This was such a good book. Kim wrote such an amazing story and this was my first book by them and and I was loving their work and their writing. The book was gripping and I was so hooked from the beginning. It was a great book from start to ending and it was amazing.

This book is strange, to say the least. It’s kind of like a slice-of-life type story with some small elements of a thriller/mystery. I don’t know if that’s what the author intended, but I feel like if the plot was supposed to be the main focus, we never actually get to focus on it until almost the end of the entire book, and then there isn’t just a ton of resolution outside of growth for the main character (which could be a good thing!). The main character is essentially a bride-for-hide, and one that’s been doing it for years for a company with some potentially shady practices (that unfortunately don’t really get highlighted in the plot until the last quarter or so of the book). I’ll admit, I don’t think that this book is for me and I don’t think I thought it was for me when I picked it up, although I had hopes. It’s not a bad book or story, but I just couldn’t ever really connect with it, and I’m still struggling to understand the point (although the translator’s notes at the end were probably the most helpful in that aspect). It was a pretty quick and easy read, and I’d definitely recommend it to some people looking for a somewhat unique drama with a very resolute protagonist.

I am a huge kdrama fan and love the contract marriage trope. This book added a little bit of spice to the usual PG 13 drama. Based on the blurb for The Trunk I definitely expected it to have more of a suspense/thriller vibe than it did. I sat there the whole time reading it waiting for the mystery to happen, and I was disappointed. This isn’t the mystery that it purports itself to be and instead is more of a story about loneliness and the need for human connection. While in that vain it was a truly fantastic read, it just wasn’t the book I expected.

e-ARC from NetGalley.

3.5

I'm honestly not sure what to make of this story. It feels so well-rounded, yet so incomplete at the same time.

With the premise basically being "rent-a-wife," I expected some great romance or horrifying trauma. Instead, we were presented with a melancholy, dissatisfied day-to-day in which many ideas were introduced - Inji's missing love, the mystery of Hye-yeong's final days, the true nature of Om Tae-seong and his obsession, the parasitic relationships between musicians and their fans, the husband's true career, the strained mother-daughter dynamic, Shi-jeong's feelings - but never followed up on.

It felt like nothing came to fruition. I spent the story being strung along by hints and crumbs, only to find that there was nothing at the end of the road. No answers. No closure. Nothing I could hold on to.

And yet? I liked it. It held so much promise. The ending leaves an infinite number of avenues for my mind to contemplate. If I were a reader who enjoyed stories left gaping open, this would likely have been my perfect book. As it is: I don't know what this was.

But I do know that it keeps that sense of listless hopelessness that so many translated novels by Korean women seem to possess. I know that they leave me deeply dissatisfied every time, but I can't untangle myself from the intrigue that draws me forever to them.

Recently I am falling back into my love for translated works from different part of the world and this one is translated from Korean language thus automatically I was super excited to read this book. Plus, it had the label of a Netflix adaptation thus I had to read it before it is out in Netflix.

The story takes up to a society where spouses can be rented as per the requirement and preferences, thus marriage on a basis of a contract between the two parties.
Our protagonist, Noh Inji is thirty years old and she has been married five times. She is a part of a popular matchmaking service, who provides spouses on rent to elite customers. It involves all the duties of marriage and the plan is designed as per the customer's requirements, to avoid any hassle at the end.
But when one of Inji's old husband request s her back then the story unfolds more aspects of our protagonist's life.

Personally I love the description of our protagonist and the scenarios penned down in this book as it didn't only focused on the characters but much more..
The writing style was interesting and it was well paced plotline this making my reading experience more wonderful.

This book is a quirky story with a feminist theme and likeable characters.

The contract marriage trope is a recurrent one when it comes to Kdramas but this one is rather different from what we are used to seeing or reading.
We have Noh Inji, a woman who works as a Field Wife at New Marriage (an agency) and gets into short-term marriages with clients. She is paid to fulfil all kinds of requests by her husband, be it domestic or sexual favours. We follow her as she deals with her life; her very bold and quirky grandma neighbour, a close friend, a stalker and so on.
A book not really about ‘female rage’ but more like ‘I am so done with this shit’ feminine energy. Also, really excited about the Kdrama adaptation… I mean it has Gong Yoo for god's sake.

To be honest, this isn’t necessarily the type of book I tend to go for, but if I see Gong Yoo’s name I have a hard time resisting. And in that case, I am glad I picked this one up.

It was definitely different from my usual read so it was refreshing for me. The narration of this one tends to be on the colder side, which fits the theme and vibe perfectly. I did find the flashbacks interesting as I had no idea where this would go so it kept me turning the pages eagerly. There is a feminist tone to this story with our main character’s comments and views on things, which was nice. You get all kinds of side characters, which made for a very interesting cast overall, and they all left a big impression on me as this story tends to be more character driven than plot.

There was a lot of potential for more suspense which I feel like it could have been exploited since the book is marketed as a thriller. So many mysterious things were happening and slowly being revealed through the book but somehow there was never any resolution to any of those plot points. It made me feel like the ending was abrupt in a way and a bit unsatisfying. I was still very compelled by the day to day life of our main characters so it kept me turning the pages, but I can understand people losing interest if literary fiction isn't their jam. Still think this was a captivating story with engaging characters.

If you are interested in other cultures, enjoy one of a kind stories with a bit of a cynical narrative and a strong cast of characters that supports the plot perfectly, you should try this book!

I'm now really curious to see the differences with the TV adaptation!

Thanks to ColoredPagesBookTours, HanoverSquarePress, HTP Hive and HTP Books for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

The Trunk offers some solid insights into human relationships, navigating complex dynamics with depth. But, more often than not, I found myself struggling to connect with Noh Inji on an emotional level—it was hard to grasp what she was truly feeling, which left me a bit detached. Maybe that’s intentional, to add to the mystery, but it didn’t quite work for me. And despite some feminist elements (by that I mean, very few points) I wouldn’t call this a “feminist thriller.” It’s an intriguing story with some memorable moments, but the emotional distance and uneven pace held it back from being fully immersive.

The Trunk was published in Korea almost 10 years ago. Just last week, Hanover Square Press published an English translation of this dark, feminist thriller.

This book was so unlike what I normally read and I enjoyed it. I’m thrilled to learn that it was made into a Netflix series that will premiere at the end of the month.

Our main character, Noh Inji, is employed by a company that creates temporary marriage contracts. Essentially, she’s a professional wife and she’s been requested for a remarriage.

The story is more character driven than plot -- each secondary character was distinct (Granny is probably my favorite). I haven’t read much contemporary Korean fiction and I can’t say I even know much about the culture. But I’ve read some reviews from more knowledgeable readers who have commented that there are elements of satire in regards to declining birth rates, sex work, and violence.

“...stop being so nice. Women need to be careful. When you’re friendly, guys will chase you. When you’re kind, they’re gonna wanna mess with you. But then if you get mad, you’re a bitch. That’s the price of being too friendly. “


Big thank you to Colored Pages Book Tours and Hanover Square Press for the gifted copy, and ultimately, for introducing me to this book. I recommend you give it a read before watching the series!

3.5 stars

I truly enjoyed this book. I'm a big fan of K-drama and have been looking for more korean books that have been translated to English. The translation was a little rough in some parts but that didn't bother me since my mom still speaks broken English (she's a South Korean native) so I was able to pretty much understand what was being said. It was an interesting story and humorous at parts.

I was drawn in by the fact that this was going to be made into a Netflix TV drama, and I love Korean TV dramas. I think some of the best TV shows I have seen were Korean. Maybe this will translate better on the screen, but reading it, this was just kind of a slow burn for the entire book. It wasn't bad - don't get me wrong. I liked the premise of a matchmaking service that rents out “husbands” and “wives” to their wealthiest clientele. However, there just didn't seem to be much of a plot to it. I will still watch the show when it comes to Netflix, to see if I missed something somewhere when I was reading it, but I admit, this has been a disappointment for me.

A compelling piece about contract marriages and a main character who does not believe she is meant for love. The company itself that does the matching is also proven to have some unsettling secrets, ones that may have darker ties than our protagonist realizes. I believe this is a very strong debut but that thing that fell short for me was some of the sproadic translations that came off just a bit sloppy. I do feel there is something deeply unsettling throughout but I wouldn't call this a feminist thriller in a sense. I also felt that the shadows of homosexuality wasn't done in a way that was of good light to LGBTQIA, if anything that subplot felt like a one off and I wanted to know more.

This is a gripping and intriguing read that will captivate fans of psychological thrillers and literary fiction who enjoy exploring the complexities of human relationships, the blurred lines between love and commerce, and the darker aspects of the human experience.

The Trunk by Kim Ryeo-ryeong was surprisingly entertaining.
And I’m excited to see how this story unfolds on the screen.

DNF at 25%

I'm not sure if the issue I am having is with the translation or with the author's writing style, but I am finding it difficult to connect with this narrative. While the characters and premise have been established, I'm not sure I understand what the plot is, and it seems rather late in the game to not know that.

I love the narrative structure of THE TRUNK, cycling back and forth between past and present, watching all the parts of the story come full circle and connect at the end. The characters are fascinating is their depth and honesty, even if that honesty is to their detriment, clear in their understanding of how they arrived where they are and when they’re taking advantage of others in their need for decency or even a simple lifeline.
I enjoyed the way THE TRUNK spiraled rather than breaking down into acts as is traditional in Western narratives, carrying the reader along and around and through. I will be thinking about it for a long time to come and hope for more from this author in the future.

I loved this book and was enthralled with the writing. I loved the character study. Would read more from the author!

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing | Hanover Square Press for this ARC.

The Trunk is a satirical look into a matchmaking service that hires field wives to carry out contractual marriages. We follow the life of Noh Inji, a woman in her late twenties, as she deals with being a field wife, having been married five times herself. This time, Inji finds herself remarried to a former husband.

I went into this book expecting a thriller but found it less thrilling than I hoped, but I think the last bits of the story felt more thrilling which I appreciated. I really enjoyed the concept, and the premise was unique and interesting. It was also a good opportunity to touch on social commentary like Kim Ryeo-Ryeong does in the book. I found that reading about Inji's past, especially about her friends and family, was well done in order to understand more about Inji herself, like why she is who she is, and why she is where she is. Her inner dialogue was quite captivating and she was full of life and fleshed out as a character.

I'm super excited that this is being adapted into a Netflix series, and I will definitely be on the lookout for that!

“So this is the world we live in, where even spouses can be rented.”

The Trunk is an intriguing, fast-paced and oftentimes humorous satirical look into a not-so-distant future in which Noh Inji, our narrator, works as a ‘field wife’ for a matchmaking service that rents out ‘contract’ marriages to its various clienteles.

Kim tackles many difficult issues in this book, ranging from a critical examination into the gender conformity and the roles of women in contemporary South Korean society, to the commodification of love in our ever-changing capitalist world. While some threads are perhaps more poignantly discussed than others, Inji’s no nonsense and cynical narrative voice rings through with clarity binding the different facets of the story together. The translation team behind the book did an incredible job and I very much appreciated the inclusion of the translators notes at the end of the book.

I am also very much looking forward to the Netflix adaptation of this novel as I am huge fans of both the lead actors and can’t wait to see this story play out on the screen!

Thank you to Hanover Square Press/HTP Books and Colored Pages Book Tours for a gifted copy of this book.

This is an odd one. It's not a thriller but I can't really put a genre label on it although it is a bit melodramatic. Inji is a contract wife. She's already been married five times-and she's only 30. It's not a bad way to make a living (or is it?) but then things go sideways and her life begins to unravel. The lives of other wives are also unraveling. Much of this happens in her head. I had a hard time relating to Inji and the situation. The translation is not as smooth as it could be-more than once there was awkward language I'm sure was not awkward in the original. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. While this wasn't for me, I'm sure others will enjoy it especially as it's good opportunity to read a popular Korean author (and to get ahead of the planned series.)