Michael Barnes
I found this a beautiful sparse mediation on loneliness in modern and marginalised life. The clear and fast pace of the narrative matching the clean and cool prose of the author. As someone unable to read Korean I rely on the English translation and this book I think is an example of why I decry those who suggest it can be handed over to large language models.
The bulk of the story is told through three narratives. A contemporary police detective Suyeon’s investigation into the deemed suicides of four isolated elderly people at the same hospital by jumping out of the sixth-floor window, Violette a adopted Korean baby growing up in France, who is socially isolated (how could she be anything else) whose budding romance with an enchanting vampire, Lily, as a teenager in the 1980s: and Nanju, a night nurse whose violent hatred towards a selfish father fuels a bitter and empty life. I can state Nanju makes understandable but terrible choices.
I liked how their stories connected organically and whilst the resolution might seem inevitable, with a story such as this the point isn't so much the destination but the journey. I wanted to read more of the friendship between Suyeon and her mentor Eungyeong sunbae, both fascinating women but that’s more a personal curiosity than a criticism.
I found this a beautiful sparse mediation on loneliness in modern and marginalised life. The clear and fast pace of the narrative matching the clean and cool prose of the author. As someone unable to read Korean I rely on the English translation and this book I think is an example of why I decry those who suggest it can be handed over to large language models.
The bulk of the story is told through three narratives. A contemporary police detective Suyeon’s investigation into the deemed suicides of four isolated elderly people at the same hospital by jumping out of the sixth-floor window, Violette a adopted Korean baby growing up in France, who is socially isolated (how could she be anything else) whose budding romance with an enchanting vampire, Lily, as a teenager in the 1980s: and Nanju, a night nurse whose violent hatred towards a selfish father fuels a bitter and empty life. I can state Nanju makes understandable but terrible choices.
I liked how their stories connected organically and whilst the resolution might seem inevitable, with a story such as this the point isn't so much the destination but the journey. I wanted to read more of the friendship between Suyeon and her mentor Eungyeong sunbae, both fascinating women but that’s more a personal curiosity than a criticism.