A diaspora espionage novel: Oxford Soju Club by Jinwoo Park

 

Title: Oxford Soju Club

Author: Jinwoo Park

Number of Pages: 244

Publishing Date: 30 September 2025

Available format: paperback

Genre: Asian Literature, Espionage, Asian Diaspora 

Synopsis:

When North Korean spymaster Doha Kim is mysteriously killed in Oxford, his protégé, Yohan Kim, chases the only breadcrumb given to him in Doha’s last breath: “Soju Club, Dr. Ryu.” In the meantime, a Korean American CIA agent , Yunah Choi, races to salvage her investigation of the North Korean spy cell in the aftermath of the assassination. At the centre of it all is the Soju Club, the only Korean restaurant in Oxford, owned by Jihoon Lim, an immigrant from Seoul in search of a new life after suffering a tragedy. As different factions move in with their own agendas, their fates become entangled, resulting in a bitter struggle that will determine whose truth will triumph.

Oxford Soju Club weaves a tale of how immigrants in the Korean diaspora are forced to create identities to survive, and how in the end, they must shed those masks and seek their true selves.

 

Review:

First time reading an espionage novel, kinda nervous

This book isn’t just about betrayal, hidden identities, and secret codes, it's a book that proves that the biggest missions are the ones inside yourself.

We’ve got three main players tangled in secrets:

Yohan Kim, a North Korean spy hiding in Oxford under an alias;

‎Yunah Choi, a Korean-American CIA agent trying to unravel the web of lies after her mentor’s murder

‎And Jihoon Lim, an immigrant restaurateur whose life was meant to be quiet, but the Soju Club restaurant drags him into intersections of identity, grief, and danger.

 

‎What hits me hardest: it’s not just about who kills who or who is double agenting. It’s about those masks we wear — assimilation, loyalty, sacrifice, heritage — and what it costs when you’re forced to shift them depending on who’s watching.

The setting is gorgeous in its tension: Oxford’s cobbled alleys, secret meetings in a Korean restaurant (Soju Club), spies in daylight pretending everything is normal. It’s both moody and alive. Yes, there are twisty spy bits, some betrayals, some heartbreaks. But what really stuck with me were the quieter moments — Jihoon cooking his mother’s recipes, Yunah fighting to not be “othered,” Yohan trying to carry both loyalty to his homeland and the weight of his mentor’s dying request. And honestly? I deeply loved how Doha and Dr. Ryu’s quiet, steady affection for Yohan gave the story some of its most tender layers. In a book built on suspicion and secrecy, their warmth toward him felt like flickers of light in the dark.

On top of all that, Jinwoo Park’s writing is poetic and beautiful, but also sharp enough to cut right into your heart. One of my many favorite moments came when a character, standing so close to death, has a conversation about how the people we love most can slowly disappear from our memories. That reflection gutted me — tender, haunting, and so true it’s almost unbearable.

My only caveat:

because there are multiple POVs + flashbacks, the timeline shifts can get confusing. Sometimes I had to pause and think, “Wait, who's this again?” But I think that messiness mirrors the characters’ inner confusion, so it kind of works.

Final Verdict:

‎If you love spy thrillers with heart, identity crises, diaspora nuances, and characters who aren’t just cogs in a system but people battling to be seen, Oxford Soju Club is for you. High tension, and even higher emotional stakes.

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