Thank you to Bookish First and the publisher for providing me with a copy to review.
I must say that this book was a first for me. I didn't see any of the plot twists coming. I must say that is part of the reason why I enjoyed it so much. Usually, I can see easily through the foreshadowing and smoke around the plot so it was refreshing to not be able to see what was coming. Besides an excellent plot, I enjoyed Cho's characters and writing.
One thing that I really want to stress is that this is a romance book with fantasy elements. The romance shares the stage well with the fantasy but the elements like the beginning Miyoung and Jihoon's relationship, the I-am-not-supposed-to-get-close-to-you-but-look-I-have-feelings-for-you that you sometimes see in YA romance. Don't get me wrong I didn't mind the romance, but I wasn't expecting it so soon.
As characters Miyoung and Jihoon are lovable and I think that we could be friends. Miyoung is a gumiho (if you didn't know that) and her mother moves her around a lot so she doesn't make many friends. And she is not allowed to tell anyone about the fact that she is a gumiho. Side note: the flashback chapters were a great way to introduce readers to the gumiho folklore without weighing down the story. Cho takes away the morally grey area of a gumiho by having Miyoung only "feed" when it is the full moon so she doesn't have to err, harm multiple men throughout the month. Jihoon is one of her classmates and works in his grandmother's restaurant.
Up until the ending, I was enjoying the book. To avoid spoilers, I am going to be vague. The characters could have definitely made better decisions but it could have been worse. Also up until the epilogue, I thought that this book was a standalone as it wrapped up in a nice bow. The epilogue then comes and tears down the bow and screams "YOU THOUGHT WRONG!" I am not sure why Cho did this. She could have either condensed the ending and left me wanting more or completely cut out the epilogue.
I must say that this book was a first for me. I didn't see any of the plot twists coming. I must say that is part of the reason why I enjoyed it so much. Usually, I can see easily through the foreshadowing and smoke around the plot so it was refreshing to not be able to see what was coming. Besides an excellent plot, I enjoyed Cho's characters and writing.
One thing that I really want to stress is that this is a romance book with fantasy elements. The romance shares the stage well with the fantasy but the elements like the beginning Miyoung and Jihoon's relationship, the I-am-not-supposed-to-get-close-to-you-but-look-I-have-feelings-for-you that you sometimes see in YA romance. Don't get me wrong I didn't mind the romance, but I wasn't expecting it so soon.
As characters Miyoung and Jihoon are lovable and I think that we could be friends. Miyoung is a gumiho (if you didn't know that) and her mother moves her around a lot so she doesn't make many friends. And she is not allowed to tell anyone about the fact that she is a gumiho. Side note: the flashback chapters were a great way to introduce readers to the gumiho folklore without weighing down the story. Cho takes away the morally grey area of a gumiho by having Miyoung only "feed" when it is the full moon so she doesn't have to err, harm multiple men throughout the month. Jihoon is one of her classmates and works in his grandmother's restaurant.
Up until the ending, I was enjoying the book. To avoid spoilers, I am going to be vague. The characters could have definitely made better decisions but it could have been worse. Also up until the epilogue, I thought that this book was a standalone as it wrapped up in a nice bow. The epilogue then comes and tears down the bow and screams "YOU THOUGHT WRONG!" I am not sure why Cho did this. She could have either condensed the ending and left me wanting more or completely cut out the epilogue.