Scan barcode
onemorepagecrew's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
4.0
The Only Child by Mi-ae Seo, translated from Korean to English by Jung Yewon, is a debut psychological thriller that embraced the slow burn. In it we meet Seonkyeong, a criminal psychologist whose life collides with two unnerving people. The first is a serial killer serving a prison sentence, Yi Byeongdo, and the second is her husband’s daughter, Hayeong, who has recently come to live with them.
The book follows Seonkyeong as she lives her day-to-day life, while slowly peeling away the layers of mystery surrounding Yi Byeongdo and Hayeong. It’s a stark look at disturbing events and while it lacked a fast-pace and twisty energy, it still built a low humming tension.
I’d recommend this to anyone who enjoys a slowed down mystery and has a high tolerance for disturbing events. The events aren’t described in great detail, but psychopathic characters and their killings are at the heart of this book.
So many psychological suspense books (possibly my fav genre) include a race to stop heinous things from happening. This book took a different approach and embraced them, while trying to understand the psychological path that led to their occurrence. It’s a bleak vibe, but it worked well.
Content warnings: Child abuse, Murder, Death, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Suicide, Fire/Fire injury
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Death, Child abuse, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Suicide, and Fire/Fire injury
themoodreader's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Animal death, Blood, Murder, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Fire/Fire injury
painausten314's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Blood, Child abuse, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Fire/Fire injury, and Suicide attempt
More...