i was not a fan of this book for the first half but thankfully the later part of it sort of redeemed itself. there’s a decent mix of Korean mythology, romance and mystery set in this urban fantasy realm of New Sinsi.

“We can be the new Sherlock and Watson.”
“Sherlock and Watson,” Seokga says dubiously.
Hani eyes him. “You’ve never read those books?”
“No.” Seogka wrinkles his nose. “I prefer Seogka and Hani.”

the main reason i wasn’t connecting to the story was due to the two main characters Seogka and Hani. Seogka is a trickster god and Hani is a gumiho, which means they’re 1000+ years old and yet they act worse than teenagers initially. it’s clear that the author leaned heavily into popular tropes and one of the main ones here would be enemies to lovers but the way Seokga and Hani interacted just felt annoying until i became accustomed to their personalities. i actually preferred the detective plot line more than anything else and the ending section finally started to feel reminiscent of k-dramas (which i love), so my enjoyment increased because of that— i also just d the way it all wrapped up with the conflict and the romance.

? thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for the arc, all opinions are my own.fantasy netgalley-arcs romance101 s40 comments meggy (readsinbloom)30 9

Even though it is only March, I think “The God and the Gumiho” might just be one of my favorite reads. “The God and the Gumiho” follows Seokga, a fallen god who has been a chance at redemption and Hani, a Gumiho who was once known as the Scarlet Fox and went on a killing rampage. In order for Seokga to regain his godliness, he must both stop an immensely dangerous creature that has been wreaking havoc in South Korea, and the Scarlet Fox who has made a sudden reappearance after a long retirement. What happens when Seokga’s new assistant is Hani, the Scarlet Fox that he is searching for?

One of the things I loved the most about this book was the relationship between Hani and Seokga. They had banter and were a very entertaining couple to read about. I appreciated that their relationship was balanced. While Seokga is a God, Hani is a powerful Gumiho that has been alive for thousands of years. It was a breath of fresh air to not read about a really old man and a teenager. Hani is also the more morally grey one of the couple. She has killed, a lot. Seokga has his own past, but he is the trickster god, and I was not under the impression that his past was filled with murder.

Seokga and Hani’s relationship was not quick, in the terms of the page. They had to get to know one another as they went on this journey together, and they definitely did not immediately find themselves liking one another. However, in terms of the actual storyline, their relationship was quick. I found myself astounded when I found out that the majority of the events of the book took place in about a week.

There were so many little aspects of this book that I loved. All of the different incorporations of Korean mythology was well done. At first it was slightly intimidating, but I found myself quickly going along with what was happening. I would not give up early on if you find yourself struggling with this.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! I think this is the first ARC I find myself NEEDING a physical copy of.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.favorites39 s5 comments Evie229 32

3.5 stars rounded down. I feel this is the perfect example of a book that has all the individual parts to be a great read for me but comes up short in the execution. Although I can safely say that this has a very pretty cover.

Seogka, the fallen trickers god, is forced to do penance (after a failed coup to take over his brothers heavenly kingdom) by means of being a supernatural investigator on earth and sending nasty creatures back to the spiritual dimension they came from. Then there is the FMC Hani, who is a legendary fox spirit called The Scarlett Fox, who is best known for a mass scale slaughter 100 years ago. After Hani accidentally draws attention to herself following some murders, she infiltrates the investigation to try and sabotage the efforts to find her.

This started off on an intriguing foot and gave some very Sherlock and Moriarty vibes which was fun to start with. Some initial positives- this was fascinating exposure to South Korean mythology and I hadn’t realised how much I didn’t know and I really enjoyed learning more about it. Secondly, the writing craft in this is perfectly fine. I’ve tried to research if this is marketed as a YA or adult fantasy and whilst nothing I’ve found is concrete I can tell you that it reads YA (not that there’s anything wrong with that, just an FYI for the vibe) although has a few very mild spicy scenes.

Then things start to fall off for me a bit. I missed the initial note stating that this was set in 1992 and found myself confused thinking it was modern day setting as there is common use of mobile phones, but suddenly all the security footage evidence is being provided in VHS tapes? It wasn’t till the end that I realised what I missed and it made sense, but i was so confused for a while there.

Neither of the main characters really provided me much depth or chemistry and I never really felt emotionally invested in either them or their plights. I mean the core of the enmity in their relationship came from an incorrectly made coffee…I’ll admit that while their journey from enemies to lovers didn’t really sell me and all seemed a bit too easy, I preferred their characterization at the end significantly more than the beginning.

They are both meant to be over 1500 years old and yet they came off as being immature and childish and just made poor decisions which make no sense for creatures that old. Hani is meant to be this incredibly powerful and cunning fox spirit and yet the first opportunity to pick up weapons she picks up a pair of daggers that are the same as those that are known to be the signature weapons of her hidden identity as The Scarlett Fox and triggering off Seokga’s suspicions, very much not what I expect from a cunning and ancient creature. And Seogka is meant to be this trickster god but I never really saw any evidence of cunning, charm or deviousness- he was mostly just a dick to everyone.

I definitely think that this is a case of ‘your mileage may vary’ and that some people will love this, but the personalities in this just didn’t work for me (perhaps you need to vibe with kdramas more to get it). I hadn’t planned to really bother with further books in this series but the ending in the last 10% actually turned it around enough to put me back on the fence about it.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this eARC37 s2 comments shehrbano ? 89 170 Currently reading

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br with loml silly rinbinbin very very excited. [im literally imploding with joy rn]arcs asian-rep32 s18 comments Sarah413 180

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I am a simple creature. A girl in love with her K-dramas, no matter how many times I physically recoil from cringey scenes. I eat them up every time. So it doesn't surprise me how much I loved this book, despite the juvenile MCs and somewhat overplayed tropes.

Kim Hani has retired from the life of eating men's souls as the Scarlet Fox to work in a coffee shop. Her shenanigans now consist of annoying the fallen trickster god Seokga by ruining his coffee orders. Seokga hates the mortal world and is trying to get back to Okhwang. He has several centuries left of this miserable existence until he is offered a deal: kill the Scarlet Fox and a demon terrorizing mortals in exchange for reinstated godhood. Hani, determined not to get caught, becomes his assistant and starts messing with the investigation. But she hesitantly starts working with Seokga when the demon destroys life as she knows it.

The MCs are really what made this story work for me. The immortals have the emotional maturity of a teen and the critical thinking skills of a toddler when it comes to each other. It's PEAK sunshine and grumpy energy. Honestly, this book's greatest strength is just how ridiculous it is. Their dynamic was so bad it was good. I adore mischievous women and Hani is the embodiment of that. It played well with Seokga's aversion to anything resembling cheer. They will not be everyone's favorite couple, and it was exhausting at times, but I loved it.

The mystery was fun because of how many moving pieces there were. Hani and Seokga chased down several leads which meant they covered a lot of ground. I loved the setting (90s Korea) mixed with interesting Korean folklore and fantasy creatures. The author did a great job balancing the real world and fantasy.

I will say, this book will have a very certain audience. The writing style and character depth make it feel very YA, but the violence and brief sexual scenes put this book in NA/Adult. I recommend this for K-drama lovers and readers who love slightly exaggerated sunshine and grumpy dynamics. Otherwise, steer clear or you will be asking yourself what you just read.

Sophie Kim, please give me more of Hani and Okhwang I love them.

CW: violence, swearing, gore, brief sexual scenes.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine/Del Rey for the advance copy. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.32 s4 comments Mai693 453

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Take this with a grain of salt. I didn't realize this was the same author of Last of the Talons, which I also severely disd. A lot of you loved this. I hated it. More than some other Asian fantasies I probably shouldn't be naming again.

Hani is secretly the Scarlet Fox, a supposedly very scary eater of men's livers and so-called killer. She reads an annoying teen. It took me a while to notice this, but Zana did right away, but Seokga the Fallen reads straight from a Loki/Reader fanfic. The green eyes. Must every fantasy contain a withdrawn male with green eyes?

They hate each other. Then they don't. It gets dramatic. It gets boring. I skimmed a lot of it, because I couldn't wait for it to be over. The coffee subplot is not funny. I enjoyed getting to the last page, because that meant I was done.


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