Guest Post: Characters From These Violent Delights As Taylor Swift Songs by Chloe Gong

Hi friends! Today, I’m so excited to share this guest post by Chloe Gong! As you all know, we’re huge fans of Chloe Gong, These Violent Delights, and of Taylor Swift, and so we asked her to assign a Taylor Swift song per character for this guest post! Without further ado, read her post below!

This is at once the hardest guest post to write and the smartest guest post idea because of how many Taylor Swift songs would fit these characters, so *virtual applause* I was very pleased to be handed this prompt. Without further adieu and after much, much, much agonizing on my end, here is the one song I would assign to each main character.

Juliette Cai — closure (evermore)

Seeing the shape of your name / Still spells out pain

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Guilty, guilty reaching out across the sea / That you put between you and me

I could have chosen “Love Story”, or “Haunted”, or “You All Over Me”, but “closure” fits Juliette’s anger after she’s been pulled out of the city so perfectly. Unbeknownst to her too, Roma writes letters during this time, none of which reaches her, but even with such distance between them, Juliette is the epitome of being surrounded by spite even in new surroundings, which hardens her and forces her to become a whole different person at the time of her return. 

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Roma Montagov — my tears ricochet (folklore)

You wear the same jewels that I gave you / As you bury me

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And you can aim for my heart, go for blood/ But you would still miss me in your bones

We all knew this was coming! “my tears ricochet” is the song for Roma between These Violent Delights and Our Violent Ends. He had trusted his world to finally be healing, only for Juliette to throw it all out and make him question everything he thought he knew. There’s so much betrayal merged with a feeling of love that you can’t get rid of, knowing that what hurts most is never being able to return to how it once was.

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Benedikt Montagov — Out Of The Woods (1989)

Remember when we couldn’t take the heat?/ I walked out, I said “I’m setting you free”/ But the monsters turned out to be just trees/ When the sun came up you were looking at me

Benedikt simultaneously likes to run away from his problems and can’t stop thinking about his problems. If he’s not stressing about the state of the world he’s squashing down the internal question of why Marshall tugs at his heart like that. This song is definitely his song because he always feels boxed in by the taller trees that grow all to his sides, but his character journey is one of self-realization and finding his path out of the dark, foreboding woods.

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Marshall Seo — Jump Then Fall (Fearless) (Taylor’s Version, obvi)

Well, I like the way your hair falls in your face/ You got the keys to me/ I love each freckle on your face, oh

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When people say things that bring you to your knees/ I’ll catch you

Yes, I did choose these lyrics above as most applicable to Marshall while he observes Benedikt, but I also think “Jump Then Fall” really encapsulates Marshall’s attitude to life. He dives headfirst into everything and brings 101% of his energy, confident and self-assured. He wasn’t born with this confidence of course, and you learn a lot more of his backstory in Our Violent Ends, like where exactly this attitude comes from and how it’s a survival mechanism. He’s brave at heart, and it shows itself in a way that other people like to gravitate toward.

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Kathleen Lang — mirrorball (folklore)

I’m still on my tallest tiptoes/ Spinning in my highest heels, love/ Shining just for you

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I’m still on that tightrope/ I’m still trying everything to get you laughing at me/ I’m still a believer but I don’t know why

There’s a line from These Violent Delights within Kathleen’s internal monologue that fits the lyrics of “mirrorball” perfectly, and I actually wrote it before Taylor released folklore! But since Taylor and I are on the same wavelength, then it’s only right that we make this song pairing. Kathleen moves through the world cautiously, always more aware of what other people think about her than what she thinks about others. She’s so loyal, almost to a fault, but at what point must she break away to take what she wants for herself? Her arc in Our Violent Ends was one of my absolute favorites to write.

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Rosalind Lang — Wonderland (1989 Deluxe Edition)

But there were strangers watching/ And whispers turned to talking/ And talking turned to screams

Rosalind is incredibly disenchanted with the Scarlet Gang, and throughout the course of the duology she acts a foil to Juliette, who has a certain power and name recognition that Rosalind does not. The elite children of a city in a blood feud are always watched, but what happens when you’re not as well protected? Rosalind is one of my favorite characters to write because she has an internality that goes so deep, and even if this isn’t her story, she serves as an example of how the city’s consequences stretch to every corner, high and low.

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Alisa Montagova — Mean (Speak Now)

Someday, I’ll be big enough so you can’t hit me/ And all you’re ever gonna be is mean

Alisa is the eyes around the city, technically not involved with any of the drama and angst that goes around in bucket loads but still a critical puzzle piece that gets moved around. But at the end of the day, she is so young and so innocent, looking at the violence before her with a frustration and helplessness that she can’t do anything about. My precious child.

Links for Our Violent Ends: Goodreads | TheStorygraph | Bookshop | IndieBound

Check out the rest of the tour here!

Up for grabs, Turn the Pages Tours is giving away ONE (1) finished copy of These Violent Delights and ONE (1) finished copy of Our Violent Ends by Chloe Gong. This giveaway will run from November 1st through 20th at 11:59 PM CST and will be open to U.S. residents ONLY. One winner will be chosen. To enter, click the link below!

RAFFLECOPTER LINK: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/1e4a114d48/?