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slaywithsteph's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
There are some people you just can’t love. Even when they smile, they make you want to pull on either side of that smile and rip their mouth off.
Yu-Jin, a troubled young adult dreaming of being independent and making his family proud, wakes up next to the dead body of his mother with no memory of what happened. You’ll follow along with Yu-Jin as he pieces together what happened.
The narrator is rather talkative as he reflects on his life and the death of his mom, but otherwise, it was fun albeit fairly predictable.
Graphic: Death of parent, Gore, Mental illness, Stalking, Blood, Death, Dysphoria, Physical abuse, Murder, Gaslighting, and Violence
dama_heiko's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Blood, Murder, Death, and Mental illness
solitary's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
initially rating it a solid three, i bumped it with an extra point five because of the new insights and perspective i got from my fellow readers. also, i realized just during the session how character-centric the book is, despite it being a psychological mystery/thriller. it’s such a unique approach to the usual whodunnit narrative popular in books and films.
pre-session:
jeong yu-jeong threads together memory and murder in this book examining the inner workings of a deranged mind. like what everyone else is saying, this is a whydunnit rather than a whodunnit story. yu-jin takes us to different points of place and time as he tries to make sense of what he knows, what he doesn't, and what he's about to.
i felt like a prosecutor listening to yu-jin's story as he attempts to trick the audience and even himself with what really transpired the night before. despite not having any big twists or reveal, the slow unveiling of yu-jin's life from his point of view and from the people around him was enough to keep me seated.
without revealing much, the good son is a study of whether the tendency of our darkest and most vile desires and actions are inherent or brought upon by a series of circumstances that started from childhood to adulthood.
family plays a major part in this narrative, which is an important concept in almost all asian households. yu-jin being twenty-five and still living with his mom is nothing uncommon, yet it dawned on me how confining this must be for him. this, as well as many other factors that resulted in the premise, asks how far can a mother go for his child. and when confronted by a deadly truth, how does she stop?
︴ read for korean cultural center ph's book club
Graphic: Blood, Death, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Stalking and Panic attacks/disorders
kristina_ligaya's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Mental illness, Death, Stalking, Car accident, Murder, and Violence
vonni's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Child death, Emotional abuse, Murder, Body horror, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Animal death, Car accident, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Grief, and Mental illness
Moderate: Medical content
mymercurialnature's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Violence, Stalking, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Blood, Mental illness, Misogyny, Gore, Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Death
nodogsonthemoon's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Violence, Car accident, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Blood
Moderate: Mental illness, Child abuse, Child death, Death of parent, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
greta595's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Blood, Cursing, Death, Gore, and Murder
Moderate: Car accident
prixkri's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Car accident, Death, Murder, Blood, Mental illness, and Panic attacks/disorders
booksavecelle's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Murder and Death
Moderate: Death of parent and Suicide