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Shift
Detective Yi Chang needs another miracle. Ten years ago his sister was healed of her deadly cancer by a mysterious cult leader, but now his young niece has inherited the same disease. The only lead Yi Chang has is the body of a murder victim found in an abandoned building in the Korean seaside. The man was stabbed repeatedly, but the knife found next to the body is covered with someone else's blood. Even stranger, the victim's face is covered with malignant melanoma, a disease he did not have. With time running short, Yi Chang must discover how this murder is related to the cult leader he so desperately seeks.
Award-winning Korean science fiction and fantasy sensation Cho Yeeun, author of the hit The New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre, is back with a haunting tale that explores the price we pay for miracles.
Award-winning Korean science fiction and fantasy sensation Cho Yeeun, author of the hit The New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre, is back with a haunting tale that explores the price we pay for miracles.
194 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 29, 2026
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May 29, 2026
Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!
I swear, it's always the Asian literature that can surprise me in all the good ways, no matter the genre and I will never stop loving it (both books and the feeling itself). Not to mention, that it's usually written in such a way, that makes you feel as if you're watching a movie and that's exactly what happened to me, once more, but this time with Shift.
The book reads quickly (It took me a little bit over two hours, read in one go, I think?) and on top of everything it's fast paced in a way that grips you and doesn't let go. I kept wanting to know what will happen next and the feeling didn't disappear with the ending, no, quite the opposite (don't even let me get started on the ending, alright?).
Were some of the twists in the story predictable to me? Yes.
Did it in any way destroy the whole reading experience for me? Absolutely not.
I might be biased, because I'm a sucker for thriller/mystery with supernatural elements, but I really, really liked it.
Honestly, I feel like my only problem with the book would be the fact that I wished it was longer.
I had my eyes on The New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre (same author) since last year, but now, I feel like I'm going to push it to the very top of the priority list, especially since I got my hands on it just few days ago.
I swear, it's always the Asian literature that can surprise me in all the good ways, no matter the genre and I will never stop loving it (both books and the feeling itself). Not to mention, that it's usually written in such a way, that makes you feel as if you're watching a movie and that's exactly what happened to me, once more, but this time with Shift.
The book reads quickly (It took me a little bit over two hours, read in one go, I think?) and on top of everything it's fast paced in a way that grips you and doesn't let go. I kept wanting to know what will happen next and the feeling didn't disappear with the ending, no, quite the opposite (don't even let me get started on the ending, alright?).
Were some of the twists in the story predictable to me? Yes.
Did it in any way destroy the whole reading experience for me? Absolutely not.
I might be biased, because I'm a sucker for thriller/mystery with supernatural elements, but I really, really liked it.
Honestly, I feel like my only problem with the book would be the fact that I wished it was longer.
I had my eyes on The New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre (same author) since last year, but now, I feel like I'm going to push it to the very top of the priority list, especially since I got my hands on it just few days ago.
June 3, 2026
I received an ARC for this book from NetGalley for free.
Very different from what I expected but I ended up loving this. I really enjoyed the moody atmosphere and thought that the mystery was quite simple but crafted in a way that made it really satisfying to watch it unfold.
I hope to see more books from the author translated to English in the future.
Very different from what I expected but I ended up loving this. I really enjoyed the moody atmosphere and thought that the mystery was quite simple but crafted in a way that made it really satisfying to watch it unfold.
I hope to see more books from the author translated to English in the future.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Miracles came at a price. What he felt now was a sense of emptiness, inertia, occasional anger, lethargy, and a faint hope sprouting from resignation. What the miracle required was simple: if you want something, you have to give something in return. It was an exchange, not a blessing.
Shift is the translation by Yewon Jung of 시프트 (2017) by 조예은 (Cho yeeun).
It is published by the small independent Honford Star, who also published the author/translator's New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre (2024) from 뉴서울파크 젤리장수 대학살 (2022) by 조예은. 시프트 (Shift) was actually the author's debut novel from 2017, although republished in 2025.
And this is a copy received from my paid subscription to Honford Star, not a free ARC as the Goodreads flag annoying implies.
The novel opens:
"There's something ominous about the night sea," Lan mumbled, pushing out the rusted iron door of the abandoned building.
The cold air jolted him awake, and the smell of fishy water penetrated his nostrils. Only then did he realize it was not a dream but reality: the pool of blood spread out behind the door and the boy in his arms, also covered in blood. The weight and warmth of the boy's body was hard evidence that all of it was real.
“밤바다는 불길해.”
란은 중얼거리며 폐건물의 녹슨 철문을 밀었다. 정신이 번쩍 드는 차가운 공기와 비릿한 물 냄새가 코를 간질였다. 그제야 지금이 꿈이 아닌 현실임을 자각했다. 문 뒤에 펼쳐진 피바다와 자신이 안고 있는 피범벅의 아이. 온몸으로 느껴지는 아이의 무게와 온기는 현실이라는 확실한 증거였다.
and then after following Lan as he carefully tries to move the injured boy, seemingly to save him, this opening passage concludes:
Three days later, a dead body was found in an abandoned building on a deserted beach. The body was reported by a high school couple who'd snuck out of school on a date. They found it lying half submerged in a pool of blood, with one side of the face necrotized, and with small and large bruises all over. It was a gruesome sight. Next to the body was a kitchen knife with a chipped blade.
사흘 뒤, 인적 없는 해변의 폐건물에서 한 구의 변사체가 발견되었다. 신고자는 어른들 몰래 데이트를 하려던 고교생 커플이었다. 변사체는 피 웅덩이 한가운데 반쯤 잠겨 있었다. 얼굴 한쪽은 괴사되었고 전신에 크고 작은 타박상이 가득했다. 눈 뜨고 보기 힘들 만큼 참혹한 상태였다. 옆에는 날이 고르지 않은 식칼 한 자루가 놓여 있었다.
This opening passage sets us up for a murder mystery, but one which is initially neglected by the local criminal detective, Yi Chang, who is more focused on a different mystery - tracking down a cult leader and healer who disappeared ten years earlier, shortly after enacting a seemingly miracle cure on Yi Chang's terminally ill sister. Now his niece has the same disease and he is desperate for a similar cure.
And at the same time as his sidekick is opening his investigation into the dead body, Yi Chang discovers from a contact that the cult leader's son was stabbed to death by another cult member (jealous that his own kid had not been cured) shortly after Yi Chang's sister was healed, the murderer also burning down the cult leader's house, and that the leader vanished soon after. More oddly the killer/arsonist died soon after of a rare diseases, one that he only contracted post his attack.
"Do you know what's the creepiest?"
Drops of water, or sweat, dripped down his white beard.
"The bastard who killed the leader's son—he died from a disease, soon after he was caught."
"Disease?"
"Yes! He became a believer because of his sick kid, but he himself was fine. But he just up and died. Not from an acute illness like heart attack or brain hemorrhage, but from a rare disease children usually get."
An arsonist murderer dies of a rare disease all of a sudden? Yi Chang thought.
“소름 끼치는 게 뭔 줄 아나?”
노인의 허연 수염에서 물인지 땀인지 모를 것이 뚝뚝 떨어졌다.
“교주 아들을 죽인 놈, 그놈이 잡힌 지 얼마 안 돼서 병으로 죽었어.”
“병?”
“그래! 병 걸린 자식새끼 때문에 신자가 되긴 했어도 오장육부는 멀쩡한 사내였거든. 그런데 갑자기 병으로 죽었다대. 그것도 심근경색이나 뇌출혈 같은 급성질환이 아니라 주로 애들이 걸리는 희귀병이었어.”
‘방화 살인범이 갑자기 희귀병으로 죽었다고?’
As Yi Chang's thoughts conclude: everything that had happened back then defied common sense., and that's equally true of the current-day events.
But if the reader is expecting some rationale explanation for the above, they will be disappointed, as this is a novel where healing powers are real. Instead the novel - as my opening quote suggests - focuses on the moral dilemma - what if a fatal disease can not be cured, but rather transferred or exchanged? Are all lives of equal value and whose life would you sacrifice to save a loved one?
The novel is at its strongest when raising these philosophical dilemmas. But it is rather weaker as a detective/action thriller, as any real mystery is solved early on, and protagonists with supernatural powers reduce the sense of jeopardy. The novel's preferred resolution to the dilemma - a win-win involving healing and comeuppance for the bad guys - also rather ducks the issue.
Shift is the translation by Yewon Jung of 시프트 (2017) by 조예은 (Cho yeeun).
It is published by the small independent Honford Star, who also published the author/translator's New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre (2024) from 뉴서울파크 젤리장수 대학살 (2022) by 조예은. 시프트 (Shift) was actually the author's debut novel from 2017, although republished in 2025.
And this is a copy received from my paid subscription to Honford Star, not a free ARC as the Goodreads flag annoying implies.
The novel opens:
"There's something ominous about the night sea," Lan mumbled, pushing out the rusted iron door of the abandoned building.
The cold air jolted him awake, and the smell of fishy water penetrated his nostrils. Only then did he realize it was not a dream but reality: the pool of blood spread out behind the door and the boy in his arms, also covered in blood. The weight and warmth of the boy's body was hard evidence that all of it was real.
“밤바다는 불길해.”
란은 중얼거리며 폐건물의 녹슨 철문을 밀었다. 정신이 번쩍 드는 차가운 공기와 비릿한 물 냄새가 코를 간질였다. 그제야 지금이 꿈이 아닌 현실임을 자각했다. 문 뒤에 펼쳐진 피바다와 자신이 안고 있는 피범벅의 아이. 온몸으로 느껴지는 아이의 무게와 온기는 현실이라는 확실한 증거였다.
and then after following Lan as he carefully tries to move the injured boy, seemingly to save him, this opening passage concludes:
Three days later, a dead body was found in an abandoned building on a deserted beach. The body was reported by a high school couple who'd snuck out of school on a date. They found it lying half submerged in a pool of blood, with one side of the face necrotized, and with small and large bruises all over. It was a gruesome sight. Next to the body was a kitchen knife with a chipped blade.
사흘 뒤, 인적 없는 해변의 폐건물에서 한 구의 변사체가 발견되었다. 신고자는 어른들 몰래 데이트를 하려던 고교생 커플이었다. 변사체는 피 웅덩이 한가운데 반쯤 잠겨 있었다. 얼굴 한쪽은 괴사되었고 전신에 크고 작은 타박상이 가득했다. 눈 뜨고 보기 힘들 만큼 참혹한 상태였다. 옆에는 날이 고르지 않은 식칼 한 자루가 놓여 있었다.
This opening passage sets us up for a murder mystery, but one which is initially neglected by the local criminal detective, Yi Chang, who is more focused on a different mystery - tracking down a cult leader and healer who disappeared ten years earlier, shortly after enacting a seemingly miracle cure on Yi Chang's terminally ill sister. Now his niece has the same disease and he is desperate for a similar cure.
And at the same time as his sidekick is opening his investigation into the dead body, Yi Chang discovers from a contact that the cult leader's son was stabbed to death by another cult member (jealous that his own kid had not been cured) shortly after Yi Chang's sister was healed, the murderer also burning down the cult leader's house, and that the leader vanished soon after. More oddly the killer/arsonist died soon after of a rare diseases, one that he only contracted post his attack.
"Do you know what's the creepiest?"
Drops of water, or sweat, dripped down his white beard.
"The bastard who killed the leader's son—he died from a disease, soon after he was caught."
"Disease?"
"Yes! He became a believer because of his sick kid, but he himself was fine. But he just up and died. Not from an acute illness like heart attack or brain hemorrhage, but from a rare disease children usually get."
An arsonist murderer dies of a rare disease all of a sudden? Yi Chang thought.
“소름 끼치는 게 뭔 줄 아나?”
노인의 허연 수염에서 물인지 땀인지 모를 것이 뚝뚝 떨어졌다.
“교주 아들을 죽인 놈, 그놈이 잡힌 지 얼마 안 돼서 병으로 죽었어.”
“병?”
“그래! 병 걸린 자식새끼 때문에 신자가 되긴 했어도 오장육부는 멀쩡한 사내였거든. 그런데 갑자기 병으로 죽었다대. 그것도 심근경색이나 뇌출혈 같은 급성질환이 아니라 주로 애들이 걸리는 희귀병이었어.”
‘방화 살인범이 갑자기 희귀병으로 죽었다고?’
As Yi Chang's thoughts conclude: everything that had happened back then defied common sense., and that's equally true of the current-day events.
But if the reader is expecting some rationale explanation for the above, they will be disappointed, as this is a novel where healing powers are real. Instead the novel - as my opening quote suggests - focuses on the moral dilemma - what if a fatal disease can not be cured, but rather transferred or exchanged? Are all lives of equal value and whose life would you sacrifice to save a loved one?
The novel is at its strongest when raising these philosophical dilemmas. But it is rather weaker as a detective/action thriller, as any real mystery is solved early on, and protagonists with supernatural powers reduce the sense of jeopardy. The novel's preferred resolution to the dilemma - a win-win involving healing and comeuppance for the bad guys - also rather ducks the issue.
May 31, 2026
✧˖°.˗ˏˋ SHIFT ˊ˗˖°.✧
----- ----- ----- ----- -----
----- ----- ----- ----- -----
Characters: ★★★☆☆
World Building: ★★★☆☆
Plot: ★★★★☆
Tension: ★★★☆☆
Writing style: ★★☆☆☆
Entertainment: ★★★☆☆
Horror: ★★★☆☆
Overall Score: ★ 3.1/5.0 ★ 6/10 ★
˗ˏˋ ✧ I will thank NetGalley and the publisher 'Honford Star' for this unique chance to get a early glimpse into this story in form of an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy)! Please note, no quotes will be provided, until the (edited) official release! ✧ˊ˗
Rubbing my hands, as body horror and a translated work? I really needed to read some more Asian literature outside of webnovels, before i learn some languages to read them in their original language.
----- ----- ----- ----- -----
˗ˏˋ The Story ˊ˗
Ten years ago, a mysterious cult has performed miracles on the sick, salvation throu healing the doomed... Detective Yi Chang's sister was one of the people who had received this blessing and were saved from the terminal illness they were suffering from, yet not everything is as easy at it seems.
Now, ten years later, his niece has inherited the same disease, struck with the dilemma he embarks to safe her, searching for the same cult, only to find a mysterious lead to a dead body of the cult member stabbed and covered in growths, which haven't been there before.
----- ----- ----- ----- -----
˗ˏˋ My Two Cents ˊ˗
I never be amazed at international literature and different cultures standards of writing stories. I went into this one holding the simplest of expectations, but it did cover all of them. The story is compelling and has a strong and focused line, about the cult activities and the protagonists selfish desire to save a member of his family from a terminal disease, where the clock is running tight on how long he could search for a 'magical' cure.
The biggest detriment in my eyes is the fast paced and sometimes abrupt writing style, which jumps from sub chapter to sub chapter. Although the story line could make up and it paired well to not seem distasteful to the reading flow or the intrigue dwindling.
I would recommend to look into this novella, it is a short self contained story. Nothing too ground breaking, but yet a breath of fresh air. Seeing the author has another book translated, i am intrigued and will see if i can find it somewhere to read.
----- ----- ----- ----- -----
[ Quote will be revealed on a later date ]
----- ----- ----- ----- -----
Characters: ★★★☆☆
World Building: ★★★☆☆
Plot: ★★★★☆
Tension: ★★★☆☆
Writing style: ★★☆☆☆
Entertainment: ★★★☆☆
Horror: ★★★☆☆
Overall Score: ★ 3.1/5.0 ★ 6/10 ★
˗ˏˋ ✧ I will thank NetGalley and the publisher 'Honford Star' for this unique chance to get a early glimpse into this story in form of an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy)! Please note, no quotes will be provided, until the (edited) official release! ✧ˊ˗
Rubbing my hands, as body horror and a translated work? I really needed to read some more Asian literature outside of webnovels, before i learn some languages to read them in their original language.
----- ----- ----- ----- -----
˗ˏˋ The Story ˊ˗
Ten years ago, a mysterious cult has performed miracles on the sick, salvation throu healing the doomed... Detective Yi Chang's sister was one of the people who had received this blessing and were saved from the terminal illness they were suffering from, yet not everything is as easy at it seems.
Now, ten years later, his niece has inherited the same disease, struck with the dilemma he embarks to safe her, searching for the same cult, only to find a mysterious lead to a dead body of the cult member stabbed and covered in growths, which haven't been there before.
----- ----- ----- ----- -----
˗ˏˋ My Two Cents ˊ˗
I never be amazed at international literature and different cultures standards of writing stories. I went into this one holding the simplest of expectations, but it did cover all of them. The story is compelling and has a strong and focused line, about the cult activities and the protagonists selfish desire to save a member of his family from a terminal disease, where the clock is running tight on how long he could search for a 'magical' cure.
The biggest detriment in my eyes is the fast paced and sometimes abrupt writing style, which jumps from sub chapter to sub chapter. Although the story line could make up and it paired well to not seem distasteful to the reading flow or the intrigue dwindling.
I would recommend to look into this novella, it is a short self contained story. Nothing too ground breaking, but yet a breath of fresh air. Seeing the author has another book translated, i am intrigued and will see if i can find it somewhere to read.
May 29, 2026
[ARC REVIEW 📖]
Shift
Author : Cho Yeeun
Translator : Yewon Jung
Trigger warnings : brutal bloody/gore scenes, child trafficking, physical abuse, mental manipulation & torture, drugs, cult activities, murder, revenge & death.
Wow talk about a striking intro! A dead body found in an abandoned building on a deserted beach lying half submerged in a pool of blood. Not a gruesome start & sight at all. 😅
The story begins w/ protagonist Officer Yi Chang tracking down a missing cult leader & healer who performed a miracle on his terminally ill sister in the past, because his 9-year-old niece Chaerin managed to contract the same illness & is hoping for the same cure from before. As his investigation continues, he comes into contact w/ an old man faced w/ 11 criminal convictions who was a deacon of the cult called the Church of the Heavenly Spirit back in 2002-2005. He tells him that the leader's "son" got stabbed to death by a mentally unstable fanatic believer of a cult & that the leader & elder's cabin burned down. About a week later, the leader vanished w/o a trace. The arsonist murderer on the other hand, died from a rare disease the moment he was caught & his cause of death remained a mystery until then.
The dead body found in Gyeoksan Beach was then later on discovered to be a 55-year-old cult leader (Church of the Heavenly Spirit) named Han Seungmok who died due to excessive bleeding from an abdominal stab wound. There was then evidence of child abduction & killing found in the basement of the same bldg., a copy of a notebook containing the identities of 10 children in total around age ten who were reported missing for disappearing over a three-year period between 2003 & 2005.
This novel was such a thrilling ride! I was so engrossed as I read & follow the flow of the story narrated from Yi Chang's & Lan's perspective interchangeably. I definitely loved Yi Chang & Chaerin's familial relationship, as well as Lan & Chan's sibling relationship. I feel sorry for both of them having to undergo such traumatic & painful experiences which they never even deserved in the first place due to the Han brothers' arrogance, greed & wickedness. That assemblyman Pak Yongseok made it even worse! Oh I swear I wish I could have gone inside the story & Saitama-punched all of them myself if I could! I would have enjoyed doing this revenge w/ Lan. 😤
Thank you Netgalley & Honford Star Ltd. for the opportunity to read! 🥹🫶
5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
P.S.
Follow me for more book reviews on:
❥ Instagram @bookwormdenz
❥ Threads @denz.kaye
❥ Meta @bookworm.denz
❥ Goodreads @bookwormdenz
Shift
Author : Cho Yeeun
Translator : Yewon Jung
Trigger warnings : brutal bloody/gore scenes, child trafficking, physical abuse, mental manipulation & torture, drugs, cult activities, murder, revenge & death.
Wow talk about a striking intro! A dead body found in an abandoned building on a deserted beach lying half submerged in a pool of blood. Not a gruesome start & sight at all. 😅
The story begins w/ protagonist Officer Yi Chang tracking down a missing cult leader & healer who performed a miracle on his terminally ill sister in the past, because his 9-year-old niece Chaerin managed to contract the same illness & is hoping for the same cure from before. As his investigation continues, he comes into contact w/ an old man faced w/ 11 criminal convictions who was a deacon of the cult called the Church of the Heavenly Spirit back in 2002-2005. He tells him that the leader's "son" got stabbed to death by a mentally unstable fanatic believer of a cult & that the leader & elder's cabin burned down. About a week later, the leader vanished w/o a trace. The arsonist murderer on the other hand, died from a rare disease the moment he was caught & his cause of death remained a mystery until then.
The dead body found in Gyeoksan Beach was then later on discovered to be a 55-year-old cult leader (Church of the Heavenly Spirit) named Han Seungmok who died due to excessive bleeding from an abdominal stab wound. There was then evidence of child abduction & killing found in the basement of the same bldg., a copy of a notebook containing the identities of 10 children in total around age ten who were reported missing for disappearing over a three-year period between 2003 & 2005.
This novel was such a thrilling ride! I was so engrossed as I read & follow the flow of the story narrated from Yi Chang's & Lan's perspective interchangeably. I definitely loved Yi Chang & Chaerin's familial relationship, as well as Lan & Chan's sibling relationship. I feel sorry for both of them having to undergo such traumatic & painful experiences which they never even deserved in the first place due to the Han brothers' arrogance, greed & wickedness. That assemblyman Pak Yongseok made it even worse! Oh I swear I wish I could have gone inside the story & Saitama-punched all of them myself if I could! I would have enjoyed doing this revenge w/ Lan. 😤
Thank you Netgalley & Honford Star Ltd. for the opportunity to read! 🥹🫶
5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
P.S.
Follow me for more book reviews on:
❥ Instagram @bookwormdenz
❥ Threads @denz.kaye
❥ Meta @bookworm.denz
❥ Goodreads @bookwormdenz
May 30, 2026
4.5 rounding up on Goodreads
After finishing Shift, I just want to say that from here on out if Cho Yeeun writes it, I'll read it. In 2024, I read The New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre and thought it was such a bizarre and unique fever dream so when I saw Shift available on Netgalley my first thought was that it would be a similar wild romp but honestly Shift was so much better than anything I expected.
Shift follows multiple perspectives. The first perspective being that of Detective Yi Chang who is searching for the mysterious cult leader that once cured his sister of a rare disease in order to now save his dying niece. The other perspective is that of Lan, the shut in son of the former cult leader who wants nothing more than to run away from and forget his past.
This book was a perfect blend of reality and fantasy with enough elements of both to keep me invested without losing the plot. This wasn't a fever dream like Jelly Massacre and I honestly enjoyed this book significantly more, maybe because it was less disjointed and a little more fast paced.
The characters were engaging and I truly loved Lan. He was this deeply tragic hero and his backstory was absolutely heartbreaking. For me, his character carried the story. There were a few predictable moments to the mystery of it all but that didn't take away from my experience and I know I'm being vague about the contents of the book but I truly don't want to give anything away.
If you enjoy detective stories with a blend of fantasy, a whole lot of tragedy, and maybe a smidge of horror then I recommend picking up Shift as a quick and entertaining read. Thank you to Honford Star for letting me read an eARC!
After finishing Shift, I just want to say that from here on out if Cho Yeeun writes it, I'll read it. In 2024, I read The New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre and thought it was such a bizarre and unique fever dream so when I saw Shift available on Netgalley my first thought was that it would be a similar wild romp but honestly Shift was so much better than anything I expected.
Shift follows multiple perspectives. The first perspective being that of Detective Yi Chang who is searching for the mysterious cult leader that once cured his sister of a rare disease in order to now save his dying niece. The other perspective is that of Lan, the shut in son of the former cult leader who wants nothing more than to run away from and forget his past.
This book was a perfect blend of reality and fantasy with enough elements of both to keep me invested without losing the plot. This wasn't a fever dream like Jelly Massacre and I honestly enjoyed this book significantly more, maybe because it was less disjointed and a little more fast paced.
The characters were engaging and I truly loved Lan. He was this deeply tragic hero and his backstory was absolutely heartbreaking. For me, his character carried the story. There were a few predictable moments to the mystery of it all but that didn't take away from my experience and I know I'm being vague about the contents of the book but I truly don't want to give anything away.
If you enjoy detective stories with a blend of fantasy, a whole lot of tragedy, and maybe a smidge of horror then I recommend picking up Shift as a quick and entertaining read. Thank you to Honford Star for letting me read an eARC!
May 25, 2026
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author and translator for this free eARC in exchange for an honest review.
Loved this. Did not go how I was expecting when I read the description or first started it.
The pros: This is a story about child trafficking! About abuse and familial love! All the characters are fantastic, I love how Yi Chang seems to be a good detective but also does not do his job, I love Chaerin and their relationship, I love their family history. Lan and Chan are wonderful and I feel so bad for them. The Hans are despicable and I love them as villains. The story is really centered around those three familial pairs and they're all so different but so wonderful. And despite how dark this story is, there is so much love. Love between Chan and Lan, between Yi Chang and Chaerin, love and sympathy for those who have gone through terrible things. I really love the ending, it's exactly the ending this story needed and deserved. I just had a great time with a great book!!!
The cons: I found the prose to be a little dry, as I did with the other translated works I read earlier this year (A Magical Girl Retires and Tender is the Flesh, the latter of which I noticed the issue less/it felt like more of a fitting choice), and I'm still uncertain if that's a common quality in translated works or if I've just been unlucky so far. I do plan on reading more translated works so hopefully I'll get a better grasp of the situation. Aside from that, I can't think of anything I didn't really dislike. I thought there was a tad too much back and forth of who had the upper hand in the final section, but it didn't bother me like it does in a lot of thrillers and didn't feel excessive to that degree.
Loved this. Did not go how I was expecting when I read the description or first started it.
The pros: This is a story about child trafficking! About abuse and familial love! All the characters are fantastic, I love how Yi Chang seems to be a good detective but also does not do his job, I love Chaerin and their relationship, I love their family history. Lan and Chan are wonderful and I feel so bad for them. The Hans are despicable and I love them as villains. The story is really centered around those three familial pairs and they're all so different but so wonderful. And despite how dark this story is, there is so much love. Love between Chan and Lan, between Yi Chang and Chaerin, love and sympathy for those who have gone through terrible things. I really love the ending, it's exactly the ending this story needed and deserved. I just had a great time with a great book!!!
The cons: I found the prose to be a little dry, as I did with the other translated works I read earlier this year (A Magical Girl Retires and Tender is the Flesh, the latter of which I noticed the issue less/it felt like more of a fitting choice), and I'm still uncertain if that's a common quality in translated works or if I've just been unlucky so far. I do plan on reading more translated works so hopefully I'll get a better grasp of the situation. Aside from that, I can't think of anything I didn't really dislike. I thought there was a tad too much back and forth of who had the upper hand in the final section, but it didn't bother me like it does in a lot of thrillers and didn't feel excessive to that degree.
May 25, 2026
This was a solid thriller/horror novel- body horror is probably the best way to classify it. I’m giving it three stars because, while I found it entertaining, I never fully connected with the characters and ultimately felt somewhat indifferent about whether the story ended happily or tragically.
Cho Yeeun does an excellent job of immediately pulling readers into Yi Chang’s quest to find the leaders of the cult. My favorite part of the book was the Lan and Chan section, despite it also being the most gruesome and disturbing. Everything Chan did was driven by his love for his brother, even though that unconditional devotion ultimately led to his fate. This was my first work of fiction translated from Korean to English, which I imagine may have influenced how the prose felt to me. Overall, it was a quick and engaging read, and it definitely left me curious to explore more of this author’s work.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance reader copy of this book.
Cho Yeeun does an excellent job of immediately pulling readers into Yi Chang’s quest to find the leaders of the cult. My favorite part of the book was the Lan and Chan section, despite it also being the most gruesome and disturbing. Everything Chan did was driven by his love for his brother, even though that unconditional devotion ultimately led to his fate. This was my first work of fiction translated from Korean to English, which I imagine may have influenced how the prose felt to me. Overall, it was a quick and engaging read, and it definitely left me curious to explore more of this author’s work.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance reader copy of this book.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I usually love this genre thriller/horror, and I'm not saying this story wasn't good, but there was something about it that just didn't really catch my attention, one chapter I was so connected with the characters and the next one I didn't really care what's going to happen to them, maybe the writing style is the reason, but overall it was good quick read with hints of mystery and horror.
3.75⭐️
3.75⭐️
June 12, 2026
Thank you Netgalley for the eARC for this book!
This book has a very inviting promise, and a story out of the ordinary for the genre. The story keeps you wondering, I found myself thinking about this book outside of my reading time. Sadly, I think it would’ve benefitted from a bit more of character development, from seeing characters interact with each other and seeing why they interact with each other like that rather than being told so. The characters are very charismatic, and some are very lovable despite their human flaws.
Something else that really stuck out to me in my reading experience was that the author doesn’t seem to trust the reader to reach some conclusions by themselves, so she has the characters making the questions the readers should be asking explicitly. The deduction ability of characters varies a lot depending on where they are in the story and some parts of it seemed rushed or added without much build-up.
However, it is a very enjoyable read. It is a gripping story and I really wanted to pick it up whenever I was busy doing something else. I think the ambiance was well done and throughout reading I got a feeling for this Korean coastal town, feeling the atmosphere in it. It is a pretty easy and quick read despite its heavier tones, which made it fun during a very busy period, and I would definitely recommend it for someone who needs a light book that still explores more serious themes of who deserves to live, and things like health and luck are still determined by your status
This book has a very inviting promise, and a story out of the ordinary for the genre. The story keeps you wondering, I found myself thinking about this book outside of my reading time. Sadly, I think it would’ve benefitted from a bit more of character development, from seeing characters interact with each other and seeing why they interact with each other like that rather than being told so. The characters are very charismatic, and some are very lovable despite their human flaws.
Something else that really stuck out to me in my reading experience was that the author doesn’t seem to trust the reader to reach some conclusions by themselves, so she has the characters making the questions the readers should be asking explicitly. The deduction ability of characters varies a lot depending on where they are in the story and some parts of it seemed rushed or added without much build-up.
However, it is a very enjoyable read. It is a gripping story and I really wanted to pick it up whenever I was busy doing something else. I think the ambiance was well done and throughout reading I got a feeling for this Korean coastal town, feeling the atmosphere in it. It is a pretty easy and quick read despite its heavier tones, which made it fun during a very busy period, and I would definitely recommend it for someone who needs a light book that still explores more serious themes of who deserves to live, and things like health and luck are still determined by your status
June 16, 2026
Cho yeeun never disappoints. Shift is about a man trying to find the miracle that cured his sister in order to save his niece and about a young man who is trying to run away from the past and himself.
there were some points in the book where I was literally just sat there like 😨 (and at that point I would pause reading, take a minute to soak in what just happened and then continue because curiosity got the best of me)
everything was written so well along with the descriptions, the characters and just how evil humans truly are. this book tackled some dark topics that made me think deeply.
I just want Lan to be happy. Words cannot describe my love for him.
there were some points in the book where I was literally just sat there like 😨 (and at that point I would pause reading, take a minute to soak in what just happened and then continue because curiosity got the best of me)
everything was written so well along with the descriptions, the characters and just how evil humans truly are. this book tackled some dark topics that made me think deeply.
I just want Lan to be happy. Words cannot describe my love for him.
June 1, 2026
I can safely say I have never read a book quite like “Shift”. The concept of taking on someone else’s pain is a heavy one, and this book is nothing short of heavy. “Shift” follows the story of two brothers that grew up connected to a cult, forced to perform “miracles” that healed the ill. But every thing comes at a cost. When a detective gets involved years later, things get personal. “Shift” begs the question of: how much are you willing to sacrifice for someone you love?
The book has twisted elements that keep you wanting more. Everyone is connected and the characters trauma are deep-rooted and follow them, literally, for life. The ending had me glued to my Kindle to see how everything panned out and ultimately balanced.
Cho Yeeun does a good job at building tension and pushing buttons. I was uncomfortable in the best way during this entire book. Guilt, dread, and faith sum up a lot of what makes “Shift” a provoking read.
I got to read this as an ARC through NetGalley. The book is originally in Korean and translated to English. This in turn made the tone sound somewhat “matter of fact”, but it served the story well considering the dark subjects at hand. At times I struggled to keep characters straight (there are brothers with similar names), but I got it ironed out.
I would recommend shift to those interested in paranormal, borderline body-horror books, but perhaps not for those that would be sensitive to medical situations with children. Thank you to NetGalley, Cho Yeeun, and Honford Star for the opportunity to read this ARC!
The book has twisted elements that keep you wanting more. Everyone is connected and the characters trauma are deep-rooted and follow them, literally, for life. The ending had me glued to my Kindle to see how everything panned out and ultimately balanced.
Cho Yeeun does a good job at building tension and pushing buttons. I was uncomfortable in the best way during this entire book. Guilt, dread, and faith sum up a lot of what makes “Shift” a provoking read.
I got to read this as an ARC through NetGalley. The book is originally in Korean and translated to English. This in turn made the tone sound somewhat “matter of fact”, but it served the story well considering the dark subjects at hand. At times I struggled to keep characters straight (there are brothers with similar names), but I got it ironed out.
I would recommend shift to those interested in paranormal, borderline body-horror books, but perhaps not for those that would be sensitive to medical situations with children. Thank you to NetGalley, Cho Yeeun, and Honford Star for the opportunity to read this ARC!
June 3, 2026
Shift was a book that hit me much more in the heart than in the mind. Cho Ye-eun builds characters that are impossible not to root for, and it was this emotional attachment that made the book so memorable for me. Chan and Lan's story is devastating. Even after finishing the book, I still feel an urge to protect them from everything they went through.
I did have some issues with the narrative. Some parts felt repetitive, though that might have been a result of the translation or because the text wasn't in its final version yet. I also struggled to believe that Yi Chan was a police investigator; in my opinion, he lacked a bit of sharpness. But as I kept reading, I realized he is just desperately trying to hold onto hope. Instead of a brilliant, infallible hero, we find someone deeply human, and that ultimately won me over.
I can't leave out how much I hated certain characters (a compliment to the author), because few villains trigger as much anger as the Han siblings. And, without getting into spoilers, I still wish Pak Yeonseok had faced different consequences for his choices. Despite some reservations, Shift was an emotional, painful, and unforgettable read. It is not a perfect book, but it is one that made me feel deeply, and that means a lot to me.
I did have some issues with the narrative. Some parts felt repetitive, though that might have been a result of the translation or because the text wasn't in its final version yet. I also struggled to believe that Yi Chan was a police investigator; in my opinion, he lacked a bit of sharpness. But as I kept reading, I realized he is just desperately trying to hold onto hope. Instead of a brilliant, infallible hero, we find someone deeply human, and that ultimately won me over.
I can't leave out how much I hated certain characters (a compliment to the author), because few villains trigger as much anger as the Han siblings. And, without getting into spoilers, I still wish Pak Yeonseok had faced different consequences for his choices. Despite some reservations, Shift was an emotional, painful, and unforgettable read. It is not a perfect book, but it is one that made me feel deeply, and that means a lot to me.
May 30, 2026
Thank you NetGalley and Honford Star for the eARC.
Yi Chang is a detective searching for the cult leader who once performed a miracle for his family. He gave up a lucrative career in Seoul to move to a small seaside town, hoping he can find the pastor for one last miracle. Before long, a murder that makes no sense falls onto his lap, and surprisingly, it gets him closer to his target.
I absolutely loved this book. It has some of my favorite tropes in books: cults, murder mystery, and plain old’ mystery. Aside from that, it was such an emotional book. I love feeling strong emotions from reading, and in this case, I was just sad. The question the book brings up is such a good question: how far would we go if presented/blessed/cursed with special powers? And would anyone want it?
Lan and Chan’s backstory is simply tragic. I wish I knew more about where they came from, but I guess that’s part of the mystery. The writing is very straightforward, slightly repetitive, but I don’t mind it at all. The plot was too engrossing. Ending wise, I can see readers feeling split. I personally prefer a clear path, but I guess in this case, it’s just part of the bigger mystery.
Yi Chang is a detective searching for the cult leader who once performed a miracle for his family. He gave up a lucrative career in Seoul to move to a small seaside town, hoping he can find the pastor for one last miracle. Before long, a murder that makes no sense falls onto his lap, and surprisingly, it gets him closer to his target.
I absolutely loved this book. It has some of my favorite tropes in books: cults, murder mystery, and plain old’ mystery. Aside from that, it was such an emotional book. I love feeling strong emotions from reading, and in this case, I was just sad. The question the book brings up is such a good question: how far would we go if presented/blessed/cursed with special powers? And would anyone want it?
Lan and Chan’s backstory is simply tragic. I wish I knew more about where they came from, but I guess that’s part of the mystery. The writing is very straightforward, slightly repetitive, but I don’t mind it at all. The plot was too engrossing. Ending wise, I can see readers feeling split. I personally prefer a clear path, but I guess in this case, it’s just part of the bigger mystery.
May 29, 2026
An amazing read.
Detective Yi Chang needs a miracle to happen. He pushes himself to find the cult that his family was once a part of, and whom had healed his sister of an incurable illness, which was passed onto his niece.
Lan, now a young adult was also part of the cult that Detective Yi Chang was part of. He had gained a special power that he received through his brother Chan in an unconventional way. Lan is able to shift diseases and illnesses from one person onto himself, but must shift it the disease/illness onto someone else...
Yi Chang is out there to find out what happened in the past, and Lan is out for revenge on his previous captors.
If you like superpower-like stories with a bit of detective work, then this one is for you...
This reads like a K-drama fictional story, very fast-paced and quite suspenseful!
Thanks to Netgalley and Honford Star Ltd. | Honford Star for this ARC! Love Cho Yeeun's books, and can't wait for another English-translated book from this author!
Detective Yi Chang needs a miracle to happen. He pushes himself to find the cult that his family was once a part of, and whom had healed his sister of an incurable illness, which was passed onto his niece.
Lan, now a young adult was also part of the cult that Detective Yi Chang was part of. He had gained a special power that he received through his brother Chan in an unconventional way. Lan is able to shift diseases and illnesses from one person onto himself, but must shift it the disease/illness onto someone else...
Yi Chang is out there to find out what happened in the past, and Lan is out for revenge on his previous captors.
If you like superpower-like stories with a bit of detective work, then this one is for you...
This reads like a K-drama fictional story, very fast-paced and quite suspenseful!
Thanks to Netgalley and Honford Star Ltd. | Honford Star for this ARC! Love Cho Yeeun's books, and can't wait for another English-translated book from this author!
May 26, 2026
thank you to Cho Yeeun, Honford Star and netgalley for this e-arc !
I was quite excited by the premise, a murder mystery involving a shady cult. But it wasn't really that, I mean yes there was a shady cult and a murder mystery but the mystery was solved at the beginning of the story so what was left was a bit of moral and philosophic plot. The whole thing is explained very early on and so it was hard to stick to the story.
It was hard to connect to the characters, they all have similar names and their personalities and behavior aren't well developed. Yi Chang (why was he the only one with his family name mentioned all the time ?) was not a very bright detective, and there were some inconsistencies with his character : how could he solve the murder mystery so quickly but couldn't figure out that Lan kept the disease in himself
Also the writing style was peculiar, or maybe it was the translation as some passages were written in an odd way. Sometimes it didn't flow too well. Overall it was a quick and easy read.
I was quite excited by the premise, a murder mystery involving a shady cult. But it wasn't really that, I mean yes there was a shady cult and a murder mystery but the mystery was solved at the beginning of the story so what was left was a bit of moral and philosophic plot. The whole thing is explained very early on and so it was hard to stick to the story.
It was hard to connect to the characters, they all have similar names and their personalities and behavior aren't well developed. Yi Chang (why was he the only one with his family name mentioned all the time ?) was not a very bright detective, and there were some inconsistencies with his character : how could he solve the murder mystery so quickly but couldn't figure out that Lan kept the disease in himself
Also the writing style was peculiar, or maybe it was the translation as some passages were written in an odd way. Sometimes it didn't flow too well. Overall it was a quick and easy read.
May 20, 2026
I was intrigued by the premise and found the idea of being able to transfer diseases and injuries from one person to another a really interesting concept.
The story overall was compelling. We start by following Yi Chang, an investigator who moves to a small Korean seaside town in search of something, and later we also follow Lan, who has suffered immense trauma and hardship throughout his life.
I think having the two POVs was a good choice, although I do feel they could have been blended together slightly better. The structure felt a little uneven at times, with a large section focused on Yi Chang at the beginning before shifting heavily towards Lan.
I also feel this is probably a book that reads better in Korean than in translation. At times it felt as though some of the nuance or substance may have been lost in translation, and certain phrases came across as overly literal in English.
Overall, though, it was an entertaining and interesting read, and I’d definitely be interested in reading more from Cho Yeeun.
The story overall was compelling. We start by following Yi Chang, an investigator who moves to a small Korean seaside town in search of something, and later we also follow Lan, who has suffered immense trauma and hardship throughout his life.
I think having the two POVs was a good choice, although I do feel they could have been blended together slightly better. The structure felt a little uneven at times, with a large section focused on Yi Chang at the beginning before shifting heavily towards Lan.
I also feel this is probably a book that reads better in Korean than in translation. At times it felt as though some of the nuance or substance may have been lost in translation, and certain phrases came across as overly literal in English.
Overall, though, it was an entertaining and interesting read, and I’d definitely be interested in reading more from Cho Yeeun.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
The only time I check the synopsis of books is when I’m about to buy a title unknown to me, or before requesting ARCs on Netgalley. So when I start the book, I have no idea what I’m getting into, how long the book is, and what genre it is.
I went into this with my head empty, no thoughts, and kindle kept showing that I had less than an hour for the chapter to end, and in my head, I am thinking maybe kindle mistook the entire book to be a chapter because there are separate numbered chapters.
I was so engrossed in the plot, I kept reading with only 1min left and my face fell when it ended without further explanation because god knows I wanted more, a sequel something, I was part angry, part disappointed because “What do you mean you left me hanging like that?” and then I turn expecting an epilogue or acknowledgements and it’s the next part to the book! The time remaining reset and I figured out my mistake. I was so happy I had 2.5 hrs left to end the book and I prepped to finish this in one sitting and that I did.
The book is divided into 3 parts, and each part has chapters. But I also think the first part is written the way it is on purpose, giving us readers enough to keep going. But the best part was that the pacing never slowed down or deviated, it remained the same and I think I forgot to blink.
I’m also not that person to give away the twist in part 2 (the miracle part almost reminds of the english movie I shall not name for fear of spoiling), but there are hints alluded to it throughout part 1, but also if you want a synopsis to go on, don’t google it, here’s the synopsis without spoiling the plot entirely.
A body is discovered in an abandoned seaside building in South Korea, brutally stabbed and left beside a knife covered in someone else’s blood. But the most disturbing detail is the victim’s face: it is covered in malignant melanoma, a disease he never had while alive.
Detective Yi Chang is assigned to the case, but the evidence refuses to line up, witnesses vanish, and every clue leads toward a secretive cult from a decade ago tied to unexplained miracles and hidden violence.
But be warned that this is an occult thriller of sorts.
I am also not generally that person to tell if you liked that book then read this, but I have to tell here, if you like Uketsu’s Strange Buildings, you will like this too, but not in a this is a copy or same premise, just in the sense that fans of that will like this.
It has the same pacing, keeps you guessing and would make you read in one sitting.
Part 2 of the book, like the core relationship between L & C, took me back to this Tamil movie, Villain, which is about two twin brothers that run away from home at a small age because one of them has development/intellectual disability and the parents had kept him locked up, and then they get caught in the wrong hands, of those who traffic children to beg, and the bad guy physically harms the latter making him physically disabled as well and even though it’s just like a small part of the movie, maybe 20mins, and the rest of the movie is about the other brother pretending to be the brother with the disability, to con and for money heists (it’s a good movie), that small part is burned in my memory forever, and even though the book and story is far from that movie, it reminded me of that.
And while the whole book was playing in my head like a movie, tell me why the detective was Lee Jung Jae (guy from squid game) and me being a Seventeen fan, Lan was Jun (he’s be perfect though, was it the part about Chinese kids) and Chan was a young Dino?
If I had a nickel for every time a book kept me up or didn’t make me blink at all and made me finish it in one sitting this year, I’d have 4 nickels, which isn’t much, but weird it happened FOUR TIMES?!!!
Initially I didn’t realize why the book was named Shift or what the cover meant, but when I got it, it’s perfect.
Looking forward to reading the previous book by the author and upcoming books.
OVERALL RATING: 4.5/5
I went into this with my head empty, no thoughts, and kindle kept showing that I had less than an hour for the chapter to end, and in my head, I am thinking maybe kindle mistook the entire book to be a chapter because there are separate numbered chapters.
I was so engrossed in the plot, I kept reading with only 1min left and my face fell when it ended without further explanation because god knows I wanted more, a sequel something, I was part angry, part disappointed because “What do you mean you left me hanging like that?” and then I turn expecting an epilogue or acknowledgements and it’s the next part to the book! The time remaining reset and I figured out my mistake. I was so happy I had 2.5 hrs left to end the book and I prepped to finish this in one sitting and that I did.
The book is divided into 3 parts, and each part has chapters. But I also think the first part is written the way it is on purpose, giving us readers enough to keep going. But the best part was that the pacing never slowed down or deviated, it remained the same and I think I forgot to blink.
I’m also not that person to give away the twist in part 2 (the miracle part almost reminds of the english movie I shall not name for fear of spoiling), but there are hints alluded to it throughout part 1, but also if you want a synopsis to go on, don’t google it, here’s the synopsis without spoiling the plot entirely.
A body is discovered in an abandoned seaside building in South Korea, brutally stabbed and left beside a knife covered in someone else’s blood. But the most disturbing detail is the victim’s face: it is covered in malignant melanoma, a disease he never had while alive.
Detective Yi Chang is assigned to the case, but the evidence refuses to line up, witnesses vanish, and every clue leads toward a secretive cult from a decade ago tied to unexplained miracles and hidden violence.
But be warned that this is an occult thriller of sorts.
I am also not generally that person to tell if you liked that book then read this, but I have to tell here, if you like Uketsu’s Strange Buildings, you will like this too, but not in a this is a copy or same premise, just in the sense that fans of that will like this.
It has the same pacing, keeps you guessing and would make you read in one sitting.
Part 2 of the book, like the core relationship between L & C, took me back to this Tamil movie, Villain, which is about two twin brothers that run away from home at a small age because one of them has development/intellectual disability and the parents had kept him locked up, and then they get caught in the wrong hands, of those who traffic children to beg, and the bad guy physically harms the latter making him physically disabled as well and even though it’s just like a small part of the movie, maybe 20mins, and the rest of the movie is about the other brother pretending to be the brother with the disability, to con and for money heists (it’s a good movie), that small part is burned in my memory forever, and even though the book and story is far from that movie, it reminded me of that.
And while the whole book was playing in my head like a movie, tell me why the detective was Lee Jung Jae (guy from squid game) and me being a Seventeen fan, Lan was Jun (he’s be perfect though, was it the part about Chinese kids) and Chan was a young Dino?
If I had a nickel for every time a book kept me up or didn’t make me blink at all and made me finish it in one sitting this year, I’d have 4 nickels, which isn’t much, but weird it happened FOUR TIMES?!!!
Initially I didn’t realize why the book was named Shift or what the cover meant, but when I got it, it’s perfect.
Looking forward to reading the previous book by the author and upcoming books.
OVERALL RATING: 4.5/5
June 24, 2026
e-ARC from NetGalley.
I had hoped to like this one as much as I enjoyed Teddy Bears Never Die, but it didn't quite hit the same for me. It felt clunkier and less personal, especially at the beginning. I'm not sure if that is because this was the author's debut novel or if I just don't jive with the translator on this one. Regardless of my issues, though, I still found the story compelling and the plot intriguing.
This is a book about the cost of miracles. It's the aftermath of a cult. It's a quest for hope and for vengeance working together even as they oppose one another. It's a police procedural about a cop with an emotional connection to a past cult who is assigned the case when the founder of that cult is found murdered and with an advanced cancer he had not had the day prior to his death. It's an uncle desperately seeking to save his terminally ill niece. It's a traumatized child seeking retribution. It's about the corruption of power and the perversion of faith.
Detective Yi Chang watched his father sacrifice everything to purchase a miracle: the cure to his sister's incurable disease. And his sister was indeed cured. A decade later, his father and sister are dead in a car accident and he is the guardian of his niece, who has developed the same incurable disease as her mother. As he desperately seeks out the cult leader who saved his sister years ago, he finds his hopes crushed when the man is found murdered. When his investigation connects him to the cult leader's clandestine foster son, he discovers that there is more to everything than meets the eye - the cult, the "miracles," the murder, and more.
Lan's first memories are of being trafficked in a shipping container with hundreds of other children and his brother, Chan. After being sold to the sadistic Han brothers, Chan's ability to take Lan's wounds onto his own body instead spark a corrupt plan: force Chan to absorb the injuries and illnesses of those with money by threatening Lan. When the injuries get too much, force Chan to transfer those maladies onto kidnapped children no one will miss. When a disturbed zealot decides to punish the cult leader by harming his "son," Lan's very existence is turned upside down.
Despite the intimate relationships and deep wells of love fueling our protagonists' quests, this story seemed to hold me at arms' length the whole time. We're told of Yi Chang's love for Chaerin, but we aren't shown it. We understand that Lan is haunted by his memories of Chan, but we never truly see it. The characters feel closed off, like they have lost the ability to feel, but we're told they feel so much, too much. There was just a disconnect that made it difficult for me to truly connect and fall into the story.
And, as if in continuation of that inability to understand or connect, the story ends on a level of ambiguity beyond what I can comfortably survive. Because, in the last sentences, we are not given the opportunity to determine for ourselves what the outcome may be. Instead, we are intentionally left with nothing but confusion. And that, to be honest, made me very mad.
I had hoped to like this one as much as I enjoyed Teddy Bears Never Die, but it didn't quite hit the same for me. It felt clunkier and less personal, especially at the beginning. I'm not sure if that is because this was the author's debut novel or if I just don't jive with the translator on this one. Regardless of my issues, though, I still found the story compelling and the plot intriguing.
This is a book about the cost of miracles. It's the aftermath of a cult. It's a quest for hope and for vengeance working together even as they oppose one another. It's a police procedural about a cop with an emotional connection to a past cult who is assigned the case when the founder of that cult is found murdered and with an advanced cancer he had not had the day prior to his death. It's an uncle desperately seeking to save his terminally ill niece. It's a traumatized child seeking retribution. It's about the corruption of power and the perversion of faith.
Detective Yi Chang watched his father sacrifice everything to purchase a miracle: the cure to his sister's incurable disease. And his sister was indeed cured. A decade later, his father and sister are dead in a car accident and he is the guardian of his niece, who has developed the same incurable disease as her mother. As he desperately seeks out the cult leader who saved his sister years ago, he finds his hopes crushed when the man is found murdered. When his investigation connects him to the cult leader's clandestine foster son, he discovers that there is more to everything than meets the eye - the cult, the "miracles," the murder, and more.
Lan's first memories are of being trafficked in a shipping container with hundreds of other children and his brother, Chan. After being sold to the sadistic Han brothers, Chan's ability to take Lan's wounds onto his own body instead spark a corrupt plan: force Chan to absorb the injuries and illnesses of those with money by threatening Lan. When the injuries get too much, force Chan to transfer those maladies onto kidnapped children no one will miss. When a disturbed zealot decides to punish the cult leader by harming his "son," Lan's very existence is turned upside down.
Despite the intimate relationships and deep wells of love fueling our protagonists' quests, this story seemed to hold me at arms' length the whole time. We're told of Yi Chang's love for Chaerin, but we aren't shown it. We understand that Lan is haunted by his memories of Chan, but we never truly see it. The characters feel closed off, like they have lost the ability to feel, but we're told they feel so much, too much. There was just a disconnect that made it difficult for me to truly connect and fall into the story.
And, as if in continuation of that inability to understand or connect, the story ends on a level of ambiguity beyond what I can comfortably survive. Because, in the last sentences, we are not given the opportunity to determine for ourselves what the outcome may be. Instead, we are intentionally left with nothing but confusion. And that, to be honest, made me very mad.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
In my review of author Cho Yeeun's book, "The New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre," I mused how hard it is to take a short story and adapt it into a longer form. The author herself spoke about this during a recent event in Seoul, when someone in the audience asked how she is able to tell if a piece of writing is meant to be a short story or a novel.
While I don't know which came first originally, if "The New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre" was a walk around the bases, "Shift" is a home run.
"Shift" is a highly polished novel that effortlessly walks the line between murder-mystery and speculative fiction. It asks us what we would sacrifice to save our loved ones, and if we'd truly risk our lives for them.
I haven't read much murder-mystery or crime novels, but in the beginning of the book, Yi Chang felt a little stereotypically-depressed-cop. His character is fleshed out during the climax of the book, but I wish I would have been able to get a feel for him before then.
The chapters featuring Chan and Lan were incredible. The events of the book tear at the bond between the brothers. Despite being able to get into Lan's head, he's still something of a mysterious figure, which I enjoyed.
I worry that the character names don't scan well in English--Chan, Lan, and Han (a family name used by two characters) are all way too similar. I had no problem differentiating between the three of them in each scene, but someone unfamiliar with Korean naming conventions might have some difficulty.
Between "Shift" and "The New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre", "Shift" is more likely to be appreciated by mainstream readers. It's more polished in terms of structure and characters. "Jelly Massacre" feels more experimental, messier, (dare I say stickier?), and ultimately, is my favorite of the two. However, I'd recommend "Shift" to new readers of Cho Yeeun, or anyone wanting an interesting murder-mystery read with cults and miracles and kidnappings, oh my!
While I don't know which came first originally, if "The New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre" was a walk around the bases, "Shift" is a home run.
"Shift" is a highly polished novel that effortlessly walks the line between murder-mystery and speculative fiction. It asks us what we would sacrifice to save our loved ones, and if we'd truly risk our lives for them.
I haven't read much murder-mystery or crime novels, but in the beginning of the book, Yi Chang felt a little stereotypically-depressed-cop. His character is fleshed out during the climax of the book, but I wish I would have been able to get a feel for him before then.
The chapters featuring Chan and Lan were incredible. The events of the book tear at the bond between the brothers. Despite being able to get into Lan's head, he's still something of a mysterious figure, which I enjoyed.
I worry that the character names don't scan well in English--Chan, Lan, and Han (a family name used by two characters) are all way too similar. I had no problem differentiating between the three of them in each scene, but someone unfamiliar with Korean naming conventions might have some difficulty.
Between "Shift" and "The New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre", "Shift" is more likely to be appreciated by mainstream readers. It's more polished in terms of structure and characters. "Jelly Massacre" feels more experimental, messier, (dare I say stickier?), and ultimately, is my favorite of the two. However, I'd recommend "Shift" to new readers of Cho Yeeun, or anyone wanting an interesting murder-mystery read with cults and miracles and kidnappings, oh my!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
"Shifted" is touted as a crime mystery, though I would shelve it under literary crime if I had to pigeonhole it, because the crime investigation portion was only tangential to the rest of the storyline. In this, a detective seeks a figure from his past in search of a miracle while he's tasked to solve a recent murder and abduction case, only to realize later that the former is linked to the latter.
This was less of a detective story than it was a story about justice, as the author uses the narrative to highlight child exploitation cases. If that sounds like a harrowing topic, it is really worse than even I had bargained for (and I'd read some pretty harrowing ones), especially with the magical realism elements thrown in. Though this was not the first of Cho Yeeun's books to be translated, "Shift" is Cho's debut work, and it shows. Not that it's a bad thing in this case; it just means this novel feels like an early writing effort in its execution, the straightforward narrative, and in how the author handled the book's themes.
Compared to its more 'literary' sibling "The New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre" — in that it is opaque and can be mundane, despite its bizarreness — this one felt less polished, though it is a much more emotional offering that I really appreciated. The pace was just right, and the reveals of each character's motivations added a layer of nuance to why they behaved the way they do; if you're the protagonist, that is. As for the villains, while they may be cartoonishly evil, I don't doubt real crooks and politicians are behaving exactly how these antagonists did in the novel. So, points for believability.
All in all, this was a pretty good read, especially if you're looking into something different and with perhaps more meat from Cho Yeeun's repertoire.
Thank you to Honford Star & Netgalley for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!
This was less of a detective story than it was a story about justice, as the author uses the narrative to highlight child exploitation cases. If that sounds like a harrowing topic, it is really worse than even I had bargained for (and I'd read some pretty harrowing ones), especially with the magical realism elements thrown in. Though this was not the first of Cho Yeeun's books to be translated, "Shift" is Cho's debut work, and it shows. Not that it's a bad thing in this case; it just means this novel feels like an early writing effort in its execution, the straightforward narrative, and in how the author handled the book's themes.
Compared to its more 'literary' sibling "The New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre" — in that it is opaque and can be mundane, despite its bizarreness — this one felt less polished, though it is a much more emotional offering that I really appreciated. The pace was just right, and the reveals of each character's motivations added a layer of nuance to why they behaved the way they do; if you're the protagonist, that is. As for the villains, while they may be cartoonishly evil, I don't doubt real crooks and politicians are behaving exactly how these antagonists did in the novel. So, points for believability.
All in all, this was a pretty good read, especially if you're looking into something different and with perhaps more meat from Cho Yeeun's repertoire.
Thank you to Honford Star & Netgalley for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Yi Chang is an investigator trying to track down the leader of a cult while also trying to solve a murder with confusing evidence.
I have mixed feelings about this book.
First of all, I did find the concept compelling and didn't ever feel bored reading. Even when I saw what was coming, it didn't feel like it was because the plot was overly predictable or tropey, it felt like it was because the book itself gave me enough information to figure it out myself. I found the characters interesting and relatively consistent, with their motivations being clear and understandable.
The writing can be a bit abrupt and stilted which I think is probably because this was translated. I'm not sure about Korean but I'm sure localising it to English is a pain. Sometimes the writing feels a but redundant, repeating the same noun over again when it's already clear what's being talked about.
Characters are mostly consistent but I did feel like they sometimes acted bizarrely for the sake of the plot, Yi Chang being the character I saw do this the most. Lan, the other main character, acted a lot more in character for the duration of the book.
Towards the end especially it started feeling more and more like a TV show in book form which I rather enjoyed. It can get quite dramatic and in those moments the writing was definitely better paced.
I would recommend this if you can get over the sometimes clumsy writing, the characters depite some hiccups do seem very human and the plot is quite engaging.
I have mixed feelings about this book.
First of all, I did find the concept compelling and didn't ever feel bored reading. Even when I saw what was coming, it didn't feel like it was because the plot was overly predictable or tropey, it felt like it was because the book itself gave me enough information to figure it out myself. I found the characters interesting and relatively consistent, with their motivations being clear and understandable.
The writing can be a bit abrupt and stilted which I think is probably because this was translated. I'm not sure about Korean but I'm sure localising it to English is a pain. Sometimes the writing feels a but redundant, repeating the same noun over again when it's already clear what's being talked about.
Characters are mostly consistent but I did feel like they sometimes acted bizarrely for the sake of the plot, Yi Chang being the character I saw do this the most. Lan, the other main character, acted a lot more in character for the duration of the book.
Towards the end especially it started feeling more and more like a TV show in book form which I rather enjoyed. It can get quite dramatic and in those moments the writing was definitely better paced.
I would recommend this if you can get over the sometimes clumsy writing, the characters depite some hiccups do seem very human and the plot is quite engaging.
May 30, 2026
This is a review of the advanced reader copy from NetGalley.
CONTENT WARNING:
4/5: I love the concepts and the story is thrilling and hard to put down, but the concepts under the content warning became quite difficult for me to read for personal reasons.
A couple of years ago I read Cho Yeeun's The New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre (also translated by Yewon Jung) and absolutely loved it. I loved the brutality, the hope and the surrealism. This year I read The New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre again as a comfort read when I wasn't feeling well. So when I saw another of Cho Yeeun's books had been translated to English I leapt on it. I re-activated my NetGalley account just for the chance to read this.
Shift is also excellent but has a very different feel: it follows one distinct story through two characters, as opposed to NSPJM's exploration of the same massive event through many different characters. I also found Shift to be marginally bleaker than NSPJM but that may be the trigger content hitting me differently.
Shift is a thriller, but it is not a detective story. It's more the story of the choices made by regular folk in overwhelming situations. There is a fantasy device but the magical logic is sensible and governed by strict, consistent rules so it fits in well with the story itself. It was hard not to visualise it as a movie while I was reading this.
CONTENT WARNING:
4/5: I love the concepts and the story is thrilling and hard to put down, but the concepts under the content warning became quite difficult for me to read for personal reasons.
A couple of years ago I read Cho Yeeun's The New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre (also translated by Yewon Jung) and absolutely loved it. I loved the brutality, the hope and the surrealism. This year I read The New Seoul Park Jelly Massacre again as a comfort read when I wasn't feeling well. So when I saw another of Cho Yeeun's books had been translated to English I leapt on it. I re-activated my NetGalley account just for the chance to read this.
Shift is also excellent but has a very different feel: it follows one distinct story through two characters, as opposed to NSPJM's exploration of the same massive event through many different characters. I also found Shift to be marginally bleaker than NSPJM but that may be the trigger content hitting me differently.
Shift is a thriller, but it is not a detective story. It's more the story of the choices made by regular folk in overwhelming situations. There is a fantasy device but the magical logic is sensible and governed by strict, consistent rules so it fits in well with the story itself. It was hard not to visualise it as a movie while I was reading this.
June 18, 2026
Thank you Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Estoy muy sorprendida con este libro. Creo que los aspectos de fantasía y realidad lograron complementarse muy bien, haciéndolo interesante y entretenido de leer. La idea de que alguien pudiera "sanar" a personas con enfermedades es interesante, supongo que a esto se refería mi abuela cuando me decía "dame todos tus dolores a mí" y me daba un abrazo gigante jajaj. Pero si, juega un poco con lo que estaríamos dispuestos a hacer por egoísmo, por quien queremos, ya sean otros o nosotros mismos. Al final del día, nadie quiere morir realmente y esperamos que los nuestros sean inmortales. Un poco eso se ve a través de ese talento para "sanar" y el culto que tienen los hermanos Han, jugando con esas emociones de la gente.
Por ahí en cuanto a estructura narrativa del libro no me gustó tanto lo que se eligió. Se me hizo raro que estuviera dividido en dos POVs en bloque y después llegara a una conclusión. En lo personal considero que un abordaje más integral de los POVs (intercalando) hubiera sido mucho más enriquecedor y dinámico, manteniendo el misterio sin revelar demasiado hasta el final. La historia de Lan y Chan me conmovió mucho, fue muy dura de leer por momentos.
El final fue lo que menos me gustó e incluso me confundió un poco. Alguna que otra toma de decisión me pareció rebuscada para forzar un final más trágico tal vez.
Estoy muy sorprendida con este libro. Creo que los aspectos de fantasía y realidad lograron complementarse muy bien, haciéndolo interesante y entretenido de leer. La idea de que alguien pudiera "sanar" a personas con enfermedades es interesante, supongo que a esto se refería mi abuela cuando me decía "dame todos tus dolores a mí" y me daba un abrazo gigante jajaj. Pero si, juega un poco con lo que estaríamos dispuestos a hacer por egoísmo, por quien queremos, ya sean otros o nosotros mismos. Al final del día, nadie quiere morir realmente y esperamos que los nuestros sean inmortales. Un poco eso se ve a través de ese talento para "sanar" y el culto que tienen los hermanos Han, jugando con esas emociones de la gente.
Por ahí en cuanto a estructura narrativa del libro no me gustó tanto lo que se eligió. Se me hizo raro que estuviera dividido en dos POVs en bloque y después llegara a una conclusión. En lo personal considero que un abordaje más integral de los POVs (intercalando) hubiera sido mucho más enriquecedor y dinámico, manteniendo el misterio sin revelar demasiado hasta el final. La historia de Lan y Chan me conmovió mucho, fue muy dura de leer por momentos.
El final fue lo que menos me gustó e incluso me confundió un poco. Alguna que otra toma de decisión me pareció rebuscada para forzar un final más trágico tal vez.
May 31, 2026
Shift explores the lengths people will go to in order to have themselves or their loved ones healed. We follow Yi Chang, a detective whose mind is not on the job at all because his niece is terminally ill and Lan a mysterious man who is connected to a case that’s just come across Yi Chang’s desk. Told in three parts, I found the first two parts engaging, with consistent pacing. In the first section where we follow Yi Chang I was really eager to learn more about the mystery involving a suspicious death, missing children and a ‘healing’ cult and felt that Yi Chang had a strong presence that drew me in straight away.
The second section I found a lot heavier, dealing with child trafficking and exploitation and I found the author did a great job of exploring the conflicting feelings the main characters in this section would have experienced during these traumatic events.
Once the third section started though I felt less invested. Partway through, I saw the outcome I was hoping for, but the story continued, which made me feel a bit bored. Throughout, some of the writing also felt a bit clunky and its style wasn’t to my preference. I also found the epilogue confusing and felt like it wasn’t needed.
Overall though, Shift dealt with heavy topics respectfully and wove together the supernatural and cult elements really well. It’s a short read and I enjoyed my time with it.
I received an eARC from NetGalley and I am voluntarily leaving this review.
The second section I found a lot heavier, dealing with child trafficking and exploitation and I found the author did a great job of exploring the conflicting feelings the main characters in this section would have experienced during these traumatic events.
Once the third section started though I felt less invested. Partway through, I saw the outcome I was hoping for, but the story continued, which made me feel a bit bored. Throughout, some of the writing also felt a bit clunky and its style wasn’t to my preference. I also found the epilogue confusing and felt like it wasn’t needed.
Overall though, Shift dealt with heavy topics respectfully and wove together the supernatural and cult elements really well. It’s a short read and I enjoyed my time with it.
I received an eARC from NetGalley and I am voluntarily leaving this review.
June 20, 2026
In my opinion, this book is exceptionally fast-paced, cutting straight to the core conflict. This immediately hooked me and kept me turning the pages. The themes surrounding the cult and the so-called miracles were deeply compelling, constantly prompting me to reflect on the ethical dilemma of happiness—specifically, whether it is morally right to find joy when it stems from the suffering of others.The open ending leaves plenty of room for interpretation. For me, it felt only fitting that the keeper of the miracle had to perish, as his life would never truly be safe in a world overrun by a greedy majority. Kudos to both the author and the translator for doing a stellar job; the story unfolded so vividly in my head that it felt like watching a movie. I could also deeply feel Lan and Chan’s grief and inner turmoil.My main critique is that the characters felt a bit too one-dimensional. The good remain entirely good, and the bad are irredeemably evil, turning the story into a classic battle of good versus evil. The only real exception was Lan. Even though he ultimately chooses revenge, I wished he had been written as a more complex, self-serving character, especially given the extraordinary power he wields. Additionally, the non-linear timeline was occasionally disorienting. Lastly, while the simple prose and diction made the story highly accessible, it did occasionally verge on monotonous.
June 20, 2026
🕵🏻♂️😷🔀
A very unique take on the detective story that packs a lot into ~200 pages: mystery/crime, supernatural powers, emotion and sacrifice, cult-like communities/figureheads, and ethical dilemmas. It's quite a creative concept but unfortunately I felt the synopsis kinda gave it away; regardless, there was enough going on in the story to hold interest and build on the core concept/namesake of the book. The cadence of events was quick, the characters evoked emotion, and the ending was fitting.
Despite the very intriguing concepts, I struggled with a bit of the writing style - of note, I'm not sure what is attributed to the author's style vs translation. Some of the flow felt a bit choppy and jumbled. The cadence of events was quick (which I liked), but it suffered by leaving behind some world-building and character development. Some of the characters felt left behind during the narration changes and some were hard to differentiate or remember when they came back around (and the timeline flipping was ultimately effective but added another layer of confusion). It would've been more effective for me if there was more focus on Yi Chang's detective work and weaving the cult's activities into that progression.
Ultimately a very interesting and thought-provoking read (and a gorgeous cover) but didn't quite line up with my tastes/expectation.
Thank you to the author, NetGalley and Honford Star for the privilege of this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
⭐️ 3.25 ⭐️
A very unique take on the detective story that packs a lot into ~200 pages: mystery/crime, supernatural powers, emotion and sacrifice, cult-like communities/figureheads, and ethical dilemmas. It's quite a creative concept but unfortunately I felt the synopsis kinda gave it away; regardless, there was enough going on in the story to hold interest and build on the core concept/namesake of the book. The cadence of events was quick, the characters evoked emotion, and the ending was fitting.
Despite the very intriguing concepts, I struggled with a bit of the writing style - of note, I'm not sure what is attributed to the author's style vs translation. Some of the flow felt a bit choppy and jumbled. The cadence of events was quick (which I liked), but it suffered by leaving behind some world-building and character development. Some of the characters felt left behind during the narration changes and some were hard to differentiate or remember when they came back around (and the timeline flipping was ultimately effective but added another layer of confusion). It would've been more effective for me if there was more focus on Yi Chang's detective work and weaving the cult's activities into that progression.
Ultimately a very interesting and thought-provoking read (and a gorgeous cover) but didn't quite line up with my tastes/expectation.
Thank you to the author, NetGalley and Honford Star for the privilege of this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
⭐️ 3.25 ⭐️
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Investigator Yi Chang is tracking down the leader of a cult called The Church of the Heavenly Spirit, which disappeared in 2005. Back then, his family was part of the cult, and its leader was able to perform a miracle and heal Yi Chang’s sick sister. Now, Yi Chang needs to find this man again, as his 9-year-old niece inherited the same disease. The problem is that the deceased body of the cult leader is found in an abandoned building. He died of a stab wound, but his face was also covered with melanoma tumors. These tumors were not there two days before.
Set in a seaside town in Korea, the novel concerns itself with the ethics of transferring a person’s illness to someone else, thus healing the first person. It has a unique and intriguing premise, and the writing is accessible. Something about it just didn’t work for me, though. In the middle of the novel there is a flashback where we learn more about this healing power and how the cult exploited it. There is a good share of guilt, violence, and abuse in this section, and while I’m not usually sensitive, I didn’t anticipate it. It wasn’t any specific event that bothered me, but the overall negative atmosphere. I can’t say I enjoyed this novel, but I can see it suiting readers looking for something very dark.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the review copy.
Set in a seaside town in Korea, the novel concerns itself with the ethics of transferring a person’s illness to someone else, thus healing the first person. It has a unique and intriguing premise, and the writing is accessible. Something about it just didn’t work for me, though. In the middle of the novel there is a flashback where we learn more about this healing power and how the cult exploited it. There is a good share of guilt, violence, and abuse in this section, and while I’m not usually sensitive, I didn’t anticipate it. It wasn’t any specific event that bothered me, but the overall negative atmosphere. I can’t say I enjoyed this novel, but I can see it suiting readers looking for something very dark.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the review copy.
June 21, 2026
I would like to talk about this book through its title, Shift.
In this book, shift is presented in two major ways.
1) The transfer of a person's sickness or injuries to another person.
2) The shift in a person's focus, priorities, and purpose in life as a result of the things they experience.
With that in mind, I think the title is incredibly apt.
The book is divided into three parts. The first focuses on Detective Yi Chang, who sets out to find a cult leader while investigating a strange murder.
The story then shifts to a pair of brothers, Chan and Lan. Chan possesses a special ability that allows him to transfer sickness from one person to another simply by holding hands. Because of this ability, Chan and Lan are exploited by those around them, while others profit from their suffering under the guise of a sacred church.
The final part weaves both timelines together and brings us through Chan and Lan's experiences, showing how these events gradually shift the characters' priorities and outlook on life.
I would say that the premise is great, and it is a fast and easy read. I admired Lan for enduring all the hardships thrown his way while carrying so much guilt and grief.
However, there's always a but.
Overall, this was a mid read for me. While I enjoyed the premise and the ideas explored in the story, the writing didn't draw me in as much as I had expected.
In this book, shift is presented in two major ways.
1) The transfer of a person's sickness or injuries to another person.
2) The shift in a person's focus, priorities, and purpose in life as a result of the things they experience.
With that in mind, I think the title is incredibly apt.
The book is divided into three parts. The first focuses on Detective Yi Chang, who sets out to find a cult leader while investigating a strange murder.
The story then shifts to a pair of brothers, Chan and Lan. Chan possesses a special ability that allows him to transfer sickness from one person to another simply by holding hands. Because of this ability, Chan and Lan are exploited by those around them, while others profit from their suffering under the guise of a sacred church.
The final part weaves both timelines together and brings us through Chan and Lan's experiences, showing how these events gradually shift the characters' priorities and outlook on life.
I would say that the premise is great, and it is a fast and easy read. I admired Lan for enduring all the hardships thrown his way while carrying so much guilt and grief.
However, there's always a but.
Overall, this was a mid read for me. While I enjoyed the premise and the ideas explored in the story, the writing didn't draw me in as much as I had expected.
June 28, 2026
First things first, credit where it's due: I could read this through NetGalley with the approval of the publisher. I think I have to review it but I always review what I read so it doesn’t change much.
It's a solid narrative, with solid tension and outcomes. This was just not that enjoyable to me because I need more to be satisfied in this genre.
Sorry but this was too tropey for me. The blurb sounded promising though.
But we fall into K drama overrated situations without much else to gnaw at.
The characters are nice though I liked them but not the situations in themselves.
Hospital scene, Police station scenes, post work scene at the restaurant.
Those who know, know.
Even the cult part has no real oomph, this just can't satisfy my naoki urasawa fanboy side and thriller tastes. Even less the fantastic side. It's well used though, it's just too straightforward for my taste.
Also there is a problem in the rythm of the narrative with one big flashback that breaks the pace, it's too bad because the other ways to deal with the timeline are ok. With this part it's not just a rythm problem it's also how it's handled in the narrative, it is needed to land the rest of the story but it has no real "value" in itself.
It's too bad because there clearly was something to be made here that I would love to read, it's just not the story that was written.
It's a solid narrative, with solid tension and outcomes. This was just not that enjoyable to me because I need more to be satisfied in this genre.
Sorry but this was too tropey for me. The blurb sounded promising though.
But we fall into K drama overrated situations without much else to gnaw at.
The characters are nice though I liked them but not the situations in themselves.
Hospital scene, Police station scenes, post work scene at the restaurant.
Those who know, know.
Even the cult part has no real oomph, this just can't satisfy my naoki urasawa fanboy side and thriller tastes. Even less the fantastic side. It's well used though, it's just too straightforward for my taste.
Also there is a problem in the rythm of the narrative with one big flashback that breaks the pace, it's too bad because the other ways to deal with the timeline are ok. With this part it's not just a rythm problem it's also how it's handled in the narrative, it is needed to land the rest of the story but it has no real "value" in itself.
It's too bad because there clearly was something to be made here that I would love to read, it's just not the story that was written.
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