The God and the Gumiho

YA author Kim’s (Last of the Talons) adult debut melds morally gray protagonists and a hefty dose of reimagined Korean mythology into an impressive urban fantasy. In the city of New Sinsi, Kim Hani, a soul-devouring gumiho (nine-tailed fox spirit), reluctantly teams up with the fallen trickster god Seokga to take down an escaped demon. Dual narrators Greta Jung and Intae Kim offer a joyous narration, reveling in Kim’s fully fleshed character portraits and conveying the intricacies of her worldbuilding. Jung gives Hani, the vulpine gumiho glutted on souls, a mischievous tone to distance herself from her protective nature. Meanwhile, Kim’s fallen god, Seokga, replaces his need for conquest with a love for coffee and a hatred for all things mortal, including nine-tailed foxes prone to adding extra sugar to iced coffees. Both narrators enhance the story with Korean pronunciations of names, folkloric creatures, and aspects of Korean culture, grounding the story in a reimagined South Korea even as demonic and heavenly forces interfere with Seokga and Hani’s rivalry.