What a wild ride this entire story was!

I wasn't sure if this book was what I was thinking it was based off the title, but then it kicked into high gear and I never looked back!

I loved that the author dispersed some information regarding the Korean culture throughout the story. It made it that much better.

All of the characters are well written and thought out. They intertwine so well which made this book so easy to read and enjoy.

While there are some grotesque parts in the book, it didn't make me want to stop reading. it added to the originality of the story.

i really wanted to like this!! ultimately, i think the plot had a little too much going on for such a short book. i would have liked to dive deeper into any of the storylines since they all felt pretty surface level

This was unhinged. It was great.
Korean-American college student whose father suddenly abandons the family and whose mother brings home an awful xenophobic boyfriend suddenly becomes obsessed with eating said-boyfriend's eyes? Okay.
The writing in this was wonderfully gory (many, many descriptions of the texture of eyeballs), and the murderous rampage storyline was great to follow. In between that, this book also managed to explore themes of misogyny, racism, divorce, and toxic relationships, among other things.
My one gripe is that there was a certain, small reveal near the end of the book that just felt unnecessary. No spoilers, but the events that followed that this event was (I think) supposed to set up could have happened just as easily without it, and probably more believably.

This debut was absolutely excellent. You feel absolute compassion, sadness, frustration, annoyance, and worry reading about Ji-won and her family as things slowly begin to unravel, most of all Ji-won herself. The discussions of racism, fetishism, and sexism were a great addition to the story and while I never really found myself rooting for Ji-won, I enjoyed watching her slowly become unhinged. Also, the body horror in this was fabulous. I had to put down my own dinner while reading which is definitely a compliment toward Monika Kim's talent as a writer. I'm looking forward to whatever she has in store for her next novel.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and author for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

“Feminist psychological horror” had my attention from the very beginning - and it delivered! The Eyes Are the Best Part tells the story of a family falling apart after the father leaves. It is told from the perspective of Ji-won who must juggle her mother who is struggling, her sister who feels rejected, her own grades at college and her dreams…which have been somewhat terrifying lately. But enticing. Eyes feature prominently in this story - as the title would suggest - and as someone who is quite squeamish about eyes this had my toes curling on multiple occasions. Thoroughly enjoyed this and can’t wait to see what this author comes up with next!!

There's a lot to love about this book: the vivid descriptions of body horror, the psychopathic protagonist, great plot pacing, interesting themes.

However, the fact that this is the author's debut shows in the execution of these ideas. Most side (and some main) characters are left flat and stereotypically good or evil. There are a disproportionate amount of events convenient to the plot and weird character dialogue. Subplots are left unfinished and the protagonist doesn't grow or change.

All that said, I'm looking forward to what this author writes in the future and would definitely recommend this book to anyone who isn't afraid of ruining their appetite.

Oh my goodness, I barely know how to I describe what I read besides saying it was utterly amazing. It didn’t turn out to be what I expected, it was so much better. I’ll be checking out more of Monika Kim’s work, and look at getting a hard copy of ‘The Eyes Are the Best Part’ once it releases.

3.5 stars!

Got to love feminine rage/revenge

This was a good representation of family dynamics and the life of a young girl. The talk of racism/fetish was so interesting and needs to be spoken about more.

For me it took so long to become this strange eye ball obsession book and I wish the atmosphere was a little more weird so the build up was a better payoff. Found myself skim reading

Phew 😅

What a book to read on Valentine's Day, lol. 💞

I am definitely buying a physical copy of this when it comes out.

This is going on my unhinged-unreliable-good for her list.

This book hits quite a few nails on the head.

I've known several George's and Geoffrey's in my personal life and it was nothing short of making my skin crawl. But at times the book also made my skin crawl, but I'm still not mad about it? Honestly I'm not really into the gore/splatterpunk (I'm not really sure which sub horror this would be categorized as) but I liked it. I usually go for creature feature, slasher, demonic horror etc but I ended up liking this a lot considering what it's about.

I got to the last page, expecting to read more and audibly gasped that it was over. I really wanted more!

Thank you to Netgalley, Author, and Publisher for this ARC.

Definitely check trigger/content warnings before reading.

Whew, this one surprised me. I was a quarter of the way through it and I thought "where's the horror?" Well, it was on its way. Great premise, inventively written,, I enjoyed entering Ji-won's life, and enjoyed her descent into terror. The cover was striking, and the repeating imagery of the blue eyes was engaging and creepy.

I honestly could see this as a really creepy movie. Recommended.

I received a complimentary copy of the book from the publisher and NetGalley, and my review is being given freely.

My main takeaways from this story: Men are trash, good for her.

This book is pretty dark, and at times turned my stomach a bit. I personally really like this in a book.

The male characters in this book are all (intentionally) nauseating. I really felt Ji-Won's disgust and discomfort, and I found myself rooting for bad things to happen to the men. It's a fairly cathartic read.

The book isn't perfect and can be a little heavy-handed, at points it feels like it over-explains the misogyny and fetishization of Asian women. But for the majority of the book it illustrates these things with skill.

I think it's important for the reader to just accept the parts of the story that are implausible, it's not meant to be taken too seriously, it's a dark satire.

This book was like nothing I have read before! I really enjoyed this book. It was weird- that is for sure but it works so well! It is really well written and full of twists and turns. 5 stars!

I was hoping to like this way more than I did. Ji-Won starts dreaming of eating delicious human blue eyeballs and she makes that wish come true. The eyeball snacking is as grim as you imagine it to be and were as the title suggests the best part. We were seeing Ji-Won at her most unhinged, but I wanted to know more about her apart from her unusual craving, I felt like we got very little character development. George was disgusting and he deserved all that befell him, in that way the ending was very satisfying, but it didn't do what I wanted it to d as a horror novel.

I love weird books however the eyeballs were just a bit much it gave me the creepy feeling of someone under my skin which was both good and bad. I love the description of the eyeballs and I so wanted to continue past the 60% mark I got to but the descriptions of gooey eyeballs is what I couldn't get past . I could see where the story was going I could feel the main character slowly unravel and I was excited for more. I'm sorry I was unable to complete your eye opening story 😉 Maybe one day I can get past the eyeballs as the intrigue is very much there and I want to know what happens next

~ I received a copy of The Eyes Are the Best Part from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review ~

The Eyes Are the Best Part was my first horror novel and while at the beginning it was shocking and new, it definitely piqued my interest. Ms. Kim's tale introduces us to Jiwon, a college student who's struggling with her classes and her home life after her father abandons her, her mother, and her sister Jihyun. The introduction of her mom's new white boyfriend, George, throws Jiwon for a loop even further because he's gross person and spends more time fetishizing Asians than actually treating them like people.

I've recently learned what body horror is, and The Eyes Are the Best Part definitely falls into the category. I think the story flows well, although the ending seemed to clean up a little too well in my opinion. I will say I was a little squeamish, but chalk that up to being new in the genre.

A well written story overall, and I can't wait to see what Ms. Kim comes up with next.

This disgustingly sinister novel is perfect for lovers of unhinged feminine rage and body horror.

THE EYES ARE THE BEST PART follows Ji-Won, whom we find in a not-so-great time in her life. She's just lost her group of best friends before college, her parents are getting a divorce, and she feels lost, alone, and you guessed it: ANGRY. Told from her point of view, we follow Ji-Won on her slow descent to madness, becoming more and more unreliable as the story goes on.

This book was quick and easy to read, but FAR from pleasant. There were a few times where I physically cringed at the descriptions in this book even when I'm fully expecting what's to come. There's just something about simple writing that is still able to make you FEEL something -- especially a feeling like repulsion. Kim also divulges into topics such as generational trauma, fetishization, misogyny, and race in a way that is accessible to any reader.

The chapters were short, and the decreasing reliability of our narrator kept me hooked trying to figure out what the hell was actually going on. Like seriously -- what did I just read?

I will definitely be reading more from this author!

3.75 rounded up to 4!

I would've loved more: more characterization and character development, more uncomfortable scenes, and more than the abrupt ending we got. The mundanity at the beginning lasted a little too long for me, and once the chaos finally started I wanted more details. Instead, we got the same sequence of dreams/hallucinations. I like a fever-dream-esque vibe as much as the next reader; however, I need more variability.

Nonetheless, I recommend this book to anyone who loves a revenge story.

Ji-Won is the inspiration for “I support women’s wrongs.”

The Eyes Are the Best Part tackles multiple heavy topics—-misogyny, fetishization, racism, —through the lens of a young Korean-American woman who slowly becomes obsessed with blue eyes.

This book features an unhinged woman full of rage and out for revenge. And it gets gross, in the best horror kind of way!

I loved this. I’ve immediately pre-ordered a physical copy. I was instantly sucked in and it was a real challenge to put this book down.

This book was so cleaver in how it begins and sets you up for a fun read and then bam. We meet Ji-won at a point in her life when everything is changing and she is coming unglued. Her obsession with blue eyes kept me wanting to read more. Having been raised knowing he eyes are the best part of the fish but thinking it is gross then to change and become obsess with eyes of the misogynistic George. As much as I wanted to not like her I was cheering for her to get revenge even with cannibalism happening.

I really appreciate that this was a diverse character, Korean- American girl, who is coming to terms with the mean boyfriend of her mother. The way she cracks and continues down a path of getting the blue eyes is a page turner and one that I couldn't look away from like a wreck on the side of the road that you know you should move along but just can't. I really enjoyed this book and how the author connects the characters and how easy it was to relate to their relationships. It was a fresh spin on a thriller that will keep you reading.

If you like thriller, horror then add this to your TBR and be ready to be intrigued by this sister turned serial killer.

Thank you Kensington Books, Erewhon Books and NetGalley for the ARC in return for my honest review. Keep reading and find your next adventure in black and white.
#TheEyesAretheBestPart #NetGalley

I was really impressed with this book. The characters, the relationships, and the racism and misogyny throughout all felt SO real that it made the more unbelievable parts of the plot feel even scarier and real. A really thoughtful piece of horror writing, and I cannot WAIT to read whatever Monika writes next.

Thank you for the ARC, NetGalley!

T͓̽h͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽o͓̽n͓̽l͓̽y͓̽ ͓̽p͓̽o͓̽w͓̽e͓̽r͓̽ ͓̽h͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽h͓̽a͓̽s͓̽ ͓̽i͓̽s͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽h͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽p͓̽o͓̽w͓̽e͓̽r͓̽ ͓̽y͓̽o͓̽u͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽r͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽w͓̽i͓̽l͓̽l͓̽i͓̽n͓̽g͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽o͓̽ ͓̽g͓̽i͓̽v͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽h͓̽i͓̽m͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽n͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽y͓̽o͓̽u͓̽’͓̽v͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽g͓̽i͓̽v͓̽e͓̽n͓̽ ͓̽h͓̽i͓̽m͓̽ ͓̽n͓̽o͓̽t͓̽h͓̽i͓̽n͓̽g͓̽.͓̽

A riveting feminist psychological thriller horror where the protagonist, Ji-Won, a Korean-American girl grapples with her parents’ separation. When her mother’s new beau embodies everything vile - a gross racist and misogynistic white man with a fetish for Asian women - Ji-Won’s descent into obsession with blue eyeballs, fueled by her mother’s superstitions, becomes a chilling journey.

Monika Kim crafts Ji-Won as a tantalizingly twisted protagonist, her actions reprehensible yet strangely justifiable, drawing readers into a web of feminine rage and vengeance against the wrongs perpetrated by men. With prose as sharp as a blade, Kim’s narrative unfolds with precision and urgency, every word laden with purpose. Short, punchy chapters propel the story forward, weaving themes including misogyny, cultural fetishization, and family dynamics, all tinged with female fury.

Despite the weighty subject matter, Kim skillfully infuses moments of humor, providing a respite amidst the darkness. For those who champion women’s rights and WRONGS, this is a must-read. Brace yourself for a journey where every word is an invitation into Ji-Won’s twisted psyche, challenging perceptions and leaving an indelible mark on the reader’s soul. I love Mona Awad’s writing so this is right up my alley!

Thank you Netgalley and Erewhonbooks for the eARC! The Eyes Are the Best Part by Monika Kim will be out on 25th June and I’m so excited!!!