Excellently written, though I didn't end up finishing the book because it triggered too many feelings in me. I support women's rights and more importantly their wrongs.

Great book! It had all the fears of growing up. Make a choice. Turn the page or close the book. Enter the darkness if you wish!

Definitely gross, but you expect that going into this one! I did not realize eyeballs were made up of cartilage until googling while reading this book. Ji-won is going through a lot in her life and seems to be a little unhinged. This leads to an obsession with eyeballs (particularly blue ones) and a quest for revenge. I really enjoyed this horror novel and will be on the look-out for Kim's next book.

With sharp tension, emotional complexity, haunting beauty, and enough gross-out moments to make me feel like I was watching a gruesome movie, this was ridiculously up my street. Recommended!

An absolute rollercoaster of a good for her book! Would recommend this to anyone and everyone remotely interested in horror, and books that leave you feeling squeamish and unsettled.

Monika Kim's THE EYES ARE THE BEST PART is a stunning debut that has been taking the horror lit community by storm and for good reason. The thing I loved most about this novel is that it's a very character driven narrative that offers an in-depth exploration of family dynamics and has so many memorable characters. I also loved the heavily psychological approach to detailing the makings of a female serial killer that completely avoids stereotypes that are traditionally found in those narratives. THE EYES ARE THE BEST PART is a bold, fresh take on the serial killer genre and I can't wait to read more work from Monika Kim!

Let's talk about a perfect text for this time in which one of the topics is the experience of the migrant in places like the United States. Let's talk about issues such as cultural appropriation, for example. Let's also talk about more specific issues such as how difficult it is to love, trust, belong to a group in these times when our life is increasingly public. Let's talk about the need to fulfill desires and how that can become a nightmare because we don't set limits. So let's talk about the novel The Eyes Are the Best Part by Monika Kim and let's say, without fear, that it will be difficult to get two things out of our heads: the first, that the mother of the monster is curiosity and, second, that here is a novel that will make you question what those eyes that are looking at you right now taste like. Yes, those, about that person whose name you don't know. They call it Insidia. We will call it literature.

The Eyes Are the Best Part is definitely one of the most memorable and engaging debut novels l've ever read!

This story is about Ji-Won, a college age Korean-American girl whose parents separate at the beginning of the book. Her mother is a sweet but naive older woman who begins dating a white man that fetishizes asian woman and well, you can imagine how worst it can get.

This story sucked me in from the start and refused to let go. I was thinking about it all the time, even when I wasn't reading it. Beautifully written, I found myself getting attached to the main character to the point that even tho she had some horrible decisions I would defend her with my heart. I also love how at the end everything came together so fast that I didn’t even question it, literally at the end the book got me like happy my girl got away with it LOL.

This book actually had no business being this goooood. I’ve marinated in a review and guys just trust me and read it. No notes. All the vibes.

This was such an addictive read, with an Asian-American anti heroine whose sudden hunger for blue eyes sets up a classic tale of revenge and subversion.

Wash sure what to expect from this book and the beginning made me wonder. But, as we went through I realized what a slow horror book build up was. Great read. Unexpected and fantastic and definitely on my recommend list going forward

After her father abandons her, her sister, and mother, Ji-Won’s life starts to fall apart. She now has to juggle her college courses, being there for her little sister while dealing with her own grief, and the imposing presence of her mother’s awful boyfriend, George - who has the most interesting blue eyes. The longer George stays, the less Ji-Won can contain her rage at what life is becoming and she starts to gain an increasingly uncontainable appetite.

I liked this, but I didn’t love it like I thought I would. I did enjoy the horror aspect and thought the overall story was pretty unique. Ji-Won and her mother and sister are all very well-thought out characters and it was interesting to read how each handled the grief of losing the man who was the beacon of their family. There was good, albeit a little on the nose, commentary on the fetishization of Asian women and feminine rage is always a plus for me, personally.

My only real problem is that it took a while for the story to reel me in and the ending fell flat, with how everything was wrapped up. I loved the middle, but I wish the beginning and end of the story were as satisfying.

I finished this book back in September and still think about it almost daily. It was one of my favorite books of 2024. There is something I love about a revenge seeking badass female main character who is slightly unhinged that just hits right for me.

Brutally satisfying yet hauntingly horrifying. Monika Kim is a powerful emerging voice in horror fiction.

This was a true horror book and was incredibly creepy. There were some moments I felt like I was going to throw up because of the description they had. I would recommend.

A sharp, thought provoking look at grief and identity. Eye stuff already gives me the creeps and this one touched on that human fear very well. I feel it falls more in a YA category but is emotionally intriguing so it kept my interest.

I'm not sure what I could say about this that hasn't already been said! This is such a ride, with some truly disturbing eye gore.

I was drawn to this book immediately after seeing the cover and title. Unfortunately it was a bit of a let down for me. While I liked the overall idea and I though the horror elements were done quite well, the social commentary fell flat for me. I felt like it was a little too on the nose - almost like the author didn't trust the reader to understand her underlying message. While I did like what she was trying to accomplish, the lack of subtly kind of ruined the overall experience for me. That being said, there were many parts that I enjoyed.

While I really tried, I just didn’t find myself engaged in this story. I think it just wasn’t for me, but I think many will enjoy.

This goes on my list of favorite horror novels to date! It's perfectly dark, twisty, and unsettling with incredible characterization and a satisfying ending.