Yes, Well. Ji-Won becomes fascinated with eyes because her mother believes eating fish eyes brings luck. That's not why she eats them. George and his blue eyes- I can't even. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Interesting read.

Korean-American serial killer Ji-won is spiraling out of control. Her family split up and her mom is now dating the worst person imaginable. We are reading the perspective of Ji-won. It’s sick, brutal, and fascinating. She is vengeful, just, and obsessive. Her obsessions are intensive. She is also stuck in this weird…triangle I guess you can call it with her friends because Ji-won is also a student at a college.

I honestly don’t know how to summarize this book besides I have not read one like it. It’s the odd ball out in the thriller/horror community and I loved it for that. Great writing and premise!

Thank you to netgallery and the publisher for letting me read the arc!

Finally a 5-star horror! Loved everything about this and will be purchasing my own copy once this is released

Ji-Won's life starts to fall apart when her father leaves for another woman. Her mother becomes a basket case and Ji-Won moves into caretaker role taking care of her mother and sister. Her mother believes eating fish eyes will bring you good luck and the first time she does it freaks me out. Then when Ji-Won eats the eyes and likes it she chances and becomes obsessed with eyes.

Their mother thinks her life will be better if she is with a white man so she starts dating George. She misses all the obvious signs of what a total creep he is. George says so many things that just infuriated me. He is one person you will hate as you read this book.

Ji-Won's grades start failing. She has nightmares about blue eyes and what it would be like to eat them. This is creepy watching her go further and further into her obsession. She is keeping her monster side hidden away from others. She will find a way to protect this family and keep them together.

This book was absolutely riveting. I love a FMC determined to get revenge. I found myself cheering for Ji-Won.

Thank you Net Galley for this e-book.

I have been waiting months to read this, and it was well-worth the wait. The revenge plot was great, and the body horror elements were terrifically visceral.

Oh man, The Eyes Are The Best Part was something else!

Not only do we have exquisite female rage, but it’s tampered with discussions of diaspora, objectification of Asian women, and the overwhelming feeling of being left behind by the world.

The first half of this book is decidedly literary fiction with a growing dread, it focuses a lot on Ji-Won’s life crumbling around her and her attempts to keep her family happy. I thought this was so well done, the descent into madness and ending just blew me away. It gets so visceral and disturbing! Terrific for fans of horror, this is a great and totally different perspective.

Well, this was certainly an interesting read. I did not like any of the characters, at all. I felt like there was no development, and we didn't really get to truly know any of them. The writing was alright It often felt rushed and unfinished. And this honesty wasn't as scary, creepy or exciting as I was hoping. I did however love the premise of it, it had good ideas. Overall, I would recommended it to someone just dipping their toes into the horror world.

Misogyny, racism, patriarchy, infidelity? Don't like them... if you can't fix them, eat their eyeballs out! What an utterly delightful feast of a horror novel that is so much more than just a freak show! Feminism and revenge served cold and hot, by knife and by chopsticks. I loved this in all its squeamish delights! Muwahahahahaha!

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books | Erewhon Books for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.

What a gross little book. I really enjoyed it.

Ji-won is a college student living with her mother and sister after her father left to be with his mistress. When Ji-won’s Umma starts dating this horrendous pos George she starts having very vivid nightmares and craving things she never before has.

Genuinely made me queasy many times between the racism and the gore- wow. That being said I really enjoyed the writing and plot of the story. Ji-won is a great messy character that is easy to root for.

Thanks to NetGalley and Kensington books for an eARC

Thank you to Netgalley, Kensington Books, and Erewhon Books for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. This book officially publishes on 6/25/24!

This book is quite unique than anything that I have read at least recently, if not ever. I didn’t know much about this book when starting it, besides seeing some good reviews on social media. This book didn’t immediately have a “hook” in the first chapter like some mystery/thriller books typically do, but the way the plot was written puts readers on a path that they don’t realize is a bad one until it’s too late. Despite being written from a single POV, I did not find the character development to be lacking in any way. With the twist at the end, this was one where after the reveal you could see the breadcrumbs thinking back, not realizing that’s what they were. Giving this one 4 stars overall and would definitely recommend this. If you do decide to pick it up though, please check any relevant trigger warnings before doing so - the cover is a pretty good depiction of some of the more graphic scenes in the story.

While short and very easy to read quickly, I found some of the pacing questionable (with the frequent flashbacks especially in the beginning, it was rather difficult to follow the passage of time). It also felt like there was a lot happening but we never dug particularly deep into it? Especially the last section - there’s something of a twist that might explain some things but it’s kind of left hanging there. Plus there’s a lot of really convenient things that don’t make a lot of sense in this “real world” setting.

Where the story shines is with the way the various characters interact. Ji-won is a bit of an outlier, but the way other people talk to her and interact with her and each other just really felt very grounded. The lecherous George, the weaponized-tears of her Umma, Ji-hyun’s anxiety, Geoffrey’s red flags, Alexis’s confusion/support.

It felt like it took a little too long to get to the “horror” parts - but man I will probably never think about human eyeballs the same way again.

Read this if you loved Natural Beauty. Read this if you're an Asian woman. Read this if you've experienced yellow fever from a white man. (I'm so glad I turned off comments from non-friends. A lot of you can't handle this.)

The main character is Ji-won. The setting is Los Angeles. This isn't the rich Los Angeles you're used to seeing on shows such as Beverly Hills, 90210. This is the underbelly of the city, a working class Korean American family sharing cramped apartment quarters and just trying to survive.

Ji-won's father has just left her, her mother, and her younger sister in order to start a family with his affair partner. Reddit, this is not, but maybe it is.

Umma, after going through bouts of depression, and not curing any of it, decides Korean men are the problem, and unironically waxes poetic on the glories of white men. She brings one home.

George, the classic conservative middle-aged white man with yellow fever, stares at the girls, condescends to "speak" unintelligible Korean to them, and threatens to leave an American Chinese restaurant when a waitress of Chinese descent feels harassed and sends her white colleague out instead.

"'You know, I learned a lot of Korean when I was back in Seoul, but it's been such a long time...and to tell you the truth, pronunciation isn't my strong suit.'"

George is not the only self-obsessed white man. There are Ji-won's fellow students, one of whom she befriends, named Geoffrey. The longer it takes him to declare his very obvious feelings, the more wrinkles I felt grow on my skin. I will be sending the author my Botox bill.

"'I'm a nice person, okay? I'm not like those other guys you know. Like your mom's boyfriend. I don't have yellow fever if that's what you're worried about. You know how much I read. I've studied pretty much every topic relating to race and gender. Fetishization is a form of oppression. I'm not an oppressor. I'm an ally! My feelings for you—no, my love for you—goes way beyond race. I love you for who you are on the inside.'" 🤮🤮🤮

All the while, we get a little background on how Ji-won lost her high school friends. Her not getting accepted to UC Berkeley is miniscule in the scheme of things, but I felt it was a little overplayed how petty she behaved with people she considered her friends. At this point, I began to believe she was a bit of an unreliable narrator. Is her descent into madness real or imagined?

The ending is a wild ride, and I truly don't want to spoil anything, but we've all seen the cover, yes?

📚 Buddy read with Zana

📱 Thank you to NetGalley and Erewhon Books

Many thanks to NetGalley and Kensington Books for the ARC!

I finished this book and legit sat staring at my Kindle for five minutes. This was a WHOA book for me. I don't even know how else to describe it. It shocked me at times and I was disgusted by Ji-,Won but I also felt so sorry for her as well. I would recommend this book.

If my review could be composed of exclusively quotes, it'd be one of the best review ever because trust me the writing is excellent!! It covers sexism, mother-daughter relationships, racism and race fetichism, each of them covered perfectly. Let me start with a mother-daughter quote which resonated with me isntantly:

"It came up like bile, the need to say something mean and biting, the desire to cut her down for her stupidity. The want to make her feel small. But soon, that feeling gave way to sadness. I felt sorry for her. Sorry that every part of her life had been characterized by misery. Sorry that even now, she was suffering.
There are some things that you can never truly escape. Not really. Maybe that's why, even now, she's stuck in the past, long after everyone else moved on."

I'll let you discover all the racism and fetichism quotes by yourself as it's at the center of the book and the best part (after the eyes... get it?) but let me add a feminist quote real quick, this iconic scene (which is even better in its entirety and followed by practical lifestyle instructions on how to deal with men):

"'What are you, some kind of feminist or something?'
'Yes,' she said, matter-of-factly. 'I am.'
'Bitch,' he muttered before stalking off. She smirked as he walked away."

"Correct him whenever you can. Confuse him. Make him feel foolish. [..] Men like him don't know what to do when that happens. [..] The only power he has is the power you are willing to give him, and you've given him nothing. Not a scrap." 🏆🏆🏆

That's enough of quotes, if you're not convinced already just give it a try for yourself. I would have put 5 stars if it wasn't for the plot which I may have had too high hopes for. That's possibly on me but I expected more horror and gore etc etc, when really the societal / psychological aspect is at the center of the book (which isn't a bad thing in itself, just not what I expected). I wish the ending was more dramatic, I felt a bit underwhelmed but it was still satisfying in its own way.

Live laugh love Monika Kim and pls don't offer chopsticks as gift to your asian friends <3


[review posted on Goodreads and will be later on Instagram and Tiktok]

This was quite a page-turner! This debut novel effectively tackles body horror, being a woman in a male-dominated world, and the Asian immigrant experience through an unhinged unreliable narrator, Ji-won.

There are many stories of the immigrant experience out there, and Monika Kim has managed to make this story anything but cliché. She has managed to cover parent–child, sibling, friendship, and many more relationships through an emotional and gripping story. I’m in awe of her skill.

Looking forward to reading more horror from her.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for the ARC!

#asianamerican #writers #horror #novels

The writing was good it was just not the right book for me at this time. I plan on trying this book again in the future.

The surreal elements blend in so easily with reality the deeper into the story we get, I was worried when towards the end it seemed for a brief moment that it all had been in Ji-won's imagination. I also loved that the author didn't shy away from making main characters unlikeable in certain instances.

Incredibly engrossing, original storytelling. Refreshing to read a horror novel with an immigrant perspective that explores class, gender, and race. Excited to read more from this author!

Thank you to Net Galley and Erewhon Books for allowing me the opportunity to preview Monika Kim’s exciting and disturbing thriller The Eyes are the Best Part. I was instantly drawn to the title and cover art for this book, and reading the description as feminist horror further piqued my interest. Although this isn’t necessarily the kind of traditional horror, it is a psychological horror story told through the experiences (or eyes) of Ji-won, a first year college student. Kim creates a relatable yet complex character through Ji-won. I found her to be someone with whom I could empathize and sympathize, as she goes through the trauma of her father abandoning the family while also experiencing micro-aggressions and stereotyping. As a first-generation Korean American college student, Ji-Won must not only navigate the challenges of adapting to college, but also in emotionally supporting her mother and sister through this difficult time. Ji-won experiences further challenges when her mother meets George, a middle-aged white man, who eventually reveals himself as someone who objectifies Asian women. Kim’s characterization of him was creative and detailed, as told through Ji-won’s observations about George’s choice of restaurants or his ogling of waitresses. To further emphasize his lack of cultural competency, George resorts to creating nicknames for Ji-won and Ji-hyun, Ji-won’s sister, since he cannot accurately pronounce their names. Beyond taking their mother away, George also introduces his blue eyes, which begin to haunt Ji-won and tear at her sense of reality. We experience Ji-won’s nightmares as they happen, unsure if she is dreaming or not. Kim’s descriptions are both unnerving and creative, and I found these parts disturbing, but in a meaningful way. George’s intrusion into the family and imposing his beliefs and ideals on the family has further disrupted Ji-won and Ji-hyun. While sharing a seafood meal with the family, Ji-won is reminded that her mother always said eating the eyes brings good luck—hence, the eyes are the best part. This eventually sends Ji-won on a quest for the blue eyes that haunt her in sleep and eventually in wakefulness. She grows her plans to take George’s eyes further and further, watching him as he sleeps and imagining how they might taste. As her fascination with eating blue eyes grows, Ji-won is also dealing with some friends from her classes and trying to obtain better grades to get off probation. The family stress greatly affected her during her first semester, and she struggled to successfully complete her first semester. We also learn that she lost some of her high school friends due to some self-sabotage. This part made me question Ji-won’s motivations, since she was angry or jealous of her friends for getting into Berkeley. It seemed like she resented them for their status and advantage, and she did things to sabotage them. This incident and the later meeting with these former friends during winter break provides us with a different side of Ji-won, one who seems slightly vindictive, but also someone who is somewhat powerless and seeks to go behind the backs of others to make herself feel better. I wasn’t sure if this part provided more motivation for Ji-won’s later actions, seeking out blue eyes, and that she is somewhat self-destructive. However, I also think it helped to emphasize the fact that Ji-won was someone who was also somewhat bound to expectations and stereotypes and that taking action secretively against her friends showed how she sought to empower herself, but that she couldn’t necessarily do it in the light. It was a little surprising, but it also added to Ji-won’s complexity. As Ji-won’s mother falls more in love with George and Ji-won deals with Geoffrey, a boy from class whose ingratiating personality wore thin and eventually becomes obsessed with Ji-won. It’s interesting that both white men in the novel have similar names and kind of represent opposite ends of the kinds of aggressions that Asian women face. However, Ji-won gradually abandons Geoffrey, tiring of his incessant messages and his micro-aggressions, like giving her chopsticks for a present. I found both Geoffrey and George to be really annoying but done so in an over-the-top manner that also kept me reading to see what Ji-won would eventually do to them. While she eventually gets revenge on Geoffrey, it’s the games that she begins to play on George that are vindictive and entertaining. Ji-won eventually begins to experiment with eye-eating, finding victims around the college. Kim’s descriptions of eating the eyeballs are some of the best writing in the book. Pretty graphic and gross, but also incredibly detailed and appealing to different senses (tasting like iron, popping, gelatinous). Ji-won’s eye eating also transforms her, and I found this part of the book to be somewhat like Crime and Punishment, where we experience the paranoia of someone who knows they did wrong, but still feels justified in their actions. Ji-won’s crimes gradually empower her and give her more confidence to take action against George, with the hope of driving him away from their mother. Kim’s writing is propulsive and the short chapters kept me reading to find out what would happen next. I also really loved the use of chopsticks to mark the chapter breaks. Very creative and unique. Although the book was exciting and disturbing, the ending happens a little suddenly and was a slight let-down. In some ways, this book reminded me of some other books about racial identity and transformations—both Natural Beauty by Ling Ling Huang and White Ivy by Susie Yang. Both characters in these books experienced a kind of lack of acceptance by the dominant culture and felt the need to change their identities, to become more white and change their ideals and values as well. They pay the costs, yet Ji-won is somewhat different. While it seems like family and racial trauma eventually pressure her into destructive behavior, she is able to plan out a way to escape and place blame on those who have wronged her. I think this also kind of positions Ji-won as a powerful character and an empowered character who is eventually able to use the stereotypes and expectations against those who try to pin her down. Although I couldn’t put this book down, I think that some people might struggle with the racism, objectification, and graphic violence in the book. It’s not gratuitous; Kim does show how the daily racism and aggressions can take their toll, but she also creates a character who seeks to subvert that trauma and pain and use it to right the wrongs she faced. Highly recommended and important book to read.

What a deliciously, dreadful tale of teenage growing pains and not being able to control the chaos going on around you. I devoured this book (pun intended) and I sure do hope Monika Kim follows up this story with a second book! I will be first in line to read it!!

Thank you Netgalley for this unforgettable book! This review is unbiased and my own.