katnortonwriter 's review for:

The God and the Gwisin by Sophie Kim

3.0

adventurous emotional mysterious fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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Just FYI: if you have not read book 1, I’m not sure how to comment without at least implying some information about what happens. I’ve tried to be suitably vague for people who know the setup for book 2.

“The God and the Gumiho” was one of my favorite books of 2024 and I have recommended it pretty much nonstop. I was thrilled to be offered an ARC of the second book, but I really wrestled with my discomfort around the power dynamics involved in this story. Hani and Seokga were well-matched and felt like equals (if anything, Hani had an edge). This installment, with the sheltered 20-something-year-old Kisa, felt WAY too much like grooming to me. I don’t believe that was the author’s intent, and any romance with a human and an immortal is gonna have those weird vibes. I’m not sure if I would have had such an intense visceral reaction to their budding relationship if Kisa had been a bit less sheltered, but this put me off.

Also, in the year of our lord 2025, can we please drop the storyline of “Your antidepressants are actually DRAINING your magical powers”? Please and thank you.

There were parts of this that I enjoyed, so it wasn’t a total wash for me, but I’m not sure how to feel when the concept itself was my issue.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. I can see that other people didn’t have this hangup, and since I’m someone who gets deeply icked out by power dynamic imbalances in romance in general, take this with a grain of salt.