(Drivebycuriosity) - Korea has a fascinating culture. Movies like Park Chan-wook´s "Old Boy", TV shows like "Squid Game" & the spicy Korean cuisine refresh and enhance global culture. So I gave the novel "Broken Summer" by Korean bestseller author J. M. Lee a try.
The plot circles around a murder case, it jumps back and forth in time and changes sometimes the protagonist. The style reminds me a bit of young adult books, especially Brothers Grimm`s gritty fairy tales, but there are a lot adult issues like murder, alcoholism, deceit, domestic abuse, coming of age, revenge, dysfunctional families and more (this is a spoiler free blog).
I think the author was inspired by Chan-wook´s complex "Old Boy and tried to create his own version. The story is a bit too overconstructed for my taste, but the plot is entertaining anyway because J. M. Lee has a lot funny and original ideas & analogies.
I love how the author described the artistic development of the main protagonist; how he advanced as an artist, how he learned painting techniques and how he found his own very special style. I also like the description of the protagonist´s creations and the portrayal of the economics & politics of the art market.
"Broken Summer" is a acceptable read for a late summer day.
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