Thank you to the publisher, Sophie Kind and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

I went into this book really excited to read something inspired by Korean mythology, and whilst that did not disappoint, I really struggled to connect with the main character. Her specific type of wit just did not hit the right note for me, although she did grow on me by the end.

However, the plot is amazing and I really recommend people pick this up if the witty MC vs grumpy MC is something they enjoy. The world is very well built and I quite liked Sophie Kim's writing

rating - 3.5 stars, mainly for how long it took me to get through the first 25/30%, I will definitely be reading book 2, as I really enjoyed the plot

A witty, delightful murder mystery that hit just the spot for a slow burn thrill. Fans of Korean folklore will definitely enjoy this book. It was well paced and at no point did I want to put it down. Definitely an author I'll be watching out for in future.

Special thanks to Hodder & Stoughton and Netgalley for providing an early copy of the ebook in exchange for my honest review..

With an almost noir detective/classic cop movie vibe, The God and the Gumiho is a unique, witty and immersive read. This was a lot of fun and with an open ended (but satisfying) ending, I’d be more than happy to read more about these characters and world in the future.

I think anyone who enjoys Korean folklore will love this reimagining. its a very easy book to recommend and a series i am very much looking forward to continuing!

Very cute and fun, enjoyed it. Will be looking forward more from this author.
Perfect for when you want something easy to get into, recommended it to friends already.

The God and the Gumiho made it into my top of 2024 reads - it combines a murder mystery with a slow-burn romance of my favourite kind: drawn-out dislike to grudging friendship to tender love. The story follows Hani, a secretly infamous gumiho, and Seokga, a fallen god, who find themselves forced to collaborate to solve a murder mystery. The dynamics between Hani and Seokga were spot on from the outset, and I loved their banter. Definitely one I'd recommend!

This was so much fun! The drama and humor was high. The world building was basic but not in a bad way, more like in a nice easy read way. The characters are likable if a bit juvenile and the pacing was good

I confess that while I’m aware Korean books, movies and TV are becoming more accessible in English (hurrah!), I’ve very little experience of them. What I have seen has been brilliant, but I picked this book up primarily because of the mythological element. I’m always fascinated by non-Western legends, and this looked like a fine contemporary spin on those.

Readers, it is perfect.

I’m very picky about my romance novels, because in my opinion they’re very easy to write badly (ie ‘by the numbers’). While this does have aspects of the ‘enemies to lovers’ tropes, the book as a whole simply zings with humour, keeping it grounded in familiar aspects of daily life while fully aware of its heritage and magical rules. The relationships are important but two people learning to get along is a better foundation for me than ‘star-crossed lovers’ or suchlike. The author makes these two work.

It helps that our protagonists are two of the most original I’ve ever seen. We have a trickster fox who’s been grounded after letting her power get the best of her, forced to become - gasp! - a barista! Then her most hated customer, a god who is similarly depowered but with the chance to redeem himself and regain his powers and place in Heaven… while avoiding gossipy fangirls because his handsome visage is a target for the otherworldly paparazzi.

Their relationship is glorious, developing from hilariously petty games and annoyance to forced proximity, while hiding secrets and eventually having to rely on each other against a larger threat. Because yes, this is also a monster-murder-mystery with much greater stakes than just the needs of a grumpy god and a messed-up fox-woman.

This is one of my Top 10 Books of 2024 for a reason. I’m late in reviewing because I simply didn’t know how to put into words the feelings that this book left me with. The mystery plot is engaging and moves at a fantastic pace, while the relationship aspects are entirely believable with characters that I genuinely cared about (including those poor friends caught up in the consequences).

Then I found out that there’s a sequel coming soon - a much-needed bit of good new for this year!

If you like clever, fun, magical tales with a very different perspective on folklore from the Tolkien or Grimm style, definitely track this down.

And always respect your barista. Just in case.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

I can’t believe I didn’t read this sooner!

The God and the Gumiho is a Korean contemporary fantasy in which a fallen trickster god must pair up with a coffee-slinging, shapeshifting fox to track down a demon of darkness before it devours the mortal world. Kim Hani is a once-terrible Gumiho, responsible for a series of deaths hundreds of years ago, now retired and working at a café. Seokga was cast down from heavens for a failed attempt at a coup, and is offered a chance at redemption: kill both the demon of darkness, and the infamous Scarlet Fox. Kim Hani is prepared to do everything in her power to avoid being caught.

I honestly adored everything about this book. Kim Hani and Seokga were everything and I was so sad to leave them behind once I finished! They are both hilarious and major nuisances to each other, yet they surprising worked incredibly well together and were set on solving the case!

This book just felt so fresh and I loved every second of it. I really enjoyed the Korean mythology-inspired elements, and they were blended perfectly into the story!

The romance in this was so wonderful and my heart HURTS how could you do this to me @sophiekimwrites 😭

I am gnawing at the bars of my enclosure for The God and the Gwisin! That ending was insane and I need more NOW!

⭐⭐⭐ (3/5)

I really enjoyed the book at the beginning—the characters were intriguing, and the setup had a lot of potential. But around the midpoint, things started to fall flat. The romance leaned heavily into insta-love, which made it feel rushed and unconvincing. What started as an interesting dynamic quickly became bland.

Then there’s the detective aspect. The guy supposedly has 600 years of experience solving cases, yet the female lead completely takes over the investigation. At that point, I couldn’t help but wonder why he was even there. The plot just became increasingly unbelievable, making it hard to stay invested.

Overall, it was a decent read, but I’m not sure if I’ll pick up book two.

Just finished The God and the Gumiho by Sophie Kim, and I have mixed feelings about it. The premise—a fallen trickster god teaming up with a shapeshifting fox to hunt down a demon—had a lot of potential. The urban fantasy setting in 1990s South Korea was a unique touch, and the blend of Korean mythology added an intriguing layer to the story.

The characters, Seokga and Hani, had a fun dynamic, and their banter kept things interesting. However, I felt the plot was a bit predictable at times, and the pacing could have been tighter. While the world-building was rich, it occasionally felt overwhelming, and I found myself skimming through some sections.

Overall, it was an enjoyable read, but not without its flaws. If you're a fan of K-dramas and urban fantasy, you might find it more engaging than I did. For me, it was a solid 3 out of 5 stars.

The God and the Gumiho took me by surprise, it was an absolute hit for me. I was hooked right away and the mystery element mixed with Korean folklore was the cherry on top.

The variety of creatures roaming the mortal world was fascinating and the dynamic between the main characters was everything i didn't know i was looking for. The world building was great and easy to understand.

It was such a pleasant surprise and i cannot wait to see what happens next!

I was so surprised by this book! Had me hooked from the first chapter, great world building that was so easy to understand, lovable characters. The relationship between hani and seogka was so believable and while I found some of the twists a little predictable. I loved every second and cannot wait for more!

Rating: 3 stars

This book wasn’t exactly set up to be my cup of tea. I realised a little too late that it’s technically a detective story, and I’m usually not a fan of those. The plot centres around Seokga, a god who works as a detective, and Hani, who joins him as his assistant. Both characters were quite mean at the start, especially to each other, which made it hard for me to get into the story. Thankfully, they mellowed out later on.

Even though the plot and characters definitely made me rate this book lower than other readers potentially would, I do feel the story wasn’t very strong and often seemed far fetched. Especially Seokga having seemingly worked as a detective for a while, not picking up on the clues sooner. I’d have even liked his POV chapters to show he was thinking about things even if he wasn’t voicing them out loud.

Despite not enjoying the story overall, by the end, the characters had grown on me, and I ended up loving their romance. That said, the romance did feel a bit rushed but their chemistry was strong that I didn’t mind too much.

Despite my mixed feelings, I’m interested enough to check out the sequel and see where the story goes. So, while this one wasn’t a standout read for me, it was still worth it. And, who knows, the next book might just win me over completely with this series.

I've been in a bit of reading slump lately and I absolutely loved this book. I loved the dynamic between the characters and found the plot to be quite compelling. The book somehow managed to pull of being both cozy fantasy and suspenseful read. Highly recommend.

I love a good mystery! I also loved that the main character was seasoned to the urban fantasy setting. A really well constructed and interesting book! Thank you for my copy!

Sadly ,I've had to do a soft dnf for now and come back to the book in the future. I think the writing was very good. Based on what I've read so far I would still recommend this to people I know would love this type of story.

*Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton | Hodderscape for providing me with this ebook in exchange for an honest review*


Ok give me EVERYTHING about Gumiho's and you can have my unborn child. I'm kidding, but you got the point. This was an AMAZING book that I couldn't put down. It's really fast pacing without boring you or confuse you and I was hooked from page 1. I can't wait to read the second book. Is it 2025 yet?

Reading this book was an absolute blast. As far as I’m concerned, it’s in my top 5 of the year.
The story hooked me right away; the dynamic between the protagonists couldn’t have been clearer from the first chapter. And honestly, when they throw coffee at each other (literally) on page 3, I was already sold. The mystery element intertwined with Korean mythology and folklore, featuring various creatures roaming the mortal world, was fascinating, but it’s the two protagonists who inevitably steal the show.
Hani, a sassy nine-tailed fox with a past that’s, let’s say, not exactly spotless, and Seokga, a deity forced to live among mortals after attempting to usurp his brother’s throne.
The book progresses at the pace of their banter, the trail of corpses they come across, and the unhealthy coffee addiction of our fallen god.
It’s a page-turner, as fast-paced as the sharp wit the protagonists throw at each other, yet introspective when the story demands it.
By the finale, I think I screamed a couple of times, and while I was expecting a, well, Korean ending, I’d say we came out of it pretty well overall

I enjoyed the God and the GUmicho, it took me a little time to get into the story but I am looking forward to the second one being published.

What I enjoyed most was the slow build of the main character's relationship, it was a very believable relationship growth and change with both heartfelt and amusing, witty moments.

as the title mentioned, this book is about a fallen trickster god and an infamous gumiho. it was interesting at first: the god, Seokga, worked as a detective to catch the unrulies until his emperor brother pardon him and allow him back to the heaven. and the gumiho, Hani, is a barista who hates coffee and was notorious for killing men back in the days, but has retired from that life. they couldn't stand each other. but then Hani killed some men again out of self defense, Seokga thought that the Scarlet Fox is back and wanted to track her. panicked, Hani decided to became his assistant to led his investigation astray.

the banter at the beginning was really amusing. i love Somi, she's a mood haha. but as the story went by i found it felt dragging, and i was eventually bored. the romance progression felt a little odd for me, too. like one moment they despised each other and the next they wanted each other. by the time the story reached its climax, i didn't care much about anything. and the ending was underwhelming.