the war room; Calla, her forehead resting upon his shoulder; a dove, pressed into the wax seal of an envelope before the paper is torn open; Calla, Calla, Calla

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Why I love it

If you’ve ever experienced the agony of waiting for a sequel, you’ll understand the anticipation I felt for Chloe Gong's follow-up to Immortal Longings. The wait for Vilest Things was excruciating, but it proved to be an exhilarating ride that justified every moment of suspense.

In this thrilling sequel, Calla Tuoleimi faces the aftermath of her victory in San-Er’s brutal games. She is now royal advisor to August Shenzhi, the adopted son of the fallen tyrant Kasa, whom she eliminated. Only August is not August.

Furious and intent on revenge, Anton Makusa has taken over August’s body. The plot thickens when his former love awakens from a long coma with a revelation that could destabilize the kingdom. The once-distant threat now forces Calla and Anton to work together, navigating through the kingdom’s darkest corners, to prevent its collapse.

Political intrigue, shifting loyalties, and the looming threat of anarchy: Vilest Things is everything the sequel to Immortal Longings needed to be. Brimming with suspense and twists that keep you on the edge of your seat, this is a must-read!

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View all
Starling House
Heartless Hunter
The Lost Story
A Fate Inked in Blood
Five Broken Blades
Ink Blood Sister Scribe
The Unfortunate Side Effects of Heartbreak and Magic
The Kingdom of Sweets
Hera
A Sorceress Comes to Call
Hell Bent
Kaikeyi
Weyward
The Unmaking of June Farrow
The Fragile Threads of Power
Beasts of Extraordinary Circumstance
The Book of Magic
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue
The Rules of Magic
A History of Wild Places
Gods of Jade and Shadow
The City We Became
A River Enchanted
The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina
Piranesi
Thistlefoot
Half Sick of Shadows
Ariadne
Ninth House
The Invisible Hour
Clytemnestra
Sourdough
Siren Queen
The Last Tale of the Flower Bride
Fate of the Fallen
Immortal Longings
Practical Magic