Right, first and foremost this book brought me such pure unadulterated joy.

The God and the Gumiho follows our 2 main POVs, firstly we have Seokga the fallen god of mischief, turned detective who must send 20,000 souls to Jeoseung to atone for his past crimes and then Hani, a Gumiho, named 'the Scarlet Fox' renowned for killing over 500 men in London in 1888 (oooft) Both our main characters find themselves teaming up when a demon starts terrorising the city thus hilarity and all the good stuff follow!

I loved both characters SO much, Hani was a chaotic ball of morally grey cuteness with a heart of actual gold (deep down...DEEP down) and Seokga was an actual touch starved grumpy mess and I love him. Combine them both together and just ***heart eyes*** The world Kim has created and the characters are all so enjoyable - I'll admit I wasn't without a few eye rolls as Hanis' decisions and actions but honestly made sense for her and she is just a whole vibe.

The second I finished it I went to try and find special editions of the book because I NEEDED TO OWN IT! One thing I will say is I hadn't realised it was the start of a series, but honestly, I think it actually really works well as a standalone.

3.5 rounded up

Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for providing me with an E-Arc of this book in exchange for an honest review!

I'll be honest and say I was not feeling this book for the first few chapters. I found myself not really enjoying the writing style at first, which is my own personal preference, and I didn't feel fully engaged in the story for a while.

This absolutely changed as the story went on. Sophie Kim has done an amazing job at weaving together Korean myth and fantasy to a more modern setting. She kept certain aspects, like how the magical creatures stay hidden from the mortal world, simple but effective, and it really allowed her to focus on the more prominent parts of her worldbuilding. The culture around the gods was entertaining, and the ease at which she explained each creatures features/roles in their magical society made it easy to become immersed.

I also really liked each of the main characters! To me, the romance itself felt a little rushed, but that could be because I definitely have a preference for something a little more slowburn, but by the end of the novel I felt so invested in them that it didn't matter to me in the long run. I do wish they'd had a bit more emotional vulnerability before they were thirsting over each other (lol) but, as I said, by the end of the book I was really rooting for them. I actually really enjoyed the bittersweet ending. <spoiler>It definitely would have felt like a cop-out if the two of them had been allowed to freely walk into the sunset together, and Seokga having to lower himself to begging really sold how committed they were to each other. It would be interesting to see how the relationship plays out in the future with reincarnation in the mix, especially if her gender is different and how Hani's different life experience influences her in her new life, or what form she'll take in a magical sense.</spoiler>

Hani herself was entertaining as a main character, morally dubious at times but easy to understand and root for, and it was lovely to see Seokga soften and open up over the course of the book.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book, and I'll definitely be picking up the next in the series!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy. Put simply this is everything a romantasy should be. A fantastic combination of well written characters, a compelling plot and immersive world building, this book hits on all levels..

First of all I’d like to thank the publisher and netgalley for granting me a free e-arc in exchange for an honest review!

I fear I will be unable to be normal about this book for the foreseeable future, i’m sorry in advance for the amount of fangirling I will be doing in this review. I have to admit I was definitely in a reading slump when I started this, but around the 25% mark, I felt like it just grabbed me by my arms and quite literally dragged me out of my slump swamp.

I was a bit hesitant going into it though, partly due to the fact that I was hardcore slumping. But another big factor was that it was this whole new world with a big amount of creatures that i’d never heard of before. Werewolves ? I was obsessed. Vampires? Been there done that. But truth betold, the only name that rung a bell to me while reading was ‘’guhimo’’ and the others were just a big blur. But I can proudly say that after finishing this book that i’m never going back to plain old vampires and werewolves. The author had this beautiful way of explaining the different realms and creatures that inhabit those realms without it ever feeling like a straight up info dump.

Don’t even get me started about the two main characters. I love them, I am in awe of them. I may have adopted them as my 2 chaotic children. (let’s just forget they’re more than a thousand years older than me). The only thing that I kind of struggled with is that the switch from ‘’enemies’’ to friends and then to lovers felt a bit sudden to me. Could be because of the fact that I literally read 90% of this book within one day, so i’m not letting it impact my rating in any kind of way.

I can yap on for so much longer about this brilliant novel, but I’m thinking that you all should just pick this up when it comes out, so you can see for yourself what an amazing world this author has created!!!

I think I can safely say this is one of my favorite reads of 2024 so far!! 5/5 without a doubt

Thank you NetGalley and HodderBooks for a copy of this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review ♡

What can I say..... its like a fantasy k-drama with the best tropes.

This was such a wonderful story and I didn't want it to finish! Kim Hani is a legend of a gumiho (a nine-tailed fox) who has been in hiding since her rampage in London in 1888. We also meet Seokga (a fallen god, the god of mischief and chaos, who is hell bent on getting back home to his rightful place among the gods).

The world building is great, there were a few times I had to research some of the creatures mentioned but that is only because I am not familiar with South Korean myth and lore, but it was incredibly interesting to look at and read into. Definitely a realm in which I want to read more books that have this lore in.

The relationship between the two main characters is both hilarious and captivating. The banter between the two is funny and real, and I just loved it.

There better be a second book right? Because those last few chapters ruined me.

♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡ ♡

3.5 Stars

The best way to describe this book is as a k-drama in book format. So if you enjoy romance (and fantasy) K-Dramas, this is for you!

This book is set in a fictitious Korean city called New Sinsi in 1992. If follows two main characters: Seogka, the fallen god of deception, who lost his god status after an unsuccessful coup against his brother and emperor of the gods Hwanin, and Hani, a very old gumiho (nine-tailed fox) who once was the most wanted creature in the whole city and is now a barista (overstuffed with souls and livers) at a local coffee shop, even though she hates coffee.

Seogka hates everything about the mortal world, except coffee. The two eventually meet in the café where Hani works and their personalities immediately clash.

Seogka needs to hunt down all the creatures he unleashed in his coup. The plot follows a normal mystery: several murders occur and our main characters try to find out what happened through different clues and try to stop demon of darkness invades the city shedding more blood. As Seokga is trying to find the notorious Scarlet Fox, who struck again, unknowingly that it is Hani, she applies to be Seogka's assistant in order to throw him off her scent. But with a bigger threat looming in the horizon, they have to join forces. 

This was a nice, easy read. It read like a lighter K-drama with a lot of fantastical elements and interesting characters. The interactions were funny and I liked their background stories. But I have to be honest: I enjoyed the romance at first, I found it cute, but then it became way to Tropey and the interactions became forced. I liked how the romance was developing between the characters, but at the same time it was way too many tropes being forced on the story. To name some:
Enemies to lovers, grumpy x sunshine, only one bed, morally grey MC, assistant to the “bad guy”, at some point they become roommates…
For me it was to much. I liked the bunter and different personalities, but the tropes made it less interesting and original, as if we were just checking boxes in the romance category.

Still a very enjoyable read overall though. I would love to see more of the gods as well if there is ever a continuation.

Thank you so much to Hodder & Stoughton and NetGallery for providing me this ARC.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5 | ARC review

this was SO much fun. i’m crossing all my appendages that i get off the Fairyloot waitlist so I can get the SE of this one!

here me out: if you liked Crescent City, enjoyed Disney’s Zootropolis, and police procedural dramas: you’re going to love this. (& if you have read this and loved it, i recommend Zootropolis lol) A big reason why all of the above are a win for me is because there’s an element of detective work, usually a slow burn, enemies-to-friends-to-lovers relationship, and fun side characters that build our MC’s personalities, & this book is no exception!

I adored watching our 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 morally grey fallen god & gumiho grow and develop their friendship first & foremost. romances are so much more believable to me when they’re friends first and i love the innocence of growing to love your bestie 🥲

secondly, although predictable to me, the detective, cat and mouse aspect to the story kept me really engaged. thirdly, korean folklore/mythology is a fairly new genre to me and i adored learning about these fantastical creatures.

ultimately, watching our MCs go from: “𝕐𝕠𝕦𝕣 𝕘𝕠𝕕 𝕔𝕠𝕞𝕡𝕝𝕖𝕩 𝕙𝕒𝕤 𝕘𝕠𝕥𝕥𝕖𝕟 𝕠𝕝𝕕,” 𝕤𝕙𝕖 𝕤𝕟𝕖𝕖𝕣𝕤. “𝕊𝕖𝕖𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕒𝕤 𝕪𝕠𝕦’𝕣𝕖 𝕟𝕠𝕥 𝕠𝕟𝕖 𝕒𝕟𝕪𝕞𝕠𝕣𝕖.” to: “𝕎𝕖’𝕝𝕝 𝕤𝕖𝕖 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕞𝕠𝕣𝕟𝕚𝕟𝕘,” 𝕊𝕖𝕠𝕜𝕘𝕒 𝕨𝕙𝕚𝕤𝕡𝕖𝕣𝕤 𝕒𝕘𝕒𝕚𝕟𝕤𝕥 𝕙𝕖𝕣 𝕝𝕚𝕡𝕤. “𝕎𝕖’𝕝𝕝 𝕤𝕖𝕖 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕕𝕒𝕨𝕟.” had me in a chokehold until 3am last night.

-thank you to Netgalley & Hodder Books for the ARC!-

I thoroughly enjoyed the whole premise of this book. The settings were vibrant, the characters were all loveable in their own ways, and the inclusion of myth and folklore were brilliant. The writing flowed well, and the plot was fun, even with some coincidental bumps along the way.

It was fun to see an early reveal into who Hani was, how she planned to deal with it and then another trouble was thrown in, forcing our endearing main characters to be together. I'm very open and looking forward to a sequel, whether it continues with Hani and Seokga, or moves onto others in the story.

The only downside to this was that I did find it a bit difficult to engage with the abundance of Korean myth folk, purely because I wasn't 100% sure on how to pronounce their names, or were able to imagine what they looked like. It didn't take too much away from the whole book itself, but they weren't memorable.

Definitely for lovers of kdrama, urban fantasy and mysteries!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6414639881

As a recent convert to K-dramas, I thought I'd try a K-novel, and it didn't disappoint - supernatural romance galore, lots of fun and lots of tugging on the heartstrings. Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

Wow, just wow!
This was one of my most anticipated reads, and it did not disappoint!
If ypu like korean culture, K dramas and the grumpy/sunshine trope this is definitely for you!
Like K dramas, the romance did progress quickly, but for me personally that wasn't a problem, the world was beautifully built, I could almost see myself sitting in the creature cafe, sipping on a iced coffee.
I adored Seokga, and his unapologetic stance, the god of trickery indeed, and Hani was sassy, the ending with what happened had me in tears (no spoilers here!)
Although some of the mysteries were easy to guess, it was still so enjoyable, I really liked the crime aspect, it worked so well, and learning all the korean creatures and gods names was really interesting.
Can't wait to see more from this author.

The God and the Gumiho is shown as a K-Drama in book form, and it really is. The book delivers in its thematic promise, but that was it for me. It was a very fun read with its world-building, especially, and the writing style was quite great. The author does transport you to the world of the story really well. However, the rest was nothing special for me. It was like watching a k-drama one afternoon and continuing to see where it leads. But I didn't really like the leads, which was a bummer. It was, still, a fun read.

thank you to netgalley, the publisher and author for this arc.

4.5 stars.

i. loved. this.

if you know me, you know i love folklore. myths and legends. no matter what culture, it's an aspect of people that's always fascinated me.
going into this, i had no prior knowledge of korean folklore, and i enjoyed googling all the little things i didn't know before. so for that alone, i thank this book for finding me.

the god (seokga—fallen, grumpy, hates everything) and the gumiho (hani—retired murderer, coffee-hater, loves making a certain god's life hell). and i loved them so much. even though i found their romantic arc to be moving a little too fast, they were so fun to watch interact. the way seokga learns to love, not just hani but other people around him (or perhaps he already loved, he just didn't recognize it for what it was). their interactions, the bickering, it was fun.

and i do love me a good murder mystery. 😌

anyways, i quite enjoyed this, and i would for sure read the second book!!

The God and the Gumiho is a Korean contemporary fantasy—which I don't tend to read much of— with a lot of lore taken from Korean mythology, and Oh my, God I loved it so much more than I expected to? The prose was beautiful and witty. Phenomenal. And slightly heartbreaking? I just have a thing for that type of stuff.

Seokga is a grumpy <s>emo boy</s> fallen trickster god trying to redeem himself so he can get his powers back and go home. Hani, the notorious Scarlet Fox, becomes his assistant to prevent him from discovering her true identity and just to annoy the shit out of him. I did find her a tad immature at times, but that's really my only complaint.

Hani and Seokga were snarky, and their banter was immensely entertaining. As someone who's picky about romance, I loved their dynamic. I wish there was more. I see this is a first in a series? I'm not really getting my hopes up for more of them but maybe a spin-off about Somi?

The author's other work, Last of the Talons, has been on my tbr for a while, but now I'm definitely going to check it out.

Unfortunately wasn’t for me. DNF’d at 53% because I felt like the story wasn’t unfolding as quickly as I’d hope and it was more predictable and trope-y than I expected. If you like cozy, K-drama-like romances with some Korean mythology twist then this is for you.

Biggest thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I would like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read and honestly review an advanced reader’s copy of this book.

I’ve been quite burned out by Asian Fantasy lately - I’ve just read too much of it. So when I got this ARC I was worried I wouldn’t enjoy it. Thankfully, that wasn’t the case.

Sophie Kim doesn’t go in hard with the world building; nothing is overly complicated or over explained. I sometimes struggle when I’m given pages and pages of sense world building. The mythology and structure behind this world is simple and straight forward. It’s a simple backdrop for honestly fantastic characters.

Witty and sarcastic Fox Demon vs a grumpy Fallen God, solving mysteries together. Forced proximity making them fall in love despite constantly annoying each other. These characters are so vibrant and their journey through this world felt well paced, and kept me glued to the digital page.

I loved this. I think I needed this to get me out of this slump. Easy 4.5 stars, rounding it uk to 5 because I’m just so fond of these characters.

This was a fun read. It felt more plot driven than I expected for a book with a romance subplot, but the mystery was enjoyable.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I have NO WORDS!!! I'M REELING!!!! THIS BOOK RUINED ME FOR ANY OTHERS! SEOKGA AND HANI JUST STOLE MY HEART AND LEFT! WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO NOW?????? WAIT A YEAR FOR BOOK 2???? WHYYYYY 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

I'll try to write an informative and helpful review, I promise, but I just had to vent a little, too...

The God and the Gumiho is an AMAZING story, inspired by Korean mythology and set in South Korea. /Can you see my heart eyes as I wrote this sentence? Can you feel my heart racing?/ It's told by two POVs, of Seokga's and Hani's.

Seokga is the fallen God, with striking emerald eyes and a striking physique *coughs and swallows* He's also quite grumpy; but he's effortlessly funny while being grumpy. He hates everything except coffee--which is sort of relatable some days... He doesn't feel like he needs manners, which can lead to some seriously funny situations, but he's a very smart and very knowledgeable character. Sure, some dots he refuses to connect because HOT AND EMOTIONAL REASONS, but I just love how competent he is. Did I mention that he's hilariously grumpy? And hot?! I'd be fangirling, too, if I saw him. I may have a thing from grumpy yet soft on the inside characters, who can blame me?!

Hani is our wicked Gumiho who has chosen to leave her glorious days of Gumiho-ing behind. By Gumiho-ing, I mean the whole killing men and eating their livers. *in case you don't know what a Gumiho is!* The funny thing is that it's not because she has had a change of heart, but it's because she's still too full. She's not a villain, but she's not an innocent, either, and I FREAKING LOVED HER! I loved how she perceived reality, how she didn't shy from her nature, and how she didn't apologize for being what and who she is. She didn't make the moral choices all the time lmao, but her choices made sense given her nature and circumstances.

I loved Seokga. I loved Hani. And I loved their character development. Across the story, both of them changed, and by the end, they were different versions of themselves.

The worldbuilding?! I mean, CAN YOU SEE MY HEART EYES?! The author has retold some myths from Korean mythology and weaved the story with Korean words. She did explain them but not in a lecture/wikipedia sort of way. It was so seamlessly woven with the storyline; I have to say, kudos to the author, this was masterfully done!

The plot had its twists and turns. Since we had a crime mystery to solve, too, the author kept us guessing one way or another. I really enjoyed the mystery/detective aspect! PLEASE MORE SUPERNATURAL DETECTIVE STORIES!

Have I said that I LOVE THIS BOOK WITH ALL MY HEART AND SOUL? Because I did. I'm so, so, so utterly in love with this book that I don't know what to do with myself right now. Everything else pales in comparison, and I do type this despite my other ARCs that are glaring at me...

5 stars aren't enough for this book. It's phenomenal!

It's a pick for a monthly box, and I can only say, RENEW, RENEW, RENEW!

I unfortunately could not get attached to this book. I read it but the pay off was not as satisfying.

When it comes to this book's writing, I was laughing along to the plethora of jokes and sarcastic moments and loved the beautiful imagery the author engraved in the book.

But, I was disconnected throughout it's entirety. It was a bit hard for me to pick it up again after I had a reading break, or I had to remind myself the details.

Although, it wasn't for me, I appreciate the numerous Korean mythology elements and I would love to know more about the myths.

The author helped the reader get involved in the doings of the characters so easily in the city and I appreciate the short chapters but also the dual POV.

Reading this book made for an interesting experience because it was like watching a K-drama but in reading. I hope this makes sense, but it was great and I enjoyed it a lot! And not only was it really like watching a K-drama (but with less time expenditure, because usually they have episodes that are at least 1 hour long, and they usually have not less than 12 episodes, sure there are exceptions, but the general lines are like that) but it reminded me strongly of a drama I watched this Autumn: Tale of the Nine Tailed, because these two are quite similar, especially in their strong suit: we see a beautiful variety of creatures from Korean folklore, but while the drama is more on the horror side (light horror, but still a lot of the creatures we see are malevolent, and the first part of the series is creepy too) the book is more on the light side, we have a lot of creatures that are not “good” but we also see others that are more well-disposed towards human, or at least, not malevolent. And if toward the end of the book things become a tad more creepy and tense, the general atmosphere is more… lighthearted. Maybe this is not the right word here, but the book as a whole has a more upbeat vibe than the Tv show.

Comparison aside, this was a really nice book. It is fast-paced and I was intrigued by it, so much so that I devoured it. To be completely honest, around 70% (given or taken) my interest dwindled a bit, even if I can’t really say why, there wasn’t a real reason (if not maybe that we get in the “resolution” part of the story, and it is quite predictable, but not in a bad way), but still, once I was there I just had to keep going and see how things would end so… not bad, not bad at all. And up to that point, I was totally into it!
And there are a lot of things to appreciate in there!

As I was saying before, we have quite the rich world-building. This book is, essentially, an urban-fantasy, and it has its usual pros and cons: the characters usually are the strong suits, the plot is fast-paced, and the world-building is not the priority. And it is true for this one, too, but still, we see a lot of different beings from Korean folklore, there are so many different people/creatures who inhabit these pages. It was beautiful. And interesting, even more so because I am ignorant about all that, and it was nice seeing something new!
I think this was what I appreciated the most in this book. But this is not the only good thing. I really enjoyed the characters, too, and their banter. It helped move the story along, keep the pace up, and keep things funny, as much as it was possible with the plot, that became more complicated and… dark the more it progressed.

Here we have a “hate to love” relationship, and it was well developed. I appreciated it, and this gives us some really nice scenes and banter. It is a really nice book to take a break with, I enjoyed it, a lot, and I was really surprised at how similar the experience was to watching a K-drama. It was so similar that it made me hungry! When I watch a K-drama I am constantly hungry, because they are always eating! (And I know that it sounds strange when an Italian says that, but still… it’s true!). And it was the same with this book. But I am not complaining!

i'm so sorry i had such high expectations for this book and all it did was disappoint. i could not engage with the writing at all and it felt unnecessarily dragging. hani and seokga went from hating each other to loving each other in the span of a second. i felt like i was missing some chapter of their story but no it was just really really abrupt and not well developed at all.