The Eyes Are the Best Part

During dinner, Umma tells Ji-won that the eyes are the best part of the fish because they are not only delicious but bring good luck too. After always declining, she decides to try it out and realizes that her mother has been correct this whole time. When the family learns of Appa’s marital affair, he immediately abandons the entire family.

Her Umma and younger sister are devastated and heartbroken, leaving it up to Ji-won to take care of them both. In a few months, Umma begins dating a man called George with beautiful blue eyes. He is condescending, offensive, racist, misogynistic and in no time at all, Ji-won and her sister grow to hate him. He fetishes them and blatantly watches other Asian women, making for a hostile and uncomfortable environment. Umma is obsessed with George and doesn’t take much notice of his horrible behavior or her daughter’s discomfort.

On top of this, Ji-won grapples with the struggles of friendship and failing school. Her dreams become vivid and violent. In them, she sees beautiful blue eyes that follow her around. She walks into rooms that are full of delicious bloody eyes, good enough to eat and look just like George’s. Soon, the fascination of blue eyes takes Ji-won over and it becomes all she can think about. She begins to spiral and decides that maybe her dreams should become a reality because she deserves to do something about it and save her family from George. After all, Umma did say eating eyes will bring good luck and they could use a lot of that at a time like this.

I loved the Korean-American representation with a complex, family dynamic. The depiction of the culture and food was very well done. There is a lot of profound commentary on racial and gender discrimination but also how Asian women in particular are treated. The unraveling of Ji-won is fascinating and watching her become unhinged and fully commit to her rage was delightful. She may be slowly descending into madness but you can’t help but to cheer her on.

A brilliant, feminist horror novel is perfect for the summer and just what I was looking for! I can’t recommend this enough as it is such a strong debut. Monika Kim is an upcoming author that we should be sure to keep an eye out for! Thank you to Netgalley and Kensington Books for an advanced copy of this!