Just the Two of Us by Ryu Hyang

 

Title: Just The Two of Us (Book 1)

Author: Ryu Hyang

Translator: Stephanie Cha

Edition: English (translated Korean novel first published 2017)

Publisher: POPPYPUB

Publication date: 28th October 2020

Genres: contemporary romance, rom-com

Pages: 350

Source: Netgalley

Book purchase links: Poppy Pub | Amazon 

My personal rating: ⭐⭐/5

Book Blurb

A heartwarming story of two people who were meant for each other.

Soohyuk: a pediatric emergency medicine specialist. A man who never eats something someone else gives him.

Soohyuk, the tyrant who rules S University Hospital’s pediatric emergency room. He only cares about treating sick children, whether or not that gets in the way of advancing his career. He, a grouch to everyone aside from the patients, suddenly starts noticing a woman: the woman who feeds him.

Yuna: a chef who makes boxed lunches. A woman who panics and collapses whenever she meets a man, due to trauma from her past.

Wanting to do what she likes rather than going off to college, Yuna opens up her own business that specializes in boxed lunches, A Tasty Meal. She gets scared when one day she sees the tall Soohyuk standing outside her restaurant, but she soon learns he is only drawn to the delicious smell. And, somehow, she comes to be in charge of his everyday meals.

When Soohyuk meets Yuna, a confident, surefooted woman who gets startled and scared when he comes near, he wants to know everything there is to know about her.

“Did you collapse because you don’t like me? Or are you scared of men?”

My Review

Just the Two of Us by Ryu Hyang is a rom-com Korean drama centering about two people who complement each other despite the polar opposites they stand on; a stoic, eccentric pediatrician named Soohyuk and loveable blogging chef named Yuna. It's a slow burn romance, not a cup of my tea, but it plays out a natural scheme of falling-in-love so I think it is an okay read because the build-up of getting some romantised elements is really satisfying after witnessing them denying their feelings towards each other for quite a long time. 

At first, I couldn't get used to its writing style, particularly the execution of the translation. Since this book is originally published in Korean, it feels awkward to read the translated one. There are some noticeable jarring words in which I find unfitting to be put in sentences and to be related to situations that the author wants us to imagine. Some scenes I couldn't understand, it's a lot worse at the beginning of the story but then it's getting better when coming through the middle of the story. Seemingly the word choices are important to be highlighted here because they do really give some impact to readers whether they want to continue reading this book or not. I'm not sure if the translation is lost due to the cultural differences, I just hope this book will get properly edited, and perhaps ask for assistance from people who possess a good command of Korean and English language literacy. 

However, it doesn't mean that the story is overall bad. There are some aspects that I would like to shower praises besides the aforesaid amazing build-up, one of them is the characterisation. Soohyuk is a guy whom you always label him as a typical protagonist whereby he just gives everyone a cold shoulder but then only shows a frail side of him towards the heroine and kids (he's a pediatrician). I must say that I'll always fall for this trope 🤣 love it. In this story, Soohyuk's cold demeanour stems from the past experiences he has had during his childhood; a domestic violence incurred by his stepfather. Thus, he resolves not to let any kids experience the same experiences he has gone through by becoming the best specialist in this field. Same as the female lead, she has encountered a gnawing trauma by being confined in a small space (claustrophobia) and being molested by a man. Love begins to blossom when these two could fill in each other's void. 

Reasons why I rated it 2 stars is because of the poor translation and the abrupt ending; a cliffhanger that doesn't provoke me to read the sequel. I almost abandoned it after passing the first few chapters but then, I love watching k-dramas and this book has bits similar to it. So I beared with it till the end, just casually enjoying the story without focusing much on its writing style. 

Thank you Netgalley and POPPYPUB for providing me an e-arc in exchange for an honest review. 

About the Author 

Ryu Hyang was born in Seoul. She wishes to be a writer who brings joy to everyone who reads her stories and is always in their memories. She is a romance buff to the core who always dreams of happy endings. Her published works in Korea include Light and Shadow, Golden Time, Glory, The Gift, Ryuhyang, Dear My Rose, The Good Man, Creep, An Ocean of Light, Summer, The Beauty and the Beast, To the One Who Loves me, Candle in a Storm, One Fine Day, The Night Wind, The Fair Wind, Colors of the Wind, The Sound of the Wind, N.I.G (Now is Good), The Vow, Just the Two of Us, RIver Flow, Sally Says, and The Nights Under the Moonlight. 

About the Translator

Steph Cha is a Korean American novelist and fiction writer, who has released three novels in the crime fiction genre about her detective protagonist Juniper Song, Follow Her Home (2013), Beware Beware (2014), and Dead Soon Enough (2015).