First of all, thank you to Netgalley for providing us with an advance reader's copy of this book!

Kim Han Gil is a spirit detective who works for a police station in Seoul. He, naturally, has a bad reputation due to the bad things happening around him. One day, he gets paired with a new partner, Choi Woo Shik who, unlike the previous policemen, tries his best to understand the detective even though he's mostly left in the dark. While investigating an odd incident, the two run into a case of spirit worm possession. With only Han Gil aware of the consequences and root cause of the crime they investigate, the two split up and do their best to prevent other people falling victims to the evil worm. While on the hunt, Han Gil runs into an old acquaintance who replaces his older partner on the hunt. Among old resentments and a common pain, it is up to the two to solve the case and save humankind.

A couple of thoughts:
🐛 Quite a few representations of the LGBTQ+. In fact, one of the main characters is part of the spectrum himself. And so is the one he is chasing after.

🐛 Writing flows nicely. The author's writing style is smooth, and the tale is told in a third person perspective, allowing the readers to follow the characters moving around without a hitch.

🐛 Bring me all the myths! The story is based off on quite a few East Asian myths and spiritual practices, which makes it even more intriguing and fun to read. Furthermore, the author add their own twist to how energies work and are felt, introducing the readers to new perceptions and ideas on the topic.

🐛 We're all haunted by the ghosts of the past. This is clear with both Han Gil and Yoon Hae. It's visible in their actions and their words and their thoughts. The characters are bound to navigate through their guilt ridden territory and resentment while also fighting their own demons.

🐛 Is this a K-drama or a book? I couldn't help but feel like I'm actually watching a thriller K-drama while reading this story and wondering who would be best suited for each role and how it would all look like at the end.

It’s amazing how much action this little book packed in with less than 200 pages. This is my first Korean based fantasy book and it was a great easy introduction to Korean culture alongside the fantasy word building. I love the mix of a fantasy with classic mystery elements. I look forward to more books set in this world to further develop the magic system.

A short novel or a long novel, a good mix of horror and thriller. Great world building, good storytelling, a gripping and entertaining plot.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

This book was definitely not made for me. I found it really hard to follow, and really hard to get into. I feel like this book could be very good for some people, it just wasn’t what I was expecting for myself.

(spoilers ahead)

wow! tightly woven is right - this may only be the length of a novella, but SMALL GODS OF CALAMITY packs a punch. stellar worldbuilding, truly intimate character studies, and a cast worth rooting for: what a beautiful study of love, grief, guilt - and hope, above all else. there was hope in lee junhee's recovery and choi wonshik's decided disruption of the usual pattern surrounding han-gil's partners as much as there was hope in the final lines. i really am struggling to get much of a coherent thought out there but i loved this so much. sam kyung yoo is going to go far.

e-arc provided by netgalley. thank you so much for the gifted copy!

It takes awhile for this novella to find its stride. The first few chapters are a bit awkwardly paced and there is a lot of information thrown at the reader. After chapter 3 it improves dramatically.

It follows a police detective in Seoul who can see ghosts and incorporates a mixture of Korean, Japanese and Chinese spiritualism and mythology. This part of the book I really enjoyed. It was explained well and felt integrated and fully flashed out.

The MC Han-gil is openly bi and identifies as asexual. You don't often see ace MCs, especially ones where their sexuality isn't the focus of the story.

A lot of great things were packed into this novella. If this was turned into a series I would definitely keep reading.

The story touches on transphobia in Korea and there are scenes of domestic violence against a trans person.

Small Gods of Calamity is Sam Kyung Yoo's debut urban fantasy crime-thriller novella. It blends supernatural, mythical, and cultural elements from Korea and Japan in a fast-paced spirit detective story.

On the surface, detective Kim Han-Gil of the Jongro police department is working to solve a series of suicide cases. What he is actually working on is exorcising a supernatural threat he has been chasing after for years. And, on a deeper level, he is facing his past to save those whom he cares about in the present.

While the novella length allows for a quick read and the necessary information to complete the story is provided, I would love for it to be expanded to novel lenght or further developed as a series of books.

This was a typical good mystery book that I genuinely enjoyed.

South Korea as a setting was wonderful to read about.

The mystery aspect of the book was obviously intriguing and the blend of genres was a happy surprise.

I will be looking forward to the author's next project.

Urban mystery meets crime solving detective. When it comes to paranormal activities, where others only see suicides, detective Kim Han-gil sees right through the spirits bringing these people to do abhorrent things. With a interesting side cast and a catching writing style, author Sam Kyung Yoo leaves me waiting for more.

Small Gods of Calamity is a paranormal mystery novel that takes place in Korea. Detective Kim Han-gil is a spirit detective and can talk to ghosts or see other paranormal things. This book is really short but does an amazing job of telling the story. I saw a lot of good reviews and decided to give it a chance, and I am glad I did. I really enjoyed it. The plot was fast-paced, and it had multiple layers to the story. The story was not just about solving the mystery but also about dealing with grief and family. It was such an interesting read for me and I'm definitely looking forward to checking out the author's future works. Thanks to the Interstellar Flight Press and Netgalley for providing me with an early copy.

I REALLY REALLY LOVE THIS BOOK
IT IS AMAZING
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE READ IT
I GIVE THIS BOOK 5 STARS

4.25
The main premise of this novella is that the main character Han Gil is a police detective, but is considered weird and made fun of behind his back by his peers because of something that shaped his childhood. this novella has elements of the supernatural, spirits, and talks of shamans and exorcisms.

This was surprisingly detailed and very well written and was able to create such unique personalities for every single character that was introduced, I love how they were able to bring in Korean customs and myths. I loved the seamless transition of the author explaining them (myths and cultures), without disrupting the mood. this made the novel more inclusive and felt easily accessible.
The way the author was able to discuss and showcase the various forms of trauma and the introduction of a queer character in Korean content made me happy (queer representation in most Asian content is still very uncommon). this is an excellent pick for people who are into jujutsu kaizen or chainsaw man and similar works.

I am looking forward to reading more works by this author.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for providing me with this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

WOOOOHH! This book somehow screams 'jjk vibes' and i love it. I had a hard time getting into the book in the beginning (which worried me because I had a lot of expectations for this book since I've seen tons of good comments about it) but I eventually got into it. As someone who's enjoys paranormal and detective stories, this book hit all the right notes for me. This book is a gem. If you're into paranormal mystery and detective vibes like me, this book is for you.

I didn't realise this was a novella when I started it, but found myself wishing that it was a full length novel by the end! I hope that it becomes a series, would love to explore how Kim Han-gil and Shin Yoonhae's partnership develops over time.

This is a short novella about myths and worm spirits. It had an interesting start but I found the shifting POV jarring especially because the second character was introduced late in the story.
At the heart of the story is reconciliation and forgiveness but for me the compulsion of the characters didn't really come across very strong.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars

A really interesting and fast-paced short novel about Han-gil, a detective who has the ability to sense the paranormal. This involves a lot of themes like recovering from trauma, transphobia (NOT by the main character!), loss and dealing with situations in unhealthy ways. It is also a very interesting book set across Korea and a bit of Japan, with the main character (Korean) being adopted by a Japanese family. Paranormal stuff, ghosts, talismans and possessions are all included in this book, and keep the plot running very smoothly. A really satisfying conclusion too!

I genuinely couldn't put this book down and want to read more by the author!

<i>I was provided with a complimentary copy of this novel by Interstellar Flight Press via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, which I leave voluntarily</i>.

This Novella was such a great read a unique magic system and the Korean Culture. I really enjoyed this book. It was a great read and it captivated me.
I just reviewed Small Gods of Calamity by Sam Kyung Yoo. #smallgods #NetGalley
[NetGalley URL]

‘Ghosts that speak in smoke. Spirits with teeth like glass. A parasitic, soul-eating spirit worm has gone into a feeding frenzy, but all the Jong-ro Police Department’s violent crimes unit sees is a string of suicides. Except for Kim Han-gil, Seoul’s only spirit detective. He’s seen this before . . . .’

All the feels in Sam Kyung Yoo’s novella SMALL GODS OF CALAMITY—My Heart!

The lead-up to the ending felt a little anticlimactic, however, the journey the reader takes with detective Kim Han-gil is filled with a roller coaster of emotions and in my opinion a must-read!

Thank you, NetGalley and Interstellar Flight Press, for providing me with an eBook of SMALL GODS OF CALAMITY at the request of an honest review.

I teach History, including East Asian History, so I love reading about their beliefs, and I also love K-dramas. The story includes a lot of introduction to Korean beliefs in spirits and the supernatural, and for some that might be a little too much for them. However, I found the story really interesting and enjoyable. My main complaints are:

1. Not enough is told about the background between the main character and his 'sister'. It's hinted at, but could have been fleshed out a bit more.

2. It was too short. While yes, it might make it more palatable for some to read as they don't have to commit a huge amount of time to it, I felt that it could have had more depth if it was just a bit longer.

I read my first Sam Kyung Yoo story this winter, and it was good enough to immediately find and read a second, which was better. With a couple successes like that in the books and a debut novel with an extremely unintimidating page count of just around 150 pages, I decided to give Small Gods of Calamity a try.

Small Gods of Calamity teases a pretty familiar urban fantasy premise, albeit in a much different setting than typical US-based works. A cop with unusual spiritual sensitivity tackles high-stakes supernatural crime, often without the support of a department that’s deeply ignorant of the supernatural world. In this case, it’s a Seoul-based detective trying to hunt down a ravening worm spirit that has taken several lives already—including that of his mother. But Small Gods of Calamity doesn’t read much like a police procedural, with a heavy focus on the lead’s recovery from the traumatic loss of a parent and the little magical details that may allow him to finally put an end to the threat.

While I would normally consider a character-driven story about grief and trauma recovery an improvement over a police procedural, Small Gods of Calamity often feels like two separate stories awkwardly smashed into one pint-sized novel that doesn’t fully commit to either one. While the lead’s uncomfortable relationship with his partner and his department often feels like a sideshow, mentioned periodically as if only to remind the reader that this is indeed his job, there’s still a lot of time spent on the little details of the investigation. That there is a worm spirit on the loose is known from the beginning, but the story goes into depth about the little charms and spells that might either protect against it or allow the lead to track its movement.

At the same time, the story also goes into great detail on the lead wrestling with loss, with guilt over failures to save everyone, and with patient zero being cured and active in the community while so many others are destroyed. There’s a lot of psychological turmoil, and a queer, ace romantic subplot tossed in with all of it.

In a 300-page novel, I don’t think the two stories would have had any trouble coexisting. In a novella, either side could’ve carried the story on its own. But in a short novel like Small Gods of Calamity, there’s not enough time to delve thoroughly into both, and the result is two elements alternately coming into and out of focus, neither being totally ignored but neither really getting the attention they need to feel fully fleshed out.

There are undoubtedly plenty of good pieces here. The prose leans more toward the colloquial than stylized, but Yoo has real storytelling chops, and the story of recovery at the heart of the novel is a compelling one that combines with the worm-fighting plot in a way that made it clear why they chose to put both on display. But the jump from short stories to short novels requires a different sort of pacing that doesn’t quite come together here, with too many magical details for a streamlined novella but a recovery narrative that moves too quickly and a main plot elides too much of the actual police dynamic to feel robust as a novel. I’ll certainly be reading more of Yoo’s work, but they’re still more polished in short fiction than in this debut novel.

Recommended if you like: bi/ace disasters hunting terrifying spirit-worms amidst recovery from personal trauma and possibly a romantic subplot (yes, I understand that is very specific)

Overall rating: 13 of Tar Vol’s 20. Three stars on Goodreads.