The Red Palace

Four women are brutally murdered within the confines of a nursing school in 18th century Korea. One of the teachers from the school is promptly--& wrongfully—arrested for the crime. Eighteen year old nurse, Hyeon, is a graduate of the school and currently works as a nurse in the royal palace. She knows her former teacher is innocent and sets out to investigate the crime to save her mentor from execution. Along the way, she joins forces with a young police inspector, Eojin, who is also determined to solve the savage murders in an attempt to find justice for his own murdered father. In order to uncover the true culprits, Hyeon and Eojin must fight against horrendously corrupt officials, a vicious royal bureaucracy, and a social system show more that victimizes the many and protects an elite few.

This book takes place against a very unpleasant backdrop full of utterly despicable characters. Everyone is jockeying to keep or advance their own positions of power while simultaneously attempting to overthrow their rivals—real or imagined. There are spies everywhere, and everyone is spying, managing a network of spies, being blackmailed into spying, or being spied upon. Everybody hates and/or is suspicious of everybody else. And everyone is afraid of being brutally murdered—either surreptitiously by shadowy criminals, or openly at the will of the royal family. Savagery and brutal oppression overwhelm the tone of The Red Palace.

Who doesn’t love a book in which everyone is miserable all of the time and under constant threat of heinous torture and death?

In spite of all of the violence and bloodshed (or maybe because of it), this is an incredibly dull and tedious read. I found myself dozing off numerous times while trying to get through to the end.

It might have been slightly better if Hyeon were a sympathetic character, but she is not. Her incessant insecurities were tiresome, and her obsession over her absentee, yet still abusive, father was implausible and downright nauseating. The superficial and highly clichéd romance concocted between Hyeon and Eojin only succeeded in making the story even more tedious and unpalatable. By the time I reached the end, I didn’t care whodunit or what happened to Hyeon; I was just happy the whole boring thing was over! show less

Another fascinating and nicely paced YA mystery from this incredibly talented author. I love well researched historical Asian novels. They are rich, beautiful and complex tales. Traditional Asian cultures are often driven by honour systems that I thoroughly enjoy learning about. This one is set in 18th century Korea and our main character is intelligent and loyal but constantly aware of her low standing in this very hierarchical society. June has a talent for writing relationships that the Reader can become fully invested in but all written with a delicacy that seems appropriate for this time period and culture. Back when a glance or gesture held so much meaning and had characters all a flutter. The courtly intrigue was also fascinating show more as people plotted and manoeuvred themselves to win favour. Well worth a read if you, like me, are a fan of Asian historical fiction.

Also, I spent ages on the Googs after as this story is based on a real Korean Crown Prince.

Lastly, the cover is stunning!

CW: bloody and violent murders show less

Korean historical thriller!

A riveting tale based somewhat “on the life and death of Crown Prince Jangheon (also known as Crown Prince Sado)” of Korea, of the Joseon Dynasty (1392–1910). Set in 1758, a young, eighteen year old Palace nurse (Changdeok Palace, Seoul) is drawn into the hunt for a murderer. A dangerous and daunting task. There’s been a massacre of student nurses outside the palace grounds, including Court Lady Ahnbi. Bodies are piling up and all factors point to the Crown Prince. A giant cover up will be implemented and the evidence will point towards Hyeon’s beloved teacher and mentor, Nurse Jeongsu, as the killer.
I really don’t see this strictly as a coming-of-age novel. Rather, it’s an historical thriller/ show more mystery set in Korea, every bit as puzzling as Jack the Ripper was in Victorian England.
Hyeon’s journey, as she seeks to prove the innocence of her mentor, after Jeongsu was arrested and tortured to confess responsibility for the deaths of several student nurses and a Court Lady, will have Hyeon delving more deeply into to her own path and who she will become.
That search takes Hyeon, an illegitimate daughter of a Lord into the depths of the palace and to a confrontation with Crown Prince Jangheon, as well as into the center of various palace intrigues. She will face the vicious and powerful Head of police Commander Song, and her lordly father, who refuses to acknowledge her.
Most importantly Hyeon takes up the investigation with Eojin a young police officer whom she must learn to trust, as she must learn to trust and pay attention to her own intuition, as she labors to recall pieces of the puzzle that she and Eojin will eventually pull together.
Absolutely fascinating! The story had me rummaging through my photos of Korea, and I felt the weight and history of this country and of people I’ve come to know and admire, surround me.
Jane Hur is brilliant and I’ve already taken steps to read her prior novels.

A MacMillan Feiwel & Friends ARC via NetGalley
Please note: Quotes taken from an advanced reading copy maybe subject to change show less

This book was amazing! It had a compelling plot, strong characters, a well-developed mystery, and the cutest romance.

To start, I loved the premise so much that I read the blurb a good three times to absorb it all. After reading the masterpiece A Crane Among Wolves, I knew I had to read more of June Hur’s works, and I was sooo excited to finally read this.

The mystery in this book was so intricate. There were so many different connections with even the most minute details playing a part in find who the killer was. And the moment where it all came together was so satisfying, yet alarming. The killer was definitely not who I expected it to be, but I loved how even the culprit had a story. They weren’t just killing to kill, not that it show more makes them any less of a criminal. It just feels a lot more realistic and adds depth when even a killer has their own story, their own reasons for their actions. It’s this type of stories that always make me think “what if…” If certain things happened differently, would the murders have even occurred? Would the person who had ended up a murderer have lived a different life? Happier? Just as miserable?

I loved Hyeon’s character so much. She’s given almost nothing in life, as an illegitimate daughter who believed that even her own mother hated her. Yet, she was able to work towards becoming a palace nurse, which is not an easy feat. For her mentor, she wanted to investigate the murder on her own, even though so much could have gone wrong. She could have lost her own life trying to save someone else’s. I don’t annotate when I read, but if I had, at least half of my annotations would have been “you go girl!” every time Hyeon did something amazing 😭. Eojin was just as impressive, an inspector at 18, and working on his own, against the wishes of his supervisor, to find a killer. And the romance… so cute 😊. It was a slow-burn, but worth every second until the end. I also loved the side characters, and although I have a lot to say about them, I don’t want to spoil anything. show less

The Red Palace by June Hur is a historical mystery set in 18th century Korea. It involves several murders and suspicions are directed to one of the highest members of the court, that of the Crown Prince. The main character is Hyeon, a young woman who works as a nurse at the Royal Palace and when her mentor is arrested for the murders, she vows to solve the case and prove her mentor innocent.

She soon finds herself joining forces with a new police inspector, Eojun. He is young, and seems to be as fully invested in finding out the truth as she is. Although they are breaking many of society’s rigid rules, they form a partnership and share the information that each is gathering. It soon becomes apparent that they have attracted the show more attention of the murderer and must tread carefully through the conspiracies and rules that keep the royal dynasty in power.

The Red Palace is well written and involving. While most of the characters are fictional, the Crown Prince was a real and tragic figure and his story and the historical details that the author supplies keep the story based in reality. The romance is kept to the back burner, we can see it developing but it never takes over the story. This was an excellent way to read about the history and the culture of Korea. show less

Thoroughly enjoyed! I’ve always liked detective stories, this one had a great cast of characters. No one was just black and white; the characters had depth. The female nurses take the spotlight here.

Also, a detective power couple is just too cute! their love was so sweet and chaste. you can tell he genuinely cared for her, and they both protected each other.

I'll read Hur's next book.

#ReadAroundTheWorld. #SouthKorea

The Red Palace is an historical mystery and romance by South Korean author June Hur. It is set in Joseon (Korea) in 1758.

18 year old Hyeon, illegitimate daughter of Lord Shin and one of his concubines, has worked hard to become a palace nurse, under the mentorage of Nurse Jeongsu. Then on a night that Crown Prince Jangheon secretly snuck out of the palace, four women are found massacred. Hyeon’s mentor, Nurse Jeongsu is taken into custody as she was abroad after curfew with no alibi.

In her desperation to save Nurse Jeongsu, Hyeon runs into police inspector Eojin and with him begins an investigation of the events. Is someone trying to frame the Prince with the massacre or is he somehow involved?

What show more follows is a story of intrigue, spies and secrets, a slow burn romance and a detailed view into palace life and culture. The book is based on the real history of Prince Sado.

I really enjoyed this story. The cultural and historical details were intricately researched, Hyeon was a brave and likeable character, and Eojin was kind, respectful and romantic in a genuine way. It was a nice change to read a slow burn romance that didn’t involve all the superficiality of so many contemporary romances. I would love to read another book like this. 4.5 stars show less