Impressions of The Mermaid from Jeju by Sumi Hahn #FReadom #historical #fiction #HistoricalFictionAroundtheWorld #mustread #books #amreading

Posted on by Betty Bolte

I finished reading The Mermaid from Jeju by Sumi Hahn and am glad I read this story. Last week I gave you my brief initial thoughts on the story. If you’ve missed my previous reads, you can do a quick search on the Historical Fiction Around the World series title to find the others I’ve commented on since November of 2021 when I began this tour of fiction authors.

Cover image of The Mermaid From Jeju with the back of a woman's head emerging from the sea, facing a mountain in the distance.

The Mermaid from Jeju is a dual-timeline read. We jump from 2001 to 1944 and 1948 and back again. I am so used to reading in close third person point of view (POV), that it took me a while to realize that this author is narrating with an omniscient POV. Bopping in and out of everyone’s thoughts and emotions was a bit disorienting at first, but once I realized that the narrator knows and sees all, then I could accept it. She has a good reason for using this POV and it works.

Note that the past in this novel is during WWII in Korea. I have found it interesting to see the war from the view in different locales and countries. My father served on Guadalcanal with the U.S. Army and he told me about his experiences. He even wrote them down in a memoir for his family. So seeing others experiences is enlightening. How soldiers in Korea felt about what they were asked to do. How people living in the towns impacted—literally and figuratively—adapted and carried on despite the hardships and tensions. All of the ambiance of the setting and history combined into a moving story.

This story also surprised me because of the mystical elements throughout. I hadn’t expected them, so was delighted to find not only mention of ghosts and spirits but of the inexplicable. Some might call it magic. One of the most fascinating scenes involved a shaman summoning the spirits of the dead family to assemble and communicate in what is termed a “kut.” While it’s tempting to think of it as a séance, the kut is more ceremonial and involved. Elegant and inviting, also. It’s a beautiful scene, one that easily replays in my mind.

Of course, we can’t overlook the title mystical or mythical element: mermaids. In Hahn’s tale, the mermaids are divers who free dive, no scuba or snorkel gear necessary. They are trained, athletic, strong, courageous, and loving women. They bring back treasures from the sea, anything from seaweed to pearls, depending on their needs and what is available. Seeing into the life of such a person was intriguing and I’m glad to have the opportunity to visit their underwater world. I’m not a diver, so that’s as close as I’ll ever get. (Trust me, I’ve tried scuba diving and it’s not my cuppa.)

I’m glad to have read this story. It’s filled with the beliefs and superstitions and daily life of these people. How they treat each other based on their relationship and of course their previous interactions. I’m a believer in understanding cause and effect so that was interesting to read about in this tale as well. The inclusion of dreams as a foretelling of an individual’s future was also a fascinating view into their way of life.

In a nutshell: I recommend this book.

Next up is another one from a Korean author. I’ll be reading Beasts of  a Little Land by Juhea Kim. Now I’m off to the library to pick it up.

Happy reading!

Betty

P.S. If you haven’t already, please consider signing up for my newsletter, which I send out most every month, including news like new covers, new releases, and upcoming appearances where I love to meet my readers, along with recipes and writing progress. Thanks and happy reading!

Visit www.bettybolte.com for more on my books and upcoming events.

Love is never lost; it haunts the heart…   An unsuspecting Southern town. Ghosts. Witchcraft. Skeletons in the closet. Discover the Secrets of Roseville in this five book series… Undying Love, Haunted Melody, The Touchstone of Raven Hollow, Veiled Visions of Love, and Charmed Against All Odds!

Cover image of Veiled Visions of Love featuring a young man and woman facing each other on a motorcycle at the top, and a fighter jet at the bottom.

His search for a home led him straight to her heart…

Psychic Beth Golden longs for the life of a heroine in a suspense novel but fears death by boredom working in the small town bookstore. Until a pilot rolls into town on his motorcycle with a secret mission.

Major Mitch Sawyer wants his own home with a wife and family. He entices a sexy book lover to help him with one last airplane repo job before he can realize his dream. Only Beth’s need for excitement endangers herself and an innocent bystander. Can he save them before it’s too late?

Amazon     Books2Read     Barnes & Noble     Kobo     Apple      GoogleBooks     Bookshop

Initial Thoughts on The Mermaid from Jeju by Sumi Hahn #FReadom #historical #fiction #HistoricalFictionAroundtheWorld #mustread #books #amreading

Posted on by Betty Bolte

After a short hiatus, let’s return to my Historical Fiction Around the World series, shall we? I’ve chosen The Mermaid from Jeju by Sumi Hahn as next up on my world tour of historical fiction by authors outside of my native USA. If you’ve missed my previous reads, you can do a quick search on the series title to find the others I’ve commented on over the last year or so.

I’ve borrowed it via Hoopla this time, and at least the ebook is formatted correctly. Should make reading it easier and more enjoyable instead of frustrating like some have been. The story is copyrighted 2020 and is 304 pages long. It’s set in Korea in 1910-1945 while that country was occupied by Japan, but the first scene (a sort of Prologue?) is set in Philadelphia in 2001. Interestingly, the Acknowledgements appear after that opening scene—to ensure more readers read it or is it a mistake in the formatting? Sumi Kahn was born in Korea, grew up in the USA, and now lives in New Zealand. She’s probably had a wealth and variety of experience to inform her stories, don’t you think?

There are two parts plus a section called “One Last Story” which I’m eager to find out more about. Hahn included a Glossary of Korean Terms and also Readers Club Guide Questions. I have only virtually dipped my toe into this aquatic tale so I don’t have much to say about it yet. I can tell Hahn has a commanding authorial voice and the story is engaging to me. I’m looking forward to getting back to reading it as a result.

I’m glad to be able to return to this series because I enjoy the stretch to my reading experience through choosing books based on author’s native/resident country instead of purely by topic or familiarity with any given author. Each of these books was recommended to me by other historical fiction readers, so I feel fairly safe randomly picking from the list. Note that I’m in the K’s now so approximately halfway through the alphabet working backwards.

I’m off to continue reading and I’ll have more next week after I’ve finished reading it. Happy reading!

Betty

P.S. If you haven’t already, please consider signing up for my newsletter, which I send out most every month, including news like new covers, new releases, and upcoming appearances where I love to meet my readers, along with recipes and writing progress. Thanks and happy reading!

Visit www.bettybolte.com for more on my books and upcoming events.

Love is never lost; it haunts the heart…   An unsuspecting Southern town. Ghosts. Witchcraft. Skeletons in the closet. Discover the Secrets of Roseville in this five book series… Undying Love, Haunted Melody, The Touchstone of Raven Hollow, Veiled Visions of Love, and Charmed Against All Odds!

His search for a home led him straight to her heart…

Psychic Beth Golden longs for the life of a heroine in a suspense novel but fears death by boredom working in the small town bookstore. Until a pilot rolls into town on his motorcycle with a secret mission.

Major Mitch Sawyer wants his own home with a wife and family. He entices a sexy book lover to help him with one last airplane repo job before he can realize his dream. Only Beth’s need for excitement endangers herself and an innocent bystander. Can he save them before it’s too late?

Amazon     Books2Read     Barnes & Noble     Kobo     Apple      GoogleBooks     Bookshop

Who took my plane??? Airplane Repo and Romance #airplane #romance #paranormal #fiction #books #amreading #kindle #sales

Posted on by Betty Bolte

One of the more unique premises for my stories came from a question I asked my Facebook fans. What jobs or careers haven’t been written about very much? The answer that kicked my imagination and curiosity into gear was airplane repossession agent. A bit of online searching yielded some interesting facts about this career choice. The qualifications and opportunities were fairly easy to discover.

The more I delved into the job description, the more excited I became because the guy who would do such a job was the perfect match for Beth Golden, a bored craving adventure bookseller in a small town. Thus the character of Mitch Sawyer sprung into my mind.

Did you know there is a reality TV series based on airplane repo, by that name even? I watched as many episodes as I could, taking notes all the while. The situations the repo agents find themselves in are indeed scary and pointed out the kinds of training, education, self-defense, and protection the agents need to have. Turns out it’s a very dangerous job, too. Mainly because you can’t hook up a tow truck and take back the plane; you have to make sure it’s airworthy and then fly it out without being stopped by the person who defaulted on the mortgage. A typically macho male person who is never happy with his plane being taken. Flying it out can be tricky depending on where the plane is: inside a hangar; on the lake with its pontoons; in the middle of several other planes. The repo agent needs to be able to protect himself and get the job done safely. This is why Beth decides to take Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and learn to shoot a pistol, so she can help a reluctant Mitch in his work.

In one episode of the show, I saw a situation that I tailored in Veiled Visions of Love. In the TV episode, the repo agent pretends to be taking a flying lesson as a gift from his female coworker so he can take the plane up and then take control of the plane to repossess it. You’ll find a similar setup in my story, with Beth acting like she’s paying for Mitch’s first flying lesson, when he is actually an Air Force fighter jet pilot. He knows what he’s doing, in other words. I loved the idea of the couple working together to repo the plane and give Beth a taste of the thrill of the chase and capture of the plane. The problem is she becomes addicted to the thrill, much to Mitch’s dismay.

Here’s a short excerpt from the book:

“Ready for your flying lesson, Mitch?” She winked at him, one hand going to her hat to settle it back in place. Already acting the tourist. Patting the purse, she canted her head with a smile. “I’ve got the paperwork right here.”

He nodded, unable to trust his voice for a moment. She’d be a great distraction to the other men if his reaction served as an indicator. For now, their safety depended on him. Later he’d let his imagination out to play. He tamped down his clamoring libido and focused on the task at hand. Time to slip into his own newbie tourist character.

Mitch pasted a goofy smile on his face and made a show of enthusiasm as they turned toward their targets. “I can’t believe you’d do this for me, Miss Beth. Thank you so much.”

They approached the two men who rose in unison from their folding chairs. Mutt and Jeff looked like they were upstanding citizens but Mitch’s file on them proved otherwise.

Mutt, otherwise known as Byron Carter, renowned for his extravagant life style he rarely paid for. Making money on one project to pay off the last flop, only to fail at the new endeavor and having to try yet another. The old rob-Peter-to-pay-Paul merry-go-round of finance. Only the current attempt involved an expensive plane the real owners, the bank, wanted back. Now.

Jeff, or Ned Wright, was not the sharpest pencil in the holder. Some questioned whether there was any lead at all. The man was adept at following orders, though, making him the perfect partner for someone like Carter.

They’d taken the plane but didn’t make the payments for the past six months. Time for the good ol’ boys to learn a little lesson from a certain pilot. He kept the false smile in place as he stopped in front of the two men. No sign of weapons but they could have them concealed in one of several ways. Like he did.

“Hi, there.” Beth started talking, drawing their appreciative looks. “I bought a flying lesson package for me and my friend here to take a little hop in your airplane. Are we too late?”

“No, ma’am, you’re right on time.” Carter held out a hand to Beth and then to Mitch. “I’ll be taking you both for a thirty-minute flight right after we sign the releases and take care of the final flight prep. Follow me.”

Mitch grinned at Beth, ensuring for himself that she was still on board with the plan as they’d discussed. She winked at him and hurried after Carter.

Veiled Visions of Love is on sale (the Kindle edition) for $.99 this week only! I hope you enjoy Beth and Mitch’s story. Thanks for reading!

Betty

P.S. If you haven’t already, please consider signing up for my newsletter, which I send out most every month, including news like new covers, new releases, and upcoming appearances where I love to meet my readers, along with recipes and writing progress. Thanks and happy reading!

Visit www.bettybolte.com for more on my books and upcoming events.

Psychic Beth Golden longs to live the life of a heroine in a suspense novel but knows she’ll die of boredom working in the bookstore in the small town of Roseville. Until a pilot rolls into town on his motorcycle with a secret mission. When he introduces her to a whole new world of daring and romance, she’s captivated by a lifestyle filled with unexpected and dangerous surprises.

Major Mitch Sawyer, currently serving in the Reserves, has lived all over the world and wants nothing more than to have his own home with a wife and family. Forced to complete one more airplane repo job before he can afford to resign his commission and make his dream a reality, he entices a sexy book lover to help him by becoming an undercover biker chick. Only Beth’s hunger for excitement endangers both herself and an innocent bystander. Can he protect them—and his heart—before it’s too late?

Books2Read     Amazon  B&N    Kobo    Apple