Seokga would give anything to be able to leave our messy world and return to his home in heaven. Kim Hani, on the other hand, relishes her life even after hundreds of years mixing with mortals and other beings from Korean folklore and mythology. He is dour. She is effervescent. They are almost perfect opposites. Which is why, from the very first chapter of Sophie Kim’s captivating novel, The God and the Gumiho, we know that they’re definitely going to fall in love with each other.
Kim Hani has loathed Seokga ever since the day he got her into trouble with her boss over a reflexive bit of mischief. (Seokga is the grimmest god of mischief I’ve ever seen.) Seokga dislikes Kim Hani partly because he dislikes everyone but also because, as much as he rains on her parade, he just can’t seem to get the better of the irrepressible gumiho. He’s used to people deferring to him as the brother of the ruler of heaven, even if Seokga is in disgrace and temporarily exiled.
If it were up to the both of them, Seokga and Kim Hani would stay far out of each other’s way. And they might have been able to do so if it weren’t for the sudden appearance of a demon straight out of Korean hell and Kim Hani’s decision to indulge in old habits (liver eating and soul-stealing) to show a young gumiho how their kind used to do things. A bit of divine and foxy meddling pairs the two together to find the demon and dispatch it back to the king of hell before it destroys this world.
I absolutely fell in love with the characters and world of The God and the Gumiho. Kim liberally uses Korean mythology to create an original, vibrant setting. She includes enough exposition to explain how Seokga landed (literally) on earth and why he has to battle monsters and demons, why the gumiho aren’t allowed to nosh on livers anymore, and much more without ever bogging down the lightning-quick narrative. Fans of the enemies to lovers trope will be pleased to know that there is plenty of bickering to keep things spicy between Seokga and Kim Hani even as proximity reveals how much they bring to their relationship with each other.
This book was a joy to read.