"Mankind is born from faith, and will die for their faith. Mankind will be reborn from the fallen ashes of faith."... more>>

one of my favorite books of all time, there's a reason why priest won an award for this one. the plot spans for decades as it involves a lot of politics and wars during the intergalactic era, tackling different issues in a technologically advanced society. also a love story between a dreamer professor-scientist-engineer and a ruthless genius military commander-mecha pilot.

the stories of the main leads and even the side characters are hopeful yet heart-wrenching. i especially love lu bixing, the galaxy's charming hero who used to wish to destroy the world when he was a child. i wish more people would know about this book. <<less

“If one’s heart is small, even sufferings as large as a house will be cramped into that narrow space. But if one’s heart is as vast as heaven and earth, then even troubles as large as mountains become mere droplets in an endless sea.”... more>>

setting is in steampunk ancient china! i think a video game adaptation of this novel would be very cool. it also has a pope antagonist. the story starts off with the idle life of a teenager and his beautiful disabled 'godfather', and later transforms into a story about the prince yan's conquest for the nation and the war confrontations of marshal gu. the prince is the personification of the famous quote 'no one will ever know the violence it took to become this gentle.'

anw this is a novel where the couple actually knows how to balance their responsibilities and relationship since not everything can be abandoned for love, yk? <<less

futuristic intergalactic setting! dean/law professor wakes up in a younger body and has to solve cases as an intern under his former student who's now a lawyer. an attempt to give a reader a glimpse of what it's like to pursue justice in the eyes of the law, or so the author says. ... more>>

i usually find cold and aloof characters bland, but the ml in this one is charming in his own way. if i enter the hell that is law school just blame gu yan (and mu su li). <<less

a demonic cultivator picks up a brainless straight romance novel that predicts his future and discovers that he's the secondary male lead. he doesn't understand why his right hand man became a villain after he died in the story though, so he tries to find out why. alternatively, it's also a redemption story of a female lead destined to brainlessly fall in love with a s*umbag main male lead, narrated in the pov of the devil venerable and his right hand man who's secretly in love with him.... more>>

a unique take on the genre, and a rare bl novel where the author actually manages to interweave the relationship development of the main couple with the character development of the original female mc. <<less

the story is set in europe during the late 90s in the middle of war between humans and demons, featuring a priest who impulsively bought a demon s*ave for 177 coins. it's about how a holy priest forever bound by his fate and duty and a human whose life is ruined by his demonic blood gradually found freedom and salvation in each other.... more>>

narration is written in the 2nd pov as the priest; grounded and poignant, though it was disturbingly apathetic at first. you subtly learn about the characters as the story progresses. it slowly creeps on you and suddenly your drowning in feelings. 

(if I had a nickel for every time I loved a bl novel with an evil pope, I'd have two nickels. which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice.) <<less

"Whenever Yuder smiled, Kishiar would kiss him ecstatically, as if his brief laughter was like a winter sun."... more>>

western royalty setting with a drop of omegaverse and supernatural powers. a cold-hearted omega commander got sentenced to death and is sent back to the past, and there he meets the alpha prince/former commander whom he assassinated. yuder is given a chance to save the world from impending doom, and also gains another chance to approach his relationship with kishiar in a different way, slowly learning that the prince might have actually held some affection for him.

such a nuanced writing on second tries in romantic relationships, i really felt gutted at times. the soulmate aspect of the omegaverse plays a significant part in their relationship, and i wish more cn and kr novels would focus more on this. <<less

the two main characters are from rivaling investigation bureaus who somehow got tasked into solving multiple cases together. one is shrewd yet sickly, while the other is gifted in martial arts and a bit too vain. they're always both scheming against each other during investigations so watching them fall in love is really funny.... more>>

idk there's just something about smart and capable characters acting like a bunch of clowns. <<less

a crime-solving novel, and also a love story between a cop and a capitalist — or — a young policeman and a rich playboy who are rivals-in-love for a guy who's not even interested in men. the animosity between the two isn't due to the rivalry; it's because this playboy has a knack for understanding the thought process of criminals which bothers the policeman. while investigating cases, rich dude slowly discovers the way this certain police captain has subtly cared for him over the past years. ... more>>

if you love crime solving then pls read this one they also have a fat bossy pet cat oh and i wish fei du finally learns to love himself some day <<less

"One has a weak will and is extremely soft-hearted, but entered the dao through the sword, while the other is extremely stubborn and doesn’t care about the rules, but entered the dao through the heart."... more>>

the story revolves around the adventure of 5 young disciples into reviving their declining sect. unexpected twists and turns happen, and the old mysteries behind their sect comes into light. main couple is shixiong-shidi. 

stayed true to the found family trope! i loved that although the main couple are in love with each other their relationship with the other three disciples was never portrayed as inferior to their romantic relationship. after all, the five of them only had each other /sobs. <<less

modern dweeb gets transmigrated into the stallion webnnovel he tr*shed for days. it's full of comedic misunderstandings and the transmigrator obliviously getting dragged into female lead situations as the plot progresses bc the "super straight harem emperor" protagonist fell in love with him. ... more>>

i put this here because of luo binghe. he's such a raw character, altered my preference in fictional men forever. like sorry it's so cute when he cries, what am i supposed to do about it </3 <<less

childhood friends to enemies to lovers in ancient china! a disabled general receives an imperial edict to marry the notorious court lackey, who happens to be his estranged childhood sweetheart. the novel is about finding out the truth behind the assassination attempt to the general, and unearthing past misunderstandings between the main couple that lead to their separation. ... more>>

... so i discovered you can also make gay arranged marriage happen in ancient china. <<less

during a high school assembly, the popular mixed-race student suffers from an allergic asthma attack that prompted everyone to discover that the aloof campus crush senior is actually his older foster brother. a few years later, as they both stand in front of the cathedral, he hears his older brother blasphemously say: I don't need god to love me, it's enough just to have you. ... more>>

i don't like reading modern slice-of-life danmei bc they're a bit too close to reality (yet unrealistic at the same time) but i made an exception for this one. the description on the scenes are so vivid it was like reading two-page spreads from a shojo manga with godly art. song yu gege is the ultimate yearner he made my heart hurt.  <<less

childhood friends to strangers to enemies to lovers. imagine if you're just some broke guy hired by the government to deal with supernatural stuff, and then you suddenly encounter an undead emperor who says you're cute. you restrain him and he tries to kill you, and then for some reason you are now reluctant coworkers entangled with conspiracies that date back to thousands of years ago. ... more>>

a mix of ancient and modern setting with supernatural elements, like if the x-men had chinese mythological powers. i haven't finished this one yet but i think of xuan ji and his fire everyday. there's a lack of chinese mythology-inspired modern fantasy in danmei and this is one of the rare ones methinks. <<less

the story of a weathered 800 year old god who ends up getting close with the ghost king while doing some investigations in the mortal realm and heavenly realm after his third ascension. ... more>>

my favorite part in the novel was the entire earth-water-wind gods arc it was so [incoherent scream] and it showcased how good mxtx is at writing complicated interpersonal relationships. side characters have so much potential i wish there were more chapters about them i really like mu qing and yushi huang. <<less

despite being gifted with exceptional beauty and talent as a physician  ̶(p̶o̶i̶s̶o̶n̶e̶r̶), lin qingyu is unfortunate to marry a husband who eventually dies of sickness. he then moves on, marries again, and the husband dies again. and then someone is courting him again?!... more>>

first time i read a novel where the male lead is the soul-hopping transmigrator, written in the pov of the main character who originally belongs to the world of the story.  <<less

jian rong, a controversial LoL livestreamer who loves to tr*sh talk all professional players, miraculously has someone he has never criticized: lu boyuan, the jungler god of e-sports. said jungler then recruits him into his team as the new mid laner, resulting into the protest of his teammates, fans, and well, everyone jian rong had beef with, lmao. a few weeks into the team, everyone discovers that this unruly midlaner actually knows how to behave but only in the presence of a certain jungler.... more>>

brah i didn't even know there were e-sports bl novels until i read this. i loved the banter between jian rong and his online fans (antis) <3 <<less

xie chi's ultimate dream is to create a human body for his lover, xie xinglan, his second personality that he fell in love with. to fulfill this, he joins the supernatural movie actor app to rack enough wish points while surviving different horror movies, where he encounters interesting people (and ghosts) on the way.... more>>

girl, who even knew you can write something like that. who even falls in love with their split personality. <<less

the reincarnation plot of mdzs includes a lot of flashbacks that connects with the present timeline. mxtx is good at writing interpersonal relationships, and i love the complexity of the mc's relationship with the side characters.... more>>

it's in this list bc it was my first danmei novel ever. <<less

the first time they met, one was the beloved youngest disciple and the other was a poor delivery boy. the second time they met, one was a genius cultivator from an orthodox sect while the other was a charming demonic cultivator. the story starts off on their third meeting, where one is now the honored lord lianhua and the other a demonic emperor, about to duel each other to death until they received a heavenly scroll telling them they had to fall in love to save the world.... more>>

strangers to friends to lovers to strangers, rinse and repeat. to be honest the whole overarching plot about saving the world through world-hopping was really quite silly though i appreciate the exploration of other potential dynamics between them. i prefer the flashbacks to the past though because of the relationship angst. meeting and falling in love only to be forced to forget each other repeatedly </3 <<less

modern love story between a a voyeur prison librarian and a white-collar criminal. diverts from the typical danmei setting since it's set in prison for... more>> like majority of the story, and the depiction is quite realistic since it paints the prisoners as regular human beings (instead of crimelord 999) though of course there will be some dramatic moments. chemistry between the couple is off the charts and the s*xual tension goes crazy even though they don't have an explicit scene. <<less

basically a group of alchemists summoned a demon and received the secret to immortality, but once they realize they can "devour" each other to gain knowledge, chaos ensues that spans for centuries. it tells multiple interwoven stories of different characters from around the world that were fortunate (or unfortunate) enough to get involved with these immortals one way or another.... more>>

i love the non-linear story telling. one moment a new character gets introduced, and then it switches to a whole new other perspective, not knowing that they'll all eventually become part of a big chaos, crazy. <<less

story of cheng yujin, the eldest daughter of a noble family who was reborn after dying in her past life because of her twin sister and husband. mc's character is quite pragmatic (ignoring the fact that she's a reborn teenager) and very self-aware. she's unapologetically scheming and calculating, and her good reputation is not something that was handed over to her on a silver platter — miss girl worked for it. the romance between her and the prince is not dramatic nor passionate, it's kind of intentional. they have similar priorities and they slowly fell in love. a lot of the romantic stuff in their relationship happens during their married life. ... more>>

included in the list bc this is the first chinese josei i've read and i loved cheng yujin a lot. <<less