4 stars

Small God's Of Calamity is well written short urban fantasy/crime thriller which follows 28 year old Detecrive Han-Gil of the Jong-ro violent crimes police department.

Whilst being a police detective he also works as a 'spirit detective' along with his adopted sister Azuna to help people who have been possessed or ghosts which can't seem to move on.

For a book which was only about 150 pages long it sure packed alot in the pages. Told in the 3rd person it covers themes of Death, Suicide, Murder, Spirits, Possession, Loss, Regret, Revenge and ultimately, healing.

While it is mostly told from Han-Gils POV we do get 2 chapter later on from a different characters POV.

Whilst I enjoyed this story it took a while for me to get into it because of all the information/world building which had to be done however once I got into it the story seemed to unfold and end so fast but still managed to wrap things up really well without lose ends or missing anything out, I would love to see what happens next with these characters (especially between Han-Gil and Yoon-hae if the author decides to write a follow on.

Well, I've never read anything quite like this. (are there other books like this?)

First off, the title. 10/10. 100% what drew me in.

The story. It's urban fantasy (set in modern day Seoul). And also a detective novel (regular crimes and supernatural crimes). And there are lots of lovely moments of human connection as well.

Han-gil is a detective (regular - deaths, and spiritualist - hunting down spirit worm parasites). His sister, Azuna, is a high flyer in business and parasite exorcism. Shin Yoonhae is a figure from the past and a part timer (part time what? Not sure, but it was fun to read about).

So in sum - invisible spirit worm parasites are eating souls in Seoul, the detective detecting the deaths is also hunting the worms, in fact there's a network of people hunting the worms, terrible things have happened recently and in our protagonist's past, there's some of the hallmarks of a detective story...

Also there are ghosts.

What I loved most were the little details: the charms and wards, the sibling relationship (seemed familiar), the workplace nonsense, the descriptions of how Han-gil and Yoonhae experienced souls through their senses.

My only quibble is the quite fast resolution of one of the story threads/relationships towards the end. Just slightly too neat for me.

I'm glad I took a chance on this book. The little details added up to an enjoyable read. I hope there's more!

Thanks to Interstellar Flight Press and NetGalley for the eARC. This is an unbiased review.

3.5 stars. A really interesting story about spirituality, complex family dynamics, gender and disability. The story throws you right into the middle of the action which was quite disorientating especially for me as I am unfamiliar with a lot of Korean culture but the story was engaging and gripping. The relationship our main character has with those around him is compelling and is reflective of his past. Of course as it is a novella the backstory and world building isn't as developed in places as it might be for a longer novel but overall this was an enjoyable read

Unfortunately this was a DNF for me, but I don't think it's bad! This is one of those books that is for a specific audience. I definitely would recommend this for people who like a more cut and dry writing style and this is definitely for an audience that likes a more gritty feel to their horror/crime/thriller books. Unfortunately that's just not something I personally enjoy. This just couldn't keep my attention and I needed the book to be more descriptive or have more flowing writing for my personal taste. This is definitely a reader issue, not a book issue.

This book has a lot of representation. I was pleasantly surprised at the setting, because most books like this one take place in New York.

SPOILERS BELOW

I love how trauma and PTSD were portrayed throughout the story. Han-gil takes time to warm up to Yoonhae but he gets there. I would be lying if i said i wasnt shipping them them during most of the book. I really loved learning a bit about Korean and Japanese culture through the characters. I was also pleasantly surprised to see deaf representation, because that certainly isnt common in books (although it should be)

Synopsis: In this novella, Han-gil navigates his position as a police officer and a spiritualist in the as a spirit wreaks havoc in Seoul.
CW: Suicide/Self Harm, Transphobia, Gore
Rated 2.5/5 (rounded up to 3)

Review: (No spoilers)
Thank you to the publisher, Interstellar Flight Press, and to Netgalley for providing me with a free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The best part of the world of this novella was the way the spiritual practices were described. It married the spiritual traditions of Korea and Japan and integrated them into the fantasy in a very believable way. I really enjoyed the different ways the connection to the spiritual manifested between the characters. It added a richness to the way that Han-gil saw the world around him. In addition, Han-gil struggles with anxiety/depression, and many readers might find his experience relatable. Readers will also might be happy to see the bisexual representation in this novella.

I found the pacing to be really uneven throughout the entire book. The back 25% of the novella is loaded with much of the meat of the story. Due to this, the character development and the plot itself felt rushed. I found the ending sequence to feel especially rushed. Around the 50% mark I was still waiting for something to happen, which was surprising considering this book is being marketed under the thriller genre. The book lacked the feeling of tension I expected for this genre. Due to the pacing and the lack of action or character development early on, I struggled to get invested in the story.

Aside from the pacing, the text utilized excessive exposition to move concepts forward. As a reader, I felt like much of what I needed to know about the world, characters, and plot was directly told to me, instead of shown. The plot ended up feeling like a series of conveniences instead of Han-gil exhibiting much agency over the story and interacting with the world. Similarly, the characters ended up feeling flat. Their actions and dialogue often felt like it was just moving the plot along, rather than expressing character personality.

In regards to the urban fantasy setting, it often felt like the characters were existing in some sort of void. The environment and world often felt empty, with the characters spending little time existing in the greater world of this alternative reality Seoul. If the book had not explicitly stated this city was meant to be Seoul, not much in the text would point me to that conclusion. Similarly, Han-gil’s history with the world and some of the connections to the greater spiritualist community felt underutilized. Although Han-gil repeatedly reminds us of what has happened in the past, we rarely feel any major repercussions or have a greater understanding of how the world works.

I would be remiss not to mention the explicit transphobia exhibited by characters (not the author!) in the text which some might find uncomfortable to read.[MINOR SPOILER TO FOLLOW] In addition, the way in which the trans character was used as the antagonist (albeit unwillingly) was wrought for me. I think the text could have done more to separate the person being possessed from the actions of the worm spirit. Without that, interpretation for the actions of the trans characters falls into a gray area. I found it a little disheartening, as trans characters are often villainized in thriller/horror genres, especially when their motivation for committing crimes is connected to their existence as a trans person. [MINOR SPOILER OVER].

Ultimately, a lot of my issues with the story come down to the writing itself. The characters and world had potential, but I found that book never let them shine to their fullest. The uneven pacing took me out of enjoying the thrill of the mystery. I have hopes that future books from this author might fix these problems, because the ideas in this book were good, just not polished. For those looking for a simple, slow paced story, with an interesting magic system and a focus on characters, this book might be for you.

Absolutely wonderful book! Magic and forgiveness woven through an excellently paced story with fascinating characters.

In this novella Sam Kyung Yoo says so much about grief, guilt and the role of an individuals' life.
The plot is simple- Han-Gil is tracking down the spirit that caused his mother's death and has been leaving a wake of destruction in its path. Complexity is introduced when his sister calls upon Yoonhae who had involvement in the tragedy.
The strength of this novella is through the characters. They process love, hate, sacrifice, guilt and duty and it was beautiful and heartbreaking all at the same time.

Inspector Han-Gil lost his mother at an early age to a spirit that as far as the rest of the spiritual community doesn't even exist. Unfortunately for Kim that spirit is back and it's taken control of a young woman who has a laundry list of people that she believes have ruined her life and now the bodies are piling up and the only person Kim has to turn to is the man who as far as Kim is considered is just as much to blame for his mother's death as the spirit is. Now they are in a race against time to stop the spirit before it kills anyone else including it's host.

Small Gods of Calamity is like Supernatural if the Winchesters were actual cops, which means this was amazing. Also, just a heads up there will probably be lots of SPN references in here.

As always I'm going to start with the characters and of course start with Kim Han-Gil because I loved him. Kinda like with Supernatural he's a tad bit messed up and to be honest he deserves to be, I'm not going to give it away but let's just say the poor guy has some depressing similarities to Sam. To top it off because he's kind of forced to keep the whole ghost hunting thing secret from the rest of the police department he's got a bullying issue going on from the rest of the police force. Which is where his new partner Wonshik comes in, we really don't get to see a lot of interaction between these two but just based off of this book I think he's going to be an amazing partner for Han-gil and I definitely want to see more of him going forward. Finally in the characters category we have Yoonhae who is the human Han-Gil blames for his mother's death and I love him so freaking much. He's just good and quite frankly if I were him I'd be furious with Han-Gil (seriously it's valid) but he spends his whole life just trying to make amends for something he had absolutely no control over up to the point of basically making himself a sacrificial lamb here. Like I want to hug him and tell him everything is going to be okay.

What I really loved and was really surprised by is how well this story is paced and flows considering its incredibly short. When I realized how short it actually was I was really afraid that I was going to feel like there were unanswered questions at the end of it but there wasn't. Every question I had from the beginning was answered at some point and in a manner that kept the suspense up as well.

Finally, really want to talk about the representation here, because it made me so happy! And I tell you what there is a scene where Han-Gil flat out hangs up on someone for misgendering someone and honestly this needs to happen more often in books. Representation is beautiful, however, as a Mom of trans kiddo I've hung up on more people than I care to count and I think it needs to be normalized that no one has to listen to someone misgendering people.

Overall, I loved this book and I really hope there are going to be more and again if you are a Supernatural fan AND a Kdrama fan this book is 100% your jam.

As always thanks to Netgalley and Interstellar Flight Press for the eArc!

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4. This is a thriller-esque paranormal mystery novella set in Seoul. Kim Han-Gil from the Jong-ro Police Department isn’t just any detective: he can see ghosts and smell spirits no one else can, and this has earned him the derisive moniker “spirit detective” from fellow practitioners and alienation from his police colleagues. The book opens with Han-Gil and his brand new (and 5th) partner, Choi Wonshik, at the scene of a body: was the cause of death as it appears to be or were supernatural forces at play?

The mystery and the world of gods and spirits all lured me to burn through this, and I was pleasantly surprised by the sprinkle of romance/friendship, adoptive-sibling relationship, and queer/bi representation. The book transformed from a mystery with a detective-noir tone to something more focused on exploring grief with a supernatural subplot. I absolutely enjoyed both stories, and was satisfied with the ending, I guess at the end of the day it felt like two different books in one. Sometimes that sits fine with me, but in this one it left me wishing they were two different books.

In this debut novella, I had minor qualms with some repetitive descriptors and think it did suffer a bit from “novella syndrome,” i.e. wanting more due to the smaller number of pages. By the end I was craving more from the relationship between Han-Gil and Wonshik and the siblings. I will absolutely look out for Yoo’s next couple releases and I would love a book two (and three!) focusing more on the aforementioned character relationships and new supernatural mysteries.

I think fans of P. Djèlí Clark’s Djinn Universe might like this one and this handles trans characters and transphobia in a similar way as Light from Uncommon Stars (for me that’s a good thing, but it might not be for you). Content/trigger warnings for self-harm, transphobia, suicide, violence with knives, blood. Psst…thanks for the ARC NetGalley and publisher, I am indeed not a bot and I was not programmed to have these opinions nor were they generated by AI - they are the product of my neurological system.

4.5 stars rounded up!

A troubled detective who can also communicate with spirits comes face to face with the entity that changed the trajectory of his childhood.

I genuinely adored this story! I was hooked from the beginning, falling in love with our gentle and awkward protagonist. 'Small God's of Calamity' had everything from action and suspense to humour and wholesome moments!

The diversity in this novel is wonderful, with several characters being members of the LGBTQ+ community! I can not express my love for novels that represent and discuss genders and sexuality so well.

The characters were incredibly loveable, I would die for Han-gil and Yoonhae!!

At certain points, I did feel like the story and character development were rushed. I would like to have learned more about Han-gil and his sister's relationship as well as Han-gil's relationship with his mother. I also felt that the climax moment of the story was over and done with very quickly. However, enough information and world building were provided for the reader to have a clear understanding of the relationships and magic system by the final chapter. The story was tied together very well in the end.

I've already recommended this to so many people! I look forward to reading other works by this author, I had so much fun with this story!

**Thank you to the publisher and to Netgalley for providing me with a free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review**

I'm really sad of having finished this book, because I enjoyed it so so much.
I loved the characters, Han-gil was such an interesting person to read about, with layers and nuance even though the book was pretty short, *redacted* was the cinnamon roll I need in every book please and thank you, and Azuna was the very image of a big sister, always ahead of things and so so caring. There's other characters as well but I'm not wishing to spoil anything for you so I'll keep it at that.
Regarding the plot, I found it very interesting, the fact that it was a criminal investigation but with the theme of spirit possession as well was something I enjoyed thoroughly, and it was very well done.
I do not want to say too much about the book, I feel like going in without knowing too much is an advantage with this story, you will love it anyway I think :)

Small Gods of Calamity was a delightful discovery. It's written so tightly, not a word out of place, spares no time to hook you emotionally to characters and to introduce the world, and -- to my utter delight -- it seems to cater to me personally by offering a modern world inhabited by case-solving exorcists, rooted deeply in a number of Asian traditions related to the spirits and the supernatural. It's done so smoothly, with such utmost respect to a range of cultures (the book is set in South Korea; the magical players are a variety of modern-day onmyouji, mudang, Chinese paper talisman art practitioners, spirit mediums, you name it!), has splendid queer rep, and ties so beautifully to really compelling personal stories as well as the investigation. Kim Han-gil is the kind of detective protagonist that makes it easy to root for him, his sister Azuna is so kick-ass that she dominates every scene she is in, and Yoonhae completely took me by surprise: for someone who only appeared midway through in a relatively short novella, it's incredible how much empathy and emotional investment I ended up having for him.

if I had to complain about something, then it's really to say WHERE ARE FIFTEEN MORE VOLUMES OF THIS! I am left with a genuine craving for me: Small Gods of Calamity is a rock-solid opener for the world where I'd be happy to spend an inordinate amount of time. There were a few places where I wasn't sure if this was a little internal inconsistency, or a worldbuilding quirk that simply didn't have a room for an explanation in short novella format, but I am honestly not interested in nitpicking, and way more invested in hearing more from the author.

Thank you so much for Interstellar Flight Press and Netgalley for the ARC, and I'll be eagerly looking forward to more from Sam Kyung Yoo.

[Thanks to NetGalley for supplying me with an ARC of this novella, in exchange for an honest review.]


This tight, effective combination of urban fantasy and police (paranormal) investigation packs a lot into well under 200 pages. Very little of that is anything I've encountered before in my fantasy reading, which has been centered on Western spirituality / mythology. What I found here was full-on immersion into Korean spiritual tradition. Many of the general problems -- possession, protection from malign sprits, exorcism -- were familiar, but the specifics were entirely new to me. Much of the vocabulary was, as well, which led to much use of my Kindle's Wikipedia function. This worked fine, though a short glossary in some future edition could be helpful..

The plot itself -- which is only one part of this complex and satisfying narrative -- concerns Seoul's only spirit detective, Kim Han-gil. When his work with his department's violent crimes unit leads him to a series of suspicious suicides, he and his bewildered new partner are drawn into the evolving tragedy of a worm spirit infestation. Worse, Han-gil has seen such horrors before. One of them killed his mother, a powerful shaman.

When Han-gil discovers that his mother's last client (whom he blames for her death) is his best hope of cracking the case, the action really begins. The tangled threads of his spiritually complicated past must be woven into a solution his superiors aren't crazy about backing -- and that his partner barely believes in. All this takes place in a modern city, where exorcisms take place after hours in borrowed medical clinics, and consulting practitioners travel at the request of powerful families.

There's a lot of interpersonal drama here, but it never gets in the way of the chills -- which are frequent and occasionally graphic. I had the feeling that there could have been a novel here, or that there was one forthcoming. For now, however, this right-sized Korean occult investigation is a treat for any urban fantasy reader looking for something fresh.

Wasn't expecting to like this as much as I did. I love a good novella, and this was perfect. The writing was good, the characters very lovable, and the story/plot interesting and unique. I will definitely be reading more from this author in the future.

A paranormal mystery that had me hooked on the first chapter.

Additionally this has queer rep that is set in South Korea, a place not often written about within this genre to which I am loving. There is added cultural aspects on spirituality, such as explaining shamans and mudang, and how it can be viewed from outsider's perspective.

Personally I love learning about different cultures, even if it is shown through fiction, so that I can later do my own research onto the topic. Defiantly would recommend, especially if you are looking for a shorter book to read.

I devoured this novella in a day and don’t let the fact that’s it’s a novella make you think it’s not full of tension because the story packs a punch from the get go. I loved how in brought together Japanese’s and Korean mythology and spiritualism, there were so many things I learnt whilst reading the book too. Fast pace, tension, murder, spirits, exorcism…it had everything!! I will be looking out for the author in the future.

Stellar, tense novella featuring a blend of Korean and Japanese spiritualism - a parasitic spirit responsible for Kim Han-Gil’s mother’s death has been tracked down in Seoul. Han-Gil is now a regular detective, somewhat as cover for his activities as a spirit detective. To defeat this parasitic spirit, Han-Gil has to team up with Shin Yoonhae - whose own exorcism led to Han-Gil losing his mother.

With clear skill, Sam Kyung Yoo has created a fully realized modern and spiritual world with clear rules, unique and diverse characters, and some absolutely heartbreaking emotional scenes. The descriptions of how each character interacts with spirits, souls, demons, and the Otherworldly elements of this world adds both to the uniqueness of this world and to each character’s own personality and history.

I look forward to reading more from Sam Kyung Yoo and hopefully more about Han-Gil the spirit detective.

Title: Small Gods of Calamity
Rating: 4 ☆/5 ☆

Small Gods of Calamity has an unique fantasy set in modern era - comprising of spiritual beings, humans and magical elements with a cast of Korean & Japanese characters.

I went into this novella thinking that it was a simple mystery novel about a police detective investigating the spirit responsible for many unfortunate deaths, including his own mother. But it was emotional, painful and nerve-wrecking to read. I absolutely adore the diverse representations that included a transgender character, a bisexual and ace MC and a disabled rep as well. The ending was beautifully executed, and a story about healing, forgiveness and found family. A hidden gem indeed!

Thank you to Interstellar Flight Press and Netgalley for the ARC, leaving my honest review and thoughts.

#SmallGodsofCalamity #NetGalley

Absolutely love the intricacies in this story. It is a mixture of the East Asian cultures that I really like. I like how Korean, Japanese, and Chinese references were made interchangeably. It is a heart-tugging story but it is also very intriguing to me.