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4.11 AVERAGE
4.11 AVERAGE
A little slow in the middle but picked up again at the end
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
No
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
3.5 stars
picked this up completely on a whim and enjoyed it pretty solidly. pretty standard romcom enemies to lovers ordeal mixed together with korean mythology (which i admittedly dont know shit abt). some really predictable plot beats & tonal weirdness due to the comedy part of romcom but nothing annoying by any means. it didnt Move me in any way but i thought it was cute
picked this up completely on a whim and enjoyed it pretty solidly. pretty standard romcom enemies to lovers ordeal mixed together with korean mythology (which i admittedly dont know shit abt). some really predictable plot beats & tonal weirdness due to the comedy part of romcom but nothing annoying by any means. it didnt Move me in any way but i thought it was cute
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
This was a disappointing read for several reasons however ymmv because the things that did not work for me did appeal to other reviewers. I do want to give complements to the setting. Urban fantasy will always be a genre I am fond of. I loved the reasoning for why monsters and beings from folklore are living with humans and the ways they have adapted to the human realm. I also like the gray morality of the characters. Very few are human and their thought processes show that.
Unfortunately, I disliked more things than I liked about this novel. Starting off with the most egregious aspect for me - the romance. I simply did not believe in it as the transition from mutually irritating to affection was jarringly quick. After the confession (a mark in the book's favor! This happened substantially before the end), the romance felt like it was hitting emotional beats without the sense of feeling behind it. Those scenes would have been lovely if I actually supported the romance. I could believe in the growing friendship of sorts between Hani and Seokga, but not the depth of feeling proclaimed by both at the end.
It also really didn't help that I found both the MCs irritating as all hell. The "bantering" leading up the change in relationship status was annoying, not cute. Also Hani messing with Seokga's coffee, even if it's just by adding more sugar and cream because she wants to irritate Seokga and because she hates coffee, is a strike against her in my opinion. I despise anything that involves purposefully tampering with another's food for petty reasons. Besides that one point, Hani and Seokga were just so immature! Their personalities partially make sense. Hani is a gumiho; being mischievous seems like it would be a core trait for her. Seokga was banished to the human realm and his remaining powers are truly pathetic compared to what he previously had over 600 years ago. It makes sense that he is bitter, has a god complex (heh), and doesn't have any impetus to personally develop. Why would he? When these two are brought together understandably they clash. However, Hani and Seokga bickering like middle schoolers used up most of the tolerance I was giving them based on their backstories. The juvenile dialogue was another reason the romance didn't work for me.
I was listening to the audiobook and I feel like this novel was written like it was supposed to be watched instead. Several tropes were leaned into heavily throughout the novel in a way that is reminiscent of Korean rom-coms and certain scenes may have been more tolerable to me if I were watching them instead.
Another thing I disliked was the investigation. Some parts were fine. Other parts were so mind-boggling dumb I almost put the book down. Hopefully, the spoiler markers work but warning just in case.
By the end, I was more interested in the antagonists than the MCs. The antagonists had reasonable motivations! The only reason I wasn't fully cheering for them to win was because as a weak human I feel like I shouldn't support characters that would eat me for breakfast. Plus, the character arcs for the MCs, especially Hani's, came in far too late.
About the gossip rags in-universe - they exist. If I had to hear "Sexy Seokga" and "Hottie Hwanin" (I think that's how his name is spelled?) one more time, I would probably scream.
Overall, there were concepts I liked and may have enjoyed more if they developed in a different way than they did.
Unfortunately, I disliked more things than I liked about this novel. Starting off with the most egregious aspect for me - the romance. I simply did not believe in it as the transition from mutually irritating to affection was jarringly quick. After the confession (a mark in the book's favor! This happened substantially before the end), the romance felt like it was hitting emotional beats without the sense of feeling behind it. Those scenes would have been lovely if I actually supported the romance. I could believe in the growing friendship of sorts between Hani and Seokga, but not the depth of feeling proclaimed by both at the end.
It also really didn't help that I found both the MCs irritating as all hell. The "bantering" leading up the change in relationship status was annoying, not cute. Also Hani messing with Seokga's coffee, even if it's just by adding more sugar and cream because she wants to irritate Seokga and because she hates coffee, is a strike against her in my opinion. I despise anything that involves purposefully tampering with another's food for petty reasons. Besides that one point, Hani and Seokga were just so immature! Their personalities partially make sense. Hani is a gumiho; being mischievous seems like it would be a core trait for her. Seokga was banished to the human realm and his remaining powers are truly pathetic compared to what he previously had over 600 years ago. It makes sense that he is bitter, has a god complex (heh), and doesn't have any impetus to personally develop. Why would he? When these two are brought together understandably they clash. However, Hani and Seokga bickering like middle schoolers used up most of the tolerance I was giving them based on their backstories. The juvenile dialogue was another reason the romance didn't work for me.
I was listening to the audiobook and I feel like this novel was written like it was supposed to be watched instead. Several tropes were leaned into heavily throughout the novel in a way that is reminiscent of Korean rom-coms and certain scenes may have been more tolerable to me if I were watching them instead.
Another thing I disliked was the investigation. Some parts were fine. Other parts were so mind-boggling dumb I almost put the book down. Hopefully, the spoiler markers work but warning just in case.
Spoiler
There was such an obvious red herring and the in-book reasoning for that red herring made me wonder if the MCs were too stupid to live. Like I understand most of Seokga's investigations are straightforward and Hani has only ever caused investigations as a perpetrator, but have neither of them heard of a thing caused research?! Yes, humans in universe largely don't have knowledge of the creatures and gods among them. However, it is canon that myths and folklore exist!! The poor character was trying to be helpful.By the end, I was more interested in the antagonists than the MCs. The antagonists had reasonable motivations! The only reason I wasn't fully cheering for them to win was because as a weak human I feel like I shouldn't support characters that would eat me for breakfast. Plus, the character arcs for the MCs, especially Hani's, came in far too late.
About the gossip rags in-universe - they exist. If I had to hear "Sexy Seokga" and "Hottie Hwanin" (I think that's how his name is spelled?) one more time, I would probably scream.
Overall, there were concepts I liked and may have enjoyed more if they developed in a different way than they did.