3.5/5, rounded up because I had so much fun.
Kim Hani is a gumiho working in a coffee shop frequented by the immortals and monster of New Sinsi in 1992, delighting in tormenting local heartthrob/dipshit and fallen trickster god, Seokga. She may also be the Scarlet Fox, an infamous gumiho who went on a killing spree in Victorian London- but that’s beside the point! She’s been too full to devour livers or souls in decades anyway.
Seokga is tasked with tracking down the violent spirits he enlisted in his attempted heavenly coup, unable to return to his home or his powers until he’s killed 20,000- a number that, centuries later, still feels impossibly high. However, Seokga gets a chance to skip in line when his brother offers him a deal- Seokga can get his divinity back right now, all he has to do is kill the Scarlet Fox and the mysterious dark entity terrorizing New Sinsi.
Hani can’t have that. She accepts a job as Seokga’s assistant, planning to help him catch one monster while putting him off the trail of the other. Seokga doesn’t want an assistant, especially not the barista who messes up his order with malicious consistency. Both plan to be rid of the other as quickly as possible, but as they work together, they realize that they may have found their match- these two scheming immortals might be perfect for each other, but even if they get past their pride and posturing, their story is destined to end in tragedy.
I had so much fun with this one. I am so so sick of books where a twenty-something young woman falls for an immortal man (who is usually also somewhat controlling and a little bit skeevy). Both Hani and Seokga are immortal, chaotic, and not afraid to make morally wild choices. It was so much fun to watch them both try to out-play the other and become grudgingly impressed with the other’s antics.
It is as advertised- relatively tropey and K-drama-esque in dramatic contrivances- but that’s part of why it’s so fun; the tone is well done and doesn’t take itself too seriously. My one complaint is that I wish Seokga and Hani had spent a little longer in the space in between “we hate each other” and “we love each other”. Some of the most fun in this book happened when they were balancing their continued annoyance with their growing attraction- I think there was more space for play there that would have been enjoyable and also made their romance feel a bit more organic.
Sophie Kim did a great job with pacing as well- the twists weren’t the most surprising, but they were placed throughout the story in a way that kept me from being bored or frustrated with the characters for missing something obvious. The stakes were raised for the final confrontation and I’m locked in 100% for the sequel. I really enjoy a semi-standalone series starter like this- I’m excited for the sequel, but I could see this also being a satisfying standalone read because Kim crafts a full story within its pages.
Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for an e ARC in exchange for an honest review- all opinions are my own.

This book was truly a tapestry of Korean fantasy. I felt at home in this book: laughing, crying, screaming. I was rooting for all of the characters and the world was woven together so beautifully. The story was perfectly paced and I wanted to give every character a hug at least once. I absolutely adored the book and I’m so excited to buy it in a couple months.

The God and the Gumiho essentially reads like a K-drama, and I think your enjoyment of it will really depend on how much you want to ingest a K-drama in book form. While I love watching K-dramas, certain aspects just don’t translate to things I enjoy reading, particularly the silliness and over the top antics.

What I did enjoy about The God and the Gumiho - both lead characters are anti-heroes/morally grey, which you usually don’t get to see with female main characters. The writing is generally very readable (other than one truly atrocious rhyme in a prophecy) and not a struggle to get through, and overall the book reads very quick. i also enjoyed the various Korean supernatural creatures that showed up, and I think for the most part the author does a good job of adding in cultural touchstones in the setting.

What I didn’t enjoy - as mentioned above, there’s a lot of silliness that isn’t quite my thing, and this isn’t a particularly complex story or setting (not that it needs to be, just speaking for what I want as a reader). Additionally, it’s a pet peeve of mine when words from another language are constantly thrown into the text for no apparent reason other than to highlight this is a non-Western story - I’m not referring to it being in dialogue, or to name things that are specific to a culture (though a guide to the names for the supernatural creatures probably wouldn’t go amiss), but sentences in the narrative such as “the chief sounds like a harabeoji lecturing his grandson.” We already know this takes place in a Korean setting, what is this adding other than perhaps confusing or alienating non-korean speakers? (Note: I am part of the Korean diaspora and understood the Korean being used).

I’m not sure if there will be a follow up, but the main story does get wrapped up and it can definitely be read as a standalone.

DNF at 24 %

I really tried to get into this one, but I think I just was not the correct audience.

This felt much more like a TV show script or anime, and that style doesn't work for me. The story is told in the 3rd person, and it was just an unfortunate choice as it made the characters feel one-dimensional and cartoonish. I honestly really hated Hanni and couldn't buy into her character because HOW would a thousand-plus-year-old character be this immature and selfish? It came off as YA in a way I really was not expecting the book to be.

I am admittedly new to Korean mythology, but I also found myself confused so many times about which god is which and what each type of creature is, and this was really frustrating to me because I was really interested in learning about them. I would have benefited greatly from a glossary of some sort. As it is, I was just spending so much energy trying to keep characters straight that I had a hard time appreciating the plot.

I wish the description for this book had been a bit different because I think it's setting itself up to fail a bit. Instead of emphasizing the mythology aspects, I'd rather have seen this described as a cutesy cat and mouse with mythology elements and anime vibes. I absolutely think there is an audience for this book, and I feel like a slight tweak in the description will help it find it.

A big thank you to NetGalley for an honest review.

I absolutely LOVED THIS BOOK!

This 100% delivered on the K-drama vibes and I was eating it up. ALSO I love love love gumiho lore. It was so fun to learn about all the other mythological creatures featured in this book that I'd never heard of before. The romance was great, very high-tension and I really enjoyed all of the characters. Also. . .gotta love the drama!

I really enjoyed this! Thank you so much to the publisher for my ARC!

The God and the Gumiho by Sophie Kim

★★☆☆☆ || 2.5/5

---

ARC received on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I came into the story expecting a K-drama-esque story, and a K-drama-esque story is exactly what I got. The story is a cute, mystery rival-to-lovers, cat-and-mouse chase (god and fox chase lol) - embodying all that you could come to expect from a K-drama. If I watched this on screen, I imagine I’d thoroughly have a good time. The stylistic choice of writing, however, made reading a struggle. There were quite a few times where I wanted to DNF due to the clunky narrative.

The plot was interesting, but the way it reads like a fanfic is somewhat off-putting and made it difficult to immerse into the story. A few scenes felt immature and YA (situations and behaviour that I’d expect of a teenager but not of a 1000 year old gumiho). There was a decent amount of fluff, which I think could have been cut out to tighten the pace of the story, where it seemingly dragged a little too long from time to time.

I struggled a bit with liking the characters individually. Hanni comes off as a immature, self-important bitch - but she did become more palatable throughout the story. Seokga just did not really hit for me. Truth be told, I found his dialogue a little cringe. I think Hanni and Seokga’s interactions is what shined the most, filled with cute and witty banter and reminiscent of your typical K-drama romance plot. It’s unfortunate that I felt as if the progression from rivals-to-lovers was a bit abrupt and needed more time.

I’d probably settle for an “it’s okay” regarding the book. Reading The God and the Gumiho was neither immersive nor exciting, and I struggled to complete the book. I can see why others may love the book but unfortunately, this was a miss for me.

For fans of:
- Legends and Lattes
- Crescent City

Hani is an unruly gumiho, a mythological, man-killing, immortal, soul-eating fox. She has a colorful past, to say the least, but she swears her rambunctious, murderous days are over...at least for now. However, now and then there is no harm in a little soul-stealing.
Seokga is a fallen god. He is exiled to Earth to serve thousands of years of penance for his attempt to take over his brother's heavenly throne. He argues it is unfair to punish him for simply following his nature, he is the Trickster God after all, but his brother, the king of the gods disagrees. So Seokga spends his days among the humans, working as a detective/demon hunter until he pays off his unending penance.
Hani and Seokga are unexpectedly united when a nightmare demon begins to hound the citizens of their city and Hani schemes her way into becoming Seokga's assistant as he hunts the demon.

Includes:
- South Korean mythology retelling
- grumpy vs sunshine but they're both stubborn and mischievous
- 100% morally gray protagonists
- witty banter
- cozy mystery
- good cop - bad cop
- Brooklyn 99 but with gods and gumihos
- dual POV

This story is somehow able to combine two sneaky and mischievous main characters with a murder mystery and still make it feel cozy and wholesome. I didn't know that was possible, but wow, this was a fantastic book. It was so fun reading a grumpy-sunshine type of urban fantasy where both the grumpy and the sunshine characters are a little sick and twisted.

Some readers may feel deterred by the fact that the story is a retelling of South Korean mythology if they aren't familiar with the genre. However, without being familiar with the original story, I was able to easily follow along with all of the new terms and creatures I was being introduced to, and I never felt like I was playing catch up.

I received this audiobook as an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing, and Sophie Kim for the opportunity to review this book. This review is also available on my GoodReads - check out my profile https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/62314863

Effortlessly blending Korean folklore with modern urban fantasy, Kim constructs a world that is both recognizable and intriguingly exotic. In the vibrant metropolis of New Sinsi, we are introduced to Seokga, a fallen god, and Hani, the fabled Scarlet Fox, whose unlikely partnership lies at the core of the story.

This book has an urban fantasy feel with a really lovely romance. The writing was beautiful and I really enjoyed the bits of Korean folklore.

Thank you to the publisher for providing a review copy

Thanks to Netgalley and Randomhouse for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. I would say 4.5, rounded up to 5. A Korean Folktale retelling turned into an urban fantasy mystery. It definitely has a fairytale vibe while exploring characters and questioning humanity and nature. A sneaky infamous 9-tailed fox teams up with a grumpy fallen trickster God to hunt a demon.

A slow burn romance/ enimes to lovers, murder mystery with cute banter, this book kept me guessing. I really enjoy this story and while you can read this with no knowledge of Korean Folktales, it had me inspired and looking up more stories. Even thought parts of the story are a little dark, I found it to be a little cozy and easy to read. Absolutely loved

ps- there's a one bed trope which is my fav.

Thank you to Random House and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Calling all K-drama fans! The God and the Gumiho by Sophie Kim is an amazing adult fantasy inspired by Korean mythology. The story revolves around Kim Hani, the former Scarlet Fox who killed hundreds of human souls. Nowadays, she works in a coffee shop and doesn't plan on murdering anyone. When Seokga, a fallen god, enters the coffeeshop one day and Hani pours coffee on them, the pair don't get off on the best foot. But when a demon threatens their world, they team up to track him down. But will they become more than just partners?

Here is a humorous excerpt from Chapter 1, which is from Seokga's point of view:

"Seokga the not-mortal rolls his eyes and exists the shop, doing his best to hide the slight limp with the support of his beloved cane. His limbs were once mangled and ruined by his fall from grace, and although he has since healed, his right leg has never quite recovered, throbbing, with a persistent, dull pain. He presses his mouth into a firm line to hide discomfort as he continues on his way.
The mortal realm of Iseung disgusts him, but there is one feature-and, mind you, one feature only-that he finds he does not loathe with the entire expanse of his bitter soul.
Coffee."

Overall, The God and the Gumiho is an amazing adult fantasy that will appeal to fans of Spirited Award, Hotel Del Luna, Lore Olympus, and noir detective films. One highlight of this book is how the book combines the police procedural and mystery genres with the fantasy elements. It's such a unique idea, and I definitely want to read more books like this. Another highlight of this book is the fantastic world-building with Korean mythology. I loved reading about the world of New Sinsi and the many fantastical aspects of this setting.

One final highlight is the explosive and emotional climax, which I sped through and could not put down. I actually felt myself tearing up, which is very difficult for a book to do. If I had to complain about 1 thing, I would say that the flirting between the two main characters felt a bit YA-ish to me, and I wasn't sure if the book was YA or adult fantasy while I was reading it. Finally, the mystery could have been better. I predicted multiple reveals before they happened. But If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of fantasy books in general, you won't regret checking out this book when it comes out in June!

"The God and the Gumiho" was a captivating tale featuring a clever fox and a fallen god. I was thoroughly enchanted by the seamless integration of world-building and mythology into this mysterious narrative. The story had everything I look for in fantasy: mystery, magic, intrigue, action, romance, and an immersive world. The romance, delicately woven throughout, added a layer of depth and emotion to the story. Despite my usual preference for conclusive endings, I found myself surprisingly hopeful despite the bittersweet note it ended on. Overall, "The God and the Gumiho" stands out as one of the best books I've read this year, and I eagerly look forward to exploring more of Sophie Kim's work.

I struggled a little with this book, I wanted to DNF it a couple of times because the story was extremely slow to start, I was bored, and I could feel a massive reading slump coming. But I pushed through… it got a bit better, but I was confused most of the time. Being a newbie to Corean mythology, a glossary would’ve been helpful to navigate this unfamiliar and complex world.
The banter was fine, the plot was ok, and I liked how the author blended the fantastic and the romantic elements. Overall, I found it lacking in some parts and it didn’t keep me quite engaged. I won’t be continuing this series.

This was a really great read. It kept me hooked the whole time, I could not put it down!

I think the only area it struggled (that’s too strong of a word) was the fight scene. It was a little hard to follow, but then again, I’m not reading this book for that, I’m reading it for the God and the Gumiho ;)

I really liked the depth of characters, and how you could see them slowly change their ways or feelings. I think a little more backstory on them would be really cool- like more than just what happened in 1888 for Hani, and more than just the Fall for Seokga. Just a few stories maybe :)

I would LOVE to read a sequel to this, or maybe a separate book in the same universe!

This book very nearly put me into a slump so I put it on pause for a week (which was apparently only 3 days because I appear to have lost all concept of the flow of time).

The bad:
There are definitely elements of this that read like a debut-- it has a much younger tone than I anticipated; I'm not sure it fully accomplishes the tonal shifts between silly, I spilt a coffee on him *tehe* and these terrible rapists deserve to die at my claws and then I'll eat their livers; the world-building can occasionally not make sense (why are these characters acting in a way that seems unnatural for how long they've known each other? aside from having an excuse to impart information about the world and its dangers to the reader).

The good:
However I do think that the character interactions and relationships are very fun and have a fanfiction (affectionate) nature to them that makes them both charming and very consumable. Especially with the character descriptions and outsized personalities, I think people will really enjoy making and sharing fanart for this one. There's honestly just something very appealing to me about a mischief maker who's pettily tormenting the object of their disdain/affection. And the constant exasperation of the tormentee.

The plot:
It mostly feels like the story was an excuse to have a reason to play around with these characters in this world. The reveals are easily clockable from miles away, but I really think the characters are the main draw so it doesn't matter too much that everything is fairly obvious. ymmv

Overall:
The end left open some avenues for the story that could be interesting, but I don't think I'm personally invested enough to continue on. But I think that the manner in which things were done will prevent it from falling into some of my least-liked romance series tropes (even if it maintains focus on the main couple in this).

DNF @ 44%

Nobody is more disappointed than me about this. 🥲 The God and the Gumiho was one of my most anticipated reads of the year but it's just not working for me.

A cranky immortal God and a wily nine-tailed fox is a pairing that, on paper, is perfect for me. Add in the cat-and-mouse factor of his investigation and her secret identity, and I was absolutely sold on the concept of this book. But, unfortunately, our two leads are insufferable instead of intriguing. They consistently act like petty teenagers instead of the 1000+ year-old beings that they are, and EVEN WORSE, they have absolutely no chemistry with each other. Honestly, it's a tragedy.

This is also a stylistic thing, but I really struggled with the author's narrative style. Third-person present tense is always going to be a hard sell, and where I was already not enjoying other elements of the story, it was really just the final nail in the coffin for me.

I will say that the Korean folklore elements were interesting and immersive, at least. I liked how this was an urban fantasy where these creatures were living in plain sight amongst humans, it lent itself really well to the murder mystery plotline.

Ugh, I'm so disappointed that I didn't love this book, it had so much potential!

I want to thank NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group, and the Author for a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review 🖤

WOW! This book had me laughing, gasping, and crying. I fell in love with this book and can say that this will be part of my top favorite books of the year! It has all the tropes that I love.

Forced Proximity
Enemies to lovers
Grumpy Sunshine
Supernatural Mystery
Action

I enjoyed the characters so much. They weren't annoying at all. I will say Hani is a complete badass and she is funny. She made me laugh so much especially when she would punk on Seokga. Hani is my girl! I enjoyed the story so much, the whole suspense, detective work, and the mystery. It was good. Of course, will say this book had me craving for hot chocolate and the food lol
The romance in this book is beautiful and well built. I loved how we see their relationship towards each other start building its way up throughout the book. It didn't feel rushed at all.

This is the first time I ever read a book by Sophie Kim and I will say that I love her writing style, how she describes her characters and her world. Her writing made it so much easier for me to read and become invested on it so quickly. I loved how Sophie Kim build her characters relationship. Just as if this book was a Kdrama.

Now to wait for the second book!

A huge thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I was excited for this but alas my knowledge deficits of Korean folklore and mythology had me struggling. If you’re going to name a being, say for instance a mul gwisin, gumiho, dokkawbi etc I would like to have some reference or description of what that is. I struggled hard to care bc I had no frame of reference to these creatures.

Seokga was an immature and Hani no different. For being ancient immortal creatures they really just didn’t act like it. And their relationship moved too rapidly for me to really find it plausible and enjoyable.

All in all an interesting concept for a book but I just found it somewhat lacking.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I usually try not to read ARCs this far ahead of their release date (this comes out on June 4th), but I just couldn’t resist after reading the synopsis and seeing the beautiful cover. No surprise to anyone, but I absolutely LOVED this book. Acknowledged in the author’s note, I agree that this felt very much like a love letter to kdramas. Goblin (or Guardian: The Lonely and Great God) is my all time favorite kdrama, and I feel like this book held a lot of the same lore and charm.

This story follows Kim Hani, a reformed gumiho previous known as the Scarlet Fox, and Seokga, a fallen god working as a detective as a way to earn his spot back in his kingdom. In the wake of her infamous spree as the Scarlet Fox (her previous crimes considered so heinous that it outlawed the previously common practice of gumihos consuming males livers), Hani has been living a quiet life in hiding as a barista. Seokga and Hani first cross paths at the café she works at, and the two immediately butt heads right from the start. But when a powerful demon escapes the underworld and starts causing havoc in New Sinsi, Seokga is essentially given an offer he can’t refuse: Kill both the demon and the elusive Scarlet Fox and earn his spot back in his kingdom. Not about to let the intolerable fallen god get his way, Hani decides to sign on as his assistant to help defeat the demon all while steering him away from the Scarlet Fox in the process.

I said it before and I’ll say it again…I absolutely loved this!! I’m always happy to find a new standalone fantasy romance book to endlessly recommend. Hani was such a fun female main character to follow. I loved how clever and crafty she was, always taking the lead in the witty banter and quick to keep Seokga on his toes. Seokga was the grumpiest grump, I loved him so much. I loved seeing him drop his walls and slowly start to thaw out for Hani. The plot itself was engaging and interesting, but I was also obsessed with the romance. It had so many of my favorite romanced tropes: Hate to love, grump x sunshine, hidden identity, only one bed, and so much angst. So many solid elements perfectly crafted into a transportive and whimsical standalone fantasy romance.

I would highly recommend picking this up when it drops on June 4th! In the meantime, I guess I'll re-watch Goblin. If I have to.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story! I am a huge fan of kdramas so when i saw that this was described as a contemporary fantasy that reminds you of your favorite kdrama I ran to request an arc. This did not disappoint, I loved the adventure between the two sneaky immortals. The relationship between hani and seokga was my favorite aspect plus the amazing incorporations of Korean mythology!