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3.76 AVERAGE
3.76 AVERAGE
Compelling, sometimes beautiful, sometimes awkward. Read like it was translated from Korean. Unfortunately difficult to tell the characters apart sometimes. And if you're not already familiar with some Korean terms and honorifics, you're likely going to end up confused.
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Murder
emotional
mysterious
tense
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
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
In 1800 Korea, Seol is a damo, an indentured servant for a police department that is investigating the murder of a noblewoman. She's assisting Inspector Han with the investigation. As they get deeper into the investigation, Seol starts learning things that she soon regret learning. The Author's Note noted this book is loosely based on an incident involving the persecution of Catholics in Joseon, Korea in the early 19th century. Hur does an excellent job evoking Korea of that period. She makes the rigid gender division clear. Men held most of the privilege but they needed female servants to go into female spaces. Seol, who is very clever, is the reader's eyes and as readers learn her story they get to understand her. Han is the lead investigator who has his own reasons for solving the case. Each character introduced has a story that needs to be uncovered. There are a few brutal scenes of torture and violence against women. It's not a simple mystery with several suspects. Thankfully they don't shove in a romance. There's enough going on, plus adding one to this story would just ring false. Other YA historical mysteries include Hell and High Water by Tanya Landman and The Pearl Thief by Elizabeth Wein.
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
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
Such a good book. The plot twists were something else! Left me gasping in shock and also saddened by the outcome.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Hate crime, Sexism, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Murder, Classism
Minor: Suicide, Police brutality
“‘This is the consequence of the clash of old and new. We must prepare our hearts, all of us. No matter which side wins, we will all be heartbroken.’” (246)
Set in Joseon Korea during the height of persecution against Catholics as this new religion rubs against the old, this story follows a young girl’s journey to discover where she herself fits into this new world.
Seol, a sixteen-year-old indentured to the police bureau, is tasked with assisting the aloof and distant Inspector Han in investigating a brutal murder of a noble woman in the city. When it is discovered that the woman was Catholic and may have been part of a group of Catholics in the city harboring a fugitive priest, the tone of the investigation changes.
Maid servants are tortured for information. Investigator Han, who blames Catholicism for his own family’s exile years ago, not only amps if the investigation but, eventually, becomes the prime suspect.
He also becomes Seoul’s prime suspect but not for murder per se; she believes Inspector Han may be her lost older brother who left the island they, along with an older sister, had been exiled to a decade ago in order to try and regain some of their family’s lost honor.
This is a rather haunting story. It really explores how the past can predict the future and how clashes of the old and new are never truly resolved. More, we may never really know the people we try to love. Sometimes time cannot heal all wounds and, sometimes, healing isn’t what people want.
Set in Joseon Korea during the height of persecution against Catholics as this new religion rubs against the old, this story follows a young girl’s journey to discover where she herself fits into this new world.
Seol, a sixteen-year-old indentured to the police bureau, is tasked with assisting the aloof and distant Inspector Han in investigating a brutal murder of a noble woman in the city. When it is discovered that the woman was Catholic and may have been part of a group of Catholics in the city harboring a fugitive priest, the tone of the investigation changes.
Maid servants are tortured for information. Investigator Han, who blames Catholicism for his own family’s exile years ago, not only amps if the investigation but, eventually, becomes the prime suspect.
He also becomes Seoul’s prime suspect but not for murder per se; she believes Inspector Han may be her lost older brother who left the island they, along with an older sister, had been exiled to a decade ago in order to try and regain some of their family’s lost honor.
This is a rather haunting story. It really explores how the past can predict the future and how clashes of the old and new are never truly resolved. More, we may never really know the people we try to love. Sometimes time cannot heal all wounds and, sometimes, healing isn’t what people want.
This was another really great mystery, and I loved watching things unfold!