“We live in a terrible time. An era when the truth is a crime. And there is nothing we can do about it—”


♡ A Crane Among Wolves is dark, gripping, and heart-wrenching. The main story is based off true events from Korea's devastating history, and Jane Hur doesn't shy away from showing us the heinous deeds of King Yeonsan.

I often found myself reflecting on the story and its similarities to events from both of the cultures I associate with (Filipino and Chinese). I'm sure every nation has experienced (or is currently experiencing) ruthlessness, selfishness, and unjustness from people in power. This story highlights how these gruesome times should not be forgotten, and how there are crimes that should never be forgiven.

There's a lot of sub-plots woven into the story as well, including the planning of a secret coup, the mystery of a murderer, and the pining of two young characters. Fair warning: If you're looking for something fast-paced and action packed, this isn't for you. This book focuses a lot more on the bigger picture rather than the individual events that were going on.

♡ Iseul and Daehyun are likeable characters, and I was definitely on this journey with them, the whole way through. Neither were perfect by any means, but they both fit perfectly into this story.

Iseul. Iseul's character goes through a lot of character development. She starts off as a spoiled (but self-aware) girl who has no choice but to grow up and toughen up when she realizes how cruel the world can be… even to young girls like her.

Daehyun. He's very much the poster boy of a Historical K-drama — a tad stoic, very mysterious, and overall just the good guy. I would have loved to get to know him more (his chapters were half as short as Iseul's), but a liked his character well enough. He had this honesty to his character that I really appreciated.

Tomorrow, the kingdom could sink into the sea.
Tomorrow, all the elders we trusted could betray us.
Tomorrow, the fog might consume everything we loved.
But I had him today. And he had me.


♡ Iseul and Daehyun together? This was enemies-to-lovers done well. I found their relationship to be slow and realistic. We got a few he's-touching-me-and-that's-making-my-stomach-tickle-but-idk-why scenes before we got the I'll-scarifice-my-life-to-keep-you-safe scenarios. I don't think you'd get attached to their romance at first (at least I didn't), but by the end, you'll feel your heart just bursting for these two. The angst and the yearning were so good.

“In dark times, every mother becomes your mother, every child your child, every sister your sister… and every stranger-in-need a friend.”


♡ Iseul and Daehyun also have a gorgeous found family in the side characters. The side characters were all well-written, and I definitely grew to love them. (Special shoutout to my favorite character, Wonsik!) They all had specific roles to play in the story, and I enjoyed watching our main characters grow bonds with them. Like with Daehyun, it would have been nice to have a liiitle bit more of a background for them, but overall, we have a pretty solid cast here.

“History moves its course, but it is the youth who point the current in its direction.”


♡ The writing style definitely leans a bit serious for this one. It's not the easiest read in the world (i.e., the writing is far from casual), but it adds to the ambiance. Trust me, if anything, you will feel like you're in 1500s Joseon. The writing also just makes the story deeper and more impactful.

♡ I'm going to leave this review with my favorite thing about the book: the ending is something I will think about and reread over and over again. (In fact, I've already reread it three times!) It's perfect. It's the best way to get off the emotional rollercoaster that is A Crane Among Wolves. No spoilers from me, though, so you'll just have to read it for yourselves.

TLDR: If you're interested in some fantastic storytelling about politics and power, featuring a team of unique characters (and an angst-y romance between the two MCs), please do yourselves a favor by picking this book up.

I’ve adored June Hur’s past books and I was so excited to see another in the works. A Crane Among Wolves is half a murder-mystery, half a palace drama. We follow Iseul in the 16th century Joseon Empire as she searches for her sister, who’s been kidnapped and forced into the tyrant Emperor’s harem. At the same time, Prince Daehyun has been slowly mustering up the resources to throw a coup and end his brother’s reign of terrible. All of this is occurring while in the background, a series of grotesque murders are occurring. In typical June Hur fashion, the writing is an excellent blend of Iseul’s desperation to save her sister and the palace drama of Prince Daehyun. The pacing is very tightly written, giving just enough room to breath at the big emotional scenes. Unfortunately, Iseul’s written as a rathered spoiled girl who’s facing hardship for the first time with her sister gone, so I often found her character quite frustrating to follow compared to some of Hur’s other main characters. I know this is historical fiction and so the main beats of history ought to be followed, but it never made sense to me why a group of guys couldn’t just Julius Caesar the emperor when it seems literally everyone hated him, including the guards. Overall, I rate this book a 3.5/5

Posted to my blog 19 April 2024

This was my first book by June Hur and I was so immersed in the book but our fmc was annoying and it would actually make me stop reading the book. It didn’t really feel like she had much character growth cause she kept going headstrong into every situation not caring who got injured as a result and this is one of the tropes I can’t stand😭 but other than that loved the book.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC!

I was so excited when author June Hur started talking about this book on Instagram that I went and pre-ordered it. Imagine my delight when I was given the opportunity to read this now.

I loved it. Loved it.

Even if I were not a huge fan of dramatized sageuk, I would still have loved this story of palace intrigue, a ruthless king, a killer who targets royal supporters, a younger brother prince trapped in a role not of his choosing, and a young woman seeking to find her sister who has been kidnapped by the king.

I was casting the characters in my head with current Korean actors. If you loved these dramas, you will love this book.
The Red Sleeve
The Crowned Clown
Lovers of the Red Sky
Captivating the King

Actual rating: 4.5

This was SO good! I loved June's other book, The Red Palace and therefore very excited for this one! I love the way June writes, it's very easy to visualize the story in my head, almost like I'm watching a show. And of course, the ROMANCE. Oh my goodness, she always writes the best lines, I was obs

3.5 stars

This is another tough one to review. It’s a slooooooow start. Iseul is an incredibly difficult character to like. You want to root for her since she wants to save her sister, but she’s so impulsive, demanding, and rash that she’s very hard to like. It honestly took almost 60% of the book for me to feel truly engaged.

But once the coup gets going, Iseul finally starts to mature, and Daeyun also becomes someone to root for. Their relationship proceeds very slowly and tentatively, but I liked seeing him fall for her and want to protect the rest of the women.

This is a dark and emotional book that doesn’t shy away from the atrocities committed by the king. And it’s not afraid to show how the members of the government weren’t exactly noble either. Towards the end I was about to throw the book because everything seemed super sad and we were running out of pages. Thankfully no books or kindles were thrown.

I’m glad I read it since I was definitely unfamiliar with this piece of Korean history.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the preview. All opinions are my own.

Thanks to June Hur and Feiwel & Friends for sending me an ARC! This does not affect my thoughts about the book in any way.

This was a remarkably heart-shattering high-stakes tale of mystery and treacherous court politics with a longing-filled slowburn romance. Iseul and Daehyun reminded me a lot of The Red Palace trope wise, but this was unexpectedly a tale of violence and tragedy and is a historically accurate story that serves as a reminder of Korea’s darkest periods.

A Crane Among Wolves transports a reader back into the beauty of the ancient Joseon Dynasty of Korea while narrating an equally dark murder mystery behind the scenes with bits of romance on the side and lots of little twists. Not only does June give us a new romantic pair to be emotionally invested in (with a handsome and clever prince by the way), but this story also concentrates on the bravery and strength of women, especially that of the main character, and openly challenged misogyny and sexual abuse. The characters were day I say, all strategically placed like game pieces on a board, with their own peculiarities and flaws to complement each other that fueled this story to the end. I would, with no hesitation, always recommend this!

I could not get through this. My hopes were very high but it was just boring and I could not bond with the characters. Thanks for the earc though!

Plot:
Hope is dangerous. Love is deadly.
Set in 1506 during the Joseon era, the tyrant King Yeonsan rules with cruelty and oppression. Seventeen-year-old Iseul sets out on a dangerous journey to rescue her sister Suyeon, who has become a victim of the king's abuse. Meanwhile, Prince Daehyun, burdened by his half-brother's wickedness, seeks to overthrow him. When Iseul and Daehyun cross paths, they unite to challenge the king's reign and fight for justice.

Review:
SLAYY SLAYY SLAYY!!!🎉
I was this book's fan even before reading it, because of all the reels going around and people's reviews of it. but imagine my reaction and excitement when i finally secured its E-ARC and I started reading it?!?!!!?!!! I was OVER THE MOON!!! for a whole week, this book was the only thing that was living rent-free in my mind(and it still does, especially the last chapter. i gobbled it, ate it and it runs in my bloodstream now btw)
Iseul, Daehyun, Yul, Suyeon, and Wonsik will always have a special place in my heart. my beloveds🥹💯
I don't think there is any part where I felt that story was dragged or had a slow pace! the story was wrapped up in the perfect amount of pages(only flaw is that I want more iseul and daehyun 🥺😔💕)
i wish i could erase my memory and read this book again!!

★★★.25 /5

hm… i had conflicting thoughts about this book, because while i appreciated the premise of and drive behind this book, the fact that a couple pages of historical context provided at the end piqued my interest more than the entire plot of the book says a lot.

simply put, this is a book that had great potential but is lacking — it is undoubtedly entertaining, but the cast of characters were lackluster and the plot progression too fast and a little unrewarding at times. i didn’t get enough of king yeonsan’s atrocities to be truly terrified of him nor did i get enough time with the citizens to feel enough remorse for their blight at the hands of their corrupt ruler. the romance didn’t register much with me either besides a few instances of fun banter.

if this book was longer and let us spend more time immersed within this historical period, i would have liked this book a lot more. as it stands, “a crane upon wolves” was still a fun and easy read, though, given the historical context and significance to the author, i wish it could have offered something more.

thank you netgalley and the publisher for the arc!

This book was heartrending, and oh so good! The love story was poignant. The intertwining of grief and joy was masterfully done. The end result was a book that took me through all the emotions possible while still leaving me with a happily ever after. The author based the story on real events, which made it even more intense and thought provoking. This book is marketed as a K-Drama you can read, and I think that is exactly what it is. Bring on the tears!

I've been a huge fan of June Hur ever since I read her The Red Palace. Didn't know I'd enjoy historical mysteries so much. Honestly, her books read like a K-drama, and I mean that as a compliment. This one took a while to get into, but it contains all her trademark qualities: slow burn romance, intelligent FMC, and an intriguing but captivating MMC. Definitely getting this for the collection!

A stand alone YA book may be rare these days, but it is one of the things I was very grateful for when I finished "A Crane Among Wolves" by Jane Hur. Not because I wanted the story to end, but because it made the story telling tighter with less filler.

Tight writing that doesn't make me want to skim is always a plus. And this book was one of those. The use of historical material woven into the story was another aspect of this book that I liked. The fact that it was done seamlessly made the story flow. It made me want to learn more about the time period in Korea's history that it's referencing.

In A Crane Among Wolves, our main character is Iseul. She sets out from her village determined to reunite with her older sister who was taken by the King's men. When taken, women are added to his very large collection of concubines. Iseul is resourceful, but headstrong with a passionate personality that sometimes gets her into trouble.

One such incident brings her into contact with the King's favorite brother, Prince Daehyun, and they initially clash. It is only after they learn they have a common enemy that their animosity begins to lessen. They begin to work together to bring about a change that will help everyone they care about.

I liked the characters in this book. Sometimes I have to remind myself that as an adult, many of the annoying and dumb choices made by young characters are because of their age. While there is some of that in this book, it isn't so often and so egregious that it's distracting. And there aren't so many characters that it's hard to keep track of or confusing.

In addition to the main plot of getting her sister back, Iseul is involved in solving the mystery of who is killing supporters of the king. It keeps things interesting and encourages the reader to observe and pay attention to things along with Iseul. This keeps things moving, and while not entirely connected with their mission, it brings about character development in key ways.

I read through this book quickly because I was interested in the plot, it moved at a good pace, and it had enough mystery and twists to keep me guessing. The friendships that formed throughout the story were fun to read and made me like each character--even when there were surprises. The way the author incorporated true historical facts and made plausible reasons for them to have happened made me like it even more. It is an enjoyable YA book that is great for fans of light romance, Asian characters and political intrigue.

우와…

I mean…seriously…June Hur just does not miss.

As someone who has been an avid fan of Hur’s novels since first stumbling across <i>The Silence of Bones</i> and <i>The Forest of Stolen Girls</i>, I remember thinking her last release, <i>The Red Palace</i>, was one of her best in terms of taking a specific historical figure of the Joseon era and creating an engrossing orbitive narrative.

Was I potentially biased because I find the tragic, complicated story of Crown Prince Sado particularly interesting? It’s possible. But even my interest in a specific bit of history cannot make up for weak narrative, characters, writing, etc — and June Hur’s immersive writing felt like I wasn’t just reading but watching something unfold before my very eyes. I could see the streets of Hanseong, the horror of the violence in the murder scenes, and also the tension of being in the same room as someone who is mentally unwell to the point of unstable and with, sadly, a penchant for violence.

But nothing in there compares to the terror of reading the sequences with the (arguably) worst tyrant of them all: Yeonsangun of Joseon.

Some context for any who are curious: Yeonsangun sat as the 10th king of the Joseon dynasty (~1390-1890), reigning for just over 11 bloody years that included two sahwa (사화) — lit. tranlsating to “scholars’ calamity” — which resulted in the execution, exiling, or dismissing of hundreds of scholarly officials; the kidnapping and confining of hundreds of women from all over the kingdom to be his slaves…I don’t think I need to make you use your imagination and to what kind of slaves they often were; and even commandeered the most prestigious academic institution in the country, Sungkyunkwan, as his own personal harem as yet another massive middle finger to the scholarly elite of Joseon, because obviously two bloody purges wasn’t enough to make it clear how he felt.

There’s so much more that he did that we don’t have time to talk about, but he was eventually dethroned in a coup and died only a few weeks later in exile just under the age of 30.

Just to make it clear how much he was not only hated at the time but even to this day, Yeonsangun is one of only two Joseon kings who were not granted temple names upon their deaths. Someone can fact check me on that number, but I’m fairly certain it is only two…in about 500 years of the Joseon dynasty’s existence.

So yeah…he was kind of the worst…to put it mildly.

He was also absolutely terrifying in <i>A Crane Among Wolves</i>. As June Hur show us in this narrative, during the last bit of his rule, Yeonsangun was sadistic, paranoid, unhinged, and, quite frankly, psychopathic. I found myself on edge and holding my breath during every interaction within the palace because I knew full well that, at any minute, that man could (and would) decide to just murder whoever he perceived as a threat, real or imagined, in that given moment.

And having to read those scenes from the perspective of one of his younger half-siblings, who absolutely would have represented some kind of threat in his mind…oof. More than once I had to pause to take a breath and recollect myself before continuing. Prince Daehyun, the poor guy, is just walking tension, constantly in threat of being killed, and the fact there’s a prophecy that he’s suppose to die this year made it even easier for me to assume with great sorrow that this child wasn’t going to be making it out of the narrative alive. But at least he wishes to go for a good cause: deposing his despicable older half-sibling for the benefit of all of Joseon.

Joining him in this quest, at first tangentially, is our main heroine, Hwang Iseul. She’s come through the so-called “forbidden territory” in search of her older sister who, like so many other unfortunate women, was kidnapped to join Yeonsangun’s collection. With her parents victims of the second literati purge, Iseul makes it to the capital with a target already on her back, and her plan to rescue her sister from the king only sees said target made bigger and brighter, especially when she decides not only to hunt down the mysterious assassin, “Nameless Flower”, as a way to bargain with the despot, but finds herself ultimately joining the inevitable coup.

What I love most about the depiction of the coup and its principal players is that June Hur doesn’t write us a story of heroic, honorable men doing what they did for noble reasons: yes, Yeonsangun absolutely needed to go, but they were doing it more for themselves than for the common people of Joseon. Their actions were ultimately heroic only because they were acting against someone so despicable in comparison. In fact, it wasn’t until after the biggest players in the coup died of old age that actual reforms were able to occur under the reign of King Jungjong because he could finally start to assert some measure of authority.

The coup leaders were in it for their own power and egos, and June Hur doesn’t shy away from that in the slightest…especially when it comes to the topic of the women kidnapped by Yeonsangun. These poor women, who should have been treated with sympathy and care were treated as “prizes” to be handed out to members of the coup; they went from the horror of one imprisonment to another. There was no real justice for them.

I think in highlighting these women, June Hur takes a step towards giving these women a well-deserved voice, even if in the bounds of a fictional narrative. I see it as some semblance of justice for them to have us read this novel and be able to say to them: we see you, we hear you, you mattered, and you deserved so much better.

You were not forgotten.


<spoiler>

I want to take a moment to talk about our “Nameless Flower,” Yeongho, and his story as revealed in the narrative and what I at least think about it in the overall context of the novel’s characters, themes, etc etc.

To put it simply: Yeongho is a microcosm of the coup and its leaders. He’s also very much a foil to Daehyun, representing what the latter is at risk of becoming should he fall into a revenge-driven bloodlust. Revenge, as presented in this novel at least, is shown to be something selfish that does little more than create more victims. A bloody road into the void that offers no closure.

The tragedy of Yeongho’s backstory, when fully revealed, is awful, and I think anyone can empathize with his resulting hatred of Yeonsangun. But the execution of his plan, as well as his choice of targets shows how little any of this has to do with “justice” as it does with wounded ego. At the end of the day, Yeongho isn’t angry that his parents are dead, he’s angry that he didn’t get what he believes he deserved: to be a general.

I can’t help but wonder: would he have gone this far if, say, his parents had been killed but he’d managed to retain his military career? I don’t think so. Yeongho is no better than the coup leaders: his murders as “Nameless Flower” seem better and more noble than he really is just because he’s up against the worst tyrant in Korean history.

</spoiler>
우와…

I mean…seriously…June Hur just does not miss.

As someone who has been an avid fan of Hur’s novels since first stumbling across The Silence of Bones and The Forest of Stolen Girls, I remember thinking her last release, The Red Palace, was one of her best in terms of taking a specific historical figure of the Joseon era and creating an engrossing orbitive narrative.

Was I potentially biased because I find the tragic, complicated story of Crown Prince Sado particularly interesting? It’s possible. But even my interest in a specific bit of history cannot make up for weak narrative, characters, writing, etc — and June Hur’s immersive writing felt like I wasn’t just reading but watching something unfold before my very eyes. I could see the streets of Hanseong, the horror of the violence in the murder scenes, and also the tension of being in the same room as someone who is mentally unwell to the point of unstable and with, sadly, a penchant for violence.

But nothing in there compares to the terror of reading the sequences with the (arguably) worst tyrant of them all: Yeonsangun of Joseon.

Some context for any who are curious: Yeonsangun sat as the 10th king of the Joseon dynasty (~1390-1890), reigning for just over 11 bloody years that included two sahwa (사화) — lit. tranlsating to “scholars’ calamity” — which resulted in the execution, exiling, or dismissing of hundreds of scholarly officials; the kidnapping and confining of hundreds of women from all over the kingdom to be his slaves…I don’t think I need to make you use your imagination and to what kind of slaves they often were; and even commandeered the most prestigious academic institution in the country, Sungkyunkwan, as his own personal harem as yet another massive middle finger to the scholarly elite of Joseon, because obviously two bloody purges wasn’t enough to make it clear how he felt.

There’s so much more that he did that we don’t have time to talk about, but he was eventually dethroned in a coup and died only a few weeks later in exile just under the age of 30.

Just to make it clear how much he was not only hated at the time but even to this day, Yeonsangun is one of only two Joseon kings who were not granted temple names upon their deaths. Someone can fact check me on that number, but I’m fairly certain it is only two…in about 500 years of the Joseon dynasty’s existence.

So yeah…he was kind of the worst…to put it mildly.

He was also absolutely terrifying in <i>A Crane Among Wolves</i>. As June Hur show us in this narrative, during the last bit of his rule, Yeonsangun was sadistic, paranoid, unhinged, and, quite frankly, psychopathic. I found myself on edge and holding my breath during every interaction within the palace because I knew full well that, at any minute, that man could (and would) decide to just murder whoever he perceived as a threat, real or imagined, in that given moment.

And having to read those scenes from the perspective of one of his younger half-siblings, who absolutely would have represented some kind of threat in his mind…oof. More than once I had to pause to take a breath and recollect myself before continuing. Prince Daehyun, the poor guy, is just walking tension, constantly in threat of being killed, and the fact there’s a prophecy that he’s suppose to die this year made it even easier for me to assume with great sorrow that this child wasn’t going to be making it out of the narrative alive. But at least he wishes to go for a good cause: deposing his despicable older half-sibling for the benefit of all of Joseon.

Joining him in this quest, at first tangentially, is our main heroine, Hwang Iseul. She’s come through the so-called “forbidden territory” in search of her older sister who, like so many other unfortunate women, was kidnapped to join Yeonsangun’s collection. With her parents victims of the second literati purge, Iseul makes it to the capital with a target already on her back, and her plan to rescue her sister from the king only sees said target made bigger and brighter, especially when she decides not only to hunt down the mysterious assassin, “Nameless Flower”, as a way to bargain with the despot, but finds herself ultimately joining the inevitable coup.

What I love most about the depiction of the coup and its principal players is that June Hur doesn’t write us a story of heroic, honorable men doing what they did for noble reasons: yes, Yeonsangun absolutely needed to go, but they were doing it more for themselves than for the common people of Joseon. Their actions were ultimately heroic only because they were acting against someone so despicable in comparison. In fact, it wasn’t until after the biggest players in the coup died of old age that actual reforms were able to occur under the reign of King Jungjong because he could finally start to assert some measure of authority.

The coup leaders were in it for their own power and egos, and June Hur doesn’t shy away from that in the slightest…especially when it comes to the topic of the women kidnapped by Yeonsangun. These poor women, who should have been treated with sympathy and care were treated as “prizes” to be handed out to members of the coup; they went from the horror of one imprisonment to another. There was no real justice for them.

I think in highlighting these women, June Hur takes a step towards giving these women a well-deserved voice, even if in the bounds of a fictional narrative. I see it as some semblance of justice for them to have us read this novel and be able to say to them: we see you, we hear you, you mattered, and you deserved so much better.

You were not forgotten.


<SPOILER SECTION>

I want to take a moment to talk about our “Nameless Flower,” Yeongho, and his story as revealed in the narrative and what I at least think about it in the overall context of the novel’s characters, themes, etc etc.

To put it simply: Yeongho is a microcosm of the coup and its leaders. He’s also very much a foil to Daehyun, representing what the latter is at risk of becoming should he fall into a revenge-driven bloodlust. Revenge, as presented in this novel at least, is shown to be something selfish that does little more than create more victims. A bloody road into the void that offers no closure.

The tragedy of Yeongho’s backstory, when fully revealed, is awful, and I think anyone can empathize with his resulting hatred of Yeonsangun. But the execution of his plan, as well as his choice of targets shows how little any of this has to do with “justice” as it does with wounded ego. At the end of the day, Yeongho isn’t angry that his parents are dead, he’s angry that he didn’t get what he believes he deserved: to be a general.

I can’t help but wonder: would he have gone this far if, say, his parents had been killed but he’d managed to retain his military career? I don’t think so. Yeongho is no better than the coup leaders: his murders as “Nameless Flower” seem better and more noble than he really is just because he’s up against the worst tyrant in Korean history.

This is easily the best written book I've read so far this year and brings to light a horrid time in Korean history. I am so glad to have learned more about this era from the prose June Hur weaves and am completely enchanted by her ability to give life to believable characters in this era. Giving the heaviness that the history deserves, unfortunately, this means June Hur pulls none of her punches (albeit one) and lets you sit fully in your grief and sorrow at the situations the characters both are forced into and barrel into. Get your tissues out and a large warm mug of tea for this one. You'll need it, and A Crane Among Wolves is so worth it.

3.5! Overall I enjoyed this! It was a bit of a rollercoaster— the beginning was really slow and it wasn’t until about 30% that I became interested. Then I started to feel frustrated with the ending, but the final few chapters made up for it!

I loved Iseul and Daehyun! Yul and Wonsik were great side characters. I was a bit confused about the purpose of the whole murderer subplot, and was a bit underwhelmed by the reveal.

I am not familiar with any of the historical aspects of this book and it was fascinating to learn about; the author didn’t shy away from the darker facets of it. I loved the themes of grief and sisterhood throughout and I even cried during the last chapter! Would definitely pick up another by this author.

Also!! this cover is GORGEOUSSSSSSS! One of my favorites of the year so far.

*4.5 stars rounded up for Goodreads scoring*
Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group/Feiwel & Friends for my arc in exchange for my unbiased opinion.

"A Crane Among Wolves" by June Hur is a historical fiction romance set against the backdrop of 1506 Korea under the tyrannical rule of King Yeonsan. He is a bloody king known for taking beautiful women for his own pleasures. When Iseul's older sister, Suyeon, is taken, she sets out for the kingdom's capital with the intent to rescue her sister. On the way, she becomes entangled with the king's half-brother, Prince Daehyun, who plots a coup against Yeonsan. Also, there's a serial killer.

I absolutely devoured this. Hur's prose is incredibly beautiful and masterful at creating atmosphere and providing foundations for the reader to visualize. And genuinely, it was like reading a historical Kdrama. On top of the research that Hur had to do to keep the book mostly true to what has been recorded in history, the fictionalized parts were weaved seamlessly into the reality. And normally, I find myself having issues with how romance is portrayed, especially in young adult books, but oh gosh, Hur did such a brilliant job with the romance between Iseul and Daehyun. I mean I was on the edge of my seat (actually just crouched over my Kindle in my bed). And honestly, everything felt earned by the end of the novel.

That said, I gave this a 4.5 because for a huge part of the book, I never really felt that I understood Iseul or Daehyun as characters. Like I felt like we were always held as a distance to them. This feeling went away by the end of the book but leading up to that, it made it difficult at times to really sympathize with either of them.

Overall, I loved this book. I don't often read Young Adult and enjoy it so this was such a pleasant surprise and it lived up to my high expectations.

My thanks to MacMillan/Feiwel & Friends/NetGalley for the eARC.

Overall this was enjoyable. June Hur has definitely carved out a specialty in writing Joseon-era stories and she has managed to hit that mark again - this reminded me a lot of her previous book The Red Palace, (which I also enjoyed).

The biggest strength here is definitely the prose - the author's writing is wonderfully atmospheric and does definitely convey the feelings of a well-made 사극 drama (loved how I could visualize the maple leaves and dense pine forests that are characteristic of autumn in Korea). The historical aspects were also very interesting, and the points where the tyranny of Yeonsan-gun was explored was definitely a highlight. The mystery at the center of the story was also well written.

Deducting one star however, as I felt that the characters could have been better developed. I'm not sure if this is intentional, but it felt like we were viewing the main duo from an arm's length, if that makes sense? Whilst this got better towards the end I still couldn't help but feel that I didn't know Iseul and Daehyun very well - there's usually something, such as the 'colour' of their dialogue, which indicates personality however I couldn't quite pinpoint what makes them distinctive.

Nevertheless, a good read! :)

⭐️ i received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review ⭐️

anyone who knows me knows that i am extremely particular about the kind of books i give a five-star rating to. it would take a very special book to deserve that rating in my eyes. with a crane among wolves, it did not take long for me to think to myself "goddamn i should have started this book sooner."

i am a fan of june hur's previous works. The Red Palace (TRP) for starters, is one of my favourite historical fictions. so, going into this, i expected that i would be captivated by the way the she weaves her words, and fortunately, i was. you can just tell the amount of work and research that went into creating this book, and the author is also transparent about her writing process on her socials!

iseul's world was a dangerous one, so i admired her courage and determination in finding her sister. the situations she was put into—let's just say that i did not have half her bravery when i was her age. therefore, following the story through her eyes gave me a case of premature hair loss (in a good way). despite her bravado, i liked that she was a very flawed character. she was rash, headstrong, and she did not always make the best decisions. regardless of that, you find yourself wanting to root for her.

the book is written in dual pov, so you also get a glimpse of the male main character's—daehyun's—thoughts and perspective. i loved him as much as i loved iseul. i don't know; maybe i am getting too old, but i always have a soft spot for young characters being put into impossible situations. you just want to protect them, you know? i was a nerve-wreck watching daehyun navigate his political life—evading/playing nice with the murderous rapist tyrant while grappling with trauma.

another thing i enjoyed was seeing romance develop between the two. especially from daehyun's pov. he definitely fell for her first! i would say that the romance between daehyun and iseul wasn't as prominent as the one in TRP. however, it made perfect sense considering the situation they were in, and i found it just as enjoyable.

unlike TRP, this book is even darker as it deals issues of rape, human trafficking, and even incest (minor), etc, so please heed the trigger warnings as listed by the author! overall, i highly recommend this book, and i hope you will enjoy it as much as i did!

Reading this book felt like an emotional rollercoaster, I knew before starting this book that it was based on history as the auhors social media presence showed her reserch into korean history (and like falling into multiple rabbitholes in random historical topics but like same). The main character Su Yeon seemed to have grown so much just from the begining of the book as we saw what kind of girl she was just from the flashbacks throughout. She of course then goes onto become a strong woman while serching for her sister who was kidnapped by the king (along with hundreds of other women) I enjoyed her developing new skills and perspective while admiting and reflecting on her past privilege.

I also enjoyed the realism and the dedication to stick to the history of the time, its bittersweet how the victims of the tragedies often have to pay the price for them as well but I feel like June Hur was able to get us a semi happy ending regardless without taking away from the realism and the tragic end of other "characters" (I put that in quotations since they are representative of real people of the past who went through the same thing depicted)

Lastly the depiction of sisterhood in the book hit me very deeply which is a bit weird since i dont have one but i almost feel i kind of sisterhood with this book insted, or perhaps with the author herself i dont know. I cant imagine reading this book while having a sister and what kind of emotions that would casue.