What I read this «February»
Feb. 27th, 2023 20:09![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
elidelioFebruary was a short month and I didn't get much of anything done. Oh, well, at least I found some nice stories.
Completed:
Superficial Brothers & Lovesick / 表面兄弟 , Lovesick. by 孙黯
Lumping these two together because they were both super short nothing stories by the same author. I don't mean "nothing story" in a bad way, I love both reading and writing "nothing" stories, where there is no real "point" other than to show a moment of a character's life with no real goal, I just find them so pleasant. I guess "slice of life" is the more accurate description? but I think 'nothing story' captures what I love about the genre much better.
Superficial Brothers is an 8 mini-part story (barely like 4k words) about two guys who, on the surface, are childhood best friends who grew up with a love of music and are now a famous singer+guitarist duo, but actually secretly hate each other's guts and are just working together because their talent agency arranged them so. Obviously, throughout the story you learn more about how they got to where they are and that they don't actually hate each other that much (and even sort of, *gasp*, care about each other??), but in true nothing story fashion they don't get together or even really reconcile by the end of it, but you're left with a sense that there may be a future for them yet. It was quite a funny and enjoyable story, I don't feel like giving it a rating would be fair because of course I wish it had done so much more, but I also know that's the point of a nothing story, so if I really had to i think a 7/10 would be fair.
Lovesick is a 5 chapter story about an 18-year-old young man who falls in love with the next next door neighbour who just moved in. The story doesn't give either of the characters names or much description, but we know the neighbour is much older (old enough to have a family of his own, according to the story) and recently divorced. I don't know if it was the age-gap or the summer vacation setting but it really gave me Call Me By Your Name vibes? Also the end is sort of ambiguous and I really just loved the whole atmosphere of the ardent-but-possibly-fleeting summer romance + the literal closed door fade to black ending. It definitely had a lot more 'substance' than Superficial Brothers but also the leads didn't even have names haha, I'd still rate it 7.5/10 because the atmosphere was *chefs kiss*.
The Time I Found Out the Heroine of a Certain Top Post Was Me / 当我发现某贴吧高楼的女主是自己时 by 一只花夹子
Others:
I started reading The Rebirth Of The General Who Always Sees Himself As A Replacement (重生之将军总把自己当替身) and I'm in love with it. Idk why but I love the pining and the near-confessions and the sad boy hours ahaha. Its by the same author as How To Survive As A Villain (穿越成反派要如何活命) which I absolutely LOVED so I know I'm in for a great (and possibly even more angsty) time.
I also fell into the pit of Regressor Instruction Manual (회귀자 사용설명서) and I... really liked it. Like, stayed-up-until-3am-reading type liked it. I caught up with the manhwa and started reading the novel, but for some reason I can't ever just start the book from where the manwha left off (this happens to me every time I start a novel bc a manhwa caught my eye) so I started from chapter 1. Progress is a bit slow because everything is so fresh in my mind that having to re-read it is a mild pain in the butt, but at least I can say the manwha is a fairly loyal adaptation so far. The MC in this one feels like more of a villain than the MC of "Trash of the Count's Family", but he could not hold a candle to the MC of "I Am the Fated Villain" hahaha.
Completed:
Superficial Brothers & Lovesick / 表面兄弟 , Lovesick. by 孙黯
Lumping these two together because they were both super short nothing stories by the same author. I don't mean "nothing story" in a bad way, I love both reading and writing "nothing" stories, where there is no real "point" other than to show a moment of a character's life with no real goal, I just find them so pleasant. I guess "slice of life" is the more accurate description? but I think 'nothing story' captures what I love about the genre much better.
Superficial Brothers is an 8 mini-part story (barely like 4k words) about two guys who, on the surface, are childhood best friends who grew up with a love of music and are now a famous singer+guitarist duo, but actually secretly hate each other's guts and are just working together because their talent agency arranged them so. Obviously, throughout the story you learn more about how they got to where they are and that they don't actually hate each other that much (and even sort of, *gasp*, care about each other??), but in true nothing story fashion they don't get together or even really reconcile by the end of it, but you're left with a sense that there may be a future for them yet. It was quite a funny and enjoyable story, I don't feel like giving it a rating would be fair because of course I wish it had done so much more, but I also know that's the point of a nothing story, so if I really had to i think a 7/10 would be fair.
Lovesick is a 5 chapter story about an 18-year-old young man who falls in love with the next next door neighbour who just moved in. The story doesn't give either of the characters names or much description, but we know the neighbour is much older (old enough to have a family of his own, according to the story) and recently divorced. I don't know if it was the age-gap or the summer vacation setting but it really gave me Call Me By Your Name vibes? Also the end is sort of ambiguous and I really just loved the whole atmosphere of the ardent-but-possibly-fleeting summer romance + the literal closed door fade to black ending. It definitely had a lot more 'substance' than Superficial Brothers but also the leads didn't even have names haha, I'd still rate it 7.5/10 because the atmosphere was *chefs kiss*.
The Time I Found Out the Heroine of a Certain Top Post Was Me / 当我发现某贴吧高楼的女主是自己时 by 一只花夹子
An incredibly long title for a strikingly short story xd. MC gets sent a post by her friend and discovers that the post is talking about her! The author of the post is the girl the MC has been crushing on, complaining about how hard she's crushing on the MC herself!! I absolutely loved this one it was so sweet so delightful the useless lesbian pining was immaculate and that ending kiss omg such a delightful short story i don't even have that much to say about it other than yes. 8.5/10.
Mr. Melancholy Wants to Live a Peaceful Life / 忧郁先生想过平静生活 by 青色羽翼
This novel was the ABSOLUTE HIGHLIGHT of my february holy shit. Absolute wonderful mixture of adventure + world saving shenanigans + comedy + romance + angst, easily one of my top 10 novels of the year. MC is a person who got caught in a system where he had to level up via brutal missions in different worlds and he grew strong until he was basically a god, but instead of embracing the power he sealed it away and "retired" in a world untouched by the system that bound him to live a normal life. It is in that world where he met the ML and fell in love, and the two got married, and he finally achieved his perfect, peaceful, ordinary life. BUT WAIT, obviously there's more. Turns out the ML is secretly a "protector", a person with superpowers tasked with protecting the world from "destroyers" who are basically people like the MC who are sent by the system to complete (often destructive and lethal) missions in other worlds, and though the MC and ML do everything in their power to preserve their peaceful life, they can't avoid what needs to be done forever. It's a beautiful, funny, even somewhat poignant story about love, loneliness, duty, and what it means to be human. I don't wanna get too sappy but I could gush about this story for hours. I love the trope of an "all powerful character who is just TiredTM and wants to rest" and the MC perfectly encapsulates everything I find so good about it. He's so powerful people who know about him assume he probably regards human lives as ants, but he is so loving and considerate to the ML he would both move heaven and earth for him but also be willing sacrifice all his powers and live out the rest of his live as a normal human for him, and he's also considerate to his friends and employees (even if he does regard them a little more coldly haha) and ultimately willing to protect the earth. Yet he is so used to shouldering all burdens by himself and being alone in his road for power that he finds it hard to let the ML in no matter how much he loves him, and he has to learn to let the ML do what he needs to do (his duty as protector) and to let himself be cared for. ML also grows a little, learning that the world is a lot bigger and more cruel than he previously imagined, but he never lets go of his optimism and his persistence, gaining a better understanding of himself and the people he loves. The side characters were also wonderful, they all had their own little stories that weaved around the main plot and they all got the happy ending they deserved. I was a little bummed they lost their powers but it felt deserved-- cathartic, even. Their job was done. They earned their peaceful life. 10/10
Mr. Melancholy Wants to Live a Peaceful Life / 忧郁先生想过平静生活 by 青色羽翼
This novel was the ABSOLUTE HIGHLIGHT of my february holy shit. Absolute wonderful mixture of adventure + world saving shenanigans + comedy + romance + angst, easily one of my top 10 novels of the year. MC is a person who got caught in a system where he had to level up via brutal missions in different worlds and he grew strong until he was basically a god, but instead of embracing the power he sealed it away and "retired" in a world untouched by the system that bound him to live a normal life. It is in that world where he met the ML and fell in love, and the two got married, and he finally achieved his perfect, peaceful, ordinary life. BUT WAIT, obviously there's more. Turns out the ML is secretly a "protector", a person with superpowers tasked with protecting the world from "destroyers" who are basically people like the MC who are sent by the system to complete (often destructive and lethal) missions in other worlds, and though the MC and ML do everything in their power to preserve their peaceful life, they can't avoid what needs to be done forever. It's a beautiful, funny, even somewhat poignant story about love, loneliness, duty, and what it means to be human. I don't wanna get too sappy but I could gush about this story for hours. I love the trope of an "all powerful character who is just TiredTM and wants to rest" and the MC perfectly encapsulates everything I find so good about it. He's so powerful people who know about him assume he probably regards human lives as ants, but he is so loving and considerate to the ML he would both move heaven and earth for him but also be willing sacrifice all his powers and live out the rest of his live as a normal human for him, and he's also considerate to his friends and employees (even if he does regard them a little more coldly haha) and ultimately willing to protect the earth. Yet he is so used to shouldering all burdens by himself and being alone in his road for power that he finds it hard to let the ML in no matter how much he loves him, and he has to learn to let the ML do what he needs to do (his duty as protector) and to let himself be cared for. ML also grows a little, learning that the world is a lot bigger and more cruel than he previously imagined, but he never lets go of his optimism and his persistence, gaining a better understanding of himself and the people he loves. The side characters were also wonderful, they all had their own little stories that weaved around the main plot and they all got the happy ending they deserved. I was a little bummed they lost their powers but it felt deserved-- cathartic, even. Their job was done. They earned their peaceful life. 10/10Others:
I started reading The Rebirth Of The General Who Always Sees Himself As A Replacement (重生之将军总把自己当替身) and I'm in love with it. Idk why but I love the pining and the near-confessions and the sad boy hours ahaha. Its by the same author as How To Survive As A Villain (穿越成反派要如何活命) which I absolutely LOVED so I know I'm in for a great (and possibly even more angsty) time.
I also fell into the pit of Regressor Instruction Manual (회귀자 사용설명서) and I... really liked it. Like, stayed-up-until-3am-reading type liked it. I caught up with the manhwa and started reading the novel, but for some reason I can't ever just start the book from where the manwha left off (this happens to me every time I start a novel bc a manhwa caught my eye) so I started from chapter 1. Progress is a bit slow because everything is so fresh in my mind that having to re-read it is a mild pain in the butt, but at least I can say the manwha is a fairly loyal adaptation so far. The MC in this one feels like more of a villain than the MC of "Trash of the Count's Family", but he could not hold a candle to the MC of "I Am the Fated Villain" hahaha.