Book Review: The Plotters by Un-su Kim

                                            

 So last year when I wanted to add some translated works to my TBR, I put several audiobooks on hold. They then all started to become available in the past few weeks. So, it looks like I may do better than last year on my books in translation. 

    This is a bit of a hidden gem, I have not heard many people discussing this one, and I found myself to be listening with delight as this Crime noir/thriller unfolded.   It is also a beat the back-list type of novel as it was first published in 2018.  This is one novel that I could see as a television mini-series. 

     So without spoilers- this is a novel about assassins, and the people (or plotters) behind the assassins. Our main character is a likeable, well read young man who was raised unconventionally by Old Raccoon, who is essentially a kingpin in the Assassin world in an alternative by contemporary South Korea.  Our main character follows orders, he pulls triggers when asked, and otherwise lives a quiet and bland life. He is, however, thoughtful, and observant. Eventually he carries out a plan, but doesn't quite follow the instructions to a T, and finds himself privy to a bizarre scheme put into motion by the most unexpected of players. Will he join them, or remain a cog in the machine?  I really was rooting for our main character, because, after all, who can dislike a man with cats named Desk and Lampshade? And He's a man who takes care of those cats. 

  I really loved this one. There's a lot of dark humor, and wry commentary on the state of life in general, the plot has a lot of twists and turns and goes places that I didn't imagine it would. While I did find the ending to be less satisfying than I would have liked, it certainly fit the story. 

The translator is Sora Kim-Russell, and they have done a wonderful wonderful job. Sarcasm, suspense, dry humor, and implied tones are difficult to translate, and I felt that I didn't miss any of that in this novel, it was all there, in spades. 

  Now I've seen people say if you enjoy Han Kang, you'll enjoy this, but I don't think that's necessarily the case.  The two writers are very different. I see this more as a novel for folks who love the noir genre and want to explore it in other cultures other than the sort of UK/USA area. For me, I really enjoyed it as it was so well plotted, grabbed me in the beginning, held me through the middle and had me on the edge of my chair for the end! 

                                 First Published :  August 2018

Pages: 310

Available as an Audio Book : Yes  

Trigger Warnings: death, death of dog, death of child,  classism, medical issues, body horror, misogyny.

(this is not a full list, read responsibly)