Storyline: Foul Lady Fortune is a book that takes place in 1931, by 25-year-old author, Chloe Gong. Fortune, one of the most well-known assassins in all of Shanghai, is a young woman aiding the Nationalists. Though being an assassin is unbelievable by its own means, being an immortal assassin is unheard of. This is what makes Fortune so good.
Fortune, or Lady Fortune as her admirers call her, is Rosalind Lang, the 25-year-old stuck in the body of a 19-year-old. Rosalind had worked as a dancer before she was an assassin, but she had always been calm, no matter what it was that she was doing. This was up until her handler, Dao Fang, assigned her to be a spy. Even worse, she must collaborate with a partner. Orion, her mission partner and a widely known player, is the exact opposite of Rosalind. Posing as her usual alias, Janie Mead, Rosalind helps the communists gather information about the Communists.
Celia, Rosalind’s older cousin, is partnered with Orion’s older brother. They are working with the Communist side, against Rosalind and Orion. Though these political labels separate each other, they always make sure to keep each other safe. Rosalind and Orion’s relationship builds, pressure rises, and time is running out. Will they be able to save Shanghai from the Communists?
Immortality: My take on immortality has changed after reading this book to a great extent. At first, I thought that being immortal would mean getting to live and be happy forever. (Note that I was also a young child while thinking this.) I thought that my family would also be able to live with me and later noticed that I would be alone. I than thought that I would be lonely until the end of my days if I were immortal, building new relationships and watching them crumble as people died.
This was after I watched a movie called The Age of Adaline starring Blake Lively. Adaline did not let herself love because she was afraid of losing people that she loved. She had never gotten hurt and was constantly chased by the U.S government. This altered my perspective yet again. I did not want to be chased by a government either. After recently reading Foul Lady Fortune, I realized that there were several types of immortality. Rosalind can get hurt. within the first twenty pages, she is attacked, and her neck is slit with a knife. She experiences what it is like to be killed, describing that she knew how it felt to die in multiple ways. This includes being shot, stabbed, and choked. Poison is her main weapon, to remind herself how easily she can die because poison can still harm or kill her.
Before learning all these different takes on immortality, I would have wanted it more than anything. After hearing what it was genuinely like to be immortal, I would like nothing more than to be mortal. Though immortality is fake, (I think, we may never truly know) a fantasy, I would not wish it on anyone who has a heart.
Notice: This book contains people getting hurt to an intense level, with multiple semi-gory descriptions of blood and several types of weapons. There are instances including bombs, knives, guns, and poison. There are some romantic connections in this book including kissing and hugging. This book is recommended for thirteen and up.
