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4.12 AVERAGE
4.12 AVERAGE
challenging
hopeful
informative
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Grace Park and Shawn Matthews don’t seem to have an awful lot in common. Grace is a Pharmacist, working in the family business in her local community. Shawn is an ex-convict who has gone straight since getting out of prison, working at a moving company and supporting his family. But something in the past connects these two families and it’s about to erupt, changing people’s lives forever.
This is a book that was passed to me by my brother’s sister-in-law so I didn’t really know a great deal about it going in, beyond what was on the blurb, but she normally has excellent taste in books so I figured it would probably be good and it absolutely was.
Cha’s characterisation is spot on. The whole cast felt like well rounded characters, even the ones we don’t see much of. It was extremely topical, dealing with racism and Police brutality, and I loved the fact that Cha linked it back to the days of Rodney King as well. I think too often we like to congratulate ourselves that times have changed but sometimes it feels like they haven’t actually changed that much.
At the end Cha references a real case that she used as a basis for part of her story and it was interesting for me to do a bit of Googling and read a little more into that as well.
Cha’s writing has a nice flow and really kept my attention gripped. The dual narrative works really well and means the reader knows more of what is going on than the characters as we get to see both sides. I liked the kind of commentary on revenge and how damaging it can be.
I would have liked to have seen a little more of the character of Ray as he kind of of came in and out of the story a little and I think seeing his thought processes and what was going on with him would have been really interesting.
Whilst I’m not someone who likes to have all her stories tied up in a nice little bow by the end I was a little disappointed with the way Cha ended this. It felt extremely abrupt, to the point where I actually flipped the page expecting another chapter and was very surprised there wasn’t one. I think even just one more chapter would have been enough to just round the ending off a little, not even giving it a completely full conclusion but it really did feel like I was missing pages.
Overall, this was a good introduction to Cha’s writing for me and I’d definitely read more from her.
dark
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Families of murderer and victim are thrown together as both seek retribution.
Wow, this book packs a punch. The pacing of a thriller but with the complexity and character development of a much more "serious" book. Which is not at all to say this book isn't serious -- its central events are gutting and scary (and based on a true story. Really, many true stories). It reminded me of "Such A Fun Age" and "The Hate U Give" and maybe, like, "Goodbye, Vitamin" or "When No One Is Watching." I can't say much without spoilers, but it follows two people on sort of opposite sides of a murder. Their stories weave in and out in a way I found really engaging and moving, and ultimately collide and end with a bang, which I was mad about because I wanted more story, but which I thought worked well. I'll be thinking about this one for a long time.
challenging
emotional
reflective
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Wow, what a book! Such an emotional journey, parts of it were so hard to read, and parts that I sped through. The author does an amazing job capturing such different lives and perspectives. There are so many feelings this book bring out. 10/10 recommend!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Medical content, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Police brutality
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death
I haven't read many contemporary books quite like this. The subject matter was so important and relevant to current world events. I loved the way Steph Cha dealt with the perspectives of both families and the internal conflict of the main characters.
This was a true page turner for me - the author did a great job building up suspense and complexity in the story. I liked that she didn’t leave us with easy answers but rather with a sense of the turmoil of both families involved in the book’s events.
challenging
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
(4.5 Stars)
Los Angeles, 2019- another police officer gets off unscathed after killing a black teenager. Grace Park, a 27-year-old pharmacist and the daughter of Korean immigrants, feels saddened by the death, but quickly goes back to her own problems-like trying to maintain a relationship with the older sister who, for reasons unknown to Grace, stopped talking to their parents two years ago. Meanwhile, Shawn Matthews, a black man in his forties, has been down this road before, 28 years ago after a tragedy struck his family. Now, Shawn has a steady job and family life and is looking toward a future that he has worked hard for, since being released from prison years ago. Another act of violence occurs, ensuring that neither Grace nor Shawn is able to look away, and tragedies and secrets from their past are brought into the spotlight.
Pros:
•The concept of this book was incredibly relevant and incredibly interesting. I had no knowledge of the relationships between Black and Korean Americans and appreciated the opportunity to learn more about this more complicated dimension of violence against black bodies in the US
•I am left with a lot of thoughts and questions to ponder about the themes in this book- it is a great book for discussion
•I liked how each of the characters, even the minor characters, were complicated and flawed. This reflected the complexity of the issues the characters dealt with, and made them feel more realistic
Cons:
•I wish more time had been given to parsing apart the complex feelings of different characters, especially Grace and Miriam. The Park girls were in a very interesting situation and their opinions (ie whether someone was at fault, should be arrested, how to view their parents) were stated briefly and sometimes quickly. I would have liked to see more discussion between them or at least more mulling on their opinions internally. I think this book brings up a lot of interesting, difficult questions that we often don’t see in books, but I don’t think it gave the reader enough time to think through those questions
•Overall, the book felt a little rushed. The ending also felt rushed and weird, though I liked the open ended aspect of it
Recommendation: I recommend if you like books that make you think about themes, and especially if you’re looking to think/learn more about racial violence/injustice. I found this book to be really enjoyable and interesting, and I’ll be pondering some of the themes for quite some time. It’s more character/theme than plot-based, though I do wish the characters had been given a little more time to develop. Avoid if you want something light or easy (it’s a quick read but deals with heavy topics), plot based or with a strong focus on character development.
Los Angeles, 2019- another police officer gets off unscathed after killing a black teenager. Grace Park, a 27-year-old pharmacist and the daughter of Korean immigrants, feels saddened by the death, but quickly goes back to her own problems-like trying to maintain a relationship with the older sister who, for reasons unknown to Grace, stopped talking to their parents two years ago. Meanwhile, Shawn Matthews, a black man in his forties, has been down this road before, 28 years ago after a tragedy struck his family. Now, Shawn has a steady job and family life and is looking toward a future that he has worked hard for, since being released from prison years ago. Another act of violence occurs, ensuring that neither Grace nor Shawn is able to look away, and tragedies and secrets from their past are brought into the spotlight.
Pros:
•The concept of this book was incredibly relevant and incredibly interesting. I had no knowledge of the relationships between Black and Korean Americans and appreciated the opportunity to learn more about this more complicated dimension of violence against black bodies in the US
•I am left with a lot of thoughts and questions to ponder about the themes in this book- it is a great book for discussion
•I liked how each of the characters, even the minor characters, were complicated and flawed. This reflected the complexity of the issues the characters dealt with, and made them feel more realistic
Cons:
•I wish more time had been given to parsing apart the complex feelings of different characters, especially Grace and Miriam. The Park girls were in a very interesting situation and their opinions (ie whether someone was at fault, should be arrested, how to view their parents) were stated briefly and sometimes quickly. I would have liked to see more discussion between them or at least more mulling on their opinions internally. I think this book brings up a lot of interesting, difficult questions that we often don’t see in books, but I don’t think it gave the reader enough time to think through those questions
•Overall, the book felt a little rushed. The ending also felt rushed and weird, though I liked the open ended aspect of it
Recommendation: I recommend if you like books that make you think about themes, and especially if you’re looking to think/learn more about racial violence/injustice. I found this book to be really enjoyable and interesting, and I’ll be pondering some of the themes for quite some time. It’s more character/theme than plot-based, though I do wish the characters had been given a little more time to develop. Avoid if you want something light or easy (it’s a quick read but deals with heavy topics), plot based or with a strong focus on character development.
Almost like a vendetta, the racial distrust and hatred in South Central LA between the African-American majority and the fairly new (1970s-1980s) Korean-American immigrants repeatedly simmer and boil over. This wonderful novel reminded me of the movie Gook by writer / director / actor Justin Chon - it shows the effect of the Rodney King riots on the Korean area of LA in 1992.
It wasn’t till I read Your House Will Pay that I learned there was a reason the Korean businesses were targeted during the riots. A Korean shopkeeper shot and killed a 15-year-old black girl whom she suspected of shoplifting. They fought at the cash register and, as the girl was walking away to leave, the woman shot her in the back of the head. Despite the jury asking for a 16-year sentence for the shopkeeper, the judge said recent robberies caused her to fear for her life, so the sentence was time already served plus probation. In other words, the Korean got away with murdering the black teenager. The four cops who beat Rodney King were found not guilty a couple of weeks later, and the city exploded.
Your House Will Pay is a fictionalization of those events and how they might have played out almost thirty years later, the same Korean / black tensions never having really been resolved. The families of the shooter and the victim come together and all the old wounds are ripped opened again. Chapters alternate between the younger daughter (age 27) of the Korean shopkeeper and the younger brother (age 41) of the girl who was killed. Both sides are portrayed evenly and sympathetically. I felt awful for what all of them were going through. The book builds to what feels like a disaster for both families, coming to a fiery ending.
Highly recommended.
It wasn’t till I read Your House Will Pay that I learned there was a reason the Korean businesses were targeted during the riots. A Korean shopkeeper shot and killed a 15-year-old black girl whom she suspected of shoplifting. They fought at the cash register and, as the girl was walking away to leave, the woman shot her in the back of the head. Despite the jury asking for a 16-year sentence for the shopkeeper, the judge said recent robberies caused her to fear for her life, so the sentence was time already served plus probation. In other words, the Korean got away with murdering the black teenager. The four cops who beat Rodney King were found not guilty a couple of weeks later, and the city exploded.
Your House Will Pay is a fictionalization of those events and how they might have played out almost thirty years later, the same Korean / black tensions never having really been resolved. The families of the shooter and the victim come together and all the old wounds are ripped opened again. Chapters alternate between the younger daughter (age 27) of the Korean shopkeeper and the younger brother (age 41) of the girl who was killed. Both sides are portrayed evenly and sympathetically. I felt awful for what all of them were going through. The book builds to what feels like a disaster for both families, coming to a fiery ending.
Highly recommended.