Beasts of a Little Land by Juhea Kim

Beasts of a Little Land by Juhea Kim – 416 pages 

ARC from Ecco Books for a honest review 

Book Blurb:

Beasts of a Little Land: An epic story of love, war, and redemption set against the backdrop of the Korean independence movement, following the intertwined fates of a young girl sold to a courtesan school and the penniless son of a hunter. In 1917, deep in the snowy mountains of occupied Korea, an impoverished local hunter on the brink of starvation saves a young Japanese officer from an attacking tiger. In an instant, their fates are connected—and from this encounter unfolds a saga that spans half a century.
In the aftermath, a young girl named Jade is sold by her family to Miss Silver’s courtesan school, an act of desperation that will cement her place in the lowest social status. When she befriends an orphan boy named JungHo, who scrapes together a living begging on the streets of Seoul, they form a deep friendship. As they come of age, JungHo is swept up in the revolutionary fight for independence, and Jade becomes a sought-after performer with a new romantic prospect of noble birth. Soon Jade must decide whether she will risk everything for the one who would do the same for her.

My Review: 4 stars

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Beasts of a Little Land by Juhea Kim is a saga about family, war, desperation and the many threads of fate that bring people together. The cover of this book grabbed me at first sight; it’s a work of art and I’m glad the story inside proved worthy of its imagery. 

There is a lot going on in this story and many characters with similar names. I wished my copy had a name guide in it. Perhaps the finished copy has one, but this paperback ARC (advanced reader copy) did not. 

The main female character, Jade, was the one I rooted for from the start. As girls are sold for rice and becoming a courtesan is their end goal, my heart broke. Her journey, as were many, was overshadowed by the Japanese control over Korea. I learned so much about Korea and its tumultuous time as it fought for independence. Jung Ho, the main male character, was an orphan that held Jade’s heart. I very much enjoyed their struggle to be together. 

There were many different plot lines running through the book and the author was able to bring them all together by the end. The writing was smooth, however the pacing ebbed and flowed, and there were times I wanted it to pick up. This is definitely a worthy book and I was incredibly shocked to learn it was a debut. I’ll for sure continue to watch for what’s next from this author. 

Quotes I liked:

Fuck war, fuck loneliness. Stay alive.”

“The concept of a nation is a pure construct. It serves to hold up our reality, we need it for government et cetera, but it is neither self-evident nor natural, and becomes more meaningless when you think of it in historical context.”