Read-in-Progress Wednesday
Jun. 18th, 2025 05:50 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
geraineon posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
cnovelsThis is your weekly read-in-progress post for you to talk about what you're currently reading and reactions and feelings (if any)!
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Date: 2025-06-18 03:03 pm (UTC)BUT.
I'm determined to read The 14th Year of Chenghua this year! 😁
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Date: 2025-06-18 04:21 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-06-20 12:33 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-06-20 01:53 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-06-18 03:07 pm (UTC)After which I immediately went on to the same author’s The Times Spent in Pretense, which is a longer (three-quarters of a Journey West) historical romance, which is one of the oddest c-novels I’ve encountered. The opening chapter has the atmosphere of a wuxia, of all things, after which the tone shifts to what I can only describe as a Chinese analog of Georgette Heyer. It’s relatively light (despite a redonkulous number of assassination attempts) with a sheen of satire (not a single assassin has succeeded), and most of all the male MC is outright Heyeresque, one of her Mark II models of the not ostentatiously fashionable subclass. The female MC, otoh, is a trickster figure whose pretenses are starting to get her in over her head, in a Toll Gate / Unknown Ajax sort of way. Her mother, btw, is a female general and total badass.
Not what I expect from a Chinese historical romance. Enjoyable, but unexpected. Am 30 chapters / 20% in.
(“A single assassin succeeded” is my new fave tongue-twister.)
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Date: 2025-06-18 04:24 pm (UTC)That...sounds like an interesting ride. 😁
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Date: 2025-06-18 05:17 pm (UTC)I did not expect that tonal swerve (or indeed either tone). It's not the only swerve, if it comes to that, but it's the biggest so far.
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Date: 2025-06-19 11:05 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-06-20 12:34 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-06-20 12:35 pm (UTC)The Times Spent in Pretense does sound interesting
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Date: 2025-06-20 02:35 pm (UTC)In addition to everything mentioned, I'm pleasantly surprised at how non-heteronormative it is for a straight historical romance. Plus there's the recurring thread of the female MC's life goal of "raising male pets" i.e. collecting a harem of consorts, which no one in her family seems to have an issue with.
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Date: 2025-06-18 04:24 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-06-18 07:07 pm (UTC)W premise.
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Date: 2025-06-19 11:05 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-06-19 04:20 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-06-20 12:36 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-06-18 04:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-06-20 12:42 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-06-19 04:06 pm (UTC)I've only been keeping up with the mushroom contaminant novel where things are heating up again xD Both the mc who transmigrated from our times into this novel and the ml (who is the main character of said novel) know each other for what they are (partially). But there are MORE mysteries yet to be revealed as to MC's identity and the previous occupant (?) of his body... I suspect memory shenanigans, since that is relevant to the current arc where he is exploring his past.
Also in the last arc, we found out that the Contaminant (rage) of Abyss No. 1 loves to cosplay as humans to sneak in to observe them. It loves doing this so much and yet has such a dark aura while doing it that was always spotted and always chased away by ML 🤣
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Date: 2025-06-20 01:05 pm (UTC)Remind me, mushroom story is... UF? Or something?
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Date: 2025-06-19 04:19 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-06-20 12:09 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-06-20 01:06 pm (UTC)