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Janet Hong
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Kwon Yeo-sun
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Lemon Hardcover

3.7 3.7 out of 5 stars 610 ratings
Editors' pick Best Mystery, Thriller & Suspense
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Previous page
  1. Language
    English
  2. Dimensions
    8.58 x 0.83 x 5.43 inches
  3. ISBN-10
    180024147X
  4. ISBN-13
    978-1800241473
  5. See all details
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The Amazon Book Review
The Amazon Book Review
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Popular Highlights in this book
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  1. The imagination is just as painful as reality. No, it’s more painful. After all, what you imagine has no limit or end.
    Highlighted by 128 Kindle readers
  2. Some lives are unfair for no apparent reason, but we carry on, completely unaware, like miserable vermin.
    Highlighted by 70 Kindle readers
  3. Unable to penetrate the fortress of their relationships, I found myself outside its walls, completely alone.
    Highlighted by 53 Kindle readers
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Product details

  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 180024147X
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1800241473
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8.58 x 0.83 x 5.43 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.7 3.7 out of 5 stars 610 ratings

About the authors

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Previous page
  1. Janet Hong

    Janet Hong

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    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Janet Hong is a writer and translator based in Vancouver, Canada. Her translation of Han Yujoo’s The Impossible Fairy Tale was a finalist for the 2018 PEN Translation Prize. Her other translations include Ancco’s Bad Friends (Drawn & Quarterly) and Ha Seong-nan’s The Woman Next Door (Open Letter Books).

    See more on the author's page
  2. Kwon Yeo-sun

    Kwon Yeo-sun

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    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

    See more on the author's page
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Customer reviews

3.7 out of 5 stars
3.7 out of 5
610 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

patricia h.
3.0 out of 5 stars Memorable
Reviewed in the United States on December 27, 2021
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Hard to follow
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J. C. Santos
4.0 out of 5 stars Each Chapter a Razor Cut
Reviewed in the United States on May 24, 2022
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Something about the sparse language intensifies the impact of this minimalist but intensely emotional novel. You inhabit the characters' barely livable lives, and climb up to breath for air after you finish the novel.
One person found this helpful
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jvn
5.0 out of 5 stars cute and quaint novel!
Reviewed in the United States on July 10, 2023
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very pretty book that i gifted to a friend!
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Amazon Customer
3.0 out of 5 stars Ok
Reviewed in the United States on March 20, 2024
You can piece together what happened, but there is no real resolution to this book. That makes this book kind of meh.
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Atlas
4.0 out of 5 stars Short, sweet, and well written
Reviewed in the United States on October 25, 2022
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While short, it is a very concise and insightful story. The three-perspective route definitely gives the book a good amount of meaning
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Ivy Grimes
5.0 out of 5 stars Philosophical and provoking mystery
Reviewed in the United States on March 25, 2024
This is my favorite kind of mystery, where we're seriously forced to think about life's meaning (or lack thereof) while we solve the question of who committed the murder. I wonder if Hae-on, the girl who is murdered, is a metaphor for God! Both are perceived by the main characters as beings who know very little. Anyway, even if you hate those kinds of questions, I can't imagine why anyone wouldn't want to read this book. Oh, well, it's a little depressing, but it's creepy and clue-laden enough to distract from any sad thoughts.
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Julie Failla Earhart
2.0 out of 5 stars Confusing
Reviewed in the United States on November 7, 2021
During the summer of 2002, eighteen-year-old Kim Hae-on was murdered. Although the police investigated and had two notable suspects, the cases quickly grew cold.

Cold that is for the police, but for Hae-on’s family and friends, the case burned white hot. Her sister, Da-on has been traumatized by the event and is unable to move past it. Seventeen years later, Da-on and two of Hae-on’s friends, who were also deeply affected, decide to conduct their own investigation.

This short novel moves between Da-on and the two friends as narrators, but it is almost impossible to determine who is speaking. You can imagine how confusing this was to read! Still I was able to piece it together through the chapter titles. I think.

This is a crime novel which is unlike any other crime novel I have ever read. “But identifying the perpetrator is not the main objective here: Kwon Yeo-sun uses this well-worn form to craft a searing, timely exploration of privilege, jealousy, trauma, and how we live with the wrongs we have endured and inflicted in turn.”

Sometime I felt as if I had read this book twice by the time I was finished with it because I had to read most chapters twice to really understand what was happening. I was intrigued with the format.

However, by the end, I’m not sure if the killer was named, and if it was who it was. Therefore, “Lemon” receives 2 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world.
6 people found this helpful
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W.P. Osborn
3.0 out of 5 stars less about criminology than about psychology
Reviewed in the United States on December 23, 2021
The inceptions for this short novel are the murder of a vacuous yet exceptionally beautiful teenage girl and the later kidnap and disappearance of her namesake niece. The story is told by alternating narrators who know one another and who speak in colloquial, often teenagery voices. The piece doesn’t resolve like a typical mystery, but is more interested in the psychological effects on those who have been affected by the crimes. In order for the story to work, the reader has to be made to care about the characters. Though I was moved by the kidnapping of the infant, I did not care enough about the murdered girl or the people surrounding the crimes. I believe the book was oversold by reviewers and that the jacket blurbs hide its problems. Or, maybe my mood was just wrong for it. In either case, I cannot tell you you must rush right out and get this book.
2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Margaret Sarrasin
1.0 out of 5 stars Young Novelist Disappoints
Reviewed in Canada on November 7, 2021
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The writing was like from someone still in High School, got acceptable reviews but novel was so immature
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Trisha Jeffery
4.0 out of 5 stars Delightful
Reviewed in Australia on November 7, 2021
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This is a delightful read, well written and easily read....the only thing is that it was very short and rather expensive for what I got, feel that I didn’t get my monies worth, would I recommend to a friend...yes...
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Anne-Louise
4.0 out of 5 stars Something a bit different
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 2, 2024
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A short, original, unusual book dealing with the aftermath of the murder of a teenage girl in Seoul, South Korea. It's a combination of 'who-dunnit', 'why-dunnit', an exploration of grief and the consequences of being falsely accused of a terrible crime.

It covers quite a long time period with several narrators and it does take some effort to figure out who is narrating at any one time and which part of the story you're getting. In my opinion it's worth the effort and I commend the author for not bending to the temptation to spoonfeed the reader.

Recommended for readers who are looking for a crime novel that's just a little bit different.
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Michela Casella
2.0 out of 5 stars Not my type of book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 31, 2023
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I gave it a try because I heard so many good review. But honestly I didn’t like it that much. I guess isn’t my type of book. It’s written nicely, and I could read it fast enough. But didn’t left me with the sense of “wow loved the book”.
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Lucyreviews
5.0 out of 5 stars wow
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 7, 2023
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Good lord, this was a journey.

This book may be short but it packs a punch. Gorgeously written with incredible imagery and skill. I highly recommend this book!
One person found this helpful
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