Behind Five Willows Jane Austen reimagined in Korea - THE INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

When I saw the premise of this book, I knew I had to read it. I personally knew very little about the Joseon dynasty before reading this book, so I definitely learned a lot while reading and researching alongside (f.e, fashion, the edicts, architecture, etc.). Especially the marriage edict and the novel bans were interesting to me, and I love that June Hur wove these real historical events and topics into a well-known story. Seojun and Haewon were wonderful leads, and following their POVs created exactly the right amount of yelling (from me at my screen) about them talking past each other while actually constantly talking about each other :D Pride and Prejudice is an all-time favorite of mine, and I am always curious about how books that are inspired or adapted from the story work with the material (aka how close/far away they stray). I think June Hur really hit a perfect middle-ground with Behind Five Willows. There were enough recognizable story beats that readers of P&P would appreciate, but the story stayed its own and brought in enough changes and ideas that it wasn't simply "another P&P inspired story". As this book is categorized as YA, the language is accessible while still being beautiful and lush, a joy to read. A book about the love of books, writing, family, and what one wants in life. I am obsessed. Thank you to June Hur, Macmillan Children's Publishing, and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!