Shawn
Molka is ambitious and clearly the work of a writer with something real to say. The dual POV structure works — Junyoung’s chapters are uncomfortable in exactly the way they’re supposed to be, and the Korean folklore thread earns its place. But I never got as absorbed in these characters as I did in The Eyes Are the Best Part. Junyoung is deliberately ordinary, which is the point, but it keeps you at arm’s length. Dahye spends too long in the Hyukjoon spiral before she becomes the character you want her to be. The ending delivers, and Bora driving that car is the best moment in the book. Just didn’t hit as hard as the debut.
Molka is ambitious and clearly the work of a writer with something real to say. The dual POV structure works — Junyoung’s chapters are uncomfortable in exactly the way they’re supposed to be, and the Korean folklore thread earns its place. But I never got as absorbed in these characters as I did in The Eyes Are the Best Part. Junyoung is deliberately ordinary, which is the point, but it keeps you at arm’s length. Dahye spends too long in the Hyukjoon spiral before she becomes the character you want her to be. The ending delivers, and Bora driving that car is the best moment in the book. Just didn’t hit as hard as the debut.