On the first day of the monsoon an old ramshackle building appears. This is The Rainfall Market. Inside you will find magical bookstores, hairdressers, perfumeries and anything your heart desires.

But you cannot enter without an invitation.

Serin, who lives in a small flat with her mother and dreams of a bigger, better life, can’t believe her luck when she receives a ticket inviting her to step inside The Rainfall Market. Once inside she will have the opportunity to swap her life for a new one.

A better one.

Accompanied by Isha the cat and followed by a mysterious shadow, Serin tentatively steps inside. There she is told she has just one week to choose the perfect life and find true happiness.

However, there is a catch.

If she doesn’t find her dream life, she’ll be trapped inside the market forever . . .

I picked up The Rainfall Market by You Yeong-Gwang because of two things. Firstly, the blurb captured my imagination and secondly, that cover is simply gorgeous – Yes I know you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover but how can you not when it is so inviting!!

What I noticed when I began reading is that I wasn’t sure this was marketed to the right audience. The premise, the style of writing, and the choice of words gave me pure YA vibes. Whether this was down to the author or the translator I’ll probably never know. This doesn’t mean the book isn’t any good. Far from it. But for adult readers who don’t want or read YA books, I’m not sure this book will be for you.

In the story, we meet Serin who lives an impoverished life with her mother in a small flat in a building that has been earmarked to be demolished. She dreams of having a better life and is ecstatic when she receives an invite to the Rainfall Market which appears when the monsoon rains does each year. You can only enter by invite and you get to choose an orb that will give you a new life.

Serin’s ticket is slightly different from others though. She has a golden one which means that she gets to choose multiple orbs from different market places all of which will give her a different life. She then gets to view these lives by the way of a mystical and magical cat who plops the orb into its mouth and shows Serin what her new life could be like.

The story is certainly intriguing and gave me the vibes of Matt Haig’s book The Midnight Library, which I adored. The Rainfall Market is a short read at just 224 pages but it packs a punch. The fantasy setting and the many, many people or Dokkaebi’s within are vast, as are the shops within.

If you love books that ground you whilst reading and give you many quotes within to remember then this is the book for you.

You Yeong-Gwang was born in Seongnam in 1984. He wrote this story during breaks while delivering food for a living. He felt truly happy while writing this story and wishes for all readers to find healing and courage through it so that they may go out and find their own happiness.