From bone-chilling murder mystery to pure fantastical horror that will send shivers down your spine, here are 5 Korean horror/thriller books that are nothing but perfect for your Halloween TBR!
1. “The Hole” by Pyun HyeYoung, translated by Sora Kim-Russell
A claustrophobic masterpiece, Pyun HyeYoung’s “The Hole” tells the story of a man who loses his wife in a fatal accident and goes into a coma himself. After waking up, he is left paralyzed with no one to take care of him except for his grieving mother-in-law. On the surface, there’s not much more to it than this, but that is until his mother-in-law starts digging up the eponymous hole in his wife’s garden, claiming to finish what she started. An unknown fear crawls under his skin, and his helplessness is devastating, to say the least. The fear you’ll experience while reading this book is going to be entirely cerebral, and you’re going to love every second of it.
2. “The Good Son” by Jeong YouJeong, translated by Kim ChiYoung
26-year-old Han YuJin’s life is turned upside down when he wakes up one morning to discover his mother lying in a pool of blood. However, contrary to the reaction you’d expect in such a situation, YuJin grapples with the possibility that he could have been behind his mother’s heinous murder. With a mental condition that renders him unable to trust his own memory, Han YuJin is the unreliable narrator of every mystery reader’s dreams. “The Good Son” he will keep you on your toes until the very end, and rest assured, it’s not over until it’s over.
3. “Flowers of Mold” by Ha SeongNan, translated by Janet Hong
If you prefer short stories over novels, Ha SeongNan’s “Flowers of Mold” is going to be right up your alley for a Halloween read. Set in a surreal yet horrific dream-like haze, each story will leave you staring into the abyss. You’re not going to be able to put this book down, and once you’re done, you’ll want to go back and re-read it, just in case you missed something. It is also an excellently nuanced commentary on modernity in South Korea through a caustic lens. As for the nightmares, Ha SeongNan makes sure they’re unforgettable.
4. “Cursed Bunny” by Bora Chung, translated by Anton Hur
Another collection of short stories, “Cursed Bunny” by Bora Chung, translated by Anton Hur, has been shortlisted for the 2022 International Booker Prize. If that does not speak volumes of its impeccable value, we don’t know what will! This book deftly combines elements of magical realism, horror, and science fiction to transform the mundane into the grotesque, highlighting the cruelties that emerge in the human psyche and disperse into society at large. This book is horror at its finest and ugliest, and you do not want to miss it.
5. “The Plotters” by Kim UnSu, translated by Sora Kim-Russell
A far cry from the aforementioned suggestions, “The Plotters” by Kim UnSu, translated by Sora Kim-Russell, is a gritty, character-driven crime thriller surrounding hit-men who work for shadowy power figures called “plotters”. Our central protagonist is Reseng, a contract killer who steps out of line and seeks to end the vicious cycle of mindless killing. This book has a little bit of everything - suspense, tragedy, philosophy, and a dash of unlikely humour that works miraculously in pacing the narrative. Kim UnSu masters noir in this novel like no other, and it is definitely a must-read. Do you like Korean books? Which of the above books intrigued you the most? Tell us in the comments section down below! Get Into The Fall Spirit With These 7 K-Dramas KDRAMA STORIES|Sep 19, 2022
