pickA fast read, Kwon‘s Lemon is the story of a murder and how that act reverberates through time. Told through multiple POVs—the victim‘s younger sister and the new wife of one of the original suspects—this is a story about how people process and move beyond, if they do, such a horrific tragedy. As such, it is not particularly interested in giving the reader a resolution focusing instead on how the survivors reach theirs. An entertaining read.
pickThis one feels similar to Mona Awad's Rouge but with less focus on grief and more on how privilege and racism inform beauty standards and how wealth can take a reasonable idea to an unreasonable extreme. I enjoyed the novel, but the story feels a little young, like it's lacking a layer of meaning that life experience might give it. Or maybe that was part of the point.
pickLoved all the stories in this collection—not a clunker in the bunch—but the first one, which gives the book its title, is masterful, a tour-de-force. It‘s an utterly compelling story of a former serial killer in the early stages of Alzheimer‘s. Convinced his daughter‘s boyfriend is a serial killer, he sets out to save her before he completely loses his memory. I understand why Kim has won all the awards & will definitely read more of his work.
Reading a short story collection by an author who has won every major literary award in Korea. The titular story is about a serial killer suffering from memory loss even as there is a mystery he wants to solve—I‘ve just started but it‘s very good so far.
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I‘m here for fiction that explores the darkness of the beauty and wellness industry. “Natural Beauty” additionally delves into cultural identity. The most moving parts of the story for me were with the protagonist and her immigrant parents. The true horror is found in contemplating that these storylines aren‘t implausible… how far are people really willing to go for beauty and power? Who sets the standards? Who pays the price? 🎧
Just started this and so far it‘s weird and compelling ;)
pick#Scarathlon #SpookyGhostClub @Clwojick
This book mixes horror with speculative fiction while presenting thoughtful social commentary about the beauty industry and the lengths people go to in order to be deemed beautiful by society.
The second half of this book goes a bit off the rails, but I was more than happy to hang on tight and enjoy the wild ride.
pickThis was a shocking story that blended themes of coming of age, mystery, and horror. There were quite a few underlying messages in this book about being driven to perfection and the tool it take on us as young women. It looks at the beauty industry from an interesting perspective. It was fun but not my favorite. Horror rarely is my chosen genre, but nevertheless, I enjoyed it and was also shocked by a lot of the narrative. ⭐⭐⭐
pick"At least she was beautiful while it lasted. She was really very ordinary before..." This, in an essence, sums up this strange, beautiful, body-horror novel of the wellness & skincare industry. Things get gross, graphic, & very brutal, but it's all for that transient spell of beauty. How is beauty so soul-affirming when pursued through creative means (the arts) but so damaging when it's about manipulating insecurities via potions & procedures?
