Reviews with content warning for Cancer - Lemon

Reviews tagging 'Cancer'

Lemon by Kwon Yeo-sun

27 reviews

caroisreading's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

This is a very quick and haunting read, thought-provoking about classism and its effect on families, their trauma and grief.

Hae-on is a high schooler and is found murdered. Her case has gone cold. Her defining characteristic is her overwhelming beauty, paired with her vapid personality. We switch from the POVs of her younger sister Da-on, and two of her classmates, who each give us pieces to essentially solve the puzzle.

There are big leaps in timeline, and undefined switches in POV, which might be confusing, but I really appreciated the effect it gave -- stumbling around in memories, trying to make sense of it all. Without spoilers, I can say Kwon Yeo-Sun beautifully balanced that fine line with the reader, giving us just enough to understand each character's personality, backstory and role in the murder. You're forced to overcome your own prejudice to see clearly what's right in front of you.

Give this a read if you're in the mood for a short book, Korean authors and stories, and darker plots.

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tashtasher's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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orlagal's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

3.0

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ferns80's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated

5.0

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illtakethenightshiftx's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix

3.0

I’m not even sure if I can accurately summarize this novel without regurgitating what the jacket said. If you’re looking for a “whodunnit” story, this isn’t it. If you’re looking for a story about the ripple effect of tragedy and trauma, this is what you’re looking for.

The writing was beautiful and flowed smoothly. The translator did an incredible job of bringing the gorgeous prose the author wrote to life in English. I appreciated the footnotes when there wasn’t a direct translation; it added a lot of color and life to the language on the page.

The story itself was just okay - totally middle of the road for me. I found it a bit difficult to figure out what character we were following in each chapter until the very end. The novel also felt a little too short and I wanted to know a little bit more about certain characters. Overall, it was a quick, heavy, and beautifully translated read so if you’re in the mood for that, Lemon is for you!

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