A Love That Lurks at the Dining Table

Description

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First year high school student Igarashi Mizuka loves cooking. But as soon as she started high school, her parents started working overseas and she had to live alone. Suddenly appearing in front of the lonely Mizuka was Hino Yousuke, a model and actor who asked her to make his meals. Mizuka is bewildered considering his status, but she makes lunches for him and gradually comes to like him…

Associated Names
One entry per line
恋が潜む食卓
Related Series
N/A
Recommendations
Who Said I Like You (1)
Flowers Are Bait (1)
I Reincarnated as the Little Sister of a Death Game Manga’s Murder Mastermind and Failed (1)
Recommendation Lists
  1. Read & Loved (BG)
  2. BG favs
  3. Obsession and Yandere list
  4. Re-read worthy
  5. Yandere

Latest Release

Date Group Release
03/27/22 Merry Bad End... c19.5
03/20/22 Merry Bad End... c19
03/13/22 Merry Bad End... c18
03/06/22 Merry Bad End... c17
02/27/22 Merry Bad End... c16
02/20/22 Merry Bad End... c15
02/13/22 Merry Bad End... c14
02/06/22 Merry Bad End... c13
01/31/22 Merry Bad End... c12
01/31/22 Merry Bad End... c11
01/30/22 Merry Bad End... c10
01/30/22 Merry Bad End... c9
01/27/22 Merry Bad End... c8
01/24/22 Merry Bad End... c7
01/23/22 Merry Bad End... c6
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13 Reviews sorted by


mawaruunmei
mawaruunmei rated it
April 7, 2022
Status: Completed
Creepy and thrilling. ML is a yandere so it's expected, but MC's way of thinking is a little weird too. They suit each other well imo

Really like that we see ML's perspective here. ML actually impressed me here since ... more>>
Spoiler

he's very manipulative which I like better than MLs that just kill people that like their love interest. He knows the MC well and takes advantage of that knowledge to trap her without getting his hands dirty.

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The misunderstanding at the end got a little frustrating, but it was all okay in the end. MC is also kinda boring, as expected in a short story like this. On that note, I wish there were more chapters, though I get the "short but sweet (?) " factor.

Recommended for people who love yanderes. For people who don't, well, read the tags. Don't read a story clearly tagged as something that you don't like, then complain when the story does the thing that you don't like. Tags are there for a reason. If you still wanna read this despite not liking yanderes, just treat it as a horror/thriller story. <<less
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SongYi3232
SongYi3232 rated it
March 28, 2022
Status: c19.5
Basically a story of a popular handsome model/idol falls in love with a innocent girl that is in love with cooking.

I personally like the premise of how the male lead sees things in his point of view, some people complain about him installing camera and stalking the female lead....I MEAN it's an yandere? they aren't supposed to be normal?

I personally like the way how all the scene are executed, every one or two chapter, there would be a switch of POV to know what the other side is thinking... more>> instead of just mainly focusing on the female lead perspective

Spoiler

Hino. the male lead, I really like the kind of guy that is handsome, rich and a sick twisted mindset, He thinks of everyone as corrupted and filthy in his eyes because everyone only wants to be around him due to his looks and fame which he is an model/actor, especially with his former step mother who treated him more like a boy then a son. So in a sense it is understandable on why he would also fall in love with the female lead when he first saw her.

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Sadly I felt like the novel is a bit too short and should received a continuation <<less
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cloyer1
cloyer1 rated it
March 15, 2022
Status: c3
Creepy. Main ML scams his way into the minor FL's home and bugs it so he can keep track of her after running into her at bookstore. Don't understand how that kind of criminal behavior is considered "romantic". Couldn't keep reading after that. Translation quality was ok which is why it was 3.0. 1.0 for the story.
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linalicecs
linalicecs rated it
January 19, 2025
Status: Completed
When I read this novel, it was rated 3.8/5 in NU. Like WTH? It's not that bad, guys. It's a great story if you want a quick read. Honestly, the tags scared me at first, but after reading it, it's just a twisted love of the ML.

The ML is still being considerate towards the FL. The ML is so thoughtful about his action and try not to cause any harm towards the FL. Yes, he's manipulative, but at least he's not too forceful. In the end, they have a happy... more>> ending.

I think it's because I had read the worst kind of Yandere, that this Yandere ML doesn't bother me at all 😂 I also love the translation, thank you so much for your hard work 🥹

To be honest, the ending feels rushed.

Spoiler

The "BAD END" story is also confusing and not ended properly. I don't mind reading the bad end, but I think the author wrote it half-heartedly, like how half of the chapter is just a copy pasted from previous chapters and just ended it with bone creaking without a proper explanation nor ending it properly.

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anarim99
anarim99 rated it
August 12, 2024
Status: Completed
Oof, this was a wild ride. Although the novel is properly tagged, the synopsis is kinda misleading. On the surface it brings you exactly what the description said: a girl who loves cooking and a teen idol that asks for the girl to make him a lunchbox. A cute premise, I could see it being a good shoujo to read/watch. But that only lasts until the ML's point of view. He's a Yandere (yes, with capital Y) and a good one too. Manipulative, resourceful and cunning.

His POV hit me like... more>> a bucket of ice; Hino-kun is very much a detached person from his surrounds—his traumatic past that is revealed right off the bat helps to that I guess???—and he prefers it that way until he meets our FL, Mizuka. It's a cliché of yandere-type novels, the FL brings a "sparkle" to the ML life just for being there, and said ML goes crazy over the girl. Hino-kun is no exception, he's obsessive, possessive and has no qualms about manipulating the FL (all fair in love and war I supose). He stalks her, puts survilliance in her house and phone, and (at least in one of the endings) is successful in manipulating Mizuka to fall in love with him. Yes—manipulate, there's no other word for it, really.

Spoiler

Be warned, there's thoughts of abduction (he thinks that a lot, actually), and somewhat insinuations of cannibalism by the end (in the sense of: "I want to eat you so you can always stay by my side"), he also drugs our FL a couple of times and non-consensual touching, there's insinuation of r*pe too—in thoughts and in the bad ending.

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I had a fun time reading the absurdities in his POV. To readers who aren't used to this kind of genre they will say that the ML is creepy and disgusting, and in a real-life situation they wouldn't be wrong; behavior like his shouldn't be romanticised, ever, but there's no harm in reading something like this for fun if you can stomach it. To me, Hino-kun was a fresh air to the yandere genre, he's not dumb nor is prone to s*upid mistakes, the best part is that there's no muder. He doesn't need to kill anyone to get the girl, yay! Also, he truly seems to care for Mizuka; he doesn't want to be hated by her or make her unhappy and although he does things to get rid off the "competition", they aren't in any way harmful to the FL.

Mizuka is also an interesting character. In her POV's we all get some good descripitions of food, as it was promised and we also see how some of Hino's actions makes no sense at all to an outsider, lol. She's a very plain girl, she has her hobbie, one friend and that's it. A normal teenager if it wasn't for how much she doesn't seem to care for things outside her little bubble. She's also a little slow with her feelings. We know she has a interest in Hino from the first chapter, but until she realizes it we only get excuses to why she feels certain ways. Girl, you're not fooling anyone. She's also has her own "dark side" for lack of a better word; even before she realised her feelings our girl was a jealous one. She had strong feelings about other girls feeding Hino, not liking it at all. Sincerely there's a lot of metaphors about eating being a love expression in a disturbing way instead of the fluffy way I'm used too.

Spoiler

In the "good ending" she's quick to accept Hino liker her back (I still can't believe she thought she was in a unrequited love situation, my god what a joke) . The funniest thing is that Hino had no need to worry about being rejected by Mizuka after coming clean about some of his manipulations, she is as crazy as him. Possessive enough to like the things he did so they could meet each other and date.

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Overall, it was a good read. The translator work was good, sometimes I got confused about some of the text construction, but nothing that rendered the novel unreadable. It's short too, so you can read in one seating. The writing is also good, the author had a way of making each chapter more sinister and somawhat desperate. It's like both the ML and the reader are in a clutch time over the FL reciprocating the ML feelings or not. The descriptions of food are also good, and you can easily imagine what kinda of dish the FL is cooking. The side-characters aren't really that important, they do bring something to the story, but don't get their own. One thing that I found lacking was how the author seemed to try building side-storys to some of these characers but did seem to forget everything about it in the end.

Spoiler

Maki-kun and Meina-chan are the main example. Maki-kun is the only one to see through Hino's plans, and I feel like some of his dialogues wanted the reader to speculate if he was the same as Hino or not. His tendency to be prone to accidents and the way he seems to always need Meina close to him due to that almost seems forced at times, plus the talk he had with Hino at some point. There's also Kawauchi, who was to be a love rival that Hino was supposed to "get rid off", but the author simply forgot about him and did just go straight to the love confession.

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Anyways, I give it a 4. It's a good read from the genre, the end is well done and the writing is good. I think the author made a good job at turning the story in more than a romance, and I'm also a sucker for cannibalism and food as metaphor for love in literature. <<less
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sparklingmote
sparklingmote rated it
August 12, 2022
Status: Completed
The number of people who seemingly can't read on a site made for novels is shocking. This work is very clearly tagged with YANDERE and MALE YANDERE so I'm really not sure what the people complaining about the ML being scary/creepy were expecting. It's a feature not a bug. Review: I personally love yanderes (fictional) and this one is an excellent yandere ML. Obsessive, manipulative, and smart enough to cover his tracks. Definitely commits a few crimes but sincerely cares about (is obsessed with) FL. He never tries to do... more>> anything to force her until near the end when he's nearly completely lost his mind to his obsession with her.

The good end is when FL follows his script until the end, and the bad end is when FL suddenly breaks his script and he goes nuts. Of course, this is not a healthy relationship and ML is a very dangerous man but with the way FL is characterized, they're a good pair. It's short and the pacing is good. I enjoyed it. <<less
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chande
chande rated it
April 30, 2022
Status: Completed
ML was so creepy.

... more>>
Spoiler

Maybe you already read this from other reviewers. ML really did so many disturbing things to get into FL's life, such as: tracking her phone, installing camera in her house, and secretly following her.

He also manipulated FL to cook for him so he could lure her bit by bit into his "trap". And it worked.

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I belive that FL won't be able to get away from ML all her life. Well, it's fortunate that she also had an unusual thinking and was quite possessive of ML. Maybe they really made for each other. <<less
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Mina1234553
Mina1234553 rated it
April 20, 2022
Status: Completed
This should have definitely been tagged as horror like holy sh*t was this disturbing.

I hate how it's super romanticised but the MC seems like a unique type of person. But I appreciate her love of cooking it's cool.
1 Likes · Like Permalink | Report
SlenderSera
SlenderSera rated it
April 4, 2024
Status: Completed
5/5

It's exactly my cup of tea. Finally, a stalker story where the chick doesn't have someone else she likes to screw things up. Wattpad stories did that a lot. It was annoying. Don't make the man who the FL has the most tension with be the Villain and not the ML. It makes no sense...

Dude really reminded me of one of those serial k*llers off of Criminal Minds, with the way he cold-bloodedly plotted on her. But gradually, he got a little better. Just a little bit...

I could have done... more>> with more skinship. It was rather tame.

Anyway...

HEA, but it was a close call. Haha <<less
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l8rose
l8rose rated it
January 17, 2024
Status: Completed
Hoo boy, Lurks is a bit of an understatement for the ML in this. This is incredibly dark without going into the kidnapping and mu*der territory. There is drugging, stalking and eavesdropping so be prepared, readers may get whiplash going from the MC's POV to the ML's.

Also, there is a lot of description of food.

The MC is a teenager who is obsessed with cooking. Everything else in her life was secondary when it came to planning. Despite that one-track mind, she's a rather nice person and is kind to others... more>> despite their actions. She's a little oblivious to some things around her but some of the ML's actions do lead to her feeling suspicious of him. That being said, she does fall for him slowly.

The ML is an unbelievably handsome teen who has lived a rather horrendous childhood (see the spoiler just below) and has become entirely twisted. He's so messed up that he doesn't see the meaning in anything, even food has no meaning for him. The moment he first laid eyes on the MC, and realized she was treating him like a normal person, he instantly fell for her. However, his love is just as twisted as he is.

Spoiler

So his parents are out of the picture and he was raised by his older sister. Unfortunately, his older sister and brother-in-law kept him locked in a dark room until the cops got involved.

Then one of his uncles took him in. Unfortunately, the woman the uncle married turned out to have mental issues and began seeing the ML as a man (as opposed to the child/teen he was at the time). She eventually began to see everything as him and was institutionalized.

The uncle ended up giving him an apartment, and the money from his parents and then left him to live on his own at that point.

All that aside, once he sees the MC, he goes full yandere mode and begins to plan how to win her over. He wants her to love him but he's not against breaking her to make her stay with him (as seen in the extra story). He does everything from bugging her house to putting an app on her phone so he can listen in to all of her conversations and knows exactly where she is all the time.

He also drugs her at a few points in the story by giving her sleeping meds in her tea. While he doesn't sexually mol*st her, he pretty much does everything up until that point that doesn't involve removing her clothes. Including his first kiss because he wanted her to have it and not someone he is acting in a movie with.

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The story begins with the MC getting ready to go to a new school while her parents are heading off to work in a location far away. This lets the ML begin to work his way into her life (honestly, most of what he does would have been caught by someone paying attention but again, the MC is all about the food). The ML does a few things that make her question him (such as knowing where things are in her house) but she never thinks about it for long.

Anyone who gets in the way of the ML's happy ending with the MC gets removed. He doesn't mu*der anyone but he has no qualms about orchestrating their expulsion from school. There are hints that he is willing to go super dark (and he outright thinks about locking her away) to have her. There is an extra story that is an alternate ending where she did reject him and that definitely does not disappoint on the twisted factor.

Definitely a good read if you're into psychological horror, especially with the ML's POVs, but pass on it if you're looking for something with fluff (because even the fluff is manipulation in this) and a sane happy ending. <<less
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Mikodami
Mikodami
August 28, 2022
Status: Completed
Woah, woah, woah! This is seriously creepy! Way beyond the usual weirdness of "normal" Japanese novels. Thanks sparklingmot for pointing out the "yandere" tag, or otherwise I would be so shocked. Even though I didn't read the alternative end... more>>
Spoiler

said to be a bad end, and only stopped at what might be considered a good end

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this is beyond everything I normally like. Their relationship is so heavily unhealthy that it's beyond any sanity.

Therefore it's very difficult for me to rate it neutrally, but I will try.

For people who aren't disturbed by men forcing their ways on women and exploiting their kindness as well as okay with women weak for possessive, domineering men betraying this kindness, this story is probably okay and they might like it. It has some interesting setting and development. It's also great how the author managed to keep increasing the uneasy feeling throughout the novel. So this should be around four stars for them.

For people who believe in happiness through gender equality and love in healthy, mutual respect, this story might be disturbing and difficult to accept. More around one to two stars max.

I really doubt that a relationship built on such disturbing background could end well. They both -- but the ML most -- should get serious psychiatric counseling as soon as possible. <<less
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fluoresscindy
fluoresscindy
April 13, 2022
Status: c8
i didn't finish it cus I felt kinda bored

but it's good

i just got confused lmao all the things on the MC head is about cooking

and im not interested sowwy

the ML is sure as the other review said, he's a creepy manipulative ass stalker
Spoiler

he stalk her, put a tracking app or anything to track her chat on her phone, manipulate her so that she pity him and help him, etc

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but so far I feel like he kind of a timid person? he care for her tho and still know some boundaries?
Spoiler

he know her so well lmao, she's too easy to got manipulated by him and what I like abt him, he didn't hurt the MC like the other yandere ML (kidnap, chained, tie, etc that crazy yandere stuff that will breaking mind) although he do thinking abt that stuff for the MC

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lynhsk
lynhsk rated it
March 24, 2022
Status: Completed
Yes, agreed with the other reviewer. The story is a bit creepy and stalking the FL by installing cameras in the house and spying on her through her phone too. Otherwise a nice fall in love story if you ignore the creepy stuffs that the ML does to FL.
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