Entangled in the web of domestic violence, child abuse, and sexual assault within university walls, we couldn’t break free from its grip together

 On a fall day with leaves gracefully falling to the ground, a body is discovered at Cheongwusan in Gapyeong. Detective Baek Gyu-min, who was previously assigned to the Seoul Metropolitan Investigation Division and was recently transferred to Gapyeong, takes charge of the case. The corpse, appearing to have been deceased for over ten days, is entangled in rainwater, in a state of decay. Although all evidence, including the shoes found on the rock and neatly folded suicide notes, points towards suicide, Gyumin’s intuition urges him to delve into the depths of the case. Meanwhile, Yoon Uihyun, who, upon losing contact with her younger sister, files a missing person’s report, receives news about a body with a similar impression being found. When Uihyun comes to the police to confirm the deceased’s identity, Gyu-min senses that she, too, is a person carrying a hurt inside, much like him.

Concurrently, at the university where Uihyun, a novelist, teaches as a visiting professor, news breaks that a professor who had previously caused controversy by sexually harassing students will be returning the following semester, sparking a scandal. While Ui-hyun stands on the side of the students who exposed the harassment, they find it hard to trust her. As Gyumin gets closer to uncovering the truth of the case, he encounters surprising revelations. In this process, the fingerprints of the deceased play a crucial role.

In Fingerprint, another sin is addressed with the same gravity as murder, sexual harassment, and child abuse: indifference. Setting itself apart from other novels, it vividly portrays the “sin of silence,” where individuals feign ignorance when matters don't concern them, grovel in front of the powerful, and at times, knowingly turn a blind eye. However, the novel brings forth the message that the concealed truth will inevitably resurface, demanding the price of silence. In the Author’s Note, Lee expresses her hope that this book becomes a small source of courage for those silently enduring or grappling with violence akin to that depicted in the novel.

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“A meticulously crafted and outstanding novel. I read it with great fascination, engaging in a mind game with the author. Who would dare preach about law and morality in front of the victims who struggled desperately to survive in a world of unrepentant violence? Even after closing the book, a profound resonance lingered. I applaud the unwavering and weighted writing style and the unassuming approach that imposes nothing on the reader.”

- Kim Beom, Novelist

“Just as I had begun mulling over writing a detective novel set in a botanical garden, Lee Sunyoung beat me to it, crafting a story unfolding in a flower garden. The characters in the novel Fingerprint all carry an untoward story of their own; they each narrate in their own voice the tragic death of a woman, ‘cherished against her will,’ like a flower in a botanical garden, and the surrounding circumstances. The episodes echo real incidents such as sexual violence within the literary circle and forced labor in salt farms, stirring up sentiments of sorrow, or put differently, ‘hate while loving.’ Once readers delve into the novel, they’ll grasp the true meaning behind these words.”

- Cho Youngjoo, Novelist

Lee Sunyoung was born in Seoul. She studied creative writing at Hanyang Women’s University and Dankook University’s graduate school. She began her literary career by winning the “Korea New Wave Literature Award” with a one billion won prize for her historical detective novel, The Last Pythagorean, set in ancient Greece. Her diverse literary works include The Man’s Novel, depicting conspiracy and betrayal against the backdrop of the Korean literary scene, The Last Child of God, questioning the existence of “God,” and Can’t Find the Oriole, reflecting on the scars left by the Korean War. These works showcase a bold and versatile literary world that transcends a single genre. While teaching creative writing at the university, she continues to write novels.