🌸✨ 4/5 Stars – Myth, Murder & a Trickster God’s Redemption Arc 🛳️💀💘

The God and the Gwisin by Sophie Kim is an enchanting, genre-blending sequel that balances mythology, mystery, and romance in a story that’s equal parts thrilling and heartfelt. 💫 If you enjoyed The God and the Gumiho, you're in for a ride — this time, on a literal ghost cruise through the underworld. Yes. A. Ghost. Cruise. 🚢👻🌑 And on board? A charming trickster god, a tough-as-nails reincarnated heroine, and a divine murder to solve. What more could you ask for?

At the heart of this book is Seokga, the infamous immortal troublemaker who now must confront the one thing he’s not prepared for: feelings. 😬🫀 His mission? Track down the reincarnation of his long-lost love, Hani — now reborn as Yoo Kisa, a no-nonsense girl with a sharp tongue and zero patience for his nonsense. The catch? She has no memory of their past. What unfolds is part enemies-to-lovers, part second-chance romance, and fully irresistible. 🥹🔥

Kim’s writing is playful yet elegant, full of wit and emotion. The Korean mythology adds a fresh and rich layer to the narrative — from gwisin (vengeful ghosts) to celestial courts, everything feels vivid and alive, even when set in the afterlife. 🌌⛩️ The cruise setting is pure genius: eerie, glamorous, and filled with gods, ghosts, and gossip. Think Knives Out meets Lore Olympus with a healthy dash of Hotel del Luna. 🥂🕯️

The romance is a slow burn, with plenty of snark, soul-searching, and undeniable chemistry between Seokga and Kisa. 🫶🔥 Their emotional growth — especially Seokga’s — gives the story real heart. He starts out a selfish, swaggering immortal and ends up someone you're genuinely rooting for. Kisa, too, is strong and emotionally grounded, refusing to be a pawn in anyone’s cosmic game. 🗡️💁‍♀️

That said, the book isn't flawless. There are moments where the plot gets a little tangled, especially with all the divine lore and side characters crowding the stage. 🌀 Some pacing dips in the middle as the mystery spins out — but the ending ties everything together beautifully, and leaves you both satisfied and eager for the next installment. 💫🧩

💭 Final thoughts: The God and the Gwisin is a wildly creative and emotionally resonant fantasy, perfect for fans of romantic tension, mythology with modern twists, and main characters who are as flawed as they are lovable. If you like your romance with bite, your gods with baggage, and your murder mysteries set in the afterlife? This one's for you. 📚🌠💘

I definitely preferred The God and the Gwisin over the first book The God and The Gumiho. Kisa is a more developed and mature character and the coffee hate in book one was so aggressively unfunny I was worried about picking up book 2. Though dead, Kisa is a refreshing breath of fresh air who transforms Seokga more than Hani who is a catalyst but imo not true love.

Soekga vacationing on a cruise for the dead is a premise I’ve certainly never heard of before.

I really hope Sophie Kim is able to find her footing in the adult world. At times it feels like her books can decided which direction or audience they are for but I am rooting for her nonetheless!

3.5 rounded up

Sophie Kim can do no wrong!! I absolutely ADORED The God and the Gumiho and was so happy I was given the opportunity for an ARC copy of The God and the Gwisin.

Like the previous book, it literally feels like you are stepping into a Korean drama as you read each page. Sophie does wonders to weave stories of traditional Korean folklore combined with a humorous, heartstring-pulling, story of love, longing and reincarnation. The story gave me vibes of Agatha Christie's Death On The Nile, a fun who-dun-it of sorts on a ship with our dashing grumpy male lead, Seok-ga investigating a murder onboard.

He finally thinks he finds his love, Hani - who he has been searching for over 30 years, but it's not quite her. She has reincarnated into Kisa, who has lived her own life and separate experiences and memories. It was hard not to continuously try and pull parallels and compare her to Hani - but she is still so different and really grows on us. But the question is - can Seok-ga accept that?

I immensely enjoyed the story and again, give my thanks to Netgalley and Del Rey for the amazing ARC opportunity! I can't wait for my copy to come in!

Ever since the red thread reappeared, the not-so-fallen-anymore Seogka has been searching for the reincarnated Hani. He finds her on a cruise down the river of the dead. But she's not Hani; she's Yoo Kisa, who does not know him, so now what are they to each other? Seogka's brother Hwanin is murdered, and they must quietly find the perpetrator before the cruise ends. There is more at play on this ship that may have to do with their Fate thread, even the fate of their world.

I love how Sophie Kim respects her reader and just jumps right into Kisa's life. She does give us the lowdown needed though, to construct a firm foundation for the POV, always in her trademark witty fashion. It is also an entry point to the delicious intrigue that will follow us from there on out.

I continue to enjoy the lively, vibrant twisting of Korean mythology, the boundless creativity, the doses of whimsical flavor. Info is again conveyed in that companionable, conversational style I like. The ever-present humor that threads through the narrative constantly makes me chuckle or guffaw outright, too many times to count. The welcoming weight of anticipation and destiny placed me on the edge of a gasp, my heart fluttering all the while.

I smirked at the fact that Kisa, as opposed to Hani, likes coffee and I was enamored with her immediately. Whip-smart, she asks lots of questions, enthusiastic about wanting to know the whys and the hows of everything. And usually not a rulebreaker. Our beloved Seogka, the oftentimes cheerful grump with his wonderful sarcastic and mischievous streak, is in top form. Is there anything more swoony than a handsome god who waits for you to reincarnate and will love you no matter who or what you come back as?

Whether we like it or not the past shapes us. Both our protagonists are affected emotionally by it. Seogka by issues from before, erstwhile mistakes and what went down with Hani. As for Kisa, she has her own burdens, which are known and unknown to her. This is all shared in a wonderfully compassionate tone. There is a depth and intensity of feeling in the honesty of their musings. The situation is simultaneously heart-squeezing and humorous. The unexpected and outrageously fun things that happen must be read to be believed. And those gasp-worthy revelations...

Being on the cruise is a sort of forced proximity and let us not forget the thread that binds them. You could somewhat call it a despite themselves, second chance romance, but way more intricate and interesting. You experience their changing emotions along with them in the intimate present tense. The clever whodunit follows an engrossing path of discovery, with breadcrumbs on the way that hint at what is really happening and gets your mind whirring. This time around, there is an oddball team to solve the mystery and which will delight you.

This is a story about fate and hope. It deals with themes like: acceptance of others and the situations we find ourselves in and overcoming that which may hurt us. With a love that conquers everything, this series has entered the pantheon of my favorites.

!! slight spoilers ahead !!

This was again one of my most anticipated reads of this year, and I am (once again) thankful for having received the ARC. I enjoyed my time reading this; however, this may be an unpopular opinion, but I was a bit let down by the way this story played out. Don’t get me wrong, the prose was absolutely beautiful and similar to the style of the first book, but I felt like I enjoyed the plot and the structure of the first book better than the sequel. In this book, you’re following both Seokga, who is forced by his therapist into taking an all-inclusive cruise to help take his mind off Hani. However, he comes to realize that this is no ordinary cruise as it soon becomes apparent that there is a murder mystery on board, and on top of all of that, he comes face-to-face with the reincarnation of his one true love, Hani. Seokga is forced to juggle an abundance of emotional issues, between reuniting with his love (who doesn’t remember anything about him), finding his brother’s killer (and dealing with the aftermath of his death), and a whole lot of daddy issues, which leads to a less than relaxing vacation.

I think this is where the plot started to get away from me, where there were just so many things going on, and the fact that the storyline was being juggled between so many different plot points, especially the romance, felt a bit stunted. I devoured the romance in the first book between Seokga and Hani, and inherently, because Kisa and Hani are essentially the same person, I just couldn’t help comparing the two, and I just preferred the “original” romance better. I feel like there was such a focus on the muder mystery aspect and exploring Seokga’s family issues than the romance, which while I understand that this is a romantasy, by adding the element of the red string of fate and making Seokga utterly depressed over Hani’s death, means that him reuniting with Kisa should have played a bigger role in the story itself while in reality, it felt a bit like it was on the backburner.

Overall, I did enjoy my time reading this, and am kind of intrigued by the way the book ended for a possible third book in the series. Thank you so much to Netgalley, Del Rey, and Sophie Kim for sending me a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I loved this book sooo much!! The god and the gumiho is still my favourite but the adventure in this one was so fun!

I also enjoyed the new world building and new characters!

First and foremost, thank you to the publisher and the author for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. I loved this story and it was definitely worth the read! I absolutely loved this book!!!

Just FYI: if you have not read book 1, I’m not sure how to comment without at least implying some information about what happens. I’ve tried to be suitably vague for people who know the setup for book 2.

“The God and the Gumiho” was one of my favorite books of 2024 and I have recommended it pretty much nonstop. I was thrilled to be offered an ARC of the second book, but I really wrestled with my discomfort around the power dynamics involved in this story. Hani and Seokga were well-matched and felt like equals (if anything, Hani had an edge). This installment, with the sheltered 20-something-year-old Kisa, felt WAY too much like grooming to me. I don’t believe that was the author’s intent, and any romance with a human and an immortal is gonna have those weird vibes. I’m not sure if I would have had such an intense visceral reaction to their budding relationship if Kisa had been a bit less sheltered, but this put me off.

Also, in the year of our lord 2025, can we please drop the storyline of “Your antidepressants are actually DRAINING your magical powers”? Please and thank you.

There were parts of this that I enjoyed, so it wasn’t a total wash for me, but I’m not sure how to feel when the concept itself was my issue.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. I can see that other people didn’t have this hangup, and since I’m someone who gets deeply icked out by power dynamic imbalances in romance in general, take this with a grain of salt.

God and the Gumiho was one of my most memorable books of 2024. I loved the plot, the setting and the characters but most importantly to me the romance was fantastic. Two deep characters meeting and presenting a masked version of themselves to one another only to chip away at the mask throughout and develop a fantastic relationship where, by the end, left you gutted and desperate for answers.
The God and the Gwisin was one of my more anticipated reads for 2025. Most of the time I forget what happened in first books but this time I confidently jumped back into Sophie Kim’s world anticipating what would come next.
Spoilers incoming for the sequel!

Seokga is a broken man. It’s been 32 years since his love, Hani died and ever since he has been searching for her incarnation across the globe. With stress and other mental challenges effecting his powers and a deep depression overwhelming him, it is difficult to imagine his character emerging from this darkness. His therapist is working tirelessly with him on his recovery and his brother Hwisin is also very supportive but at the end of it all, his Hani is still gone.
Kisa appears to be a new character. An overworked maternity shaman ends up on a roof and as a reader, we witness her death.
In an attempt to overcome this dark depression, Seokga’s therapist recommends a vacation, which seems totally comical. Himself, his brother and the Doctor proceed on an underworld cruise ship called the Flatliner, a place for souls before reincarnation. Some work for this opportunity, others get the chance to use it as a journey to their next life. After Kisa’s death, she has been aboard and working on the Flatliner

The side characters were once again perfect. We’re reintroduced to Somi, a character from the First book but also Hajun, a former pop idol who was used and abused within the music industry and he eventually couldn’t cope with it any longer. There is brief mentions of what happened to Hajun and it is not overtly graphic.
As previously mentioned Hwanin is an important character as well but his form... shifted in this book.
Similar to the first novel, Kisa and Seokga bond over solving a murder on the Flatliner and the supporting characters are critical within the plot.
As Seokga fights the knowledge that Kisa and Hani are opposites but also have similarities and how this relates to their soulmate bond as well as Kisa struggling to merge her current life with her previous life, the pair attempt to solve the mystery aboard the Flatliner.
This was a fantastic sequel. I very rarely love sequels but this was fantastic. The ending was a great conclusion but it was open ended enough for a third book, which wouldn’t feel excessive. I look forward to seeing what Sophie Kim writes next and I will definitely be looking into her backlist for more work from her. Thank you so much for the eARC! I was so excited when I was approved.

4⭐️

the god and the gwisin really reminded me of a k-drama, much like book one did. it was charming, magical and whimsy, and very fun to read! i was so invested in the reincarnation part of the story as well as the story behind kisa. my favorite grump, seokga just absolutely folding for her time and time again was so sweet. i also thought it was fun with another addition of the mini murder mystery storyline. was i gutted a lot of the time reading this? absolutely. but it was SO worth the pain. not only was i tearing up from the heartfelt moments, i was also laughing and just excited to keep reading to find out what was going to happen next. seeing some old familiar characters was nice, and i was a big fan of the newer characters too! 🤭 kisa and seokga really had such an interesting story.

thank you del ray for the e-ARC.

Oh my goodness! What a fun k-drama story. I liked book 1 but loved book 2. The banter! The second change at love. Idiots falling in love are always my favorite. This needs to be a movie/tv series asap.

Oh how I loved this book! In a rare instance, I thought it was better than the first. There were so many moments that were just adorable - the banter between the two main characters are the best part of the book.

Kisa is so different from Hani but I loved her so much. The trickster god couldn’t stand a chance! I thought it was insanely cute that Somi was still a part of the story, and that Kisa and Hani still had a moment together. I loved how Hani allowed Seokga to open up to love and Kisa really softened him into a little puddle. As well as a particular baby family member.

The red thread having a personality was also hysterical. Sophie Kim is such a fun writer.

I said this in my review of the first book but it’s basically reading a K-drama! It’s a very cute, not all that serious book despite there being a murder mystery. The ending of both books with the Godly Gossip articles are wildly entertaining as well.

BTS came back, I started re-watching K-dramas and I finished this book all at the same time. It has been a fun journey, especially with my work picking up and me crawling through reading right now. If you need a stress relief or want to try something new, I’d love Korean culture as much as I do, you’ll love this book!

Thank you NetGallet for an ARC of this book!

The sequel to the God and the Gumiho did not disappoint. Another 5 star read for me- i was nervous because the first one was one of my favorite reads of 2024, but wow, this one delivered.
A very lighthearted fantasy duology to sink your teeth into.

Nothing compares to the feeling of second book in a series being just as good as the first! The God and the Gwisin was delightful and solidified Seokga as one of my favorite broody characters ever.

Seokga the No-Longer-Fallen is looking for his love.
Since he lost Hani and was reinstated as a god, nothing has felt right - and he's been desperately searching for her reincarnated form ever since. But when the red thread of fate leads Seokga to a cruise down the river of the dead, the woman he finds isn't Hani ... she's Yoo Kisa, and she has no memory of him whatsoever - with seemingly no interest in regaining it either. But when the Heavenly Emperor of Okhwang is murdered, Seokga and Kisa must solve the crime before the cruise ends. And as the mystery draws them closer, they will have to decide what they truly mean to each other.

I love the way the reincarnation is used in these books. The world building and magic weaved with Korean mythology is so vivid and fun. Seokga makes my millennial emo heart flutter. He may have some daddy issues but he is just yearning for love and I was tearing up for him. I loved his character arc so much. His journey and relationship journey with Kisa were my favorite parts of this book. I enjoyed the murder mystery element but it felt like an afterthought. It was pretty obvious who the bad guy was going to be I didn’t really take that part too seriously.

These books are so funny and so sweet they definitely deserve all the hype!

One of my most anticipated reads of 2025 and it DID NOT DISAPPOINT!!

Yoo Kisa dies on the same night the red thread of fate appears on her finger. At the other end is Seokga, who has been waiting years for his beloved Hani, his fearsome gumiho, to reincarnate so they can be reunited after their tragic separation in the first book. After failing to find his match for years, a depressed Seokga is caught off guard when a trip on the underworld's cruise ship brings him face-to-face with Kisa, who has been working in the crew while awaiting her turn to be born once more.

I really didn't know if Sophie Kim would be able to write a satisfying sequel after setting the bar so high in the God and the Gumiho but BY GOLLY did she rise to the occasion! Kim writes great Kdrama romantic suspense: the tension between Kisa and Seokga is balanced by the murder mystery aboard the cruise ship. I once again feel like knowing less is better for the reading experience, but I'll drop one more juicy tidbit: you've never seen the Red Thread trope done like this 👏

~*ARC Reader*~

First off thanks so much to The Del Rey Team for selecting me to recieve an early copy of The God and the Gwisin! I was so excited to hear the sequel was coming out and your offer to let me into the group of ARC readers sent me over the moon! Also thanks to NetGalley for the ability to access these ARCs!

Now to the good stuff - we're back with Seokga as he searches for Hani's reincarnation that his brother promised him. And he has sure been searching...for 30 years. 😭 When his brother Hwanin insists they go on an underworld cruise to relax Seokga's frayed nerves, Seokga is resistant. Upon arriving however, the red thread around his finger pulls taut and he finally finds his threaded soulmate, Yoo Kisa - Hani's reincarnation - working aboard the ship. Which means that not only does she not have memories of him (why would she have memories from her past life?) but also that she's already dead. And that's just the beginning...

This was another amazing whodunnit from Sophie Kim that I greatly enjoyed. Exploring the concept of reincarnation and how much of a person really remains through changes was a fascinating journey, especially with Sophie's use of the Ship of Thesus as a parallel. And there was so much humor sprinkled in without distracting from a very serious murder plot, and a deeply troubled Seokga who is clearly struggling through his own internal (and external) battles. Sophie Kim tackled mental health in a genre that often either makes light of it or demonizes it - and she did it with respect and a deft hand that she should be proud of. We got the classic murder-mystery vibes, some cheeky "sudden family" hilarity, and a sweet slow-burn romance all together without any of the themes feeling like they were in direct competition with eachother or that they didn't belong. I really see Sophie Kim's evolution as a writer here, and I'm super curious to see what she does next.

Firstly, I love Seokga. I love all the side characters. I love this world. Overall, it felt like a second season of my favorite TV show that was only supposed to be one season. However, I didn’t really enjoy the mystery in this as much as the first book. This one felt more predictable and lower stakes to me. I really enjoyed Seokga’s arch though. Being able to explore more of his family dynamics and their struggles was a major highlight. However, it took me a long time to come around on the romance between him and Yoo Kisa. I’m pretty sure this is the first reincarnation romance I’ve read where only one of the characters was reincarnated. So, I had no idea what to expect and I struggled with a lot of the same feelings as the characters. I think if things could’ve developed a little more slowly and over a longer timeline that would’ve helped a lot. I’m happy with how things ended up though and I’m very excited to read more stories with these characters and from this world!

The God and the Gwisin gave me old god in current time vibes. The god Seokga finds himself on an underworld cruise with his brother. Chaos ensues, while Seokga is in the midst of chasing an invisible thread connect to his finger.
This story was a whirlwind of mystery and adventure. Funny at times, and very enjoyable. The characters were very likable and I was curious to see how the story would unravel. This book was a delight to read.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group Del-Rey, Random House Worlds & Inklore for the opportunity to read this advance reader copy.

I was disappointed in this book if I'm being honest. I absolutely ADORED book 1, and sorely missed our dynamic duo. Unfortunately this new character, Kisa, is NOT Hani and we as readers have to accept that as much as our cutie pie grumpy boy does too. Here is my review from GR

"Thank you for this arc for my honest review!



While I knew that things would be different for our dynamic
duo, I was pretty let down as I read this one. Hani isn't coming back, and we all need to accept that.
The other thing that really hurt was that Therapy was such an important topic, as was Antidepressants, however they both turned out to be for evil. The therapist being the baddy, and the meds being magic blockers, hurt me personally.
This wasn't a good message I felt, and while the story was a fun read, and seeing Somi, and new friends (baby Hwanin! Aww) I was really disappointed by those themes, and that Hani is truly gone. She's inside Kisa, and even makes a small appearance, but Kisa doesn't regain Hani's memories. I don't like the theory that Seogka needed Hani first, to be ready for
Kisa..
This book just didn't feel as thought out as book 1. Personally, l'm going to pretend book 1 is a standalone, and he finds Hani reincarnated with her memories in the epilogue."

I thought this was a lovely step up from the first book, which i thought was decent but not great. I'm not sure if it was a mix of writing, story, characters + being invested since its a sequel or what, but the book felt BETTER than the first and I didnt even love the first one lol

The premise of them being soul mates, made a good excuse for "insta-love" between Seokga and Kisa, which I didnt mind as again, they are fated. Kisa's character was such a drastic change from Hani, that it felt really nice. I really liked that honestly. The mystery/story in this one was also 10x more interesting to me and just more fun to try and figure out. It does get quite obvious very early on, but i don't mind, as it was just a fun good time.

I would love to read Sophie's future books, I'm not sure if I'd check out any of her previous title(s) but I'd be interested in anything new for sure! :)

Thank you for the eARC and I apologize for the severely delayed review xD