Rebel Seoul

Rebel Seoul by Axie Oh is a standalone YA science fiction novel and the author's debut. It's set in a nearish future Seoul, during a very long-running and high-tech war. It's also been described as "K-drama meets Pacific Rim", which is not entirely inaccurate.

I really enjoyed reading this book. I've made no secret of having watched too many K-dramas (Korean TV shows) in the past couple of years, and this book hit a lot of the same buttons for me as those shows. The biggest difference, really, being the futuristic setting and the inclusion of other satisfying science fictional elements. (Really, I've watched a lot of fantasy/supernatural K-dramas — if you have any science fiction recommendations, please tell me in the comments.) It's show more not just the setting which hits the K-drama notes, but the casual Korean phrases the author left in the text — it was like Viki subtitles but with much better grammar. But on to the actual story...

About a hundred and fifty years in the future Jaewon, our first person narrator, is a poor kid from the wrong side of the river (literally the Han river) who is on a scholarship to a prestigious military academy in the upper-crusty Neo Seoul. A lot of the story places him between two extremes: rich school friends with promising futures on the one hand, and local gangs and unskilled labourers and foot soldiers on the other. The war affects everyone in this strangely post-nation world, but of course it affects some people worse than others.

Against the backdrop of Jaewon trying to do his best and not get into too much trouble, other people are brewing trouble around him. There are the rebels who want Korea to go back to being a country, there are weird medical experiments, and there's a shady past surfacing to further complicate matters for Jaewon. There's also a romantic storyline and a troubling storyline for one of Jaewon's friends. I particularly liked the fact that although there is a major war on and children are being recruited into the military, the teenaged main characters aren't expected (by the narrative, as well as by the adults) to save the day and fix the world. Given some of the set up, that would have been an easy trap to fall into. The only thing I didn't really like in this book was the history of the ongoing war, which was a bit weird, especially with how it was being referred to. That said, the present consequences and so forth were fine, so I was able to overlook it without too much trouble.

This was a very enjoyable book to read and I think fans of YA science fiction (particularly dystopias and similar) will find a lot to like here. Honestly, I feel a bit weird calling this a dystopia. Because it absolutely is, fighting mechs can't change that, but aside from the constant large-scale war it didn't feel that much more dystopian than parts of the real world (and they had levitating phones). Anyway, I strongly recommend this book to fans of YA, nearish future science fiction and mechs. I especially recommend it to readers interested in a non-USian setting.

5 / 5 stars

You can read more of my reviews on my blog. show less

3.5

Raisa's Late Reviews -

A person who doesn't exist can't die.

More people should read this! I haven't watched in the way of K-dramas, but I certainly watched Pacific Rim and those vibes are really present in Rebel Seoul. It takes place in a futuristic Korea, known as the Neo State. Students are trained through military simulations that use God Machines, or GMs in which humans pilot. Jaewon is one such student, and he rises through the ranks and is chosen to partner with Tera, who is part of a secret project.

Axie Oh pulled off both the drama and action aspects of Rebel Seoul well.

Also gotta pull out the dramatic rain scene aha.

I come up alongside him, taking the umbrella he hands me. "'Shit, it's raining,' or 'shit, what did we sign

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up for'?"
"The second," Alex answers. "It's always raining."

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Lee Jaewon is a lie, but maintaining the lie allows him to attend school where he is one of the best at winning in simulations. The tests are coming up to determine senior assignments, and Alex wants Jaewon on his team because of his skill. Alex, son of the Director of the Neo State of Korea, receives much privilege because of who he is, but he truly is good at achieving his goals through determination. He does what he has to to succeed and having Alex on his team, will allow them to win. The surprise turns out to be that if you die in the sim, you die in real life. If Alex knew, he fails to mention it to anyone on the team. After the test, Jaewon and Alex are assigned to the Tower to protect weapons.

The Tower holds the future of the show more weapons development. The future weapons are two girls who have been enhanced. Anyone can take an enhancement if he can obtain it, but it has side effects and created problems in past wars, so it’s dangerous and not recommended. These girls were raised as Enhanced, where their DNA was altered to see if it could handle Enhancements. They are the two survivors of fifty years of research--yes, five decades of war. Alex is assigned Ama; Jaewon is assigned Tera. They are not considered human, but test subjects. They want to live lives like others, but they are weapons, limiting their identity.

After five decades of war, life is difficult. Old Seoul is where the less fortunate people live where gangs rule; Jaewon lives here. He’s lost both parents and his best friend, either figuratively or literally. Despite this difficult life, Jaewon is a good person who is always trying to help others. New Seoul has a dome that protects its citizens; Alex lives here and their school is here. Jaewon moves between these worlds each day. As the novel progresses, Jaewon learns more about Alex and the politics of the world as well as those who oppose the government. Because they are both drawn to the girls, they find themselves looking for something better and even willing to fight against the government.

Overall, I liked the novel, but it is science fiction and dark. While reading, I envision a Blade Runner type look--little color, little sun, artificial light, and lots of mechanical movement. The characters, however, have some light in them; they have a hope and a tenacity and a courage to fight for something better. Who should make decisions for the country? How can peace be attained? Are the rebels a better choice? These are all questions that aren’t necessarily answered, but how people are treated by people who choose power is firmly answered. I don’t think this is a book for everyone, but I do believe there is a solid audience for this novel. show less

Fast paced, science fiction, future world, put the cost of war and humanity in question. Genetically engineered soldiers, scheming government, greedy gangs and school drama all play into this future world. The story follows a young man as he tries to overcome his backstory while finding a place in the future. He is betrayed, beaten, and has a past that could take it all from him if found out. A YA story, with fade to black sex scenes.
I really enjoyed this book. The author stayed true to her Korean roots, adding just enough language and culture to enrich the story's asian setting realistic. The food, Oh the food cart had my stomach grumbling for a bite. Ms. Oh's descriptions of the food so well done I could nearly smell the steam rising show more for the carts. She did equally well with her descriptions of the darker side, cringeworthy. She does add some Korean words into her story, she has a small dictionary in the back to help. I know many people don't like this but it really works for the story and learning a few common words is always a good thing. :D The book read as a stand alone but could easily be made into a series.
This is a very visual writer which works for this reader. I love it when reading is like watching a movie. show less

Lots of science fiction, YA, dystopian, and child soldier tropes in this strong book which is exactly as described - "Pacific Rim meets Korean action dramas." There are fights in the snack bar of the school, gangs in the old town, elders who should be heeded, elders who definitely should *not* be heeded, a K-pop singer (or is she a pop rocker? That discussion was one of the only places I laughed in this book!), a government intent upon making its teenagers do two years of military service, and a lot of teenagers heterosexually lusting after each other during and after final exams. The pacing is good until the very end (the epilogue is a rather disappointing montage), the backstory has a tiny bit of Gattaca flavor, and it's all a super show more solid #ownvoices debut. show less

I really wanted to love this book but unfortunately there were a couple of things that brought the love down to like.

Taking place in a future Seoul, Korea, a young man named Lee Jaewon, who had escaped a life in a gang and was trained in a military academy, is assigned to accompany a young woman from her living quarters to training ground. This young woman, Tera, is physically enhanced and can lose control of her power. They are trained to man God Machines, robots they wear, and fight with them.

I really looked forward to a book taking place in a foreign country with new words to learn (there is a glossary in the back which I discovered after I read the book) and new culture to absorb. Our young protagonists are wonderfully tortured and show more are able to rise above everything to be righteous people.

A couple of things, however, really jarred me. One paragraph mentioned the sun setting in the east. I really wished I had marked that page. I read and reread it to be sure I was understanding the words correctly. Another thing that really bothered me was a gold medal printed on the cover awarded called the New Visions Award. Reading the fine print and Googling this I discovered it was awarded by Tu Books who, wait for it, publishes this book. Brazen!

There was a lot of action and violence in this book with a good amount of great science fiction goodies. show less

The writing was good. I felt like it was engaging and was vivid in its description of things. I could see the God Machines, I could imagine every character. The story goes fast and carries, it keeps things interesting and you aren't left bored, even in the more domestic scenes. The only issue is that time passes fast and you aren't sure how. Sometimes it feels like it was only a few hours or a day when weeks had gone by. I wish that was a little clearer, but that's really it.

(Full Review On My Blog)