Kim Hye-jin
Restless Books
20 October 2026
208
eBook - PDF
Contemporary Fiction
ARC via Edelweiss
No. 9 is in trouble. His son’s college tuition is coming due, his wife needs surgery after taking double shifts at a grocery store, the apartment building they bought as a nest egg is falling apart, and the company he helped build is trying to force him into early retirement. When he refuses, the mid-level IT man is demoted to sales and given increasingly impossible tasks. As his salary dwindles and the humiliations mount, No. 9 must decide where his loyalties lie. If he fights back, how far will the company go to stop him?
With her urgent and timely novel, award-winning Korean author Kim Hye-jin questions how long we can endure a broken system. In a rigged game, is there an alternative to playing out your hand?
Employee No. 9 was a quick read but one that really stuck with me in its portrayal of working life for an employee in a large firm whose higher-ups are determinedly trying to oust him. Despite the company's best efforts, the man keeps hanging on, accepting demotions and pay cuts, impossible tasks and meaningless positions, all in an effort to continue with the work he's loved for years and to support his family. Naturally, there is a lot of social commentary in this work, but at its heart is the story of an individual trying to do his best despite the odds stacked against him. I am giving it 4.5 stars.
I received this book as a free eBook ARC via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
No comments:
Post a Comment