I wasn't sure what to expect of this book when I first started it. Courtroom novels have never held appeal to me before, but this was getting such high praise that I wanted to give it a try. I'm so glad I did.

First, this book has major content warnings for child death, sexual assault, and physical, emotional, and medical abuse. Y'all, this book is heavy and discusses a lot of intense subjects. Please take care of yourselves.

This book is expertly crafted. The idea that this is Angie Kim's first published work is just unbelievable. Knowing that she inserted much of her own life into the book through several character's experiences doesn't make it any less impressive.

There are several POV characters in this book, and there were times I was a little confused in the beginning of the book, before I really got to understand the different players and how they all related to one another. But the way Kim is able to craft these narratives and weave them together to create such a dynamic and cohesive thread just kept me engaged as I read this book in two sittings.

These characters are so authentic. Every one of them has done awful things and yet there are moments where you feel sympathy for every one of them. That is because they are layered and well-developed. There is no black or white here. Everything is in shades of grey.

There are a lot of discussions throughout this book of what constitutes a 'normal' child, and what, if anything, should be done by parents in order to 'cure' their children from things like cerebral palsy and autism. Now, I could see how parents of children with developmental or physical disabilities may feel strongly one way or another about this sort of content, but I want to say that I think the author does a good job not presenting one argument over another as being 'right'. There are characters on either side presenting their positions, and none of these characters are portrayed as being innocent or justified in their beliefs or actions. It's a really interesting character study that focuses on parents and their attempts to create the best quality of life for themselves and their children, even if those attempts end up being ultimately unsuccessful and potentially harmful.

The plot of the book is interesting mostly in the way that it is structured. I like stories that revolve around a singular event and getting the story of each person present at the event and seeing how their stories differ, whether it is because of deception or merely a different perception. I think fans of books like Big Little Lies would appreciate this story as well.

This book also reminded me of Celeste Ng's books in the way that it discusses race and social structure in the United States. The author herself moved to the U.S. from Korea at a young age and a lot that was in the book came from her real life growing up with parents who were working all day and night in order to succeed in America.

And back to the courtroom scenes. I was nervous that they would be dull and dry. They were actually some of my favorite scenes in the book. The book actually uses graphs and illustrations to portray different evidence exhibits. I appreciated the visual. I listened to this on audiobook but I did follow along quite a bit with the physical copy for that reason.

If I have to point out a negative, it would just be that the ending felt the slightest bit drawn out. After we kind of find out what happened (although it's not the *whole* story about what happened) the book goes on for another 100 pages or so while several minor points are clarified in other POV chapters and the reality of the situation comes into focus. It's a minor quibble, and I enjoyed my reading experience with this book, but I did feel a slight drag about 2/3 of the way through the book.

I did love that the ending isn't all tied up neatly with a bow. There are repercussions to people's actions, but just like real life isn't always fair, not everyone in this book gets the comeuppance they probably should in a fair world. But that's life. Even when justice has ultimately been served, there are going to be things that fall through the cracks.

That being said, this book is heartbreaking and hopeful at the same time. There is a passage in the book that uses a Korean word 'han'. It's described as 'an overwhelming sorrow and regret, a grief and yearning so deep it pervades your sould--but with a sprinkling of resilience, of hope'. That is the perfect description of my feelings toward this book.
It's obvious that the author took a lot of care here to make sure that her characters came across as authentic, flawed humans. I will definitely read whatever she comes out with next.