Mrs Shim Is a Killer

A gripping tale of love, food and one woman’s unconventional quest to support her family.

I am no ordinary ajumma. I am a killer

When Mrs Shim – widowed, unemployed, with two children at home and a fridge to fill – answers a job ad at the Smile Detective Agency, she boosts its fortunes forever. For Mrs Shim is sharp as a blade, handles business cleanly and is like a padlock when it comes to keeping secrets.

By day, she prepares kimchi for her family and her neighbour with dementia; by night Mrs Shim is out on a job.

But what starts as a need for survival escalates into a thirst for vengeance. For Mrs. Shim is done with being everyone’s doormat.

In this savage and side-splitting literary thriller, an ordinary woman dives headfirst into a world of petty criminals, crooked cops and accidental assassins as she embarks on her new career.

Gritty and absurd, MRS SHIM is a kaleidoscopic tale of twisted love, unhinged loathing and hopeful reinvention. Its world of endearing misfits, dead bodies and tasty food marks the exuberant arrival of a major new international literary voice.

About Kang Jiyoung

Kang Jiyoung is an established Korean writer based in Paju, near Seoul. She is the author of the story collections Goodbye Paradise, Time for Dogs to Eat and The Killer’s Shopping List. Her novels include Quarantine Station of New Culture, Elza’s Ha-yin, Circus in the Dark Forest, Frankenstein Family, Yawning is Delicious, Pheromone Boutique and Shopping Mall for Killers. Shopping Mall for Killers was adapted for television by Disney+. Mrs Shim Is a Killer will be published in over twenty languages worldwide.

Source: publisher’s website