Four suicides in one month, all with the same story: an elderly patient at Cheolma Rehabilitation Hospital jumps from the sixth floor, leaving a suicide note behind. While they’re all being counted as suicides — patients with no family, living in an understaffed hospital as they wait for time to pass, leaving notes behind, it’s all rather cut and dry — Suyeon doesn’t believe it. And she’s not alone. Violette, the mysterious woman in the trench coat Suyeon meets one night, sniffing around the crime scene, agrees that this is murder, but rather than point fingers at staff, Violette blames a vampire.

Violette can’t do anything about the vampire until she has proof of murder. Her organization has very strict rules about that. And who better to find proof, but a detective?

Suyeon has no time for this nonsense, but Violette is convincing. One, there’s a lack of blood at the scenes. Two, how did these elderly people manage to jump so far out of the windows, hitting the parking lot rather than the bushes below them? And then there are the small puncture wounds that very much resemble vampire bites. But vampires aren’t real … until they are.

There are two romances in this book, one romantic and one platonic. The first is between Violette and Lily that takes place in 1983 in France, where Violette, a Korean child, was adopted and raised by French parents. As much as Violette’s parents tried to make certain she had ties to Korea, to the language and food and culture, Violette never really felt a call towards the country … until Lily. Lily, in her stories, makee Korea come alive, makes it sound like a place of beauty and strangeness, which appeals to Violette, herself a child prone to strangeness and loneliness.

Violette has no friends until Lily, no one to share her silences with until Lily. Together, the two of them sneak out to festivals, visit the ocean, the forests, and the library where they compete to see who can read the most books in a night. It’s a soft friendship built in quiet moments, and a love slowly taking shape one night at a time. It’s finding a person who understands you, your humor, your taste, your half sentences and frustrations, who you can look at … and see the other half of yourself looking back.

Clouds are prettier at night. You can’t look at the sun, but you can stare at the moon, and while the sun steals the spotlight, the moon shares it with the stars. At night, birdsongs can be heard with your heart. Still trees shudder awake, while mice scuttle about, freed from the sharp eyes of cats, as the new season settles upon their little steps. Petals and leaves, too, peek out of their buds. The night was kind to such shy things, those that cannot bloom under harsh light and prying eyes. Violette was one of them. She grew up so quietly, she sometimes wondered if she was really there at all.

When Violette, feeling braver in their friendship — and her love — invites Lily to Christmas, Lily is delighted. Not just to play human for Violette’s parents, but to be in the warmth of a family, seated at a table, welcome and wanted. But when Violette says that she’d almost forgotten Lily was human, there grows a distance between them, because Lily isn’t human and will never be. She feeds on blood, she lives outside of Violette’s time. She is stronger, faster, impervious to bullets. She is not and will never be human.

The second romance is the platonic bond growing between Violette and Suyeon in the modern day, as Suyeon begins to believe in the reality of vampires. Theirs isn’t an instant connection, isn’t a bond of two action heroes in a movie. Instead, it’s the slow realization that the person you’re talking to, sitting in silence with, gets you. That this person knows where you are, in this moment, and is there with you. It’s not the same bond Violette and Lily share; there’s not that sense of finding your other half; instead, it’s finding someone that, in other circumstances, even if you were not forced to spend time together, you would choose to be with.

Suyeon, lost in her loneliness, in her isolation, is mirrored by Nanju, the nurse helping Ulan find his victims. Where Suyeon is alone by choice, Nanju has been driven to it. Nanju’s parents favored their son; even when they lost everything and hurt for money, Nanju’s brother had new shoes. When Nanju had an opportunity for better schooling, she was looked at with irritation. Obviously, they couldn’t afford the school, and if they could, it would be her brother who was sent. Over and over, she was made to feel less, to feel that no matter what she did, how hard she tried, how good she was, she was never good enough. When her parents turned to debt collectors, they put Nanju as their guarantor, leaving her to pay back the crippling debt. She’s bitter and angry, but so beaten down she sees no way out but acceptance, which has left her open to the vampire. She is easy to manipulate, groomed into obedience and meekness.

This book has a lot to say about isolation and loneliness, both as the daughters of unloving families, the daughters of diaspora, and the daughters of random chance. Nanju works in the hospital, watching as elderly patients grow older and more frail, as they lose their sense of self and dignity, waiting for family who never come, such as Mokjun, an old man now confined to a wheelchair because of a stroke that altered his temper and took away the use of one of his legs.

His children slowly tired out. They didn’t have to say it, it was written all over their faces. Nanju had observed enough carers to recognise that expression, the one that gradually stiffened as people lost the energy to smile, cry or get angry. Drained, these carers became immune to the cursing and screaming of their patients, absorbing every blow while their minds wandered off to a different world. Nanju believed they all lived in that new world now, having escaped the reality where their patients lived, the reality with no future nor hope.

It’s a quiet book, and a lyrical one. I have so many moments highlighted, many of them bittersweet. Two of them, I think, sum of the spirit of this book and convey, better than I can, both how love and loneliness shape a person, etch themselves into bones, become muscle memory, become an inheritance left to children long after parents are gone:

Love doesn’t always remain as love. Love turns into familiarity, betrayal, yearning, resentment, comfort, hate, dependence or even destruction. Love can morph into as many shapes as there are words in the dictionary. Oppression and freedom, truth and lies, idolatry and hatred – love embraces all. And because it does, it embraces hate.


Sadness was heavy. If it needed a shape, it would steal a human’s. A tar-like substance, it would drape itself over their silhouette, covering them from head to toe, not leaving out a single strand of hair, so that if they stopped paying attention to their breathing, they’d soon realize they were slowly being smothered..

This is an optimistic book, a book about hope. About accepting the pain that comes with loving someone, accepting the loss that will inevitably come, but embracing it all the same because what is life if there is no love? If you are never given it, never search for it, accept the lack of it … how desperately you will reach for anyone who offers you even the smallest glimpse? Violette chose love, chose to love even when Lily was gone. Suyeon accepted love from Granny Eunshim, and when that love passed, accepted the love of friends, their support and their acceptance. Nanju wanted love, but never believed herself worthy of it, allowing herself to accept a forgery that only brought her pain. But in the end she fought for herself.

This story is translated from Korean to English by Gene Png and, as someone who reads a lot of translated works, I’ll note that Chinese, Korean, and Japanese stories are often written in a different style than Western ones, relying more on telling rather than showing. There are also metaphors and tropes that someone not familiar with the original language (Korean in this case) might not catch, but a good translator will find a way to express the author’s intent. And I have to say, Gene Png is a good translator — at least, in my opinion. The writing in this book is moody and lyrical, emotional and weighted with grief and loss, and I found it very easy to read without some of the stiffness or stiltedness that can sometimes affect a translated works.

This is a wonderful book if you’re in the mood for it. Like dark chocolate, or a bitter espresso. There will be people who bounce off the prose, who don’t enjoy the writing, who dislike the characters, and I can understand why. Translated books often feel to me like there’s a barrier, no matter how thin, between me and the story, and sometimes that affects my enjoyment. But here, with this book, I think that distance added to the experience.

I enjoyed the presence of vampirism and the theme of justice present in this novel. The pacing, and therefore the plot, were a bit underwhelming overall, though. The characters were honestly my favorite part of this story. They each felt like real individuals and their thoughts, feelings and motivations were believable and flowed organically. While I ultimately wanted a little more from this novel (mostly in pacing/plot), the characters were so compelling and really pushed me through this story. If you're interested in themes of vampirism, justice and feminist ideologies, then I think you'd enjoy this and should give it a shot!

3.5 stars. I really enjoyed this, but I wanted more from it overall. The ending felt incomplete - there were several storylines that just didn't feel like they were wrapped up completely, and I was left hanging in an unsatisfying way. I loved the concept, I just felt it needed fleshing out a little bit more.

Women in Translation Month 2025 #3

밤에 찾아오는 구원자

After DNFing some Japanese translated cozies, it is apparent that East Asian horror is still my genre of choice. There is some shit going down at a certain hospital in South Korea: secrets, suicides, and vampires. A win.

We follow a few intertwining POVs, most of which are interesting to me, which is not always the case. I was intrigued by Violette, an adoptee born in South Korea, but raised in France. While the beginning of the story captivated me more than the end, this is a "fun" short read, perfect for both Women in Translation Month (this month) and Halloween (October).

📱 Thank you to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing

This is a cheeky thriller-esque novel that delves into vampirism and justice. Told from multiple perspectives, we get a fuller scope on what it means to be a woman and what it means to seek justice in a world so against women.

The characters were the most compelling part of the novel; they were well-developed and distinct from one another, which tends to be tricky for novels with multiple perspectives. Unfortunately, for me, the plot and the pacing fell a bit flat (save Violette’s perspective). If you like books about vampires, urban fantasy/horror, and feminist fiction, this novel is for you!

Sapphic vampire romance with a mystery at it's heart? This was definitely an interesting queer romance with a good atmospheric vibe. Overall it was an okay read for me but I feel like since it was a translated work, it just didn't hit as hard for me. The pacing itself felt a bit off and I did get bored while reading it, but that's just me. I do think this could be a fantastic read for your spooky tbr, especially if you want a mystery with a touch of romance and vibes!

Release Date: August 12, 2025

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and Bloomsbury USA | Bloomsbury Publishing for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

<u><b>The Midnight Shift</b></u>
Cheon Seon-ran, Gene Png (translator)
Publication Date: August 12, 2025

ARC courtesy of Bloomsbury and NetGalley.

In a sharp departure from her award-winning bestseller, <i>A Thousand Blues</i>, Cheon Seon-ran’s new novel, <i> The Midnight Shift</i>, is a supernatural thriller that takes us through the investigation of four seemingly isolated suicides. It has mystery, it has vampires. It has a vampire hunter. But it is also so much more.

Cheon Seon-ran weaves a story about relationships and the hunger for companionship. It explores themes of sickness, isolation and loneliness, of loss and depression. It is a moody, melancholic reflection on human vulnerability. The writing is compelling and deeply reflective, and is sure to entertain on many different levels. Another home run.

4.5 stars

The Midnight Shift by Seon-Ran Cheon ★★★☆☆ It’s a strange little book—atmospheric and moody, with flashes of brilliance, but it didn’t totally land for me. The setup is great: late-night workers, quiet tension, a sense that something's always just out of sight. Cheon has a way with quiet dread that sneaks up on you, and a few moments really stuck with me.

That said, the pacing wandered a bit, and I kept waiting for a deeper payoff that never quite showed up. It felt more like a mood piece than a plot-driven story, which isn’t a bad thing, just not quite what I expected. Definitely one to talk about—especially the way it captures loneliness and routine—but maybe not the one I’ll be pushing into everyone’s hands.

I love the way this book combined and incorporated themes I usually love in books all into one! From the queer vampire romance to the murder mystery, I felt hooked the entire time. I really enjoyed the writing and the care taken with each character- they all felt very real and fleshed out. The social isolation and loneliness themes were definitely most prominent, and I do there there was a lot of relevant and interesting social commentary!

This book toed the line between thriller and horror in a way I really enjoyed, as a lover of both genres. For a story about vampires it was also a very human story that I think could appeal to a lot of people. The atmosphere and sense of sinister creepiness was strong, and was definitely the highlight of the book for me. It wasn’t always fast paced but that atmosphere made it always feel taut and kept me reading quickly.

I realized that I liked the idea of the story more than the actual story. A vampire murder mystery sounds great in theory but I'm more of a horror reader than urban fantasy which this turned out to be. The writing was actually quite good but I just wasn't invested in the story enough to continue on.

I requested this one because it might be an upcoming title I would like to review on my Youtube Channel. However, after reading the first several chapters I have determined that this book does not suit my tastes. So I decided to DNF this one.

Eerie and sinister. The right blend of thriller and horror. Definitely recommending this book so spooky season.

I'm not going to lie this book was really slow and it took me a little bit to really get into it but once it me it hit me like a ton of bricks! This was absolutely beautiful and moving. This was so dark and isolating in a way that just felt like an absolute gut punch. A book that's about vampires and trauma and murder was never going to be a miss for me but I never would have expected it to be this amazing. Truly Cheon is a fantastic writing and I understand why this book is so popular in other countries.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for my arc in exchange for my unbiased opinion.

"The Midnight Shift" by Seon-Ran Cheon is an exploration into Korean queer love and social isolation wrapped up in a vampire murder mystery.

Despite my three star rating, I actually really enjoyed this and found myself unable to put it down. It's creepy and unsettling, but I would have loved a bit more meat to the vampire lore and to these characters. I thought Suyeon, Violette, and even Lily were very intriguing characters, but they just fell flat for me. And while the vampires are an added bonus to this story, I just wanted more of that aspect.

I still enjoyed this and would recommend it for anyone who loves a fun little queer horror romp.

a vampire novel where the real monster is isolation. and also capitalism. and maybe memory. and also grief. idk.

there’s murder. there’s a detective losing it. there’s a vampire hunter with unresolved sapphic trauma. it’s weird and a little messy but hits in a way i wasn’t ready for.

3 ⭐️ Thank you to Bloomsbury Publishing and NetGalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A handful of suicides at a senior living home brings together a detective and an enigmatic woman, racing with time to solve this vampire murder mystery! In addition, this author explores depression, loneliness, love and queer relationships.

Even though I rated this 3 stars I did have a difficult time putting it down. I felt like I needed more character development and more background history when it came to the vampires. However I did enjoy this read!

I look forward to what this author has in store for the future!

A rise in suicides at a senior home brings together a detective who is sure there’s more to these deaths, a nurse with a hidden past, and a mysterious woman running an investigation of her own.

This is a vampire murder mystery that explores loneliness, queer love, and the many different shapes a family takes. There’s a sense of melancholy woven throughout this story, as it delves into the loneliness and isolation of the characters, and the ways this loneliness is preyed upon. If no one is advocating for you and standing by your side, who misses you when you’re gone? A really interesting approach to a vampire story, gave me similar vibes to the film version of Let the Right One In. I found myself really invested in these characters, and wanted to know more about their stories. I’ll definitely be picking up more from this author.

This story had such good potential and was entertaining but it did feel underdeveloped. I was compelled by what was happening but I needed MORE!
I’m 100% going to buy this book when it comes out and try a re read.

*The Midnight Shift* by Seon-Ran Cheon is a haunting and atmospheric tale that masterfully blends psychological suspense with subtle horror. Cheon's prose is lyrical yet chilling, immersing readers in the quiet dread of night work and the hidden lives it reveals. The story lingers long after the final page, unsettling in the best possible way.

A quiet, heartrending thriller, THE MIDNIGHT SHIFT is a story of love and obsession, of the ties that bind, and of relationships under the view of forever.