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jayss 's review for:
The Red Palace
by June Hur
You have to respect an author that really does research on what they're writing about, it sets them apart from the mainstream pop culture. I'm also glad I read acknowledgements first and then the book - the author is a believer so I knew there weren't going to be any nasty surprises in the book itself, God bless <3
As for the book itself, it has a lot of promise for lovers of:
k-drama ✅
Korean history ✅
mystery ✅
clean romance ✅
detective work ✅
strong female characters ✅
But... the story was not quite as riveting as I thought it would be. It dragged on at times and it was easy to put down. In other words - not fast-paced, yet at the same time it didn't seem attentive to details either. Details as in interesting bits to keep you suspended. The descriptions provided were of very neutral nature - the color of walls, the shape of the latticework, etc. The characters were also not as fleshed out as they should be for you to care about them, they seemed to solely exist because of the issue they represent (father issues, hierarchy issues, gender issues...).
Regardless, I do hope more books of this kind will begin emerging, the white-Western narrative is outdated and can provide no entertainment and thought for the new generation of readers.
As for the book itself, it has a lot of promise for lovers of:
k-drama ✅
Korean history ✅
mystery ✅
clean romance ✅
detective work ✅
strong female characters ✅
But... the story was not quite as riveting as I thought it would be. It dragged on at times and it was easy to put down. In other words - not fast-paced, yet at the same time it didn't seem attentive to details either. Details as in interesting bits to keep you suspended. The descriptions provided were of very neutral nature - the color of walls, the shape of the latticework, etc. The characters were also not as fleshed out as they should be for you to care about them, they seemed to solely exist because of the issue they represent (father issues, hierarchy issues, gender issues...).
Regardless, I do hope more books of this kind will begin emerging, the white-Western narrative is outdated and can provide no entertainment and thought for the new generation of readers.