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Broken Summer
A death, a lie, a secret. For twenty-six summers he didn’t have the courage to face the past.
Lee Hanjo is an artist at the peak of his fame, envied and celebrated. Then, on his forty-third birthday, he awakens to find that his devoted wife has disappeared, leaving behind a soon-to-be-published novel she’d secretly written about the sordid past and questionable morality of an artist with a trajectory similar to Hanjo’s. It’s clear to him that his life is about to shatter and the demons from his past will come out. But why did his wife do it? Why now?
The book forces Hanjo to reflect on a summer from his youth when a deadly lie irreversibly and tragically determined the fates of two families.
From master storyteller J.M. Lee, one of Korea’s most renowned authors, comes an unforgettable novel of hidden truths, denials, and their inevitable repercussions. Everyone still left standing from that terrible summer so long ago must finally reckon with the deceptions that started it all and, twist after shocking twist, reap both the suffering and the vindication that comes with revenge.
Lee Hanjo is an artist at the peak of his fame, envied and celebrated. Then, on his forty-third birthday, he awakens to find that his devoted wife has disappeared, leaving behind a soon-to-be-published novel she’d secretly written about the sordid past and questionable morality of an artist with a trajectory similar to Hanjo’s. It’s clear to him that his life is about to shatter and the demons from his past will come out. But why did his wife do it? Why now?
The book forces Hanjo to reflect on a summer from his youth when a deadly lie irreversibly and tragically determined the fates of two families.
From master storyteller J.M. Lee, one of Korea’s most renowned authors, comes an unforgettable novel of hidden truths, denials, and their inevitable repercussions. Everyone still left standing from that terrible summer so long ago must finally reckon with the deceptions that started it all and, twist after shocking twist, reap both the suffering and the vindication that comes with revenge.
251 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 5, 2021
2393 people are currently reading
7971 people want to read
About the author
Jung-Myung Lee
20 books58 followersLee Jung-myung (이정명) has sold hundreds of thousands of copies of his books in his native Korea. One, Deep Rooted Tree, was made into a popular TV series.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 226 reviews
August 6, 2022
Broken Summer is quite the read. I was immediately pulled into the story. The writing is really beautiful, I enjoyed the fact that it was character-driven so much. And the translation, flawless!
The reveal was not at all what I was expecting. I had figured out a small piece of the puzzle but not in it's entirety. So well done. I'm a huge fan of multiple POVs and this flowed so well. I liked the fact the reader got to see each characters perspective throughout the story, and their thoughts on what really happened.
The cover is so hauntingly beautiful! Such a stunning cover to photograph.
Thank you so much for having me on tour Over The River PR! Thanks to Amazon Publishing for this gifted review copy.
The reveal was not at all what I was expecting. I had figured out a small piece of the puzzle but not in it's entirety. So well done. I'm a huge fan of multiple POVs and this flowed so well. I liked the fact the reader got to see each characters perspective throughout the story, and their thoughts on what really happened.
The cover is so hauntingly beautiful! Such a stunning cover to photograph.
Thank you so much for having me on tour Over The River PR! Thanks to Amazon Publishing for this gifted review copy.
October 25, 2025
اعتقد بأني سوف أعطيها ٣ نجوم و نصف لكن لا يمنع بأنها تصل للأربعة.. لا أعرف لماذا لم ألاحظ أن الرواية من الأدب الكوري قبل أن أبدأ بها و لكن هذا ليس الموضوع غير اني اكتشفت بأنهم يحبون الغموض في كل شيء و ليست هذه طبيعة الرواية و لكن اعتقد بأنها طبيعة الكوريين . رسام يعيش حياة جميلة مع زوجته و يحتفل بعيد ميلاده و ينام ليصحو في اليوم التالي على اختفاءها و روايتها عنه التي تحتوي أكاذيبه.. طوال الرواية نلاحق جميعا الحقيقة .. نرى في البداية كمجرد متفرجين ما حدث في ذلك الصيف البعيد ثم نقترب شيئا فشيئا لنرى الحقيقة بوضوح و لكن فقط في الفصل الأخير .. ليست مسألة تشويق بقدر ما أحسست بأنها مليئة بأنواع الأحاسيس البشرية الحب و الكراهية و الفقد و الانتقام .. هل الكذب يأتي ضمن الطبيعة الإنسانية؟ من الذي يكذب هنا ؟ و لماذا ؟ أين ذهبت الزوجة ؟ و ماهي الأكاذيب التي كشفتها روايتها ؟ يتحرك زمن الرواية في الحاضر و الماضي حتى نصل الى حقيقة ما حصل و لكن ما زالت الحقيقة مؤلمة .
August 11, 2022
There was no need to fight memories while painting; there was no past in the pictures that occupied him—no killer father, no drunk mother, and no dead Jisoo.
Through the magical power of color and form, he escaped from pain. He was still young; his life.
Broken Summer is the translation by An Seon Jae of the 2021 move 부서진 여름 by 이정명 (to date Romanized as Jung-Myung Lee, but rather unhelpfully listed as J.M. Lee on the cover of this book).
An Seon Jae (안선재) is the Korean name of Brother Anthony of the Community of Taizé, who has done so much over the last decades to bring Korean literature, and culture generally, to the west (http://anthony.sogang.ac.kr) and whom I have had the pleasure of meeting at a fascinating evening on Korean tea culture.
The author is a bestseller in Korea with some of his books made in to TV series including his debut Painter of the Wind (but as yet untranslated as a novel). In English his two previous novels, both translated by Chi Young Kim, have been The Boy Who Escaped Paradise and The Investigation, which was Longlisted for the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize (which became the International Booker) in 2015. However he is a new author for me.
Hanjo is a successful painter and artist, the pride of Isan City (population <300k). On his 43rd birthday he spends a lovely evening with his wife, who has dedicated her life to his career acting as his “maidservant, lover, nanny, and stand-in” in her words.
But when he wakes the next day the house is meticulously tidied, as someone might do before leaving on a long trip, and his wife is nowhere to be found. Instead she has left behind the proof of a novel she has written about a famous painter in his 40s, who had an affair with a young student, narrated from the perspective of the painter’s wife. While Hanjo claims to have had no such affair he can only take the novel as one designed to deliberately destroy his reputation when published.
His thoughts, and the narration, turn to a summer 25 years earlier, at a time when Koreans suffered from the austerity imposed by the IMF post the Asian financial crisis.
His wife knew the whole of his life, which had been hidden from others for so long. Not only his present, but his hidden past, his greatest glory as well as his worst moments, his respectable appearance as well as his disgusting side.
He thought back to the long-forgotten summer he’d turned eighteen. A dead body lying in the river that flowed through the city. The loud sound of gravel at the bottom of the river stirred by shallow dry-season currents. Water dripping from a wet hem. Plants on the corpse’s cheeks, water droplets on its forehead . . . So different from everything that had happened up until that time, and different from everything else combined.
Now he knew. He had lacked the courage to face his shameful and immoral past; he had put it off until now. But he couldn’t put it off any longer.
아내는 그토록 오래 남들에게 감추어온 그의 삶을 통째로 알았다. 그의 현재뿐 아니라 감춰진 과거도, 최고의 영광뿐 아니라 최악의 모습도, 점잖은 겉모습뿐 아니라 구역질 나는 내면까지도.
오래 잊었던 열여덟 살의 여름이 떠올랐다. 시내를 가로질러 흐르는 강변에서 죽은 사람을 본 그해 여름. 얕은 갈수기 물살에 하천의 바닥 자갈이 쓸리는 요란한 소리. 젖은 옷자락에서 뚝뚝 떨어지는 물방울. 뺨에 달라붙은 수초와 이마에 맺힌 물방울……. 그 일은 그때까지 일어난 일들과 달랐고 그 모든 일을 합쳐놓은 것과도 달랐다.
그는 이제 안다. 부끄럽고 부도덕한 과거를 대면할 용기가 없었음을. 지금까지 미루어왔지만 더는 미룰 수 없다는 것을.
Then he was living with his parents and academically more successful older brother in the modest Malcolm House, his father caretaker at the local school but also for the grander Howard House (each named after American missionaries who originally owned the properties), where his mother is also housekeeper. Howard House is owned by a rich businessman with two daughters, the elder, Jisoo the same age as Hanjo.
While a friendship develops between Hanjo and Misoo, with her modelling for his paintings, a social divide remains between the.two families as spelled out rather heavy handedly in the text:
The splendid Howard House and the lowly Malcolm House were peaceful neighbors. Nevertheless, a secret boundary existed between the two families. Once the relationship of close neighbors was taken away, there was the grimmer structure of employers and employees. Their relationship was defined by a heartless class system that reduced humanity to the rich and the poor, the smart and the shabby, those with opportunities and the marginalized, those who serve and those who are served. Even though the inhabitants of both houses spent time together every day like a family, they weren’t a family. Howard House was a place that the Malcolm House inhabitants could dream of but not own, an area that they could see but could not reach.
화려한 하워드 주택과 볼품없는 맬컴 주택은 더할 바 없이 평화롭게 공존하는 이웃이었지만 두 가족을 구분 짓는 은밀한 경계는 존재했다. 더없이 친밀한 이웃이라는 관계를 한 꺼풀 벗기면 거기에는 고용인과 피고용인이라는 냉혹한 구조가 도사리고 있었다. 부자와 빈자, 윤택한 자와 누추한 자, 기회를 가진 자와 소외된 자, 섬기는 자와 섬김을 받는 자로 환원되는 비정한 계급체계. 한가족처럼 매일 함께 어울려도 그들은 가족이 아니었다. 하워드 주택은 맬컴 주택 사람들이 꿈꿀 수는 있어도 가질 수 없는 대상, 바라보긴 해도 다가가지 못할 영역이었다.
And when Jisoo goes missing and is then found dead in a reservoir, the local police are keen to make this a murder rather than suicide case and arrest Hanjo’s father who, despite having an alibi, confessed to the crime.
The novel alternates between the present day and the events of the path as we piece together what really happened that day and the reason for his wife’s actions.
(Although unless I am missing something the explanation as to what happened doesn’t entirely make sense )
As mentioned above, some of the author’s books have been made into a miniseries or movies and it’s hard at times not to see this more as a script for the next melodrama (indeed I understand a TV series based on this is planned) rather an entirely successful literary novel, in particular with the character’s feelings and personalities often spelled out rather than demonstrated.
2.5 stars.
Through the magical power of color and form, he escaped from pain. He was still young; his life.
Broken Summer is the translation by An Seon Jae of the 2021 move 부서진 여름 by 이정명 (to date Romanized as Jung-Myung Lee, but rather unhelpfully listed as J.M. Lee on the cover of this book).
An Seon Jae (안선재) is the Korean name of Brother Anthony of the Community of Taizé, who has done so much over the last decades to bring Korean literature, and culture generally, to the west (http://anthony.sogang.ac.kr) and whom I have had the pleasure of meeting at a fascinating evening on Korean tea culture.
The author is a bestseller in Korea with some of his books made in to TV series including his debut Painter of the Wind (but as yet untranslated as a novel). In English his two previous novels, both translated by Chi Young Kim, have been The Boy Who Escaped Paradise and The Investigation, which was Longlisted for the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize (which became the International Booker) in 2015. However he is a new author for me.
Hanjo is a successful painter and artist, the pride of Isan City (population <300k). On his 43rd birthday he spends a lovely evening with his wife, who has dedicated her life to his career acting as his “maidservant, lover, nanny, and stand-in” in her words.
But when he wakes the next day the house is meticulously tidied, as someone might do before leaving on a long trip, and his wife is nowhere to be found. Instead she has left behind the proof of a novel she has written about a famous painter in his 40s, who had an affair with a young student, narrated from the perspective of the painter’s wife. While Hanjo claims to have had no such affair he can only take the novel as one designed to deliberately destroy his reputation when published.
His thoughts, and the narration, turn to a summer 25 years earlier, at a time when Koreans suffered from the austerity imposed by the IMF post the Asian financial crisis.
His wife knew the whole of his life, which had been hidden from others for so long. Not only his present, but his hidden past, his greatest glory as well as his worst moments, his respectable appearance as well as his disgusting side.
He thought back to the long-forgotten summer he’d turned eighteen. A dead body lying in the river that flowed through the city. The loud sound of gravel at the bottom of the river stirred by shallow dry-season currents. Water dripping from a wet hem. Plants on the corpse’s cheeks, water droplets on its forehead . . . So different from everything that had happened up until that time, and different from everything else combined.
Now he knew. He had lacked the courage to face his shameful and immoral past; he had put it off until now. But he couldn’t put it off any longer.
아내는 그토록 오래 남들에게 감추어온 그의 삶을 통째로 알았다. 그의 현재뿐 아니라 감춰진 과거도, 최고의 영광뿐 아니라 최악의 모습도, 점잖은 겉모습뿐 아니라 구역질 나는 내면까지도.
오래 잊었던 열여덟 살의 여름이 떠올랐다. 시내를 가로질러 흐르는 강변에서 죽은 사람을 본 그해 여름. 얕은 갈수기 물살에 하천의 바닥 자갈이 쓸리는 요란한 소리. 젖은 옷자락에서 뚝뚝 떨어지는 물방울. 뺨에 달라붙은 수초와 이마에 맺힌 물방울……. 그 일은 그때까지 일어난 일들과 달랐고 그 모든 일을 합쳐놓은 것과도 달랐다.
그는 이제 안다. 부끄럽고 부도덕한 과거를 대면할 용기가 없었음을. 지금까지 미루어왔지만 더는 미룰 수 없다는 것을.
Then he was living with his parents and academically more successful older brother in the modest Malcolm House, his father caretaker at the local school but also for the grander Howard House (each named after American missionaries who originally owned the properties), where his mother is also housekeeper. Howard House is owned by a rich businessman with two daughters, the elder, Jisoo the same age as Hanjo.
While a friendship develops between Hanjo and Misoo, with her modelling for his paintings, a social divide remains between the.two families as spelled out rather heavy handedly in the text:
The splendid Howard House and the lowly Malcolm House were peaceful neighbors. Nevertheless, a secret boundary existed between the two families. Once the relationship of close neighbors was taken away, there was the grimmer structure of employers and employees. Their relationship was defined by a heartless class system that reduced humanity to the rich and the poor, the smart and the shabby, those with opportunities and the marginalized, those who serve and those who are served. Even though the inhabitants of both houses spent time together every day like a family, they weren’t a family. Howard House was a place that the Malcolm House inhabitants could dream of but not own, an area that they could see but could not reach.
화려한 하워드 주택과 볼품없는 맬컴 주택은 더할 바 없이 평화롭게 공존하는 이웃이었지만 두 가족을 구분 짓는 은밀한 경계는 존재했다. 더없이 친밀한 이웃이라는 관계를 한 꺼풀 벗기면 거기에는 고용인과 피고용인이라는 냉혹한 구조가 도사리고 있었다. 부자와 빈자, 윤택한 자와 누추한 자, 기회를 가진 자와 소외된 자, 섬기는 자와 섬김을 받는 자로 환원되는 비정한 계급체계. 한가족처럼 매일 함께 어울려도 그들은 가족이 아니었다. 하워드 주택은 맬컴 주택 사람들이 꿈꿀 수는 있어도 가질 수 없는 대상, 바라보긴 해도 다가가지 못할 영역이었다.
And when Jisoo goes missing and is then found dead in a reservoir, the local police are keen to make this a murder rather than suicide case and arrest Hanjo’s father who, despite having an alibi, confessed to the crime.
The novel alternates between the present day and the events of the path as we piece together what really happened that day and the reason for his wife’s actions.
(Although unless I am missing something the explanation as to what happened doesn’t entirely make sense )
As mentioned above, some of the author’s books have been made into a miniseries or movies and it’s hard at times not to see this more as a script for the next melodrama (indeed I understand a TV series based on this is planned) rather an entirely successful literary novel, in particular with the character’s feelings and personalities often spelled out rather than demonstrated.
2.5 stars.
April 18, 2022
I loved Broken Summer ! It's a literary drama set in the world of high art. The protagonist is a famous painter, like Jackson Pollock, for instance and his wife, a beautiful and devoted woman who cares for his every need and supports his career in every way until one day she is missing. Instead of finding her, the painter, to his horror, discovers an expose of his life which will surely destroy his career and life written by his wife.. why? What? how? His incredulity at his wife's betrayal takes him back to his youth when he grew up as a caretaker's son to a wealthy family. He and his brothers and father live under the umbrella of the wealth of the employee's but he and his brother play with their rich counterparts and they fall in love with the rich daughter.... the book reminds me of Remains of the Day in many ways.. about class discrimination and it's also about family and what a father does for the love of his sons. Secrets and lies eventually are revealed in gorgeous lush prose. Very atmospheric and highly intelligent immersed in the life and downfall of a painter.
September 24, 2022
Need an easy, quick thriller to read while also marking off that translated read goal off your list? Welcome to BROKEN SUMMER. Poor Hanjo woke up after a wonderful birthday, wakes up to find his wife gone. The only thing she appeared to have left behind are some pages from a book she's written. As he reads this excerpt, he realizes she could ruin him. Fast backwards to his youth and the symbiotic relationship his family had with the rich family up the hill. Cue Parasite vibes.
For me there was nothing too new to the thriller genre but I did love the Korean tropes. The poor sorting through hardship to try and make a life for themselves by any means and the investigation led by police but demanded by the public, putting everyone under pressure... is the killer they intend to catch the real killer or just someone to appease the masses?
This novel is told is multiple POVs, dual timelines and is very character driven. Hanjo is a man who is successful despite his childhood but is anxious with little self esteem. For him to have to wonder now why his wife would try to destroy him ... well, imagine how he would react to that and then read this to find out. While this is considered a literary thriller, I find it more to be contemporary suspense. I truly wanted to like it more but could not find myself fully engaged for the entirety.
For me there was nothing too new to the thriller genre but I did love the Korean tropes. The poor sorting through hardship to try and make a life for themselves by any means and the investigation led by police but demanded by the public, putting everyone under pressure... is the killer they intend to catch the real killer or just someone to appease the masses?
This novel is told is multiple POVs, dual timelines and is very character driven. Hanjo is a man who is successful despite his childhood but is anxious with little self esteem. For him to have to wonder now why his wife would try to destroy him ... well, imagine how he would react to that and then read this to find out. While this is considered a literary thriller, I find it more to be contemporary suspense. I truly wanted to like it more but could not find myself fully engaged for the entirety.
February 7, 2023
Intriguing storyline? Yep. Literary prose stylings? Oh, yes. Characters you care about? Er, well...
And there is the rub. Nobody in this book really makes me care for them. The book tells its tale from multiple perspectives yet none of them engaged me.
I began it in October but had a couple of months off about halfway through which is a good indication of how gripped I was.
I won’t reveal the plot or spoil anything but I was utterly underwhelmed by the ending. The two stars are for the plotline and the prose but I cannot recommend this on those alone. I would steer clear.
And there is the rub. Nobody in this book really makes me care for them. The book tells its tale from multiple perspectives yet none of them engaged me.
I began it in October but had a couple of months off about halfway through which is a good indication of how gripped I was.
I won’t reveal the plot or spoil anything but I was utterly underwhelmed by the ending. The two stars are for the plotline and the prose but I cannot recommend this on those alone. I would steer clear.
October 3, 2025
Watch my review on YouTube here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y31Jz...
Read my review on Substack here - https://open.substack.com/pub/barrywe...
KBS Korea 24 @KBSKorea24
"A renowned artist wakes up to find that his wife has vanished, leaving behind a mysterious novel that threatens to destroy his career. Best-selling author J.M. Lee weaves another literary thriller in BROKEN SUMMER which @barrypwelsh reviews for #KoreaBookClub. #부서진여름 #이정명”
#KBSWORLDRadio #KBS월드라디오 #Korea24 #코리아24 #책추천 #책스타그램 #북스타그램 #bookstagram #book #reading #KoreanLiterature #한국문학
19:10-20:00 KST, Mon-Fri on KBS WORLD Radio.
Download the KBS Kong / KBS WORLD Radio Mobile apps or subscribe to the Korea 24 podcast for your daily updates!
http://world.kbs.co.kr/service/progra...
Read my review on Substack here - https://open.substack.com/pub/barrywe...
KBS Korea 24 @KBSKorea24
"A renowned artist wakes up to find that his wife has vanished, leaving behind a mysterious novel that threatens to destroy his career. Best-selling author J.M. Lee weaves another literary thriller in BROKEN SUMMER which @barrypwelsh reviews for #KoreaBookClub. #부서진여름 #이정명”
#KBSWORLDRadio #KBS월드라디오 #Korea24 #코리아24 #책추천 #책스타그램 #북스타그램 #bookstagram #book #reading #KoreanLiterature #한국문학
19:10-20:00 KST, Mon-Fri on KBS WORLD Radio.
Download the KBS Kong / KBS WORLD Radio Mobile apps or subscribe to the Korea 24 podcast for your daily updates!
http://world.kbs.co.kr/service/progra...
August 3, 2022
Thank you to @tlcbookstours @tlcdiversity for allowing me to be a part of the tour for #JMLee Broken Summer! This is an Amazon First Reads so you can get it all this month free!
Set in the world of the “High Art” we are given a literary drama that is full of lies and secrets and the way they can crumble a relationship and a life. Hanjo are main character is a sympathetic yet selfish character. I really could not help but feel for him even though his actions are despicable.
This story is told in multiple POVs so we can see everyone’s perspective of the crimes committed and the way the lies weave into destruction. I found the translation to be beautifully done and almost lyrical. The prose is wonderful and the overall ending had my jaw drop. I do not want to give too much away because it truly has a twisted and sad ending.
Set in the world of the “High Art” we are given a literary drama that is full of lies and secrets and the way they can crumble a relationship and a life. Hanjo are main character is a sympathetic yet selfish character. I really could not help but feel for him even though his actions are despicable.
This story is told in multiple POVs so we can see everyone’s perspective of the crimes committed and the way the lies weave into destruction. I found the translation to be beautifully done and almost lyrical. The prose is wonderful and the overall ending had my jaw drop. I do not want to give too much away because it truly has a twisted and sad ending.
June 21, 2024
لطيفة، لكن توقعت نهاية أفضل
June 13, 2025
رواية فاضية رغم طولها، وحتى مش مسليّة.
September 19, 2022
Overall rating 3.5, rounded down.
This was my pick for August' Amazon First Reads - and I enjoyed it more than I often do the First Reads selection! First of all, because they never get enough credit, I'd like to say the writing was beautiful and congratulations to the translator, An Seon Jae. Obviously I haven't read the original but this felt like a 'true' translation; it flowed very well in English, with a few slightly odd (not awkward) turns of phrase that made it feel Korean. I believe that the author, Jung Myung Lee, is a bestseller in his own country - it will be interesting if there are any more translations made after this!
The story follows Hanjo, a semi-successful artist. The book begins with celebrating his 43rd birthday with his wife, who he is very happy with, believing their relationship to be healthy and loving. However, she disappears, leaving behind only a note in which she describes herself as having dedicated her entire life to his career, being his 'maid servant, lover, nanny and stand-in.' She also leaves behind a novel about a famous artist who had an affair with an underage student, narrated from the wife's point of view. Hanjo is dismayed and perplexed - he does not think this is true, but if the book is published, even without names, it will be clear that he is the protagonist. He turns to his brother who works in law for help, and the meat of the book is in various different timelines going back 25 years.
He was then the less academically gifted of a caretaker's two sons - a nobody. His father was caretaker and mother housekeeper for Howard House where a much wealthier family lived, as well as the local school. Hanjo remembers the resentment between his brother and the daughters of the rich family living there, as well as his relationship with the elder sister, Jisoo.
The story gradually unravels, piece by piece and it was a real page turner for me. Very immersive, and I really felt the sense of doom lurking behind everything, the lies and the secrets that are never quite unearthed.
An expected pleasure!
This was my pick for August' Amazon First Reads - and I enjoyed it more than I often do the First Reads selection! First of all, because they never get enough credit, I'd like to say the writing was beautiful and congratulations to the translator, An Seon Jae. Obviously I haven't read the original but this felt like a 'true' translation; it flowed very well in English, with a few slightly odd (not awkward) turns of phrase that made it feel Korean. I believe that the author, Jung Myung Lee, is a bestseller in his own country - it will be interesting if there are any more translations made after this!
The story follows Hanjo, a semi-successful artist. The book begins with celebrating his 43rd birthday with his wife, who he is very happy with, believing their relationship to be healthy and loving. However, she disappears, leaving behind only a note in which she describes herself as having dedicated her entire life to his career, being his 'maid servant, lover, nanny and stand-in.' She also leaves behind a novel about a famous artist who had an affair with an underage student, narrated from the wife's point of view. Hanjo is dismayed and perplexed - he does not think this is true, but if the book is published, even without names, it will be clear that he is the protagonist. He turns to his brother who works in law for help, and the meat of the book is in various different timelines going back 25 years.
He was then the less academically gifted of a caretaker's two sons - a nobody. His father was caretaker and mother housekeeper for Howard House where a much wealthier family lived, as well as the local school. Hanjo remembers the resentment between his brother and the daughters of the rich family living there, as well as his relationship with the elder sister, Jisoo.
The story gradually unravels, piece by piece and it was a real page turner for me. Very immersive, and I really felt the sense of doom lurking behind everything, the lies and the secrets that are never quite unearthed.
An expected pleasure!
August 12, 2022
I don’t remember how I got this - it might be my free Aug selection from Amazon First Reads. Which is almost always a guarantee of a really bad book. Which is the case here.
I have no idea what I just read, but boy am I relieved and happy to get to the end. It’s a very short book, about 250 pages, but as often happens to me, whenever I expect to fly through a short book, it turns out to be a tedious, endless drudge that seems to take FOREVER. Between the Korean names and the way it bounced around in time with absolutely NO clues for the reader, literally none, I was totally and completely confused. Some chapters were 90 min long!
Just a bizarre mess. I chose unwisely, for sure.
I have no idea what I just read, but boy am I relieved and happy to get to the end. It’s a very short book, about 250 pages, but as often happens to me, whenever I expect to fly through a short book, it turns out to be a tedious, endless drudge that seems to take FOREVER. Between the Korean names and the way it bounced around in time with absolutely NO clues for the reader, literally none, I was totally and completely confused. Some chapters were 90 min long!
Just a bizarre mess. I chose unwisely, for sure.
October 21, 2022
Quick read. If you pick this up, it was translated from Korean into English, so I do feel some things may come across a little differently with translation. I rated with some grace in light of that.
It’s a bit of a slow paced psychological thriller. Everything went wrong after a mistake made one summer, 20 years ago. Until everything went right. Only to fall apart again. There’s scandal, murder, cover up and breakdowns.
It’s a bit of a slow paced psychological thriller. Everything went wrong after a mistake made one summer, 20 years ago. Until everything went right. Only to fall apart again. There’s scandal, murder, cover up and breakdowns.
August 5, 2022
I got this book free from Amazon First Reads. I actually made a mistake and clicked on the wrong book, which I didn't notice until I started reading it. Whoops too late. Generally I found the story quite interesting but at times it droned on a bit. The more I read, the more I found it hard to relate to the main characters and by the end they were quite irritating. It was a sad book where it seemed everyone was afraid to question things and subsequently people made wild assumptions which ended in tragedy. A lot of the book really delved into the thoughts and minds of the main characters, which was a strength of the book, except when it droned on too much. How the end unfolded was interesting, but it is the not the sort of the book that appeals that much to me and I suspect the book I thought I'd selected would have suited me much better, but I will never know now.
August 5, 2022
I got this from Amazon First Reads. I wanted to like it. Unfortunately I was left with a decidedly meh feeling. There were some twists and turns that made the plot semi interesting, and the writing seemed well done, but I ended up disliking all of the characters. I could have dealt with that, but the ended also left me feeling unsatisfied. There were answers that just didn't make sense to me, and questions left unanswered.
August 24, 2022
I would like to know why there was semen inside of her that was a dna match to someone in the family if none of them killed her? That question was not answered.
It was kind of a slow read for me, and the middle section lost me a bit. The beginning pulled me right in, his wife had left him, there was murder, etc. but then it just kind of lulled for a while until we figure out that Hanjo’s wife is plotting his demise.
It was a little meh for me, but it wasn’t terrible.
It was kind of a slow read for me, and the middle section lost me a bit. The beginning pulled me right in, his wife had left him, there was murder, etc. but then it just kind of lulled for a while until we figure out that Hanjo’s wife is plotting his demise.
It was a little meh for me, but it wasn’t terrible.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 28, 2022
A real page-turner after I got into it. The premise - that a man's wife disappears and he finds a manuscript that resembles his past a little too much - is so compelling. Lee took this in a direction I definitely didn't expect and with eloquently stark prose, unravelled a complicated story. I enjoyed the style of long chapters from the past alternating with short chapters of the present day, it was a great way to tell the story.
January 2, 2024
Moves slow at times. But what a payoff!
March 21, 2025
3.5 ⭐
أنا نفسي أفهمك والله
أنا نفسي أفهمك والله
November 9, 2022
3,5 ⭐️
Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this ARC! Broken Summer by J.M. Lee is out now!
This was a ride. Sometimes, I was completely lost and sometimes, I couldn’t put this story down. A story with some highs and lows, you may say. I must admit, the writing was beautiful: I adored that aspect of the book.
Even though I saw some twists and turns coming, the ending really got me. Overall, a nice read that I’d definitely recommend to literary thriller fans.
Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this ARC! Broken Summer by J.M. Lee is out now!
This was a ride. Sometimes, I was completely lost and sometimes, I couldn’t put this story down. A story with some highs and lows, you may say. I must admit, the writing was beautiful: I adored that aspect of the book.
Even though I saw some twists and turns coming, the ending really got me. Overall, a nice read that I’d definitely recommend to literary thriller fans.
March 28, 2023
Something lost in the translation here, I think…hard to imagine the writing is this awkward and elliptical in the original. The ending is a bit of a head scratcher as well…I have many questions!
August 26, 2022
I struggled getting into this book in the first couple of chapters, but it definitely picks up as you get further into it. I liked the overall plot with a mixture of family drama and mystery, but struggled with the ending being unclear and the characters not being the most likeable by the end. You see how two families are broken by a tragedy and the lengths families will go to to protect each other without even knowing the truth.
The translation is very good, but the book itself can be hard to follow when it jumps from characters and timelines between paragraphs.
The reveals were good (and tragic), but if the ending is implying what I think it did, it really didn’t make sense with the DNA, especially since that was a central piece to the entire investigation plot.
It’s also hard to believe that his wife went to the lengths she did, dedicating her entire life to someone she suspected and was also harmed by herself. But she’s probably the only one I root for at all in this. Hanjo had zero redeeming characteristics and his whole “I didn’t know her age” makes zero sense. I feel like you don’t really know suin other than him sounding mean and miserable until the very end when you get his side of his messed up love story. And you really never connect with jisoo even though she’s a key character to the plot and a victim. I think we would have needed a chapter from her for the ending to feel like it made more sense.
The translation is very good, but the book itself can be hard to follow when it jumps from characters and timelines between paragraphs.
The reveals were good (and tragic), but if the ending is implying what I think it did, it really didn’t make sense with the DNA, especially since that was a central piece to the entire investigation plot.
It’s also hard to believe that his wife went to the lengths she did, dedicating her entire life to someone she suspected and was also harmed by herself. But she’s probably the only one I root for at all in this. Hanjo had zero redeeming characteristics and his whole “I didn’t know her age” makes zero sense. I feel like you don’t really know suin other than him sounding mean and miserable until the very end when you get his side of his messed up love story. And you really never connect with jisoo even though she’s a key character to the plot and a victim. I think we would have needed a chapter from her for the ending to feel like it made more sense.
May 1, 2023
This one was a slog for me and I pretty much had to force myself to keep reading. I was not moved by the characters or the story and several times lost track of which time period we were in and the relevance of what I was reading.
October 4, 2022
Messy story line and an ending that does not make sense.
September 11, 2022
In this twisty novel two young families are forever changed by the events of one summer. The Malcolm House family is of modest means, the father a handyman and the mother a housekeeper, with two teenage sons, one a star pupil and the other an amateur artist. The Howard House family, of higher social status, buys the great house up the hill, the father an aspiring politician with a wife and two daughters, one 18 and one about 7. The two families collide and overlap in predictable ways - one's mother works as the other's housekeeper - and in unpredictable ways. More than 25 years later, the remnants of these two families must reckon with what happened between them in that long-buried summer.
I loved how ethereal and floaty this story was. It took me a while to get into it but once the plot got rolling, I couldn't put the book down. The characters are the hook that keep you invested in this story but once the mystery starts rolling out, slowly but surely, the plot itself becomes much more important. I like that there was this balance between character development in the first half and plot progress in the second half, I think it's an interesting balance you don't find too often in literary fiction or in the thriller genre. Also, just personal preference, but I love a revenge plot and this one was very well written. The characters on both ends were developed so as to make the revenge plot very believable - their motivations, their connections, their secrets.
However, I have to say, I didn't enjoy the beginning of this novel. It was so slow, clunky, with immense amount of superfluous scene-setting that was so boring I wanted to DNF the book. After about the 20% mark, I was glad I stuck with it, but there were a few times throughout the book where this drowsy sidebar approach to storytelling
reared its head again and it made the 250 pages feel like a 450 page book. I just wish it had a stronger editor to cut down on those parts. I also thought the translation was a bit awkward and... forced? at times. There were points where the translated sentence *made sense technically* but felt like an AI had written the sentence because it's not a way that people would communicate the sentiment in English. But maybe I'm just being picky.
3.5 rounded up
I loved how ethereal and floaty this story was. It took me a while to get into it but once the plot got rolling, I couldn't put the book down. The characters are the hook that keep you invested in this story but once the mystery starts rolling out, slowly but surely, the plot itself becomes much more important. I like that there was this balance between character development in the first half and plot progress in the second half, I think it's an interesting balance you don't find too often in literary fiction or in the thriller genre. Also, just personal preference, but I love a revenge plot and this one was very well written. The characters on both ends were developed so as to make the revenge plot very believable - their motivations, their connections, their secrets.
However, I have to say, I didn't enjoy the beginning of this novel. It was so slow, clunky, with immense amount of superfluous scene-setting that was so boring I wanted to DNF the book. After about the 20% mark, I was glad I stuck with it, but there were a few times throughout the book where this drowsy sidebar approach to storytelling
reared its head again and it made the 250 pages feel like a 450 page book. I just wish it had a stronger editor to cut down on those parts. I also thought the translation was a bit awkward and... forced? at times. There were points where the translated sentence *made sense technically* but felt like an AI had written the sentence because it's not a way that people would communicate the sentiment in English. But maybe I'm just being picky.
3.5 rounded up
September 10, 2022
I received this book in a Goodreads giveaway in exchange for an honest review.
This was a very interesting read, although I did find myself struggling to continue toward the center. I am glad I stuck with it as the intrigue picked back up.
This is a story of 2 families intertwined in daily life and the stations in life that society has in place for them. The pressures, the insignificances, the struggles and desires that each individual feels and how a death effects each one. When a girl dies the pressure to catch the killer causes two fathers to react, one demands action and one acts to protect. Two brothers will forever suspect each other and a sister will forever live to punish the killer. Even in happiness these lives crumble. Who is the killer, a father, a brother, a stranger or was it the girl herself?
This was a very interesting read, although I did find myself struggling to continue toward the center. I am glad I stuck with it as the intrigue picked back up.
This is a story of 2 families intertwined in daily life and the stations in life that society has in place for them. The pressures, the insignificances, the struggles and desires that each individual feels and how a death effects each one. When a girl dies the pressure to catch the killer causes two fathers to react, one demands action and one acts to protect. Two brothers will forever suspect each other and a sister will forever live to punish the killer. Even in happiness these lives crumble. Who is the killer, a father, a brother, a stranger or was it the girl herself?
September 10, 2022
Another mystery winner for me! Hanjo is a talented painter whose wife leaves him suddenly with nothing to show for it. He's puzzled because they weren't fighting or disagreeing about anything. Flashbacks to their childhoods show Hanjo and his family moving into a house where his father is the caretaker and Hanjo and brother, Suin meet the two sisters who are captivating. When a tragedy occurs, the family's life is disrupted in ways that can never heal, but as readers we aren't sure what really happened until the bitter end! Another one I raced through to solve the mystery. Family drama at its finest!
September 6, 2022
"No matter how happy the moment, it always passes, but if you can store it in your memory, it remains yours forever."
What It's About: Hanjo, a well-established artist wakes up on his 43rd birthday to discover his wife, Jisoo, has vanished. She left him the manuscript of her soon-to-be published novel - a novel that will ruin his life, reputation and all that he had worked hard for. Hanjo now must confront his dark past and find out the reason behind his wife's actions.
My thoughts: Oh wow! Ths was my first book by this author and I was utterly impressed! I loved the slow-burn pace and how the story is narrated through past and present timelines and different POVs.
Each of the different POV added some clues to the mystery and when the pieces of the puzzle finally fall into place in the end - it blew my mind!
This is a book to be savoured slowly. The writing is absolutely engaging, and the prose is so beautiful and poetic! Needless to say, the translation was fantastic!
But I have to admit that I was a bit confused with the timeline at first, as there was no date or small title to indicate the past timeline. So you do need to pay close attention to the timeline when reading this book.
Regardless, I ended up enjoying this book more than I expected! If you're looking for a character driven literary drama/thriller/mystery, this may be the book for you!
Pub. Date: Available now!
***Thank you Over The River PR and Amazon Publishing for this gifted reading copy. All opinions expressed are my own.***
What It's About: Hanjo, a well-established artist wakes up on his 43rd birthday to discover his wife, Jisoo, has vanished. She left him the manuscript of her soon-to-be published novel - a novel that will ruin his life, reputation and all that he had worked hard for. Hanjo now must confront his dark past and find out the reason behind his wife's actions.
My thoughts: Oh wow! Ths was my first book by this author and I was utterly impressed! I loved the slow-burn pace and how the story is narrated through past and present timelines and different POVs.
Each of the different POV added some clues to the mystery and when the pieces of the puzzle finally fall into place in the end - it blew my mind!
This is a book to be savoured slowly. The writing is absolutely engaging, and the prose is so beautiful and poetic! Needless to say, the translation was fantastic!
But I have to admit that I was a bit confused with the timeline at first, as there was no date or small title to indicate the past timeline. So you do need to pay close attention to the timeline when reading this book.
Regardless, I ended up enjoying this book more than I expected! If you're looking for a character driven literary drama/thriller/mystery, this may be the book for you!
Pub. Date: Available now!
***Thank you Over The River PR and Amazon Publishing for this gifted reading copy. All opinions expressed are my own.***
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