Firstly thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the advanced copy of this book .

I have read a few Korean translated fiction books and the is one was just ok for me . Felt a bit basic so maybe a YA genre as opposed to adult fiction . It’s not a bad book just not for me sadly .

I received an early copy of this and I found it sweet and enjoyable. I feel there is an increasing genre of cozy Japanese and Korean books and I feel that this fits into the camp. Its storyline is different enough to definitely worth a read and I would be interested in further books by this author.

Unfortunately this is not the best entry in the long series of feel-good books from Japan and Korea. The novel is highly formulaic, the main character has no depth or real interests, and normally I wouldn't want to really have any villains or fight in my cosy reading at all. Although the idea sounded interesting initially, I found the book meandering and unengaging, and the ending of it painfully obvious. Overall not the worst book, and I'm always grateful for a chance to read a translated work.

I've never read a Korean book before, and I really enjoyed the hints of Korean culture, interwoven into the plot. The magical storyline is beautifully developed and made me feel nolstagic for my childhood reads of "The magic faraway tree" by Enid Blynton and studio glibli creatures. I did feel that it was designed for a younger audience than it has been marketed for, but reading it as a nolstagia style read, I felt it was a heart-warming comforting read, even if I did get frustrated with the pacing at times.

It is a book I can imagine reading to my daughter when she gets older; it's a story of self-discovery, of magic, and being independent. I think we'd really enjoy exploring those topics together, whilst helping her broaden her horizons on other cultures outside of our own.

There are some plot holes, that I felt could be developed further, but doesn't take away from the magic of the book, if you approach it as a young adult read. I've rated it 3 stars - it's not a read personally for me, but I would enjoy reading it to my daughter.

For this review I'm going to bear in mind that as this a Korean book that it has been translated into English for the version I read and that could affect how the writing comes across.
I enjoyed the premise of the book as a short, lighthearted adventure of a girl who is unhappy with her current life and is presented the chance to change it, the characters were fun to imagine and the world did intrigue me into wanting more.
It feels like it hasn't decided if it's written as a teen or YA book, the plot took it nearer to YA but the writing and length kept it feeling teen like. It would have been better kept simpler marketed towards a younger audience or had more time spent on it to make it a bigger YA story. Certain plot points like the sister being missing felt like they could have been left out as it served no real purpose and raised more questions than answers were given to what happened, the book needed to be longer and more fleshed out to incorporate that into the plot properly. There are plot holes and things don't entirely make sense but if you approach the read as a simple, light one they can be overlooked and the story enjoyed for what it is.
Overall I did enjoy this book, the plot and the characters but more time needed to be spent figuring out who it was written for and checking what was actually essential for the story.

The cover of this book was the reason for my request, I loved the cover art and the mystery.

I really enjoyed the initial world building and understand of serins childhood growing up, I did struggle with the mothers behaviour, she just seemed so unbothered about the disappearance of her daughter (s), house up for eviction and even serin being up all night studying and her just going to sleep. I loved the concept of the stories being shared to receive a golden ticket.

I believe that this book would do well in schools for a YA genre, even used as school curriculum I did feel that the book was intended for younger audiences as opposed to general fiction.


*Thank you to NetGalley & Michael Joseph penguin random house for the opportunity to read and review this ARC*

The story follows Serin, a young girl (it’s not clear how old she is ) receives a golden ticket to the magical Rainfall Market. Here, she can trade her current life for a new one, hoping to find the perfect existence. As Serin tries out different lives—ranging from a spot at her dream university to having lots of money—she learns that these things don't guarantee happiness.

This book is perfect for teens and adults. It's written in a simple, easy-to-read style. If you love magical stories such as the Before the Coffee Gets Cold series then I’m sure you'll enjoy The Rainfall Market.

The Rainfall Goblin Market appears during the rainy season and allows guests to exchange lives for better ones. Serin a young girl, who hopes for a better life receives a golden ticket to the market.

I liked the social commentary throughout that no one is ever happy with what they have, and that even someone who had that ‘ideal life’, was still at the Market wanting a better life. Serin also wishes in, I suppose the ‘right’ order for the social commentary to progress, from something small like a place at her dream university (so is she older?) to freedom to money. At each instance seeing why having that kind of life might not make her happy. The subplot with the Goblins was confusing mainly as it all came to play in the later chapters, but it does play into the social commentary aspect of the novel.

The premise was great although I think the execution was a bit confusing, in the being you find that Serin is reeling from the loss of her sister and yet, Yerin is younger despite Serin readings as though she is twelve? I’m not sure if Serin is then older towards the late teens. Serins choices and mentality throughout the novel scream young. Also, I’m not sure if the premise or the cover said anything about Goblins?

I'm not entirely sure who the target demographic is for this book, I think it's marketed as a General Fiction (Adult) but I do think it's primarily Teens & YA and that's solely because of the writing style and the lack of in depth social commentary which makes this more suited to a younger audience, so because of that I've reviewed this as if The Rainfall Market was a YA book.

Thank you to Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House, You Yeong-Gwang and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and MichaelJoseph for the arc.
I’ve found this book quite difficult to review. It’s a short, simple, sweet read, but I finished the book feeling unsatisfied and wondering who the target audience is. It seems to be being marketed for adults but the writing style suggests it should be aimed more at YA or Middle-Grade readers.
The story follows a teenager called Serin who is dissatisfied with her life and goes on a quest to the magical RainFall Market to find an alternative life for herself. The novel gives distinct Studio Ghibli or Lonely Castle in The Mirror vibes but is much more superficial and two-dimensional in the way it portrays both the characters and the magical world that Serin encounters. It definitely feels like both the story and the translation need tightening up and further editing as there are some sections, particularly towards the beginning of the book where the continuity seems to jump around all over the place. A pleasant read but with a bit more work it could be a lot better.

Thank you to NetGalley for sending on an advanced copy for review. All opinions are my own. Books filled with magical realism are a perfect form of escapism. The rainfall market is a place for those that wish to change their life. I mean that in a literal sense. One needs an invitation to attend this market where you can have the chance to pick a different life for yourself. We follow Serin as she looks for the perfect life for herself by trying them out before she commits. Unfortunately, you can only stay in the market until the rain stops and time is running out. The vibes are similar to ‘Alice in Wonderland’ and ‘Spirited Away’. This book is perfect for those that want to immerse themselves in a compelling world filled with magic, mystical creatures, and second chances. This book reminded me of the books ‘Before the Coffee gets Cold’, ‘The Cat who Saved Books’ and ‘DallerGut Dream Department Store’.

I couldn’t get into this book, as much as I tried I just couldn’t. It’s just not a book personally for me. Thank you for the opportunity to let me read it though, I really appreciate it.

It’s a simple premise, it doesn’t do anything shocking or special, but it’s a great little novella if you want to curl up with a drink on the sofa and read something Ghibli-esque.

A wonderful story which follows a misfortunate young girl who longs for a new life.
In this short novel, we are introduced to Kim Serin, a girl who struggles with poverty, the loss of her sister and the approaching demolition of her home. But when she hears about the magical Rainfall Market, where strange creatures offer to buy your misfortune and give you a new life, she discovers a way to escape her problems. I loved that the author drew on Korean myths about the Dokkaebi (or Goblins as they are sometimes called in other media) for this novel. These almost human creatures can be unsettling which reminded me of the Fae in English folklore. Indeed, in many ways The Rainfall Market is a fairytale like Christina Rossetti’s ‘Goblin Market’ about a girl wondering into a strange new world. Just like in Rossetti’s story, Serin is also in more danger than she thinks.
I was briefly confused by how modern the market was (in fact, Serin walks into a kind of disco when she first arrives) but quickly charmed by the setting. I thought it was quite sweet and funny that this magical place had a pawnshop, information desk and a guidebook.
The pacing of the novel was also really good! I liked how quickly we entered the market and got into the action of the plot.
However, I did think that Serin read like quite a young character considering the fact that she’s supposed to be in Secondary School. Maybe it was the translation, but the style of writing could also be a bit simple and juvenile at times
I would recommend this book to people who love fairytale retelling, stories about journeying into a mysterious, hidden world and anyone interested in learning a bit about Korean mythology.

Thanks to Netgalley for the arc. Ahhhh this was so cosy and heartwarming. Loved every aspect of it! Neeeeeed more.

Took a while to get into, I can't put my finger on why exactly, it might be more to do with my state of mind but once I got into it I was on holiday and began to enjoy it more, and as it was a short novel it didn't take too long to finish, The book has been translated to English from the authors native language and I think perhaps it lost some the nuance, as it was written quite simplistically and I think would be better aimed specifically to a YA audience. A sweet and cosy story, following Serin who has a pretty miserable homelife as she gains access to a magical market...

Expect sweet adventures, little side plots and everything being wrapped up neatly in the conclusion,
3 stars

I absolutely adored this. A fabulous little treasure, full of love and friendship with a whole host of life lessons to take away. Sometimes we have to acknowledge that life isn't about the money, that what we wish for isn't always what's best for us, and that the relationships we build can take us further than we realise. So beautifully told!

A light Ghibliesque tale for fans of East Asian whimsy

Reminiscent of Sophie's World but with far less philosophy, The Rainfall Market is an odd duck: not quite an adult's book and not really a children's book despite the young main character, but it introduces to literary fiction the classical dokkaebi (in Korean 도깨비), a more traditional version than the one K-drama fans will know from Gong Yoo's starring turn.

In a series of episodic adventures, teenager Serin navigates a mysterious realm where she can sample new lives before accepting the one she wants. From a poor home, Serin has few chances in life and so she grasps at this lottery, but as she lurches from one comic situation to the next, she experiences things that might be better than her own wishes. But what will she ultimately choose?

The mysteries in the book are relatively easy to make out, and Serin's ultimate choice was always going to be the one that Dorothy makes. Tied in a nice neat bow, I think that this book will have less to say to British/Western readers than it did to South Korean ones, where this is almost a perfect reflection of their competitive society: where social advancement relies on students (or, rather, their families) being able to afford additional tuition, and getting good jobs on being from the right school or knowing the right alumnus.

It's fine for what it is, but what is it exactly? The magic is too light to be fantasy, the coming-of-age themes are barely resolved, and the peril is mild to say the least. I wanted more, and read the whole of the slight book waiting for the story to shift a gear, but it never did, staying at a steady pace throughout.

The Rainfall Market by Yeong-Gwang You is a Korean bestselling fantasy that has just been translated to English - but unfortunately reads more like a cute middle book than a bestselling adult fantasy. This one gets 3⭐️ from me but if marketed as a middle grade book would easily get 4⭐️+. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Penguin Michael Joseph, for the ARC.

Seren is pretty miserable. She's dirt poor, has no friends, is struggling academically, she and her mum are facing potential homelessness, her father isn't around and her younger sister has run away from home. To top it off, she was even mortified in front of everyone at taekwondo training. So when she reads about the mysterious Rainfall Market where she can trade her misfortune for a bright new life, she send a letter detailing everything that's wrong with her life in exchange for a ticket. On the first day of the rainy season she enters the market... and has until the end of the rain to find the fortune she wants to trade for. But there's something else afoot at the Market, and it's tracking her down...

So let me start by saying that I'm a big fan of Korean media - I love Korean webnovels and manhwa as well as animation and K-dramas. So I was really excited to read this, and really grateful to NetGalley and the publisher for approving my ARC request. And I really hate that I have to be negative, especially to kick off , but I need to get this out there first.

Unfortunately, despite being marketed as an adult fantasy (and an adult bestseller in Korea too), this absolutely does not read like adult fantasy. The vocabulary is basic, the sentence structure is simplistic, and the description of characters and setting is incredibly limited. And I was so excited to hear description of a Rainfall Market, that name evokes so many ideas and emotions - but all I know about it even now is that none of the buildings looked the same.

The main character is childish and immature - she's meant to be nearing university age but reads more like 10-14 years old, which is the opposite of what you'd think a girl with her background would be like. The mistakes she makes are frustrating and unconsidered: she's very narrow-minded and hyper-focused on her future job as her new fortune, when you'd expect an 18 year old living a tough life would be thinking a bit more deeply about their future even before getting the ticket to the market. And we get told a lot rather than shown, especially early in the book.

All that being said, I suspect it's possibly an issue with the translation, rather than the source. I suspect we lose some of the whimsy and magic from the original Korean, because there are hints of it there, particularly in the characters of the Dokkaebi, the magical humanoid Market-dwellers with their odd, magical little businesses (I absolutely loved them, and I can see how these characters would absolutely make a middle grade fantasy novel).

The other character I loved was Issha. I'm a sucker for a magical pet sidekick, and Issha the magical cat spirit guide delivered on that big time. He was very cute and I loved the importance of his role developing throughout the book, although the epilogue was fairly predictable early on.

This was a quick, cute, light read that I did get into enough to want to see how it ended - but Serin was never really compelling as an adult or even YA protagonist, and the lack of description really ripped out what could have been the vibrant heart of this story. Furthermore, as an adult, it came across too preachy with the clear lesson it was meant to teach. If I was reading this to my child, I'd rate it a solid 4/4.5⭐️, but targeted as adult fantasy I just can't rate it that highly. But there's also a lot to like here, so I'm feeling quite conflicted over this one.

This book is for you if you're a middle grade fantasy reader, and enjoyed the likes of Kiki's Delivery Service.

After reading this, I still can’t figure out who the target audience is. The writing is plain and simple and while that opens the range of readership, adult readers who enjoyed the culture and intricacy of translated fiction might find this bland. In the end, I decided to rate this as if it was geared toward the same audience as Kiki’s Delivery Service by Eiko Kadono. Considering the factors I’m about to outline, I hypothesize that this might land best with a middle grade audience.

What worked for me:
• This book has a beautiful, atmospheric, and inviting cover
• It starts strongly with a good hook that made me excited to see where the story would take me
• I genuinely loved everything about Issha

Before we get into what didn’t work for me, I’d like to caveat my thoughts: I read this book as an adult reader who loves magical, slice-of-life translation books and this feedback is based on that context. If this book was pitched as a middle-grade book, many of these points might cease to be the issues I found them to be.

What didn’t work for me:
• At first, I got Spirited Away vibes from this but the world-building wasn’t as rich as I’d hoped and there wasn’t a strong sense of place at the Rain Market as I’d hoped there’d be.
• Serin wasn’t a very interesting character. At first, I thought she was around ten but she has to be closer to 18 given how preoccupied she was with university and jobs. She came across as a bit whiny and far younger than I think she was supposed to be.
• I didn’t like how boring and job-centric Serin’s orb wishes were. She was simplistic, narrow-minded, and too specific with her wishes which was frustrating. Why didn’t Serin ask for something that would solve her problems now rather than trying to guess what would make her happy as an adult? It was frustrating that she didn’t give it a little thought before going to the Market. The heavy handed-handed morality lesson didn’t work in the context of an adult book.
• The scenes in the Orbs were very cynical and seemed to only show the worst-case outcomes? This is acknowledged but never addressed.
• Plotholes: for example, (spoilers removed)
• Overall, I felt the book lacked the heart of books in the arena of adult, magical, Korean translations like The Dallergut Dreams Department Store
• Since the sense of place and time wasn’t fleshed out, and Serin and the Dokkaebi used a lot of British spelling and phrases, it felt more British than Korean.
• There was a bit of desperation in the author’s note that made me feel slightly uncomfortable giving honest feedback about this book.

This book was listed as an adult fantasy for which I’d rate it a 2.5. However, as a middle-grade book, it’s is a solid 4/5. If Rainfall Market is targeted at the correct group, I think it will do well.

I was privileged to have my request to read this book accepted through NetGalley. Thank you, Michael Joseph!

An enchanting fantasy about a magical market where people can exchange their trauma for a brand new life. Simple, fast paced with a clever premise, it reads more as middle grade than YA with very simplistic writing, although perhaps this is due to the translation. An easy read but nothing groundbreaking. Great cover too.