Blowfish
by Kyung-Ran Jo
A meditative novel about art, grief, and death told through two voices moving at different paces toward the same edge.
ARC Review - Post Publication
Publisher: Astra House
Release Date: July 15, 2025
Format: Digital (via NetGalley)
Blowfish is a quiet, meditative book. It isn’t trying to charm you or entertain. It’s deliberate, more focused on thought than feeling, and definitely written from a cultural perspective that Western readers may not fully connect with, especially around death. In the West, suicide tends to be framed as an emergency, something tied to shame or failure. In this novel, it’s presented more like an option. Not sensationalized. Not dramatic. Just there.
The story unfolds in two voices: a sculptor and an architect, each dealing with the lingering weight of suicide in different ways. The sculptor is almost matter-of-fact. Her life has been surrounded by death, and she approaches her own with a kind of clear-eyed stillness. Maybe even a final piece of performance art. The architect carries fresher grief. His brother died by suicide, and he's still holding the guilt of not being able to stop it. The woman’s perspective felt more internal and resolved; his, more restless and unfinished. Together, they balance each other. For her, Tokyo becomes the place where she’s allowed to move toward death. For him, she represents something unfinished, maybe even a chance at redemption.
This one surprised me, because of how differently it’s being received here compared to Korea. Over there, it sold out in major bookstores. Here, it's sitting around a 3 star average. I can understand why, but I don’t agree..
I do not usually read other people’s reviews right after I read a book, but this time they popped up everywhere because the book is newly published. They made me scratch my head. Something mentioned in the Western reviews was emotional distance. I didn’t find the “emotional distance” cold. It felt contemplative. It’s not about catharsis. It’s about sitting with something uncomfortable and not rushing to resolve it. The pacing is slow, intentionally so. Some readers might get frustrated with that, but I didn’t. It stayed with me.
Maybe this kind of storytelling… quiet, philosophical, culturally specific, “post-modern”… just doesn’t translate easily in some spaces. It isn’t a translation of the word or concept it is culture and feeling. Or maybe readers expected something else. I don’t know. But for me, it worked.
Thanks to Astra House and NetGalley for the ARC.
Blowfish was released July 15, 2025.
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Set the Mood for Blowfish
Classic fountain pen — for journaling and reflection
Hardcover notebook — for holding memories and thoughts you can’t quite say out loud
Soft woven throw blanket — for reading late into the night
Sandalwood soy candle — quiet, steady, grounding
Looking for your next read?
My Asian Era is where literature meets culture — thoughtful reviews, quiet voices, and stories worth slowing down for.
