Mainly Korean galore, since I only read those lately. I'm surprised myself, but I found some that would satisfy my tastes.
First and foremost, very unhinged characters (which I adore) in this contract marriage story. I actually bookmarked it when I was browsing one day and noticed this cover and just left it hanging for a long time, never thought that by random search on a site with countless number of novels I will stumble upon it.
BOOKS
KOR
Love Acts Cunningly, Revenge Unfolds Ecstatically
In this rofan Yul as FMC transmigrates into unknown land and before she has time to do anything she is sent to psychiatric hospital (well, thanks to author who portrayed disoriented person after transmigration, not everyone is as cool and chill, you're in a different body, that should fuck you up a bit). She is given a chance to get out of that hellish place, but on a condition.
The gorgeous and unhinged man on the cover is a bit cornered by his grandfather who wants him to find a wife and have a kid, but Zayed, ML, is not so keen on finding a woman to really settle down, but he has to find a special case among those with a special abilities (the lore reminds of you of sentient and guides).
This is why he finds Yul, she is a girl who fits everything he asks about a woman, not to mention, he finds her fascinatingly interesting.
Years of being locked up Yul cursed herself for inactivity or just being soft due to education and upbringing that led to her current situation. Instead of standing and taking things in, she should have clawed her way out or at least smashed a vase on the head of this body's stepmother.
Now she is known as the most unhinged patient and a mad flower, unassuming in face, but dangerous.
To make things clear how unhinged they are, they watched unbothered as her hospital with all staff / witnesses burned down, she even helped pour oil. Btw don't pity them, this is not some happy hospital, which brings many tw upfront: abuse, attempted SA, human experiments etc.
That's how the two of them come together. A story of slowly growing feelings.
Also a side-note, the language is pretty. It does not try to be too flowery, but it's not dry either. I notice a lot of time the writing styles may feel clunky (or is it translation?). This here I read in a breeze. I read basically all available chapters and am waiting for others to become available.
Elegant yet vulgar
May be not everyone's cup of tea, but I realized I might like angsty stuff, but not maxed out on tragedy.
The gist of it.
Lavian, FMC, lived her entire life in abusive home without completely realizing the depth of how it influenced her. She is not some mindless person, she realizes the hypocrisy of her father who drove their family to the edge of ruin. He cares for his lifestyle and is pretty lavish, while his wife and daughter live a pretty modest lifestyle, but what he is best at is using his daughter to sell to highest bidder due to financial troubles.
Klen, MMC, on the other hand needs access to noble circle, he hates nobles and their hypocricy, but he is searching for his biological father and without access he has no way of finding more info. A noble-born daughter for a wife is a great solution to all troubles.
This is how two unite and Klen emphasizes that they are nothing more but a contractual marriage.
Although the story has a sort of misunderstanding, but it is based more on their lack of understanding each other and the world they live in.
Klen is partially insecure and this leads him to prejudice.
On the other hand Lavian is slowly walking out of the shadow of her household, but it's not easy to break the habit. Also her growing feelings for her husband are almost snubbed by his repeated emphasis they won't be anything else.
I think author did a good job at creating a more complex situation with a lot of motivation and reasoning behind characters' actions and how it leaves them with a lot of untold things.
I read around 1/4th and I must say that I liked the development, it's slow but I'm in for it.
Marital Relations
I already wrote a review for this one at NU, but I can't help mentioning it here, since it's ridiculous!
I saw the title and thought - I can smell the whiff of melodrama, I read the contents and it's simply melodrama and I read the half of it, since it's short and it is that type of shouting melodrama where things would break apart if you apply any kind of logic.
I think FMC is called Da-hye, I'm sorry I'm bad with spelling Korean names. She was mostly away studying after her mother's death and a new stepmother taking her place. Basically she was sent away "for her own good". Gaslighted for years.
But her stepmother did not even attmpt to pretend, same as her stepsister who talked very rudely to her all the time. The father is not in the picture most of the time and it's unknown how he dealt with it at all, because he is certainly biased.
So in this situation I have no idea how FMC shed so many tears because of them, she should be adult by now and she sometimes come back only to find out that her place is getting smaller, so where this deep feeling of betrayal came from I wonder. Since she finds stepsister with her fiance she knows she has no one on her side and she cried a lot. A bit of shameful tears and angry tears are allowed, but crying for bastards, really? Okay.
Anyway, here loopholes started for me. First, how did she not know the house of her mother was transferred to stepmother and she couldn't even enter. We start from some evening banquet due to father's retirement, but you mean to tell me she never visited mother's house. Otherwise why she lives outside alone.
It all actually happened after she overheard stepmother and stepsister talking about the transfer of property and not only, how stepmother knows her daughter wants to get / snatch a rich heir (fiance) by her pregnancy. They were described as such clownish villains. I wonder how FMC never took out the phone to record their talk, I mean just shove it to your dad despite the consequences.
So she is so surprised and hurt, later she asked what wuld happen to the house, but lawyers said it's hard because it's tranferred. I suppose there was now will, otherwise if the will is present any action from stepmother can be disputed.
Thing is if FMC wanted to go all out.. and this bish.. she doesn't want to make it too loud, but honestly I thought - how stupid can you get? How MMCs call these women smart? And are supposed to be smart themselves? Because her sister is pregnant and if she really wants a rich heir, considering her situation she might as well go for him till the end, everyone will see their relationship and will put two and two together, they will gossip anyway. Not to mention popping out a kid in few months will tell them all. So what's the reason to stay silen. She said she doesn't want to be talked about in connection to them, since she felt filthy. Sound excuse, but at the same time, considering situation it won't work.
I remember watching Attorney Woo KDrama and I remember there was an episode of failed marriage, but the girl still won it, since she was "promised" something out of this marriage.
Surely FMC did not even get engaged with the guy, but she could at least be on a higher ground. yet it felt liek she was hopeless all the time.
ALL BEFORE the MMC appears.
Surely she is saved by hot hunk of a man who is tall, dark and sexy.
He honestly waited for her to be desperate enough to ask him for marriage, I was like - why would she do that? She can do whatever she wants, she has reputation abroad, if she wants to leave she might as well do so. Why stay in this shithole.
he asked her to marry him suddenly during sex btw. Which was kinda meh considering it was her first time and he just didn't stop. So she actually agrees to it as if there's no other choice, well, he promises to help her get revenge as a person of power.
She mentions phrases like "they destroyed my life", but I was sitting and thinking in what way they did it? Thing is she is a priveleged girl, she got education in paintings, she got reputation etc. They hurt her emotionally by just being bad people, true, but in general they did not abuse her physically or deprive her of anything. They also were bad people for years, from what I'm catching. They're clownishly evil. Even her stepsister talks like such a bitch to her all the time and she mentioned it has been going on for years now.
I could understand if she was in a situation of watsed years, brainwashed, unwanted, her fiance would use all her worth and then move on to his mistress, she'd be drained of her inheritance.
If you want to fight and claw either be smart about it or be loud about it. To me she is neither.
All in all it felt like a cheap drama, it's also short one I will finish when it becomes available, I kinda want to see how this silliness will go on.
My Husband's First Love Is carrying His Child
Well, this is the type of misunderstanding that I dislike.
FMC fell in love with her husband at first site, despite any opposition she asked her father for marriage and they indeed marry. He was playing a perfect husband but was basically using her for her status. Although sounds awful compared to what is described it's still how it is. She lived in a bliss before he inherited his title and stopped pretending and she also found the truth. What followed is cold violonce, he said he was busy and she never saw him since. The situation sounds really bad.
What she remembers last is how she devastated by years of loveless marriage finally asks for a divorce only to die in front of him (poisoning from what I can tell). And f course we hear him in a state of panic and disbelief.
Before this she wanted to hold on to him, but the ex-consort to Emperor came to her with a big belly and said to divorce her husband, since she carried his child. FMC on the other hand could not produce heir due to miscarriage she had years ago, but also her husbad was absent in her life.
Later she wakes up before he was given his title and things changed for the worse, but now she stopped loving him. Loud declaration but honestly...
I have questions. I read only like 20 chapters before I jumped to chapter 80 or smth to see if we progress, and one phrase caught me off guard, she said only a week passed since their contract.
What is the contract? After she woke up all changed she also had attitude change and asked him for divorce, while he said he can't have it so soon, let's do year later and hoping to never let her go. Oblivious dude who can't realize he loves his wife with obsession.
My question is - why FMC believed the woman with a child. Of course it is known that she grew up as adopted daughter, she assumed this built a bond between them, but she has no proof of their love tbh, she only assumes things.
Another point to make, these characters always talk about love, but they never give trust tbh. because the girl had no doubts her husband will be so happy when she offers divorce.
On the other hand her husband isn't any better, he assumes she is in love with the Emperor, just because she grew up with him. He never explains why he thinks like that. I suppose there was a mention of "incident" but what that was is unknown. I think author failed miserably to establish where exactly their misunderstanding originates from. It's not some random idea, it should come from somewhere.
His wife is close to Emperor, but as siblings (they're also cousins), she was sent to palace basically as hostage when she was little, and the future Emperor took care of her when she was a child till now. It doesn't mean they have this undying love. The guy became the Emperor and he could marry her if he was in love, they were not obstructed by anything.
But he believes her actions are false. All the love she showed is a pretense (why? unknown), even her idea of having a child he thinks she wants a child from Emperor, which to me sounds really crazy.
And the problem is they don't communicate and make things difficult on purpose with no sound reasoning, so this will make reader quite mad.
Another pretty cover, but the content can't catch up. I'm thinking of just skipping.
Even regret is luxury for you
This one managed to be entertaining. Bordering with melodrama it has a lot of twists in personal relationships like a soap opera. The more you read the more you dog how interwined relationships are. I thought it's going to be like any other story when the fiance of FMC comes to her to claim to accept his mistress, since he fell hard in love. I thought he's going to be a senseless jerk with inflated ego, usually stories follow this path. But then magic stones came into picture and you know one of them is capable of manipulation, which changes the entire picture of the past and present.
FMC Daphne is a daughter to Marquise, she has been engaged by the order of former Emperor to Leonhardt of the Duke's family (secret here). They grew up together, but Daphne has a special place at home, because she is believed to be a daughter of her mother's ex-husband who died. her mother and current father had whirlwind marriage right after she found her husband is dead. So when a girl was born not resembling both she was believed to be illegitimate (oh, it would be so ironic if her brother will truly invent something that could determine the relationship and she happens to be biological daughter an dthey all treated her horribly). Although they did not beat her, unlike her second brother, but they surely ignored her presence, only the youngest son was close to her, but the rest of them is plainly horrible as a family.
After her return she planned to save them, since father and first son fell for schemes, then impuslive second son was def. murdered. She tried to salvage the family, but that last voyage destroyed their family. It was a ploy from the beginning. She tried to salvage her relationship with her fiance too, but he was so enamored with his love affair. Eventually she scrapped by as she could only to be finally betrayed. The situation has many events piled up instead of what I mention briefly. But despite her altruistic behavior it doesn't mean she forgave them, she just wants them to be a strong backing.
Others have partial awakening to their past behavior but of course it's futile.
And then there is galore of personal relationships and the intrigue.
The pace is pretty fast, characterization is interesting. Also a lot of characters speak very straightforwardly and are being honest. Though at other times author acts as if they don't trust reader and often supplement the dialogue with insterts of what is meant by what is said if the phrase is not too direct. Not annoying, but a bit treating readers like we're chicks waiting to be fed info.
Well, it's quite okay. For those who like a bit of melodrama taste~
Cling to me, even if you hate it
I need to make a separate post for this one, because I finished reading it. But I consider it emotionally good story. It's full of angst, but it's one you cannot stop reading for some reason.
Ariana (FMC) loved Kenneth and waited for him even if her fate was dire, she was consumed by love and guilt during their marriage, since her family betrayed him. Kenneth (MMC) loved and hated himself for these feelings, he believed that the girl he loved betrayed him. All reason left him, he couldn't trust her. This is how they spent several miserable years where he was cruel. All before she left him.
After regression Ariana decided to just use her husband for their unborn daughter and then disappear to give birth in peace and let her daughter be born again and survive. But things did not go as planned.
I won't go into details and will leave it for a full review, but I liked the emotional entanglement in this one. Both had their own motication for love and hate. They managed to overcome it eventually, but I really liked how author portrayed it in the end, it's not the classic 'you suffered and I suffered, we did bad things, so let's move on and try to rebuild out love' instead MMC confesses to his deepest regrets and affirms that it's only his fault, anything he said were his sins that he will carry. She also said that she might never forget all the hurt, but she also felt liberated from their power dynamic.
In the end you get an image of torn picture that is put together, it's still a picture but can't be whole again. I found strength in these characters who decided to rebuild their love amidst the rubble.
I think there is certain strength and bravary in doing so. Many would say - girl, leave him and for a modern reader it is true. And I would agree that it would be true for a completely hopeless case and if anyone saw Kenneth in real life they'd say - Ariana, girl, leave his ass behind. Only reading you realize the depth of their feelings.
Also, what a beautiful cover.
I became the wicked mother-in-law of my mother-in-law.
Loved this one so far. I'd say Alicia, FMC, in the first life was first gas-lighted and misled into working tirelessly, she believed in the love of a person who was not worth it (her mother-in-law), but after she served her purpose she finally saw the true power of her mother-in-law who could bend the law and thanks to corrupt officials get rid of anyone.
Let's not look at FMC from a higher ground, she was a young woman who was led into believing things, slowly brainwashed and fear instilled in her, only for later to be used and discarded.
her mother-in-law is a very ambitious person, she used her position to reach unimaginable hights of power.
FMC is then reborn, or should better to say she now became her deceased aunt. She is now in the past when her mother-in-law was still young.
So how can she become a mil of her own mil?
She married Duke, whose adopted son is from deceased older brother, this adopted son was granted to marry Helena, the infamous mother-in-law from hell, so yeah this is how FMC became an elder to someone close to her age.
Messy and I love it.
But also promises a lot of political intrigue and all those ming games.
FMC is actually very resourcful and has a vast knowledge, especially pharmacology. MMC is attracted to her a bit early but we don't mind that. He is a powerful figure, but because of constant threat from monsters he is always away, this is why it left the rear open to intrigue carried by ambitious Helena.
Also I adore that Alicia wears black dresses, it was an accident at first, but she decided to make it her own thing, MMC also wears mostly black and it's the sign of their lineage, black hair and eyes.
This is why the cover is accurate.
The Monster Duke was fooled. I'm terminally ill.
DNF. It just wasn't my cup of tea. FMC regresses in time before her family is betrayed, her ex-husband was a complete trash, but there were moments described as if she loved him so much that she forgave him so many things. After regression it feels that what was described in the past and now are two different people. After all she is a knight, she could kill monsters, but she did not stand for herself during abuse from her husband. Just because.. love. She even describes it as if they're like that in her family, we choose one person. But math isn't mathing.
Also sometimes writing is weird. For example, MMC has some sort of curse, half of his body resembles stone and he has rumors about himself, but when she proposed to him and he revealed his hand she was asked if she was not afraid of him and the girl literally said - are you afraid of rocks at the side of the road? girl, you compared him to rock on the side of the road, are you okay?
The setting is about FMC who regresses, her family was framed as traitors, she was abused by her husband when she became pregnant, he basically lied to her from the beginning.
her family is described as loving etc. but when she returns and claims to marry the Duke they oppose and she can't tell them honestly why. There are many ways to go about it, but she basically sent a marriage proposal for herself. Since she wants his influence and wants revenge on those who framed her family.
But honestly I couldn't care less to continue, the story didn't call for me. I skimmed through and still didn't vibe with it, but I can see why some might find them cute.
My Husband's Cinderella
DNF'd it pretty quickly. First of all the phrase "I will make you the Cinderella fo the century" is so fucking cringe, but I let it pass, but it was a warning sign for me I might not like it and I didn't vibe with it at all. Felt like characters were merely caricatures.
I also went to read spoilers because I kinda wanted to know what happens but without reading the whole damn thing and knowing what will happen I'm not impressed.
The beast bit the throat of the late Empress
Confusing title because when I see "late someone" I think only of one possibility and it's not being late for a meeting.
Strong DNF, since the writing was too childish.
First two chapters just established it for me. At first I thought that positioning in description felt weird, like where are we, why are we in many different places that don't connect, but whatever.
Figurehead Empress is caught, of course her cowardly husband escaped by himself. So imagine this, she's on the run, everything happens in a blurry and it's all fast-paced, then she is caught and brought to the new Emperor and hear me out, she is BLINDFOLDED now, like when it happened? Why do this? What is the logic? Just so she will be surprised to see when his face is revealed? I couldn't care less, it just felt so dumb.
And the first thing the guy says - serve me. And he is our future male protag. At the time I felt like someone needs purging. And even if he gave her a chioce to die or to serve, she of course chose to die as a noble thing to do, but of course it didn't go as she planned. At that point I could imagine where this is going. And I wasn't going to go with it.
You Majesty, The Empress Has Had Enough
Another one I didn't like. I didn't like protagonists and also the story is meh to me, so I skipped it.
Was not impressed by FMC, since she kinda had some growth, but at the same time she didn't, and I don't like the little animal scared of everything type.
The situation between her and her husband also felt weird, first of all he treated her poorly and there were rumors going on as he would take a consort.
She and him are from two different parts and the marriage should have been a way to ease the tense relationship, but as we readers know the result is not like that. But what puzzled me is how guarded she felt, as if she was oblivious to everything and thought hard work will win everyone over. I mean if you're on that level you shouldn't be living under a rock and not realize how dire the situation is and the hard work she planned to do won't work. And she felt like she was outside of that information, which I don't believe.
I can understand her awe for her husband who is a true hero, but her opinion doesn't change because of the harsh treatment, also puzzling to me. Because if you continue to treat him well just because and are not disillusioned then something is wrong with you.
Another point which felt weird to me is how cold-hearted he was, saying all the cliche stuff of the trashy male character, never believed her, but we should have felt that there was something else beind that or not? Because much later it is revealed that the Magic Department or how was it called almost blackmailed the Emperor into having the consort and they threatened him with Empress' life, but then they should have someohow figured out he cared? But outwardly he acted like a scum. I suppose every secret has an explanation, but i couldn't be bothered, this is why I skipped through and no one should rely on my opinion of it.
What they had just wasn't my thing.
US
Finally started this one. Honestly, I just like how this author writes, there si something about the wit I'm catching and how things flow. I'm happy that I found them, I am mad at myself that I finally have an author I like but I stall reading them.
What catches me is that despite some sort of understanding forming between two main characters in the first book, they're far from being close and I like it doesn't sound forced.
Also the book starts with a lively limb that presumably searches for its' body.
Honestly saying the scene where they examined it impressed me, it really felt more in line of what they do and in their conclusion they partially feel the connection to Afflicted (living dead), which is pretty sound thing to conclude. Instead of saying - I don't know, it could be anything.
Surely it is apparent that the story will tie to something close to Frankenstein. But it's because we know it, characters don't.
Due to Korean novels galore I didn't touch anything else, not even watched anything except Running Man show.
Have no idea what got to me, maybe because I found the site instead of going through NU and that helped, because I didn't see the ratings or reviews (many I mentioned I was the only one leaving reviews). Also I didn't rely on what's popular and just let it go.
It also helped that despite Korean authors loving the drama, some of it wasn't bad. I can eat some angst, but shouldn't we make it appealing?
Anyway, I have more in my bookmarks, but I decided to put part of it here.
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