Overall rating and opinion of "The Vanished" by Pejay Bradley

[Nqobile Mashinini Tshabalala]

I rated the book 4 out of 4 stars. I enjoyed reading it. It exposed me to Korean culture and I scored a free history lesson. I enjoyed the character development. The author took her time to give the reader background information about a lot of characters. I appreciate that. There wasn't anything I disliked.

[Bridgetbruso99]

I enjoyed this book dispite it not being a type I would normally pick up. I learned a lot about Korea and Japan from it including some vocabulary which I liked. I enjoyed Enbom and the characters of his friends and wished there was more of them in their adventures in the story, although I know it would have slowed the book down. It was a bit hard for me to go back and forth between different narrators at times. I liked that Enbom was able to have a crush on a Japanese girl even though he was so opinionated. It shows that he did not think all Japanese were bad people.

[Excel 2021]

I like the novel because it sheds light on the sufferings of the marginalized in Korean society and so some extent many other nations in that part. We need to out an end to discrimination of every kind

[Miller56]

I rated the book 4 out of 4 stars. I was not familiar with Korean history and I enjoyed reading the author's view on it. I am not sure how much of the story is factual, but from my limited knowledge of Asian history, I felt that the author had researched the book. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this novel.

[MayorE]

So far the book seems really interesting,apart from the fact that I love books on historical happenings, I have always wanted to have more knowledge of the relationship between Korea and Japan and so far the book has not disappointed

[Adanna Inya]

I would gladly recommend it, especially to lovers of historical novels because it shed some light on how women have been subdued over the years, even the elite. It also followed politics in moderation, also talks about the marginalization of the traditional Korean society.

[dtbrannon]

I read this book recently and really enjoyed reading about the history and culture and culture of Korea. I lived in the Pacific for ten years in the 1990s and visited Osan, Korea once. I was amazed by the military might present at that time and always wondered how the country became divided.

Having spent a fair amount of time around Asian people when I was much younger, I came to realize that they had deeply ingrained beliefs, traditions, and customs. However, I had no idea that Japan had so much influence on the Korean people, so this book was a learning experience for me.

This writer has a smooth, easy flowing style to grips the reader's attention and holds it throughout the story. The characters are well developed and diverse. The reader feels that they are part of the setting.

[enna_idEsrun]

Although I am not much of a historical fiction novel fan, I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. I thought that the author did excellently to entertain in spite of the genre. What I particularly enjoyed most about this book was the author's insightful handling of the impassioned issues brought out in this novel. One relatable issue that stood out to me was the emotional struggle that Lady Sougyon faced as an estranged wife of an psychologically abusive husband. This was one among other relatable issues that I thought the author handled quite nicely. In terms of what I least enjoyed about The Vanished was that I came across a discrepancy having to do with transitioning of the key. Because the book was written in the first person, I met a couple cases where the author asserted the first person's perspective on situations to which the first person was not related. With this aside, the author did an overall good job on this novel. I certainly will not say that I only recommend this book to persons who enjoy historical fiction novels because this book may definitely be enjoyed by all persons who appreciate a good read. I rate this book a four out of four stars.

[Chigo Nwagboso]

My favorite aspect of this book is the description of event and narrations. The author really painted real pictures in my brain.
I have friends that love history fiction of other countries. I believe this book will educate them well.

[Swirliegirlie]

I thoroughly enjoyed The Vanished. This novel provided a lot of insight into a world I knew little about. Pejay Bradley portrayed both Sougyon and Embon's characters amazingly. There were multiple times I was able to relate to these characters because of the detailed descriptions into their way of thinking and feelings. The novel itself and the way it was broken up into parts reminded me of Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan (which is my favorite book).

[Fabulous mind]

This book deserves a perfect rating of 4. I loved how it exposes the readers to the rich culture of the Koreans. Lovers of historical fiction will find this book appealing.

[Lorraine De Vos]

I have not yet finished reading this book, and I am usually not drawn to historical fiction, but the reviews I have read and the topic of turmoil between Korea and Japan is fascinating...

[Valerie Garske]

I can't say I liked the book, but I appreciated the book and respected that it left me feeling uncomfortable. I believe reading this book was an opportunity for my own personal growth. The drama is craftily written, and the story is authentic and credible. I am conflicted about how to rate this book. Growth is sometimes painful. Consequently, I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars.
~ Valerie

[María Andrea Fernández Sepúlveda]

I liked the book very much, especially the descriptions of Korean traditions and costumes. I would've liked more depth in the characters. Much more analysis on their motives and backstories would've enriched the novel, in my opinion. But this is a matter of personal taste. I also would've preferred a different management on the alternating point of views. But all of this is a decision of the author and not flaws in and of themselves. However, I don't think this book is for everyone. Japanese readers might feel offended, for example. Also, the slow-pace could be boring for some readers.

[shravsi]

I actually quite liked the book. I learned many topics in detail. As a foreigner, the author's descriptive writing style in part one helped me a lot. I also got a fresh view of the Korean independence struggle. But I thought the changing POV detracted from the quality of the book. And I felt the author kept on changing narrators too frequently. Thus I gave it 2 out of 4 stars. I enjoyed the book despite this and will recommend to other readers too.