Description
Description
A young woman undertakes a terrifying journey--and a terrifying transformation--in this genre-blending speculative suspense novel set in South Korea and the US which mixes fantasy, gothic vibes and queer longing, with a shot of feminist body horror.
Fairytales are for children.Until the day we awaken in a place full of monsters,
being softly enveloped by the dark. Nineteen-year-old undocumented immigrant Hee-Jin lies on the floor of her cramped Seoul apartment, listening for footsteps. But the knock on the door isn't the police finally coming to deport her to North Korea. Instead, sprawled on the doorstep is a disfigured, bird-like corpse--and it has her eyes. Her younger sister, artist Hee-Young, is meant to be on an art program in America, not dead of a strange overdose. But in Hee-Young's pocket is a plane ticket and US passport. Seeing her chance for freedom, Hee-Jin steals her sister's identity and takes her place, determined to uncover what really happened to her. But the deeper she dives into the program's strange workings, the closer she gets to the monstrous secret at its heart. A page-turner of a mystery filled with gorgeous, creepy Korean folklore and imagery, Aviary, written by critically acclaimed Korean American author Maria Dong, is also a story about power, violence, exploitation--and transformation. And, above all, it's about the choices women make from within a system where all the available options are bad ones.
Critical Reviews
Critical Reviews
A jam-packed, genre-bending story of murder, captivity, ghosts, monsters, and a harrowing escape to freedom . . . Exquisite descriptions of Hee-Jin's isolation and loneliness are haunting, and the nods to Korean folklore add to the lush, almost dreamlike experience-- "Publishers Weekly"
Mesmerizing . . . Fans of sharp, inventive fiction will be eager for Dong's next-- "Publishers Weekly Starred Review of Liar, Dreamer, Thief"
Fascinating and psychologically complicated . . . From start to finish, this is a captivating story with dire puzzles that beg to be solved one chapter at a time-- "Booklist on Liar, Dreamer, Thief"
This fast-paced, surreal tale will hook from the beginning. A perfect fit for fans of Gone Girl and Girl on the Train-- "Library Journal on Liar, Dreamer, Thief"
Clever, urgent, and deeply compassionate. This novel hooked its claws into me and didn't let go-- "Grace D. Li, New York Times bestselling author of Portrait of a Thief, on Liar, Dreamer, Thief"
Gorgeously written . . . This brilliant story is unlike anything I've ever read: provocative and unsettling, but grounded by a warm beating heart-- "Ashley Winstead, national bestselling author of This Book Will Bury Me, on Liar, Dreamer, Thief"
A masterful work of psychological suspense-- "Ava Reid, internationally bestselling author of The Wolf And The Woodsman, on Liar, Dreamer, Thief"
[A] vertiginous debut . . . once the mystery drops into gear, increasingly bonkers twists propel the story to a cogent, poignant close. A rabbit hole worth falling down-- "Kirkus Reviews on Liar, Dreamer, Thief"
Publishing Information
Publishing Information
Publisher:
Severn House
Pub date:
2026-04-07
Length:
368 pages
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