The Water Stricken

In this gripping prequel to Third Moon Passing unfolds a tale of murders and missionaries, religion and race, love and war, and an unlikely friendship that transcends the realms of life and death.

Joseon Korea, 1866: the new prince-regent and his ruthless government have recently launched a crackdown on the spread of Catholicism, triggering panic across the peninsula amid rumors of French retaliation. As executions double in number, a young concubine, Hwangbo Pyori, is discovered dead in a ravine, having been killed on her wedding night. When Pyori's restless ghost returns to Haedong Village to find her murderer, she joins forces with the only person who can see her: Narae, a damo who doubles as an undercover Catholic obsessed with ending tensions between Korea and France. As they grapple with each new clue that raises more questions than answers, and struggle to navigate the increasingly murky intersections between faiths amidst bloody battles, the girls face a deadly question: your country, or your religion?

With its evocative prose and intricate plot, The Water Stricken is a mesmerizing tale that delves into the complexities of faith, identity, and sacrifice in a time of turmoil.

Rina Olsen was born in 2007 in Tokyo, Japan, to an ethnically-
Korean mother and an American father. When she was four, her

family moved to Guam, where the variety of cultures and people
greatly shaped her writing. A 2024 alum of the YoungArts program,
the Iowa Young Writers’ Studio, the Adroit Journal Summer
Mentorship Program, and the John Locke Institute Summer School,
she has been recognized by the Sejong Cultural Society, the Walt
Whitman Birthplace Association, the Carl Sandburg Home, and
Guam History Day. When she isn’t writing, Rina can be found
playing the piano, looking up obscure history, or with her nose
buried in a good book. Find more at http://rinaolsen.com.