Welcome to the Underworld appreciation post (1/3)

by - 1:13 AM

THIS IS A LIFE-ALTERING STORY I WILL ALWAYS TREASURE

I haven't been on my blog for tooo looong!! I am so sad and mad (oh that rhymed), I had a review slump and a "watch me as I shrug off my tbr list and reread my favorite books" thing going on. I'll have to explain this particular habit of mine soon in one my ANY THOUGHTS? discussion post! :D

I am here as you can see on the title to appreciate and feature AND SPOTLIGHT one of my favorite stories of all time. OF ALL HELLUVA TIME. It will take me two posts for this: 1.) The basics & review (more like I AM GOING TO FANGIRL HARD) of Welcome to the Underworld 2.) Book release of The War of Gods (April 28)

Okay before I go gaga and mad on the review part of the post here are the substantial information that anyone interested to read this MUST know:

1. Welcome to the Underworld was first published as a fanfiction in a korean site which is called, Soompi.
2. The author goes by the pen name Con. Template
3. Con started publishing chapters by chapters last May 2008 and officially ended the story around July 2010.
5. The language used in writing is English although the setting is in Korea particularly in Seoul. All the names of the character are Koreans (don't worry you won't be confuse!).
4. This story is an internet wonder ever since. It is one of the WELL-KNOWN stories online. It is also classified as the CLASSIC FANFICTION of its time.
5. Due to the high demand of the fans for this to be published in physical book, the author dropped the bomb last 2012 and said she'll produce physical copies of Welcome to the Underworld BUT it will be chopped into to 4 books since it is a lengthy story. I swear the pdf & doc version of this before was 1687 pages!!!!
6. The name of the books are: a.) Welcome to the Underworld (first book released 2012) b.) The Fall of God (second book released 2013) c.) The War of God (third book to be released on APRIL 28!!) and d.) -UNTITLED YET- (released date TBA and this is the last book)

What is the book all about?
-THIS IS NOT ABOUT MYTHOLOGY- 
When people ask me about this (since I've been raving about this for almost 4 years now), I always got tongue tied and at lost of a comprehensive summary. Why? Because the story is surreal twisted with ample of plot turns and twists. And believe me when I say it's a batshit crazy story. I don't want to give away spoilers in my summary so I am going to just post the goodreads synopsis of the first book:
There is a secret society that presides over every world. This society is so powerful that it can control a nation, strike fear into the bravest of men and bring turmoil onto the most unsuspecting of victims. 
. . .There is a dangerous society in Seoul that is plaguing Choi Yoori.
Her world is turned upside down when she is told that she bears a strong resemblance to the “Queen of the Underworld,” a notorious Underworld crime lord who died 3 years prior – the exact same time Yoori woke up with amnesia. The dangers of this new world is crashing in on her and Yoori's only grip on stability lies with the guidance from her crime lord boss and the secrets the Queen of the Underworld hid from her powerful society.
Welcome to a world where “Gods” walk amongst humans. Where the heartless and vengeful are revered like Kings and Queens – and the weak, the distracted are punished without mercy.
It is a cruel world and once you’re in, the only exit is death.
Ofcourse the book version was edited with some deleted and added scenes. I've read both the published first two books and compared it to the original one and I can totally say that there were changes but the gist of the story is still being exhibit on the published books. 

I rarely write reviews like this for I can foresee that I am just going to spazz and be incoherent in any twisted way. But my gut is telling me to push this review and also this spotlight posts for Welcome to the Underworld because it deserves the attention. It has been 4 years since I read this and I admit that every time I think about it, I get to mop for a whole 5 minutes. I am going to review the whole story in general, and please bear with my fangirl-ing and gifs abuse. So here it goes....

BREATHTAKING STORY. HEART-POUNDING ACTION. THRILLING JOURNEY TO DISCOVERY. MIND-BLOWING PLOT. A ONCE IN A LIFETIME ROMANCE. GRIPPING ANGST. A STORY THAT IS WORTH READING. EVERY WORD, PAGE, CHAPTER OF IT. WORTH IT. A BLISSFUL JOURNEY.

If I could just write all the adjectives that is on my mind right now, I will. But for now, I want you guys to know that this story is one of the closest to my heart. It didn't fail to amaze me even just for heartbeat. Every scene IS a clue to the enormous haunting puzzle that involves all the characters' past, present and future. Given that the story about a secret society in South Korea, we can expect that it is a dark novel with so much action, deaths, torture and gangs involvement. Basically the world of our characters revolves around powerful and ruthless people. The author created a VERY complicated story, but don't fret! Because while given that there are a lot to take in while reading this, the writing style is very intricate yet so cryptic. After a puzzle piece is solved, a bigger puzzle will arise leaving not only the characters dumbfounded, but also leaving the readers' minds reeling. 

GIVE ME A MOMENT FOR I AM ABOUT TO EXPLODE WITH SO MUCH FEELS CAUSE I AM GOING TO TALK ABOUT THE CHARACTERS. 

Just to keep everything short and SANE, Choi Yoori and Kwon Taehyun are NOTE-WORTHY characters. They are just one of a kind. I really don't want to elaborate much of Yoori's character but I will ensure you that she's resilient and brave. There's this BIG PLOT TWIST on her side, (it's very spoilery to talk about her I swear) so now let's talk about Kwon Taehyun. One word:
Well actually he isn't perfect, I mean who is? But his character is just so swoon-worthy that sometimes I forgot to breathe when he starts saying 'those lines' and also how he protects the ones he loves. For me, he is not cocky or arrogant, I take it as confidence. Why not flaunt it when you have it, right? And in a world of ruthless and well-trained people to be Gods of the secret society you have to be fearless and show no mercy. But Taehyun.....He found Paris. The Paris that turned his world in a hundred and eighty degrees. A fact about Taehyun: He is one of the so called Gods in the Underworld and he is also the greatest contender of being the first ever LORD of the Underworld. 

Love cease to exist in the Underworld.
But Choi Yoori and Kwon Taeyun found Paris.
And promised that it'll be worth it.
Every stubborn inch of it.

THE ROMANCE IS WHAT I CALL A ONCE IN A LIFE TIME romance. It's timeless, no words can even describe how beautiful the romance in this story. It's real. The only thing that is real in an inhumane world. The relationship of Kwon Taehyun and Choi Yoori took in a progress, there's no rush, but once it gets there, there will be a tsunami of emotions and vehement feels. FEELS FEELS EVERYWHERE.

“. . . Death will never part us.
I’ll love you until the last breath of forever; I’ll love you until Paris fades. . .”

 
I am actually crying right now. Believe me guys when I tell you that I am actually shedding tears right now. And I will always shed tears for this story..... "Until Paris Fades"


This story will always live up to its legend. A lot of people consider this as the classic fanfiction way way back and up to now the readers like me are still raving about this. It is one of the best out there. And believe me, I've read a lot to compare. It is a complete mixture of ROMANCE. ACTION. SUSPENSE. ANGST. FRIENDSHIP. BLOOD LUST. POLITICAL CONFLICT. And if I'll be ask if I want to read such lengthy story again... I'll answer yes right away because I know it's worth it.


The antagonists made my heart boiled to no end (and it probably will makes yours). It was just so hard to trust ANYONE in this story because of the perpetual betrayal and turncoat. Once you thought that this character has earned your trust he/she will make a mind-blowing revelation or action that will just screw you over and over. On the other hand, there are secondary characters which made a great impact to the stories. And they are very loving and loyal. These characters made scenes quirk up despite the tension and I really need them to do that every once in a while (because the tension was killing me).

WELCOME TO THE UNDERWORLD may literally mean the world the characters were confined in, but there's more to it. THERE'S MORE TO THAT TITLE. And everything will come in full circle in the end.

I want you all to read this story because it changed my view in things. Although it was sure fictional and a secret society or korean mafia might be impossible, the story about love, friendship, loyalty and journey of life is sure worth experiencing. And please don't give up on this. 

PS: I keep using worth it because it has something to do with the story. :D

I AM VIGOROUSLY AND WHOLEHEARTEDLY RECOMMENDING THIS. And with that told here are the links + add them to your "wants to read" shelf :)

Goodreads links:

Welcome to the Underworld (A Welcome to the Underworld novel)
Author: Con Template
Published Date: Dec 10, 2012

BUY / ORDER IT HERE:

AMAZON
CREATESPACE

The Fall of Gods (A Welcome to the Underworld novel)
Author: Con Template
Published Date: Aug 31, 2013

BUY / ORDER IT HERE:


The War of Gods
Author: Con Template
Published Date: April 28, 2014

AMAZON AND CREATESPACE LINKS TO BE UPDATED ON THE RELEASE DATE! (APRIL 28, 2014)




.....................I guess that's it?
Oh wait! There's more! More of Welcome to the Underworld on the next days: A.) Release Date of The War of gods and B.) Book Posters!! as well as quotes from the books that will makes you melt in a puddle of goo. :p 

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7 comments

  1. Those covers are gorgeous! I don't normally read those books that were fanfics/stories posted on whatever websites once they're published, but I really love stories that take place in Asia. Plus there are mythologies/Gods! <3 All this fangirling is totally a good sign as well. ;)

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    1. Ikr! I was really enticed by the covers (and also bcs those covers say a lot to the story) :D Aw, dont worry this is a really good one! And sorry for the misunderstanding, my fault. Didnt include that it's contemp dark story minus the myth gods :( :) Thank you, Aimee!!

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  2. I love stories about mythology, so I'm really glad you liked this one as much as you did - I haven't heard of it yet, but I'll definitely have to pick up a copy knowing you enjoyed it so much! :D Thanks so much for sharing!

    ~ Zoe @ The Infinite To-Read Shelf

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    1. Hi there, Zoe!! Omg is a slight misunderstanding hehe this isnt about myth gods. i am sorry i didn't clear that out on the post :-(( It's more of a contemp romance with action and dark theme :) But anyway I hope you still pick it up!! Because this is worth reading :) Thank you! 😁

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  3. This. Sounds. Incredible! This sounds like a raw and gritty Sopranos. Is it the Korean Mafia? Regardless, it sounds awesome and definitely going to be grabbing a copy too. I've never read actual Fanfic before, but haven't a lot of well publicised authors begun writing that way?

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    1. OMG YOU GOT IT! Korean Mafia it is! Wooh I forgot to include that in the post! Ha! Oh yes, some famous authors started from fanfiction! :D OMG PLEASE GRAB A COPY PLEASE IT'S WORTH IT I SWEAR!

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  4. Hey I wonder if you have a pdf version of this one.

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Thank you for your comment! ♡ Happy reading to everyone!