ARC Review: Behind Five Willows by June Hur

Special thanks to the author and Feiwel & Friends for providing a digital ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review!

Behind Five Willows
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Publication Date: 26 May 2026
Genre: Young Adult Historical Romance

Panda Rating:

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📖 SYNOPSIS

From the New York Times-bestselling author of A Crane Among Wolves comes a warm and romantic homage to Jane Austen set in historical Korea, about a reader and a writer who secretly fight against government book banning and find themselves irresistibly drawn together.

As the dutiful second-eldest daughter of a poor family, society would have Haewon believe that her only hope of a decent life is to marry well. But during a time of rampant government censorship and book banning, she instead works as an illegal book transcriber to make a little extra money. It’s dangerous work, but she loves it—especially when she gets to transcribe the work of her favorite author, known as Black Lotus.

When her older sister becomes smitten with a wealthy young gentleman, Haewon is roped into chaperoning them during their courtship. Which wouldn’t be so terrible… if it weren’t for the young man’s uptight and annoying best friend who also accompanies them.

As the only son of a noble, Seojun has a lot expected of him. Wealth. Status. Respectability. Certainly not frivolous and often illicit activities such as reading fiction. But Seojun loves to do something even more scandalous: writing. He’s kept his work secret from his father and friends, but with each passing day, the pressure of being his father’s son and the dispiriting actions of the government make Seojun question the purpose of it all. The only thing keeping him going are the encouraging letters he receives from his transcriber, known only as Magpie.

When his best friend falls hard for a girl of lower social status, Seojun finds himself forced to act as chaperone to the infatuated couple—along with the girl’s younger sister, who is as irritating as she is judgmental. But as Haewon and Seojun spend more time together, they begin to suspect they may have judged each other too quickly…

⚠️ CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNINGS

Classism, sexism, misogyny, past death of a family member (recounted briefly), past attempted murder of a family member (recounted briefly), censorship, mild violence

TL;DR: I’ve been looking forward to reading this book ever since it first came on my radar. A Pride & Prejudice remix set in Joseon era Korea featuring characters with a passion for fiction and a forbidden romance? I loved the sound of it and I’m happy to say that I enjoyed this so much! Hur excels at weaving the historical Korean context into a story that most are familiar with, and still makes it her own by introducing elements of intrigue and rebellion. Haewon and Seojun were great characters full of passion and longing, and though I wished their romance and arcs had been a bit more developed, I still loved both of them. I especially loved the yearning and by the end, I did get weepy. 🥹 Overall, this was a really great historical and romantic YA, and a pretty fun read for those who enjoy Pride & Prejudice with a twist! I would definitely recommend it.

While the bones of the P&P classic shape this story, Hur introduces us to a place and time in history that is not often shown in mainstream fiction. She does an excellent job of incorporating this new historical setting into a story we’re familiar with and she does so seamlessly. Some of my favourite parts were by far the historical setting and literary angle as we’re introduced to a period where reading fiction is often considered a crime. Censorship, book banning, and burning was rife, the act of reading or discussing anything that wasn’t state-approved was considered a form of rebellion, and authors and even readers were being persecuted for it. As it’s a young adult novel, Hur doesn’t go as in-depth with these themes as I would’ve liked, but it’s perfectly fitting for the intended audience. This unique background provided a feeling of high-stakes that really gave life and tension to the story. With this setting, and both our characters heavily involved in the production and dissemination of banned works, I loved that this ended up being somewhat of an ode to the transformative power of fiction and storytelling. It was a love letter to books and stories, and I have no doubt that many readers will enjoy this aspect—I know I certainly did!

Haewon and Seojun were great main characters and I enjoyed both of their arcs. There’s a strong sense of family, duty and obedience in both their storylines that presented in different ways. Haewon was a great strong-willed, sometimes bull-headed, and talented FMC, and I particularly loved the relationships she had with her family and Maid Boram. It wasn’t always smooth sailing, especially with a mother who became easily overwhelmed with life and a younger sister who knew very well how to test people’s patience, but I loved her kindness and understanding in the face of massive family pressure. She has such a heartwarming relationship with her older sister Jade, who was as soft spoken and demure as any Jane, but I was surprised to find myself also really liking her relationship with Maid Boram, who was an overly dramatic comedic insert and who really grew on me by the end! 😂

Seojun is every bit as stoic and prideful as the beloved classic Mr. Darcy, and yet, as we learn from seeing his perspective, he’s also this highly conflicted, passionate young man who gets nervous, is unsure of himself, fumbles his words and is still capable of putting his foot in his mouth. I loved his inner monologue, especially when he first meets Haewon and acts a bit of a fool in front of her, but I also appreciated getting to see a side to him that he hides from almost everyone. He does undergo a good amount of growth as he comes to learn how badly he messed up and hurt Haewon with his words, even if that wasn’t his intention. Which brings me to the romance… And while I do wish that it had more time to build up initially, I loved the pining so much! Oh, that angsty feeling of wanting someone and knowing you’re unable to have them or feeling like you missed your opportunity to be with them after misjudging them. Ugh, Hur did an amazing job bringing those feelings of longing to life and I found myself feeling heart flutters and butterflies every time Haewon and Seojun would have ✨ a moment ✨. It was so lovely and a well-done slow burn!

Ultimately though, if there was anything I wish had been done differently, I would’ve wished for this to be just a little bit longer so that the character and romance arcs could’ve been more fleshed out. I feel there was more that could’ve been explored in depth, not necessarily in terms of themes, but in the character’s personal journeys. I feel this was especially so for Seojun’s storyline as a prominent Minister’s son and secretly as the most popular fiction author of the time. I also feel that parts in the middle felt a bit muddled or rushed through, and I will say that I enjoyed the beginning and the last roughly 35% of the book the most! That being said, I still had a really great time reading this YA Pride & Prejudice remix. I loved learning about the historical context, I loved this love letter to storytelling, and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it for any reader. It definitely made me me want to pick up more of Hur’s books ASAP!