A Plagued Sea, by Kim Bo-young (Trad. Sophie Bowman)

The Shadow over Innsmouth is a classical horror story that has been adapted in many forms; with A Plagued Sea, we have Kim Bo-young's take on it, delivering a really intense story that not only changes the setting to draw from Korea, swapping the POV to a person living in the isolated village, but also analyzes the idea of massive quarantines over illnesses (and it was written in 2019). A worthy tribute to the original, with plenty of references for Cthulhu's devotees.

Three years before, bodyguard Mu-yong decided to board a train to Haewon with his niece despite the earthquake alert; a choice that haunts her for the rest of her life. Now, Haewon Village hosts horrors, as the earthquake unleashed a plague that transforms the villagers into fishy monsters, with a lockdown established by the government that prevents any semblance of help; Mu-yong's niece is dead, so her only labour now is to hunt the infected that break isolation. But the arrival of a bureaucrat from Seoul to the village marks the start of something worse, as he starts to stir the pot; now the only question is if Mu-yong will be able to survive the chaos erupting over the community.

Using Mu-yong as the main POV is an interesting choice; a character that is dealing with really complicated feelings, as she's still deep into the trauma related to her niece's death, probably influencing how she acts with unnecessary violence towards the infected, but with a faint bond to the village inhabitants after three years of lockdown. She's still a stranger to the deeper layer of Haewon, but in comparison with the Seoul professor that will mark the end of the routine (and which also connects this novella with the Cthulhu mythos), she has tons of experience that will be needed. Despite this being a short novella, I think such universal feelings as grief and helplessness against a situation outside of our hands create a powerful connection between the reader and Mu-yong.

In a post-2020 world, it is difficult not to draw the parallel between the lockdown over Haewon and the COVID-19' quarantines, but it can be applied to previous plagues: the blame over those who contract the illness but also how to a certain degree, they are dehumanized by the own system. It is worth also to mention how it could be related to illnesses that appear in less developed countries or more rare infections, as we see how the villagers are not considered worth of funding the search for a cure, rather considering them not enough people to make it a good investment. In terms of atmosphere, it's quite similar to the story it pays tribute, an oppression that grows through the pages until everything finally explodes.

A Plagued Sea is a proposal that brilliantly re-examines The Shadow Over Innsmouth, connecting with the source material, capturing the cosmic horror but also taking the opportunity to examine aspects such as discrimination and misogyny in the process. In definitive, an excellent novella.