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A review by sarahsbooklife
The Kingdom of the Gods by Youn In-wan, Eun-Hee Kim, Kyung-Il Yang
2.0
I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are my own.
The Kingdom of the Gods by In-Wan Youn is a book that I tried to write a review for about 3 times. I really struggled with what to say about this book. Because things happened but then not enough happened at the same time. This volume is only 4 chapters long, with the bonus story Burning Hell that is also 4 chapters long, so it just cracks the surface of the story by introducing the characters and the Living Dead Curse.
I thought this volume/book was a really good start and introduction to the story, characters and the world. But it also wasn’t the easiest to understand at times, the pacing felt a little off to me, possibly because some things got a little lost in translation from the original Korean to English making some of the dialogue and the flow of the story feel a little off.
I liked the characters, I especially like the dynamic between Doctor Su-Jeong, Jae-Ha and the Prince. I don’t remember his name or remember if his name is even mention honestly. It probably is but I just can’t remember it.
There was definitely some very creepy moments; abandoned villages, cannibalism, the zombies themselves. The art style definitely upped the creepiness factor to this story. I do think that it has some very good visual horror elements to it. But I didn’t feel much suspense while reading this story. Nor did I fear for the characters that much. By this I mean I wasn’t scared that they were going to die during this volume.
I enjoyed reading this book but I wasn’t 100% gripped by this story. For me, I found that it was just an easy, quick read that wasn’t that memorable. Definitely a good start with a decent amount of intrigue, and a different take on the whole zombie plague by setting this story in the Joseon period (1392–1897 Korea, the exact date isn’t stated when this is set) and calling it the Living Dead Curse. I liked that it wasn’t the typical way that such a virus spreads. Rather than it being air born and being bitten or scratched by a zombie this is spread in a pretty horrific way. I’m not going to say how exactly it’s spread because that would definitely spoil it.
Also, I liked that the zombies aren’t active the whole time. It’s only at night, when the sun is down, that the dead get up, walk or run (yeah these are fast zombies) and eat people. It’s not great for one of the characters that can’t see when the sun goes down. They can’t see at all and it’s hinted that has been caused by past trauma.
Overall, I found this book interesting. I liked the art style but sometimes thought that there was a little too much detail at times. More so during action scenes where there was just a lot visually to take it. I think that it’s a good start to a story but I don’t know if I found it enjoying or memorable enough for me to want to read the next one.
Bonus story: Burning Hell
Blurb: In ancient times, Japan and Korea would send its criminals to a penal colony called “Kyokudo”, situated in the channel between the two nations. There the cannibal Juu was sent for murdering over a thousand warriors while in Edo. Yet for an island meant for criminals, there was but one Korean medic, Han, exiled from Korea for killing and dissecting over a thousand people.
There is also a bonus story included in this volume, which I actually found more entertaining than The Kingdom of the Gods. I think this was probably because it had a slightly more lighthearted feel to it. There was humour there and it didn’t take itself too seriously.
It is a story about convicts that get sent to an island between Korea and Japan. They have no outside contact and are stuck there. Events lead to just two convicts, one from Korea and one from Japan, being the only living convicts on the island. And they want to kill each other.
I actually forgot that there was a bonus story included, so I was initially a little confused about why it was there.
I found the fights between Juu and Han to be pretty entertaining. And a little weird. Especially as they somehow seemed to communicate and talk to each other without either knowing the other’s language.
This isn’t a self-contained story, there’s a very open ending as if there should be more. From what I have managed to find about this story is that it was originally released in 2008 and hasn’t had any news or new releases since.
One thing is though is that if you get this volume of The Kingdom of the Gods you get a bonus story lifts the mood after you finish it.
The Kingdom of the Gods by In-Wan Youn is a book that I tried to write a review for about 3 times. I really struggled with what to say about this book. Because things happened but then not enough happened at the same time. This volume is only 4 chapters long, with the bonus story Burning Hell that is also 4 chapters long, so it just cracks the surface of the story by introducing the characters and the Living Dead Curse.
I thought this volume/book was a really good start and introduction to the story, characters and the world. But it also wasn’t the easiest to understand at times, the pacing felt a little off to me, possibly because some things got a little lost in translation from the original Korean to English making some of the dialogue and the flow of the story feel a little off.
I liked the characters, I especially like the dynamic between Doctor Su-Jeong, Jae-Ha and the Prince. I don’t remember his name or remember if his name is even mention honestly. It probably is but I just can’t remember it.
There was definitely some very creepy moments; abandoned villages, cannibalism, the zombies themselves. The art style definitely upped the creepiness factor to this story. I do think that it has some very good visual horror elements to it. But I didn’t feel much suspense while reading this story. Nor did I fear for the characters that much. By this I mean I wasn’t scared that they were going to die during this volume.
I enjoyed reading this book but I wasn’t 100% gripped by this story. For me, I found that it was just an easy, quick read that wasn’t that memorable. Definitely a good start with a decent amount of intrigue, and a different take on the whole zombie plague by setting this story in the Joseon period (1392–1897 Korea, the exact date isn’t stated when this is set) and calling it the Living Dead Curse. I liked that it wasn’t the typical way that such a virus spreads. Rather than it being air born and being bitten or scratched by a zombie this is spread in a pretty horrific way. I’m not going to say how exactly it’s spread because that would definitely spoil it.
Also, I liked that the zombies aren’t active the whole time. It’s only at night, when the sun is down, that the dead get up, walk or run (yeah these are fast zombies) and eat people. It’s not great for one of the characters that can’t see when the sun goes down. They can’t see at all and it’s hinted that has been caused by past trauma.
Overall, I found this book interesting. I liked the art style but sometimes thought that there was a little too much detail at times. More so during action scenes where there was just a lot visually to take it. I think that it’s a good start to a story but I don’t know if I found it enjoying or memorable enough for me to want to read the next one.
Bonus story: Burning Hell
Blurb: In ancient times, Japan and Korea would send its criminals to a penal colony called “Kyokudo”, situated in the channel between the two nations. There the cannibal Juu was sent for murdering over a thousand warriors while in Edo. Yet for an island meant for criminals, there was but one Korean medic, Han, exiled from Korea for killing and dissecting over a thousand people.
There is also a bonus story included in this volume, which I actually found more entertaining than The Kingdom of the Gods. I think this was probably because it had a slightly more lighthearted feel to it. There was humour there and it didn’t take itself too seriously.
It is a story about convicts that get sent to an island between Korea and Japan. They have no outside contact and are stuck there. Events lead to just two convicts, one from Korea and one from Japan, being the only living convicts on the island. And they want to kill each other.
I actually forgot that there was a bonus story included, so I was initially a little confused about why it was there.
I found the fights between Juu and Han to be pretty entertaining. And a little weird. Especially as they somehow seemed to communicate and talk to each other without either knowing the other’s language.
This isn’t a self-contained story, there’s a very open ending as if there should be more. From what I have managed to find about this story is that it was originally released in 2008 and hasn’t had any news or new releases since.
One thing is though is that if you get this volume of The Kingdom of the Gods you get a bonus story lifts the mood after you finish it.