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The Devoted
Win a free print copy of this book!
0 days and 10:30:27
100 copies available
U.S. only
A stunning, page-turning love story of family and fate from the author of the acclaimed memoir, Inferno.
Eunha grows up in a quiet village in Hong Kong with little knowledge of the reputation of her father, a Dragon Head and leader of a criminal organisation infamous in the city. While her grandmother does her best to shield her from the violence that underpins their lives, Eunha only has her brother Solomon and their one permitted companion, a boy named Kai, for company.
But when Eunha marries into a supposedly respectable Hong Kong family, the veneer of her quiet life begins to crack. When her young son is kidnapped, she is cast back into the city’s criminal underground and into the orbit of Kai, now a Dragon Head himself. In this world love and loyalty are stalked by fear and betrayal. Will Eunha finally give in to the life she has strived so hard to rise above or was her future always fated?
The Devoted is a beautifully written, unforgettable debut novel of love, family and betrayal from an electric new voice in fiction.
Eunha grows up in a quiet village in Hong Kong with little knowledge of the reputation of her father, a Dragon Head and leader of a criminal organisation infamous in the city. While her grandmother does her best to shield her from the violence that underpins their lives, Eunha only has her brother Solomon and their one permitted companion, a boy named Kai, for company.
But when Eunha marries into a supposedly respectable Hong Kong family, the veneer of her quiet life begins to crack. When her young son is kidnapped, she is cast back into the city’s criminal underground and into the orbit of Kai, now a Dragon Head himself. In this world love and loyalty are stalked by fear and betrayal. Will Eunha finally give in to the life she has strived so hard to rise above or was her future always fated?
The Devoted is a beautifully written, unforgettable debut novel of love, family and betrayal from an electric new voice in fiction.
Audible Audio
First published June 4, 2026
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July 18, 2026if i had to choose whether to give in to a life of crime or enjoy a normal existence with my family, i'd probably go with the latter. but then no one writes books about me
(thanks to the publisher for the e-arc)
(thanks to the publisher for the e-arc)
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Oh boy… this one is a bit of a mixed bag for me.
The story itself isn’t bad at all. It’s actually quite a sad and emotional one, centered around family, loss and the long shadow of a life tied to a criminal organization.
We follow Eunha, whose father is a Dragon Head in the Triads, and we see her life unfold through both past and present timelines. I did like that structure, it gave a fuller picture of her upbringing and how everything connects.
But… I kept waiting for something more to happen.
The first chapters were fine, and I thought we were building toward something intense, but the story stays very linear and just follows Eunha’s perspective as she tells her story. It felt more like being told what happened rather than experiencing it.
I think part of it is also expectations. I went in thinking this would have more suspense or thriller elements, but it leans much more toward literary fiction and character driven storytelling.
There were moments that caught my attention, especially toward the last 10% when things finally started to come together, and I’ll admit that part had me more engaged.
Also… Kai… yeah... dude, I had a bit of hope. HAD -.-. That’s all I’m saying...
Overall, not a bad book at all, just not what I was expecting, and it didn’t fully work for me.
⭐ 3.5 stars
Thank you NetGalley and Atria for the ARC.
https://turnthepagewithana.blogspot.c...
The story itself isn’t bad at all. It’s actually quite a sad and emotional one, centered around family, loss and the long shadow of a life tied to a criminal organization.
We follow Eunha, whose father is a Dragon Head in the Triads, and we see her life unfold through both past and present timelines. I did like that structure, it gave a fuller picture of her upbringing and how everything connects.
But… I kept waiting for something more to happen.
The first chapters were fine, and I thought we were building toward something intense, but the story stays very linear and just follows Eunha’s perspective as she tells her story. It felt more like being told what happened rather than experiencing it.
I think part of it is also expectations. I went in thinking this would have more suspense or thriller elements, but it leans much more toward literary fiction and character driven storytelling.
There were moments that caught my attention, especially toward the last 10% when things finally started to come together, and I’ll admit that part had me more engaged.
Also… Kai… yeah... dude, I had a bit of hope. HAD -.-. That’s all I’m saying...
Overall, not a bad book at all, just not what I was expecting, and it didn’t fully work for me.
⭐ 3.5 stars
Thank you NetGalley and Atria for the ARC.
https://turnthepagewithana.blogspot.c...
May 26, 2026
The Devoted by Catherine Cho is definitely a cross between 3.5 and 4 stars. I'm leaning more towards 3.5.
What is interesting is that this book is about a daughter raised by a family who are a part of the Triads. I was expecting more intrigue, maybe a little violence, perhaps a little deeper dive into the modern day mafia of sorts. There are various mentions of families who make millions of things the West take for granted in their Amazon prime deliveries - curtain hooks, super glue, you get the idea. These are not just sweat shops, these are underground organizations who will hurt each other to ensure they're the ones making the most profit.
Instead, The Devoted is a very lush, slow book about Eunha, who is Korean and raised in Hong Kong. I'm not sure why Cho actually chose this approach. It didn't affect the storyline to have her not be Chinese. Regardless, I found the story slow, detached, and many times slightly bored with what could have been happening.
It's a story about being a mother, loving the wrong people, falling into a trap you can't get out. The Devoted is incredibly melancholic, dreary, and I wished there was more ooomph in the overall descriptions of Hong Kong.
Catherine Cho is a well written writer, and I do want to see what she writes next. Just wish this book kept me slightly more enthused.
What is interesting is that this book is about a daughter raised by a family who are a part of the Triads. I was expecting more intrigue, maybe a little violence, perhaps a little deeper dive into the modern day mafia of sorts. There are various mentions of families who make millions of things the West take for granted in their Amazon prime deliveries - curtain hooks, super glue, you get the idea. These are not just sweat shops, these are underground organizations who will hurt each other to ensure they're the ones making the most profit.
Instead, The Devoted is a very lush, slow book about Eunha, who is Korean and raised in Hong Kong. I'm not sure why Cho actually chose this approach. It didn't affect the storyline to have her not be Chinese. Regardless, I found the story slow, detached, and many times slightly bored with what could have been happening.
It's a story about being a mother, loving the wrong people, falling into a trap you can't get out. The Devoted is incredibly melancholic, dreary, and I wished there was more ooomph in the overall descriptions of Hong Kong.
Catherine Cho is a well written writer, and I do want to see what she writes next. Just wish this book kept me slightly more enthused.
July 22, 2026
3.5-4⭐️ My biggest advice— go into this book knowing it’s predominantly literary fiction with just an air of mystery, and I think you will be very pleasantly surprised. While this story features warring Dragon Heads (faction heads of an organized crime syndicate), so much of this story centers around the central character of Eunha, whose whole world centers around the mob, and the power it strips her of, as the men in the family seemingly negotiate the world around them.
When her young son is kidnapped, we see just how tight the strings bind her to the world of Dragons, and just how hard she’ll work to break free. A powerful debut about loyalty to family, a mother’s love, and the bonds that threaten to destroy them. With lyrical prose and peeks into the gritty street life of Hong Kong, Catherine Cho offers a dynamic look into the world of organized crime through the lens of the innocent.
🎧 I read this book primarily via audiobook, narrated by Rosa Escoda. Her gorgeous narration lent itself well to Cho’s writing style. Given the amount of characters and details, particularly in the first half of the story, I think an immersive read, combining the print with the audiobook, would make for the best reading experience.
I am so happy to have buddy read this with Shakila @booksansthemes over the weekend. It makes for an engaging group read as there is a lot to parse out.
Read if you like:
▪️slow burn x quick pace
▪️bingy
▪️character driven
▪️atmospheric
▪️Hong Kong setting
▪️waring mobs
Thank you Atria Books for the advanced copy.
When her young son is kidnapped, we see just how tight the strings bind her to the world of Dragons, and just how hard she’ll work to break free. A powerful debut about loyalty to family, a mother’s love, and the bonds that threaten to destroy them. With lyrical prose and peeks into the gritty street life of Hong Kong, Catherine Cho offers a dynamic look into the world of organized crime through the lens of the innocent.
🎧 I read this book primarily via audiobook, narrated by Rosa Escoda. Her gorgeous narration lent itself well to Cho’s writing style. Given the amount of characters and details, particularly in the first half of the story, I think an immersive read, combining the print with the audiobook, would make for the best reading experience.
I am so happy to have buddy read this with Shakila @booksansthemes over the weekend. It makes for an engaging group read as there is a lot to parse out.
Read if you like:
▪️slow burn x quick pace
▪️bingy
▪️character driven
▪️atmospheric
▪️Hong Kong setting
▪️waring mobs
Thank you Atria Books for the advanced copy.
Did Not Finish
July 6, 2026DNF @ 69%
I came for the Mystery/Thriller aspects (the publisher's page also lists this as Crime), but this was more Women's Fiction than anything. So just a heads up if you were looking for something in the Mystery/Thriller/Crime genres.
The writing style is lyrical yet easy to read and that kept me going. I also liked that the characters were Korean immigrants living in Hong Kong. It was a unique POV that I haven't read before.
But other than that, this was a really slow novel. I stopped at more than halfway through the novel and I was still waiting for Eunha to actually get involved with the actual criminal underground. Most of this novel is Women's Fiction, focusing mainly on Eunha's life from her childhood to her arranged marriage to her yearning for "the one who got away" to her current life as a mother who has lost custody of her son.
Everything crime-related was relegated to the periphery of Eunha's life, which didn't make for an interesting read. A lot of the circumstances in her life was due to her father and brother's involvement with the criminal underground, but those weren't really shown on page. Anything exciting happened off-screen, so we're dealt with Eunha literally just living her life in Hong Kong.
Maybe Eunha actually gets involved with the criminals in the last 30% of the novel, but unfortunately, I didn't care enough to find out. Other than her son's kidnapping, nothing exciting really happened.
Thank you to Washington Square Press and NetGalley for this arc.
I came for the Mystery/Thriller aspects (the publisher's page also lists this as Crime), but this was more Women's Fiction than anything. So just a heads up if you were looking for something in the Mystery/Thriller/Crime genres.
The writing style is lyrical yet easy to read and that kept me going. I also liked that the characters were Korean immigrants living in Hong Kong. It was a unique POV that I haven't read before.
But other than that, this was a really slow novel. I stopped at more than halfway through the novel and I was still waiting for Eunha to actually get involved with the actual criminal underground. Most of this novel is Women's Fiction, focusing mainly on Eunha's life from her childhood to her arranged marriage to her yearning for "the one who got away" to her current life as a mother who has lost custody of her son.
Everything crime-related was relegated to the periphery of Eunha's life, which didn't make for an interesting read. A lot of the circumstances in her life was due to her father and brother's involvement with the criminal underground, but those weren't really shown on page. Anything exciting happened off-screen, so we're dealt with Eunha literally just living her life in Hong Kong.
Maybe Eunha actually gets involved with the criminals in the last 30% of the novel, but unfortunately, I didn't care enough to find out. Other than her son's kidnapping, nothing exciting really happened.
Thank you to Washington Square Press and NetGalley for this arc.
2026
February 2, 2026ANHPI TBR
📱 Thank you to NetGalley and Washington Square Press
📱 Thank you to NetGalley and Washington Square Press
July 23, 2026
I received this for free from Goodreads and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.
The Devoted contains themes of divided family loyalty, security versus freedom, maternal love, and revenge. This is the author's first novel.
Eunha grows up in a quiet village with her brother and grandma. One day her father sends a boy their age to stay with them. Eunha, Solomon, and Kai have a wonderful summer. Then the brother goes to England for school and Eunha's life gets more complicated. Her father is in the Triads and expects certain things of his children.
This book is told in two timelines, present day, starting with the kidnapping of her toddler son, and her childhood up to the present. It was interesting to see how we got to where we were. From the book description, I expected the book to focus on the kidnapping. But that's just a catalyst to an explosive ending.
The book wasn't perfect. At times, I felt too distant from the action, but that's because it's all told from Eunha's perspective. I felt like something was missing which kept me from giving that 5th star. But it is recommended and I'm looking forward to what this author does next.
The Devoted contains themes of divided family loyalty, security versus freedom, maternal love, and revenge. This is the author's first novel.
Eunha grows up in a quiet village with her brother and grandma. One day her father sends a boy their age to stay with them. Eunha, Solomon, and Kai have a wonderful summer. Then the brother goes to England for school and Eunha's life gets more complicated. Her father is in the Triads and expects certain things of his children.
This book is told in two timelines, present day, starting with the kidnapping of her toddler son, and her childhood up to the present. It was interesting to see how we got to where we were. From the book description, I expected the book to focus on the kidnapping. But that's just a catalyst to an explosive ending.
The book wasn't perfect. At times, I felt too distant from the action, but that's because it's all told from Eunha's perspective. I felt like something was missing which kept me from giving that 5th star. But it is recommended and I'm looking forward to what this author does next.
February 24, 2026
Okay so I read The Devoted a couple weeks ago and I’ve been meaning to sit down and actually write this because it deserves it.This story follows Eunha a young Korean woman raised in Hong Kong by her grandmother far away from her father’s violent world. Her father is a Dragon Head in the Triads and even though her grandmother does everything she can to shield Eunha and her brother Solomon from that life it’s always there in the background. Eunha grows up marries into what seems like a respectable Hong Kong family and tries to build something clean and separate from her past. But when her son is kidnapped she’s pulled straight back into the criminal underworld and back into the orbit of Kai her childhood friend who is now a Dragon Head himself. From there it becomes this intense story about family, loyalty, fate, forbidden love, and whether you can ever truly escape the blood you were born into.I read this around the same time I was reading Jade City and apparently I was just fully in my Chinese mafia era because I ate this up. I loved that it had that same criminal dynasty energy, the power struggles, the honor and violence, but it felt way more intimate and emotional. And the jade dragon theme was everythingggg I was Obsessed. Halfway through I genuinely thought this was going to land at a solid four stars for me. I was invested, I liked the writing, the tension was building but then the ending hit. The character development, especially for Eunha, completely sealed it. Watching her step into her own power and make choices instead of just reacting to the men and the world around her!?That’s what bumped it to five stars. It turned from a good crime family drama into something that actually felt powerfully personal.
Also I am still not over Kai. That’s all I’ll say.I’m honestly so happy I randomly got approved for this on NetGalley because it ended up being one of those surprise favorites. If you loved Jade City and want something with organized crime, complicated family loyalty, and emotional stakes I highly recommend.
Also I am still not over Kai. That’s all I’ll say.I’m honestly so happy I randomly got approved for this on NetGalley because it ended up being one of those surprise favorites. If you loved Jade City and want something with organized crime, complicated family loyalty, and emotional stakes I highly recommend.
July 13, 2026
The Devoted reminded me why I love fiction and those moments when a story mirrors parts your own life. Catherine Cho weaves between past and present of Eunha and follows her through sibling loyalty, trauma bonding, betrayal, and the strength. Cho also taps into something universal as the reader feels Eunha's loneliness, her simmering anger, and the drive for revenge that shapes her choices. The pacing starts fast, slows in the middle but finishes with intensity. I would recommend it for anyone who appreciates a character-driven story.
ARC provided by Washington Square Press/Atria via Edelweiss. Opinions and thoughts are my own.
ARC provided by Washington Square Press/Atria via Edelweiss. Opinions and thoughts are my own.
July 19, 2026
I had never really thought about underground criminal organization (mafia) in Hong Kong before reading this book. I find it interesting that all over the world and across cultures, thugs will be thugging and making their bucks with the blood of their minions. How much of the crap we buy off Amazon, WalMart, Shein and all those places are rooted in the criminal sector, washing their money under the guise of legitimate business.?
I found the story lyrical and sad and maddening as things came together. I wanted perhaps a little more revengeful violence than the quiet ending it delivered, but that is just my preference for the feminine rage trope. An overall interesting and thought provoking read
Thank you to Atria Books | Washington Square Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.
I found the story lyrical and sad and maddening as things came together. I wanted perhaps a little more revengeful violence than the quiet ending it delivered, but that is just my preference for the feminine rage trope. An overall interesting and thought provoking read
Thank you to Atria Books | Washington Square Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.
July 4, 2026
Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for an eARC of “The Devoted”
This story has shifting timelines and typically those are hard for me to follow in books. However, the way this story is told you really are transported and you feel like Eunha is sitting beside you walking you through her life story.
The setting is described like a beautiful painting you hang on the wall. The food descriptions were amazing. This book really comes to life in the smallest and grandest of ways.
I really rooted for Eunha and the plot really had me hooked. I was invested in her journey and wanted to see her through it to the end. Her growth and awakening to make a choice and take control of her life was my favorite part.
The ending was a-bit abrupt and could’ve used a few kore pages but I also understand the intention for sometimes taking this route for books.
As a debut this is definitely one of my favorite reads of the year and will probably stay with me for years to come.
This story has shifting timelines and typically those are hard for me to follow in books. However, the way this story is told you really are transported and you feel like Eunha is sitting beside you walking you through her life story.
The setting is described like a beautiful painting you hang on the wall. The food descriptions were amazing. This book really comes to life in the smallest and grandest of ways.
I really rooted for Eunha and the plot really had me hooked. I was invested in her journey and wanted to see her through it to the end. Her growth and awakening to make a choice and take control of her life was my favorite part.
The ending was a-bit abrupt and could’ve used a few kore pages but I also understand the intention for sometimes taking this route for books.
As a debut this is definitely one of my favorite reads of the year and will probably stay with me for years to come.
June 29, 2026
Thank you to Washington Square Press, Atria Books, and NetGalley for an eARC to read and review before publishing.
The Devoted by Catherine Cho is one that I wanted to love more than I did. It is definitely a strong debut and one I will recommend; however, I do wish some elements of the story had been more developed.
I do love that this story is primarily about Eunha and her growth as a character and person. As a woman who has always made herself smaller to fit into the life around her, Eunha is thrust onto a journey of self-discovery and embracing her power by events that are completely out of her control. Because of this, she shrinks further into herself before she is able to find the means and strength to do what must be done. The pay off is worth it in the end.
The element that was missing for me was the deep exploration of why it was so hard for Eunha and her family being Korean in Hong Kong. This aspect of her childhood and adult life was mentioned several times; however, I feel it was a missed opportunity to explain the significance of this further. I wanted more of Eunha's culture, especially the allusions to the elements of wind and embracing that wildness of nature. I also wanted more exploration of the lore of the Dragons: how they came to be, what made them so powerful, etc. I understand that this was a subplot; yet, it was a subplot that propelled most of the story.
Overall, I enjoyed The Devoted by Catherine Cho, and I do recommend it for those of you that are looking for a story of a woman stepping into her power and facing the challenges in life that are inherent to being a woman.
The Devoted by Catherine Cho is one that I wanted to love more than I did. It is definitely a strong debut and one I will recommend; however, I do wish some elements of the story had been more developed.
I do love that this story is primarily about Eunha and her growth as a character and person. As a woman who has always made herself smaller to fit into the life around her, Eunha is thrust onto a journey of self-discovery and embracing her power by events that are completely out of her control. Because of this, she shrinks further into herself before she is able to find the means and strength to do what must be done. The pay off is worth it in the end.
The element that was missing for me was the deep exploration of why it was so hard for Eunha and her family being Korean in Hong Kong. This aspect of her childhood and adult life was mentioned several times; however, I feel it was a missed opportunity to explain the significance of this further. I wanted more of Eunha's culture, especially the allusions to the elements of wind and embracing that wildness of nature. I also wanted more exploration of the lore of the Dragons: how they came to be, what made them so powerful, etc. I understand that this was a subplot; yet, it was a subplot that propelled most of the story.
Overall, I enjoyed The Devoted by Catherine Cho, and I do recommend it for those of you that are looking for a story of a woman stepping into her power and facing the challenges in life that are inherent to being a woman.
July 19, 2026
Superb - my ideal type of book. Transports you to a different world, Hong Kong in a landscape of criminal families of those trying to leave and those enmeshed in the power and the spoils. Part thriller, part family drama, lots left unspoken, deeply emotional.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thank you to Atria Books via NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.
3.5 stars - This book was sad. The story follows Eunha, a Korean woman raised by her grandmother alongside her brother Solomon. Their lives are shaped by complex consequences stemming from their father being a well-known leader in a criminal organization. The novel highlights the family obligation, sacrifices, and the emotional loneliness that comes with being part of a criminally connected family. The author effectively captures the complexity of human nature - showing that people are not purely good or bad. Their actions don't always align with their values and can be shaped by other powerful forces such as cultural expectations, family duties and long-held secrets. I felt for Solomon and would love to have seen more of his character. The pacing was slow and picked up at the end, and overall it was an interesting and thought-provoking read.
3.5 stars - This book was sad. The story follows Eunha, a Korean woman raised by her grandmother alongside her brother Solomon. Their lives are shaped by complex consequences stemming from their father being a well-known leader in a criminal organization. The novel highlights the family obligation, sacrifices, and the emotional loneliness that comes with being part of a criminally connected family. The author effectively captures the complexity of human nature - showing that people are not purely good or bad. Their actions don't always align with their values and can be shaped by other powerful forces such as cultural expectations, family duties and long-held secrets. I felt for Solomon and would love to have seen more of his character. The pacing was slow and picked up at the end, and overall it was an interesting and thought-provoking read.
July 12, 2026
kind of like an incredibly mid version of the expatriates by janice y.k. lee meets pachinko by min jin lee
July 14, 2026
The best book of 2024. Even though it pubs today! Wong Kar-Wai and Mildred Pierce had a baby and this was it
Want to Read
June 7, 2026Can you be haunted by a book? If so, that's definitely me and Catherine Cho's memoir Inferno: A Memoir of Motherhood and Madness. So when I heard she was releasing a novel that has something to do with organized crime in Hong Kong, I couldn't add it to my TBR fast enough.
Click here to hear more about this book and my other anticipated releases of the upcoming quarter over on my Booktube channel, abookolive!
Click here to hear more about this book and my other anticipated releases of the upcoming quarter over on my Booktube channel, abookolive!
July 23, 2026
The Devoted completely surprised me. Going into this book, I expected a mystery thriller, but what I found was something much deeper; a powerful exploration of family, sacrifice, legacy, and the impossible choices we sometimes make out of love and obligation.
Catherine Cho tells the story of Eunha, a woman raised in Hong Kong by her Korean grandmother after her mother is committed to an asylum. Her father is the Dragon Head of the Triads, the powerful leader of a Chinese criminal empire, and from a young age, Eunha grows up surrounded by a world of secrets, corruption, and danger.
Her brother Solomon is positioned as the heir to the family business, leaving Eunha to navigate what it means to be a daughter, a mother, and a woman constantly sacrificing pieces of herself for a family legacy that was never truly meant to belong to her.The story opens with Eunha’s son, Munsuk, being kidnapped and held for ransom. When he is unexpectedly returned after the payment is made, the lack of answers leaves Eunha questioning everything. From there, the novel moves between the present timeline and Eunha’s childhood, slowly unraveling the choices, betrayals, and sacrifices that shaped who she became.
This book was heartbreaking and, at times, incredibly frustrating; in the best possible way. Watching Eunha endure so much while trying to protect the people she loves was painful. She is a motherless daughter carrying the weight of generations before her, constantly putting her own happiness and instincts aside for the sake of family duty.
One of the things that stood out to me was how much this story reminded me of The Godfather. I found parallels between Eunha and Michael Corleone; the desire to escape the family business, the attempt to create a normal life, and the painful realization that the people around them may not truly have their best interests at heart. Like Michael, Eunha is ultimately forced to confront that power, loyalty, and control may be the only ways to protect what matters most.
The betrayals, secrets, schemes, and heartbreak kept me completely invested. What I loved most was that the mystery element didn’t follow the typical thriller formula. You don’t even fully realize you’re reading a mystery/thriller until much later in the story, and honestly, that’s what made it so refreshing. It felt less like a race to solve a puzzle and more like a beautifully layered character study slowly revealing itself.
The Devoted is contemporary fiction with a touch of mystery, but at its heart, it is a story about family, identity, and the sacrifices we make when loyalty becomes both our greatest strength and our greatest burden.
A beautifully written, emotional, and unforgettable read. Highly recommend.
Thank you Netgalley, for my advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!
Catherine Cho tells the story of Eunha, a woman raised in Hong Kong by her Korean grandmother after her mother is committed to an asylum. Her father is the Dragon Head of the Triads, the powerful leader of a Chinese criminal empire, and from a young age, Eunha grows up surrounded by a world of secrets, corruption, and danger.
Her brother Solomon is positioned as the heir to the family business, leaving Eunha to navigate what it means to be a daughter, a mother, and a woman constantly sacrificing pieces of herself for a family legacy that was never truly meant to belong to her.The story opens with Eunha’s son, Munsuk, being kidnapped and held for ransom. When he is unexpectedly returned after the payment is made, the lack of answers leaves Eunha questioning everything. From there, the novel moves between the present timeline and Eunha’s childhood, slowly unraveling the choices, betrayals, and sacrifices that shaped who she became.
This book was heartbreaking and, at times, incredibly frustrating; in the best possible way. Watching Eunha endure so much while trying to protect the people she loves was painful. She is a motherless daughter carrying the weight of generations before her, constantly putting her own happiness and instincts aside for the sake of family duty.
One of the things that stood out to me was how much this story reminded me of The Godfather. I found parallels between Eunha and Michael Corleone; the desire to escape the family business, the attempt to create a normal life, and the painful realization that the people around them may not truly have their best interests at heart. Like Michael, Eunha is ultimately forced to confront that power, loyalty, and control may be the only ways to protect what matters most.
The betrayals, secrets, schemes, and heartbreak kept me completely invested. What I loved most was that the mystery element didn’t follow the typical thriller formula. You don’t even fully realize you’re reading a mystery/thriller until much later in the story, and honestly, that’s what made it so refreshing. It felt less like a race to solve a puzzle and more like a beautifully layered character study slowly revealing itself.
The Devoted is contemporary fiction with a touch of mystery, but at its heart, it is a story about family, identity, and the sacrifices we make when loyalty becomes both our greatest strength and our greatest burden.
A beautifully written, emotional, and unforgettable read. Highly recommend.
Thank you Netgalley, for my advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!
July 12, 2026
This mafia story fell pretty flat, but was a very quick read nevertheless.
Main character Eunha is the daughter and sister of Hong Kong based Triad bosses; she married into “regular” society and the story kicks off when her son is kidnapped due to the underworld entanglements of her family. Don’t expect much mafia action though - Eunha grows up completely sheltered and goes through life with blinkers on, so she seems to know less about the Triads than literally any other person on the street who either has access to the internet or, like, simply lives in HK.
I won’t go into too much detail about the plot so I don’t spoiler the entire thing, but basically, the problem with this book is that the main character is completely passive (and I don’t mean in a “intentionally kept passive for cultural reasons” way), she’s a NPC in her own life. I would say she’s very stupid, but I actually think this purely down to a quirk of the writing. It reminded me a ton of another debut I read this year, The Poet Empress; very different obviously in terms of genre and plot etc, but in that both books are written in first person but you’re never actually inside the protagonist’s head, leading to a completely detached reading experience. It’s all tell, tell, tell. You aren’t shown anything, you don’t feel anything, you never get the sense the protagonist has a single thought in their brain. So they end up seeming dumb, but it’s actually just faulty narration. I know BookTok for some reason can only read novels written in first person, so maybe that’s why these authors are doing it, but these are third person objective narrations (I almost said third person limited but you’re aren’t actually privy to the protagonist’s thoughts and feelings), pressed into a first person format, which changes the entire way you experience the story.
It was very easy to read and it was entertaining enough even if due to this faulty narration style none of the actions of the main character made a lick of sense, but the plot itself would’ve had a lot more potential with some changes to the writing style (or tbh I could just say the writing wasn’t very good, but you know. Debut.).
Main character Eunha is the daughter and sister of Hong Kong based Triad bosses; she married into “regular” society and the story kicks off when her son is kidnapped due to the underworld entanglements of her family. Don’t expect much mafia action though - Eunha grows up completely sheltered and goes through life with blinkers on, so she seems to know less about the Triads than literally any other person on the street who either has access to the internet or, like, simply lives in HK.
I won’t go into too much detail about the plot so I don’t spoiler the entire thing, but basically, the problem with this book is that the main character is completely passive (and I don’t mean in a “intentionally kept passive for cultural reasons” way), she’s a NPC in her own life. I would say she’s very stupid, but I actually think this purely down to a quirk of the writing. It reminded me a ton of another debut I read this year, The Poet Empress; very different obviously in terms of genre and plot etc, but in that both books are written in first person but you’re never actually inside the protagonist’s head, leading to a completely detached reading experience. It’s all tell, tell, tell. You aren’t shown anything, you don’t feel anything, you never get the sense the protagonist has a single thought in their brain. So they end up seeming dumb, but it’s actually just faulty narration. I know BookTok for some reason can only read novels written in first person, so maybe that’s why these authors are doing it, but these are third person objective narrations (I almost said third person limited but you’re aren’t actually privy to the protagonist’s thoughts and feelings), pressed into a first person format, which changes the entire way you experience the story.
It was very easy to read and it was entertaining enough even if due to this faulty narration style none of the actions of the main character made a lick of sense, but the plot itself would’ve had a lot more potential with some changes to the writing style (or tbh I could just say the writing wasn’t very good, but you know. Debut.).
July 16, 2026
The Devoted by Catherine Cho
Eunha and her brother Solomon grow up sheltered under the watch of their grandmother, who tries to shield them from the violence that surrounds their father. This protection is fragile as their father is a Dragon Head, a leader in the infamous criminal organization of the Triads. Their childhood companion and friend, Kai, is connected to their family and father in complex and complicated ways. This is a compelling family saga rife with secrets, entanglements, revenge, crime, power, and forbidden love. The pressure of involvement in the family business hangs over everyone and everything, creating a barrier between them and the outside world and becoming something no one can truly refuse.
Eunha’s father promised to separate her from the Triad life. But after her son is kidnapped, she realizes that her separation was never true freedom, it was only ever an illusion.
At its core, it’s a novel about inheritance - both emotional and political - the roles you are expected to assume, the path you are expected to stride and the mantle of power you are expected to bear. Compliance is demanded while defiance is punished, raising questions of whether it is possible to ever escape your heritage. Can love survive loyalty when betrayal is built into the structure of the family business? What does loyalty truly mean when it’s demanded rather than earned?
This is an exciting story filled with surprising twists that are both chilling and utterly engrossing. Long held secrets are gradually unraveled, creating mounting tension, intrigue and shocking revelations. Cho balances gritty realism with emotional intensity portraying family relationships with remarkable emotional complexity, adding literary depth to the exploration of love, loyalty, betrayal, grief and the ways these are shaped by power, strategy, and survival. The emotional stakes cannot be cleaved from the criminal stakes, giving the story a charged atmosphere where affection can become a vulnerability.
A compelling and immersive novel that is as much about family and identity as it is about crime and power.
Eunha and her brother Solomon grow up sheltered under the watch of their grandmother, who tries to shield them from the violence that surrounds their father. This protection is fragile as their father is a Dragon Head, a leader in the infamous criminal organization of the Triads. Their childhood companion and friend, Kai, is connected to their family and father in complex and complicated ways. This is a compelling family saga rife with secrets, entanglements, revenge, crime, power, and forbidden love. The pressure of involvement in the family business hangs over everyone and everything, creating a barrier between them and the outside world and becoming something no one can truly refuse.
Eunha’s father promised to separate her from the Triad life. But after her son is kidnapped, she realizes that her separation was never true freedom, it was only ever an illusion.
At its core, it’s a novel about inheritance - both emotional and political - the roles you are expected to assume, the path you are expected to stride and the mantle of power you are expected to bear. Compliance is demanded while defiance is punished, raising questions of whether it is possible to ever escape your heritage. Can love survive loyalty when betrayal is built into the structure of the family business? What does loyalty truly mean when it’s demanded rather than earned?
This is an exciting story filled with surprising twists that are both chilling and utterly engrossing. Long held secrets are gradually unraveled, creating mounting tension, intrigue and shocking revelations. Cho balances gritty realism with emotional intensity portraying family relationships with remarkable emotional complexity, adding literary depth to the exploration of love, loyalty, betrayal, grief and the ways these are shaped by power, strategy, and survival. The emotional stakes cannot be cleaved from the criminal stakes, giving the story a charged atmosphere where affection can become a vulnerability.
A compelling and immersive novel that is as much about family and identity as it is about crime and power.
July 12, 2026
The pacing was slower at the start and picked up in the last 40%, but overall I found this to be an interesting and thought provoking read. I appreciated the multigenerational family story, and exploration of other cultures (in this case, Koreans living in China).
The story follows Eunha and Solomon, siblings whose lives are shaped by their father’s involvement in a criminal organization. The story leans into the theme of is your life is your own, or is it set out long before you’re even aware of it? It’s dual timeline as well. There is also a lot of blurring the lines of who is good and who is bad, who you want to connect and who you don’t. It had me questioning a lot how to feel when people make decisions for the people they care about. They might think it’s the best option, even if it causes harm.
The author had a lot of complex characters and emotions to balance, and it was done brilliantly. Catherine writes with such detail and emotion that I was drawn to keep reading, even if I didn’t always connect with the story.
I received this ARC from Atria Books via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
The story follows Eunha and Solomon, siblings whose lives are shaped by their father’s involvement in a criminal organization. The story leans into the theme of is your life is your own, or is it set out long before you’re even aware of it? It’s dual timeline as well. There is also a lot of blurring the lines of who is good and who is bad, who you want to connect and who you don’t. It had me questioning a lot how to feel when people make decisions for the people they care about. They might think it’s the best option, even if it causes harm.
The author had a lot of complex characters and emotions to balance, and it was done brilliantly. Catherine writes with such detail and emotion that I was drawn to keep reading, even if I didn’t always connect with the story.
I received this ARC from Atria Books via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
July 16, 2026
Eunha and her brother Solomon were raised in a small village by their Korean grandmother while their father was a Dragon Head, a leader of a criminal organization. The two are only allowed company with another young boy, Kai, who came to live with them for a time. As Eunha grows up, her father marries her into a respectable family in Hong Kong, but soon this facade is cracked as their son is kidnapped. Eunha has to go to her brother Solomon, who has replaced their father as a Dragon Head, and is convinced that it's fault that her son is kidnapped. As Eunha gets swept up in her despair, she eventually learns the truth to the world that she has been shielded from for so long.
This was okay, but I wanted it to be great. I wanted something more to happen in the story or for Eunha to finally do something really crazy in it. The main focus of the story talks about family and loss. I did really appreciate how the author utilized the different timelines going from present to the past - it was interweaved perfectly. I would have liked there to be more about what the Dragon Heads got up to and deeper into the criminal organization. I'm surprised the fact that Eunha was Korean didn't have any impact on the story once she was in China. I think this would have been an interesting way to add tensions in the story. I did enjoy the complexity of the characters showing that someone is not 100% good or bad - this was really explored with Kai's character. By the end, I felt bad for almost all of the characters. It is definitely an emotional story. I would rate this a 3-3.5 star book.
Thanks for an ARC in exchange for an honest review
Why did I read? Intrigued by the premise. Would I read again? Maybe - it was slow in the middle.
This was okay, but I wanted it to be great. I wanted something more to happen in the story or for Eunha to finally do something really crazy in it. The main focus of the story talks about family and loss. I did really appreciate how the author utilized the different timelines going from present to the past - it was interweaved perfectly. I would have liked there to be more about what the Dragon Heads got up to and deeper into the criminal organization. I'm surprised the fact that Eunha was Korean didn't have any impact on the story once she was in China. I think this would have been an interesting way to add tensions in the story. I did enjoy the complexity of the characters showing that someone is not 100% good or bad - this was really explored with Kai's character. By the end, I felt bad for almost all of the characters. It is definitely an emotional story. I would rate this a 3-3.5 star book.
Thanks for an ARC in exchange for an honest review
Why did I read? Intrigued by the premise. Would I read again? Maybe - it was slow in the middle.
July 21, 2026
The first thing that struck me about this book is the absolutely stunning cover, but it’s the story that drew me in. I’ve always been curious about the discussion surrounding fate versus self determination. As the mother of twins. I’ve seen firsthand how siblings raised in the same environment sharing the exact same experiences can still reflect distinctly separate personalities.
THE DEVOTED is the story of Eunha and Solomon; siblings raised by their grandmother in Hong Kong far from their Korean homeland. Over the span of a lifetime the author takes the reader to pivotal points where a specific decision results in ripples that extend into the future. In this case, it’s the involvement with the criminal underworld.
Not only did Cho examine the dynamics of the familial relationships, but she gives us a look at how power both protects and corrupts. There are many fascinating aspects examined here: culture, family, destiny, trauma, and devotion among them. It’s a short book that packs a powerful punch.
Thank you to Atria Books for the gifted ARC and beautiful finished copy. All opinions are my own.
THE DEVOTED is the story of Eunha and Solomon; siblings raised by their grandmother in Hong Kong far from their Korean homeland. Over the span of a lifetime the author takes the reader to pivotal points where a specific decision results in ripples that extend into the future. In this case, it’s the involvement with the criminal underworld.
Not only did Cho examine the dynamics of the familial relationships, but she gives us a look at how power both protects and corrupts. There are many fascinating aspects examined here: culture, family, destiny, trauma, and devotion among them. It’s a short book that packs a powerful punch.
Thank you to Atria Books for the gifted ARC and beautiful finished copy. All opinions are my own.
June 22, 2026
An exceptional debut. I felt physically heartbroken at multiple points.
July 20, 2026
This book started out with some promise but I just got bored as it kept going. There wasn’t much by way of conflict.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for a review.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for a review.
July 16, 2026
The Devoted fully tricked me into thinking I was about to get a sleek, high-stakes Triad thriller and instead Catherine Cho handed me an emotionally devastating family saga where everybody is sad, beautiful, secretly in love, and making choices that had me whispering “girl no” into the void every fifteen pages. This book is basically what happens if Pachinko and Infernal Affairs got wine drunk together and decided to unpack generational trauma in a penthouse overlooking Hong Kong harbor.
Eunha grows up under the shadow of her father being a Dragon Head in the Triads, which honestly feels like the kind of family detail you casually reveal halfway through dinner and everybody at the table just quietly sets their fork down. Her grandmother spends years trying to shield Eunha and Solomon from the violence orbiting their family, and the childhood sections have this soft, dreamy sadness to them where everything feels fragile before it’s even broken. Then Kai shows up and immediately the entire emotional ecosystem shifts because of course he does. Of course the dangerous boy with tragic eyes and loyalty issues is going to become everybody’s problem.
And listen. Kai. I need to discuss Kai the way women in period dramas discuss tuberculosis. With concern, fascination, and a complete inability to look away. This man is walking around carrying enough unresolved longing to power a small city. Every scene with him feels emotionally illegal. The chemistry between him and Eunha has that very specific flavor of “this will absolutely ruin several lives but unfortunately I get it.” Catherine Cho really said, what if yearning itself joined organized crime.
What I actually loved about this book is that it never turns Eunha into some glamorous mafia queen fantasy. She’s exhausted. She’s lonely. She spends so much of this story trapped between the life she wants and the gravity of the life she inherited. Even after marrying into wealth and respectability, she still feels like somebody waiting for the floor to collapse beneath her. And when her son is kidnapped and she gets dragged back into the criminal world she spent years trying to outrun, the book becomes less about solving a crime and more about whether it’s actually possible to escape the emotional architecture of your family. Which is a deeply rude thing for a novel to make me think about while I’m trying to enjoy my little murder book.
The funniest thing is this book is technically full of powerful men in criminal organizations, but emotionally they are all just standing in different corners of the room having extremely expensive feelings. Everybody is burdened by duty. Everybody is repressing something catastrophic. Nobody communicates directly. It’s like watching Succession if Kendall Roy had access to actual violence instead of just rap albums and public humiliation. Meanwhile Eunha is trying to survive inside systems built entirely by men who confuse love with possession and protection with control, and honestly half the tension comes from wanting her to get five uninterrupted minutes of peace.
I will say, the pacing absolutely meanders in places. There were moments where I wanted the story to tighten the screws faster instead of slowly marinating me in melancholy for another forty pages. If you go in expecting nonstop crime drama, this book is going to hit you with literary sadness like a folding chair. But weirdly... I kind of respected it for refusing to become the book people expected. It’s much more interested in emotional consequences than action sequences. The violence matters less than the damage it leaves behind, which honestly feels way more haunting.
And the writing has this quiet elegance that sneaks up on you. One minute you’re judging everybody’s terrible coping mechanisms, the next minute the book casually lands on some devastating truth about identity or motherhood or loneliness and suddenly you’re staring at the ceiling like you just got emotionally sniped by a woman in silk gloves. There’s a particular sadness to Eunha’s life that feels so real, that constant ache of trying to become someone separate from your past while realizing your past is already stitched into everything you are.
So yeah, this ended up being a very solid 3.5 stars for me. I wanted more urgency, more danger, maybe one or two additional crimes just to keep everybody on their toes, but emotionally? This thing absolutely got under my skin. The Devoted is messy and mournful and full of people loving each other in ways that slowly destroy them, which unfortunately is exactly the kind of story I eat up like raccoons fighting over discarded french fries behind a restaurant.
And huge thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for the ARC, because apparently my brand now includes emotionally unavailable Triad heirs, devastating maternal grief, and women quietly unraveling in luxury apartments while men make catastrophic loyalty decisions nearby.
Eunha grows up under the shadow of her father being a Dragon Head in the Triads, which honestly feels like the kind of family detail you casually reveal halfway through dinner and everybody at the table just quietly sets their fork down. Her grandmother spends years trying to shield Eunha and Solomon from the violence orbiting their family, and the childhood sections have this soft, dreamy sadness to them where everything feels fragile before it’s even broken. Then Kai shows up and immediately the entire emotional ecosystem shifts because of course he does. Of course the dangerous boy with tragic eyes and loyalty issues is going to become everybody’s problem.
And listen. Kai. I need to discuss Kai the way women in period dramas discuss tuberculosis. With concern, fascination, and a complete inability to look away. This man is walking around carrying enough unresolved longing to power a small city. Every scene with him feels emotionally illegal. The chemistry between him and Eunha has that very specific flavor of “this will absolutely ruin several lives but unfortunately I get it.” Catherine Cho really said, what if yearning itself joined organized crime.
What I actually loved about this book is that it never turns Eunha into some glamorous mafia queen fantasy. She’s exhausted. She’s lonely. She spends so much of this story trapped between the life she wants and the gravity of the life she inherited. Even after marrying into wealth and respectability, she still feels like somebody waiting for the floor to collapse beneath her. And when her son is kidnapped and she gets dragged back into the criminal world she spent years trying to outrun, the book becomes less about solving a crime and more about whether it’s actually possible to escape the emotional architecture of your family. Which is a deeply rude thing for a novel to make me think about while I’m trying to enjoy my little murder book.
The funniest thing is this book is technically full of powerful men in criminal organizations, but emotionally they are all just standing in different corners of the room having extremely expensive feelings. Everybody is burdened by duty. Everybody is repressing something catastrophic. Nobody communicates directly. It’s like watching Succession if Kendall Roy had access to actual violence instead of just rap albums and public humiliation. Meanwhile Eunha is trying to survive inside systems built entirely by men who confuse love with possession and protection with control, and honestly half the tension comes from wanting her to get five uninterrupted minutes of peace.
I will say, the pacing absolutely meanders in places. There were moments where I wanted the story to tighten the screws faster instead of slowly marinating me in melancholy for another forty pages. If you go in expecting nonstop crime drama, this book is going to hit you with literary sadness like a folding chair. But weirdly... I kind of respected it for refusing to become the book people expected. It’s much more interested in emotional consequences than action sequences. The violence matters less than the damage it leaves behind, which honestly feels way more haunting.
And the writing has this quiet elegance that sneaks up on you. One minute you’re judging everybody’s terrible coping mechanisms, the next minute the book casually lands on some devastating truth about identity or motherhood or loneliness and suddenly you’re staring at the ceiling like you just got emotionally sniped by a woman in silk gloves. There’s a particular sadness to Eunha’s life that feels so real, that constant ache of trying to become someone separate from your past while realizing your past is already stitched into everything you are.
So yeah, this ended up being a very solid 3.5 stars for me. I wanted more urgency, more danger, maybe one or two additional crimes just to keep everybody on their toes, but emotionally? This thing absolutely got under my skin. The Devoted is messy and mournful and full of people loving each other in ways that slowly destroy them, which unfortunately is exactly the kind of story I eat up like raccoons fighting over discarded french fries behind a restaurant.
And huge thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for the ARC, because apparently my brand now includes emotionally unavailable Triad heirs, devastating maternal grief, and women quietly unraveling in luxury apartments while men make catastrophic loyalty decisions nearby.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
My thanks to NetGalley and Atria for an advance copy of this novel.
When her son was three months old, Catherine Cho, a London-based literary agent, went with her husband to show their baby to their Korean relatives in the United States. There she entered a post-partum psychotic break so intense that she had to be admitted to a psychiatric hospital, where she eventually returned to herself. That terrible chapter of her life is recounted in her acclaimed memoir, Inferno (2020). Having read her first book, I am mentioning it here because, although The Devoted is fictional, a few elements are clearly inspired by her own experiences.
In this novel, Eunha is a young Korean woman whose family, at some point in her childhood, relocated to Hong Kong. She and her brother Solomon are the offspring of a high-ranking member of the Dragons, an important trans-Asian organized crime syndicate within a larger network called the Triad. Solomon is due to inherit his father’s territory.
The chapters detailing their growing up are gently, sadly nostalgic. Their mother was confined to an asylum while they were very young. She doesn’t respond to their letters and they do not see her until her death when they are teens. They are raised by their maternal grandmother in an isolated seaside home, deliberately distanced from their father, his dealings and their dangers, and their indifferent stepmother. Also living with them, occasionally is Kaito (Kai), the Japanese nephew of their guard, Ajusshi (Mister), who is devoted to them and their father even in adulthood. These chapters about the past, interspersed with the contemporary ones, uncover the intergenerational trauma that afflicts the family, and Eunha in particular.
The present-day story finds an emotionally removed Eunha married to a rising Dragon member, Philip, in what is purely an alliance of dynastic families. She and Philip live apart and she knows he has a woman. Similarly, her brother Solomon is married to a woman who lives in China and with whom he has only an official relationship. Eunha’s only true connection, apart from a fraught and often resentful one with Solomon, is with her young son, Mitsuk . When she is distracted at the bustling local market, he is kidnapped. She blames herself, but also her father who did not ‘teach her’ as he did Solomon. She also blames Solomon for bringing danger to them because of his position. Likewise, Philip and his sister Winnie blame her for her motherly incompetence and naïveté.
The kidnapping is a clear turning point in Eunha’s life. She must finally face the reality of the world into which she was born and has married. She sees how she has effaced her true self by accepting her lack of agency. As she loses everything that she thought had defined her, she understands what she has become: ‘…a woman living in an empty apartment paid for by an absent husband, standing in clothes that had been chosen for her, living a borrowed life. ‘
Eunha, despite the depression she fears is her mother’s legacy, attempts to reclaim a sense of self that is not simply imposed by others. After a long absence, Kai returns to assume her deceased brother’s position. He is, however, as emotionally thwarted as she is, although he appears to offer some hope. Eunha’s rebirth will come only when she learns, in many hard ways, to transfer her devotion to herself.
Cho is an admirable writer, and, while the book is called a thriller I can’t help but think this is a misrepresentation. It’s really a sad. sensitive work best classified as literary fiction. Even though men take up most of the space, it becomes a work of women’s literature as well, because of the way in which women, with Eunha in particular focus, are mistreated, suppressed and manipulated—even by other women, who have only known the same treatment. I’ve noted how beautifully she writes about their childhood years, the children’s relationships with each other and their grandmother, the loss of their mother and the fear of their father. Catherine Cho shows every promise as a talented debut novelist, and I was astounded by the ways in which she neatly connects seemingly disparate characters, right to the end.
When her son was three months old, Catherine Cho, a London-based literary agent, went with her husband to show their baby to their Korean relatives in the United States. There she entered a post-partum psychotic break so intense that she had to be admitted to a psychiatric hospital, where she eventually returned to herself. That terrible chapter of her life is recounted in her acclaimed memoir, Inferno (2020). Having read her first book, I am mentioning it here because, although The Devoted is fictional, a few elements are clearly inspired by her own experiences.
In this novel, Eunha is a young Korean woman whose family, at some point in her childhood, relocated to Hong Kong. She and her brother Solomon are the offspring of a high-ranking member of the Dragons, an important trans-Asian organized crime syndicate within a larger network called the Triad. Solomon is due to inherit his father’s territory.
The chapters detailing their growing up are gently, sadly nostalgic. Their mother was confined to an asylum while they were very young. She doesn’t respond to their letters and they do not see her until her death when they are teens. They are raised by their maternal grandmother in an isolated seaside home, deliberately distanced from their father, his dealings and their dangers, and their indifferent stepmother. Also living with them, occasionally is Kaito (Kai), the Japanese nephew of their guard, Ajusshi (Mister), who is devoted to them and their father even in adulthood. These chapters about the past, interspersed with the contemporary ones, uncover the intergenerational trauma that afflicts the family, and Eunha in particular.
The present-day story finds an emotionally removed Eunha married to a rising Dragon member, Philip, in what is purely an alliance of dynastic families. She and Philip live apart and she knows he has a woman. Similarly, her brother Solomon is married to a woman who lives in China and with whom he has only an official relationship. Eunha’s only true connection, apart from a fraught and often resentful one with Solomon, is with her young son, Mitsuk . When she is distracted at the bustling local market, he is kidnapped. She blames herself, but also her father who did not ‘teach her’ as he did Solomon. She also blames Solomon for bringing danger to them because of his position. Likewise, Philip and his sister Winnie blame her for her motherly incompetence and naïveté.
The kidnapping is a clear turning point in Eunha’s life. She must finally face the reality of the world into which she was born and has married. She sees how she has effaced her true self by accepting her lack of agency. As she loses everything that she thought had defined her, she understands what she has become: ‘…a woman living in an empty apartment paid for by an absent husband, standing in clothes that had been chosen for her, living a borrowed life. ‘
Eunha, despite the depression she fears is her mother’s legacy, attempts to reclaim a sense of self that is not simply imposed by others. After a long absence, Kai returns to assume her deceased brother’s position. He is, however, as emotionally thwarted as she is, although he appears to offer some hope. Eunha’s rebirth will come only when she learns, in many hard ways, to transfer her devotion to herself.
Cho is an admirable writer, and, while the book is called a thriller I can’t help but think this is a misrepresentation. It’s really a sad. sensitive work best classified as literary fiction. Even though men take up most of the space, it becomes a work of women’s literature as well, because of the way in which women, with Eunha in particular focus, are mistreated, suppressed and manipulated—even by other women, who have only known the same treatment. I’ve noted how beautifully she writes about their childhood years, the children’s relationships with each other and their grandmother, the loss of their mother and the fear of their father. Catherine Cho shows every promise as a talented debut novelist, and I was astounded by the ways in which she neatly connects seemingly disparate characters, right to the end.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free, electronic ARC of this novel received in exchange for an honest review.
Expected publication date: July 14, 2026
“The Devoted: A Novel” by Catherine Cho is the story of a Korean woman who becomes entrenched in the crime organization she so desperately wanted to avoid. Heartbreaking, powerful and electric, “The Devoted: A Novel” is a tribute to motherhood and family, a tale of power, feminism and an examination of faith and destiny.
Eunha grew up with her beloved brother, Solomon, raised by their grandmother in a quiet and traditional Korean village. Eunha’s mother passed away and she saw her father only rarely, although she knew enough as a child to know her father was the head of a very powerful crime syndicate known as The Triads. Solomon’s destiny was to take over as the “Dragon Head” but the only thing Eunha’s grandmother wanted for her was to avoid the same fate that she and her daughter had suffered, marrying into the dangerous crime family. When Eunha becomes an adult, she starts to look back on the choices she has made and begins to question if her choices were really hers at all.
“The Devoted: A Novel” has alternating chapters, ones that take place during present day for Eunha and ones that tell the story of her past, growing up with her grandmother and brother in her father’s very imposing shadow. Told this way, readers can examine how Eunha’s adult life is heavily influenced by her childhood and how her choices were swayed by the others in her life.
Eunha is a devoted mother, dedicated sister and dutiful daughter, providing for all the men around her at her own expense. Although the story takes place on the other side of the world, women everywhere will connect with Eunha, trying to keep up with society’s expectations without losing the woman she is.
“Devoted” is character driven and full of emotional intrigue and drama. It is a quiet tale of feminist revenge and rage, a group of unsuspecting women who gather together to seek justice against the men who society gave power and influence to, who have been deemed ‘untouchable’.
Cho’s story is emotional, evoking all of the feels, from sadness to joy, from anger to redemption and relief. As the novel comes to a close and Eunha comes into her own, the ending delivers complete satisfaction as Eunha finally gets what she deserves, as do the men who took everything from her.
“The Devoted: A Novel” is quiet, unassuming and reluctant, like its protagonist, but it will leave an impression. Cho has created a powerful story worth telling.
Expected publication date: July 14, 2026
“The Devoted: A Novel” by Catherine Cho is the story of a Korean woman who becomes entrenched in the crime organization she so desperately wanted to avoid. Heartbreaking, powerful and electric, “The Devoted: A Novel” is a tribute to motherhood and family, a tale of power, feminism and an examination of faith and destiny.
Eunha grew up with her beloved brother, Solomon, raised by their grandmother in a quiet and traditional Korean village. Eunha’s mother passed away and she saw her father only rarely, although she knew enough as a child to know her father was the head of a very powerful crime syndicate known as The Triads. Solomon’s destiny was to take over as the “Dragon Head” but the only thing Eunha’s grandmother wanted for her was to avoid the same fate that she and her daughter had suffered, marrying into the dangerous crime family. When Eunha becomes an adult, she starts to look back on the choices she has made and begins to question if her choices were really hers at all.
“The Devoted: A Novel” has alternating chapters, ones that take place during present day for Eunha and ones that tell the story of her past, growing up with her grandmother and brother in her father’s very imposing shadow. Told this way, readers can examine how Eunha’s adult life is heavily influenced by her childhood and how her choices were swayed by the others in her life.
Eunha is a devoted mother, dedicated sister and dutiful daughter, providing for all the men around her at her own expense. Although the story takes place on the other side of the world, women everywhere will connect with Eunha, trying to keep up with society’s expectations without losing the woman she is.
“Devoted” is character driven and full of emotional intrigue and drama. It is a quiet tale of feminist revenge and rage, a group of unsuspecting women who gather together to seek justice against the men who society gave power and influence to, who have been deemed ‘untouchable’.
Cho’s story is emotional, evoking all of the feels, from sadness to joy, from anger to redemption and relief. As the novel comes to a close and Eunha comes into her own, the ending delivers complete satisfaction as Eunha finally gets what she deserves, as do the men who took everything from her.
“The Devoted: A Novel” is quiet, unassuming and reluctant, like its protagonist, but it will leave an impression. Cho has created a powerful story worth telling.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
This book was so full of nostalgia for me because I used to live in Hong Kong. I really enjoyed the realism Cho brought to the city and its many odd groups of inhabitants. The little details about helpers and how Triads have largely become quasi-legitimate businessmen, the atmosphere of cha chaan tengs and sketchy cheap apartment buildings, the hollow superficiality of the tai tai life, it was all so incredibly accurate and made me feel like I was right back there. I can see how people who haven't lived in Hong Kong might fail to connect with this setting, though, because Cho doesn't describe or explain a lot of these details, but rather speaks to the readers as if they, too, inhabit this world and know not only what all these terms mean, but also the undercurrents of what they tacitly imply.
The story started out a little slow - Eunha for the first half of the book is very passive, just letting life and her strong-willed family buffet her around. She does make a number of very consequential proactive decisions that drive the plot forward, however. But because the book starts at the end, you already know she's going to grow from this, and that this passivity is just setting the stage for the crisis that will precipitate her evolution. By the time Kai shows back up, I couldn't put the book down. I knew what the big secrets were; they were well-foreshadowed. And of course I knew how it would end. But how Eunha reached that point was the driving intrigue, and I was excited to find out how it unfolded. For me, this final climax was the only weakness of the book. Eunha's shift from "just get pushed around by everyone" to "become an avenging angel" was a bit abrupt. The pieces just sort of fell into place automatically. I wish this part had been a little more tense, a little more of a struggle for her. But the ending was fitting and beautifully tragic and it made sense for her character.
The characters were very well done, they felt fully-crafted, unique, complex, and had their own voices. Eunha can feel very frustrating at times because she often has the backbone of a jellyfish, but you can feel the rage simmering underneath and it kept me invested because I knew it would boil over eventually. Kai's character reveal over time was perfectly done - Cho makes you fall in love with him before learning all his deep, dark secrets that really drive him.
I saw a number of reviews complaining that there wasn't enough gang violence or thriller action, but those reviewers clearly have no idea what the Triads and Hong Kong are actually like today. Hong Kong's murder rate is exceptionally low - in fact the number of murders in this book is way higher than reality already! This isn't a thriller, this is a story about generational trauma and family secrets and how someone can learn to become their own person under the weight of all that. And it achieves that aim very well.
I received an ARC and am voluntarily leaving my honest feedback.
The story started out a little slow - Eunha for the first half of the book is very passive, just letting life and her strong-willed family buffet her around. She does make a number of very consequential proactive decisions that drive the plot forward, however. But because the book starts at the end, you already know she's going to grow from this, and that this passivity is just setting the stage for the crisis that will precipitate her evolution. By the time Kai shows back up, I couldn't put the book down. I knew what the big secrets were; they were well-foreshadowed. And of course I knew how it would end. But how Eunha reached that point was the driving intrigue, and I was excited to find out how it unfolded. For me, this final climax was the only weakness of the book. Eunha's shift from "just get pushed around by everyone" to "become an avenging angel" was a bit abrupt. The pieces just sort of fell into place automatically. I wish this part had been a little more tense, a little more of a struggle for her. But the ending was fitting and beautifully tragic and it made sense for her character.
The characters were very well done, they felt fully-crafted, unique, complex, and had their own voices. Eunha can feel very frustrating at times because she often has the backbone of a jellyfish, but you can feel the rage simmering underneath and it kept me invested because I knew it would boil over eventually. Kai's character reveal over time was perfectly done - Cho makes you fall in love with him before learning all his deep, dark secrets that really drive him.
I saw a number of reviews complaining that there wasn't enough gang violence or thriller action, but those reviewers clearly have no idea what the Triads and Hong Kong are actually like today. Hong Kong's murder rate is exceptionally low - in fact the number of murders in this book is way higher than reality already! This isn't a thriller, this is a story about generational trauma and family secrets and how someone can learn to become their own person under the weight of all that. And it achieves that aim very well.
I received an ARC and am voluntarily leaving my honest feedback.
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