YA Weekend: Wicked Fox by Kat Cho
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult
Series: Book 1 of Gumiho
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers (June 25, 2019)
Length: 429 pages
Author Information: Website | Twitter
I’m sure one day I’ll come across an Asian mythology inspired fantasy and not be immediately tempted to add it to my TBR, but today is not the day! Wicked Fox caught my eye for several reasons, not least of them the fact it features the gumiho, or nine-tailed fox demon, a creature of legend from Korea. The story is also set in the present day, and I was quite curious to see how its traditional folktale elements would be combined with the modern.
For 18-year-old Gu Miyoung, a half-human shapeshifting gumiho, immortality comes at a steep price. In order to survive, she must feed on the gi, or life energy of men. Unpleasant business to be sure, but it must be done, though making murderers and other evil men her exclusive prey is one way Miyoung seeks to assuage her conscience. And in the bustling city of Seoul with its steady supply of wretched criminals, it’s as good a place as any to feed and to hide. By day, she’s a quiet and unassuming teenager about to start classes at her local high school, but in the night by the light of the full moon, she’s a reluctant hunter, searching for her next meal. To choose her targets, Miyoung has sought out the assistance of a young shaman named Nara, who can communicate with the ghosts of the murdered to find their killers.
But one night following a feeding, Miyoung encounters a Jihoon, a boy from school, out walking his dog and completely oblivious to the fact he’s about to become a goblin’s late-night snack. Miyoung rescues Jihoon, and inadvertently reveals her true nature in doing so, losing her fox bead to him and creating a connection between their life forces. At school, the experience has drawn them together, though Miyoung remains wary about letting any human boy get too close. From her capricious mother Yena, Miyoung has learned that she cannot always trust the gumiho within, the otherworldly part of her that is always volatile, that always hungers. And with a part of her soul gone with her bead, her situation is also growing even more desperate by the day.
Let me first start by saying there are parts of Wicked Fox I really enjoyed, but also parts that I thought were weaker or could be reworked. Namely, I loved all the supernatural aspects. If you enjoy urban fantasy, I think you will also find this world inhabited by legendary spirits, demons, ghosts and monsters greatly appealing. And the best part? All these paranormal elements are incorporated into the enchanting, vibrant setting of modern-day Seoul.
In fact, I wish we could have seen more of this side of Wicked Fox. But the novel also had its lulls, including the long sections devoted to high school dramatics. I thought the narrative dwelled too long on Miyoung and Jihoon at school and their time in getting to know each other, as it felt like in these chapters, nothing else significant happened at all. It also took me some time to warm up to Miyoung, mostly because in general I find self-pity to be a very irritating and unbecoming trait in YA protagonists. Simply put, at times her actions and dialogue contained too much angst and woe-is-me for my liking. Needless to say, Jihoon was a real sweetie, an infinite font of patience to put up with her some of her crap. That said, I’ve seen some reviewers describe this book by making comparisons to Korean soap opera dramas, so it is quite possible for Miyoung and Jihoon’s relationship to be a tribute to those.
Thankfully, the second half of the novel picked up considerably, with more intense conflicts and higher stakes that really blew me away. The intrigues and reveals towards the end made it all worth it, connecting all the threads established earlier about Miyoung’s past and dropping some pretty big bombshells about her family. Not to mention it was immensely satisfying to finally get some actual answers as well as the much-needed release from tensions simmering beneath the surface since the intro. This went a long way in making up for some my frustrations over the slower chapters that dragged down the middle of the book.
Overall, I would recommend Wicked Fox by Kat Cho for fans of urban fantasy and paranormal YA, especially if you are fascinated by East Asian traditions, cultures, and mythology. After a stellar beginning, the story took some time to develop, but time and patience will pay off in a big way in the end with plenty of delightful revelations and a satisfying conclusion. I was glad to learn that there will be a sequel to follow this one, because I can’t wait to read more set in this world.
The BiblioSanctum 
This book sounds so good, excited to pick it up at some point! Great review!
(www.evelynreads.com)
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Hope you enjoy it!
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interesting that you liked it! I was super into the idea of the protagonist being a nine-tailed fox and feeding off bad guys, that sounded really cool 😀 but then I read on and was dismayed that she has a boring human guy as her love interest and the whole ‘forced to choose between her immortal life and Jihoon’s’ left a bad taste in my mouth. why should she have to consider giving up her immortality, nooo! but if you gave it 4 stars and found Jihoon to be a sweetheart, well, it must be a good read then!
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LOL yep, that’s pretty much the story in a nutshell. I won’t lie, it has its ups and downs, but I think the second half really saved it for me by making up for a lot of the first half’s shortcomings. And yep, Jihoon’s a regular guy (but he’s also a gamer, and I do have a soft spot for gamers, lol!) He was in some ways too nice and too much of a sweetheart, I didn’t think Miyoung deserved him 😛
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Well reading all this and how you describe her feeding on Gi then being bound to that young man I can understand why you feel drawn to these stories Mogsy!
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Haha, I think in some ways it was similar to a vampire story, but wish an interesting angle!
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The unusual setting and the new-to-me mythology would be the perfect elements to offset the slower-paced sections or the mandatory (?) YA whining – this story looks interesting and the creature Miyoung shape-shifts into reminds me of Suzume’s Kitsune, and that’s enough to already put a smile on my face… 🙂
Thanks for sharing!
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Yes, I do love Asian inspired “fox spirit” stories!
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Comparing some ya whiner to a K-drama?!? Heresy!!!!!!!!
K-dramas are fun. In the right amounts 😀
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Okay, true 🙂
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To be honest, I never read the blurb for this book, so I didn’t really know what the story was about. But it does sound good! It sounds like the high school bits were done for the YA crowd and maybe to help establish the “urban” part of urban fantasy?
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Yeah, I guess those “high school bits” are still a requirement for some YA 😀
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The Asian mythology definitely caught my eye- I do want to read this.
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That’s the main reason it caught my eye too 🙂
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I have come across that foxdemon somewhere, hmm, anyway it sounds good!
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I wouldn’t be surprised! 😀
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I’m glad you enjoyed this – with reservations.
A kitsune by another name?
Lynn 😀
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Yeah, most Asian cultures have their own versions of fox demons/spirits, the Gumiho is similar 😀
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Yay! I’m so glad you enjoyed this one. I’ve been eyeing it and I’m off to request it from my library now!
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Nice, I hope they have it! 😀
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Glad to hear that the second half picks up! I’m looking forward to reading this book sometime!
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Yup, it’s definitely worth it to be patient with this one! I loved the second half 😀
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I think it bodes well for me that you liked this one. I don’t mind high school dramatics all that much (mainly I think because I’ve watched so many dramas) so I think I may end up loving this one but we’ll see. Loved this review! 🙂
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I think this one will be right up your alley! I can’t wait to hear your thoughts 😀
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Glad the second half picked up, cos I definitely want to read this. Great review!
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Just finished this week, I enjoyed it once I adjusted how much time was going to be spent on “real world” things! My biggest complaint is it features my least favorite trope, “parent withholds important information to ‘protect’ child.” But those reveals at the end were worth it!
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