Four-and-a-Half-Star Reads That Didn't Quite Make Five, Part 2 打不了五星的四星半书单②

1. 1 惊 Horror Movie Survival Rules 惊悚片生存守则 A Touch of Red from Eastern Wu东吴一点红Romance1.3M WordsCompleted In a world of horror movies, how can an ordinary person dodge danger at every turn and survive to the very end? Thanks to all the horror movies she watched before transmigrating, Everly has compiled countless ironclad rules for survival: Horror Movie Survival Rule No. 1: Stay away from desolate ruins, campsites, castles, cabins in the woods, caves, and places like that. So when her classmates invited her to explore some ruins, she firmly said no. Those classmates never came back, not even by th 114.1kFavorites122.9kClicks/ch390.4kGifts

   Curator note

   A large proportion of these are original horror films, focusing primarily on avoiding danger (outsmarting the protagonist) in the early and middle stages, before transitioning to physical confrontation as the female lead matures. The plots are well-designed, the female lead is calm and rational, and most importantly, she knows how to avoid danger and outsmart the protagonist, making it very blood pressure-friendly. This contrasts with other horror film protagonists who rely on brute force and luck to get through the game. The plot involving reasoning and analysis is written very clearly, in a straightforward and easy-to-understand manner without being verbose. It unfolds the mystery step by step, making for a great reading experience. The male lead appears very late in the story, and the romance element is minimal. The last few chapters on the Fountain of Youth are a bit boring, but considering the earlier chapters are all very good, I'd give it four and a half stars overall.

2. 2 今 I Have to Keep Checking In Today, Too [Infinite] 今天也要努力打卡[无限] Fire Tea火茶Multi-Orientation401k WordsCompleted Qing Lian was an ordinary horror-game NPC. She had planned to work peacefully until retirement, but then a System bug loaded her identity card as a player. Which led directly to NPC time clock: Beep. Employee information not found. Clock-in failed. If you fail to clock in before the level ends, you will be marked absent and lose your wages and performance bonus. Qing Lian: ??? My head can be chopped off and my blood can be spilled, but my wages cannot be docked! Luckily, players turn into NP 48.9kFavorites65.6kClicks/ch43.3kGifts

   Curator note

   The plot is engaging and the writing is solid; the logical inconsistencies in the early chapters are resolved later. The female lead is very charming, and most importantly, she is decisive and resolute, a true strong person in terms of mindset. Many supporting characters are well-developed, and the dungeon designs are interesting, especially the last two, which are particularly exciting. I'm deducting one star because it's unfinished. How can a story be divided into two volumes?! The ending was so abrupt, it wasn't even an ending, it really is unfinished! [Laughing and crying emoji]

3. 3 我 I Make Games Just to Provoke Humanity 我做游戏纯粹为了挑衅人类 Wu Liu Su Qing Niao无流苏晴鸟No CP881k WordsCompleted [The cover features character art. If you're used to that, feel free to skip the illustration [kiss]] Si Wu binds herself to a Malice Collection System, and her future reputation is on the line. Faced with options like “war profiteer” and “outlaw” from the System, she flies into a rage after getting brutally shafted by the gacha pool in a game. She chooses to make a gacha game of her own using the System. The game is top quality, but there’s no way to pay for pulls, and no drop rates at all. “L 48.5kFavorites56.3kClicks/ch215.3kGifts

   Curator note

   The mastermind behind the scenes, a master of provoking players. The game is fun, and the taunting mechanics are amazing. Being able to leap back and forth across the player's baseline like a soaring eagle is quite an art. The forum format and player-centric perspectives are detailed and engaging (an indispensable element of the behind-the-scenes manipulation narrative). Popular internet memes are used judiciously, making them both entertaining and natural. I didn't really like some of the word choice and sentence structure. Deducting half a star.

4. 4 这 Western Crossover: This Isn’t an Ordinary Day [综英美]这不是正经日常 VentiscaRomance567k WordsCompleted Lania was born with a visual impairment. This is what the world looks like to her: she can't see anything except red. A pair of underwear drifts down from the sky. A cape falls from above. An American veteran turns invisible all on his own. Stark looks like a glitchy texture! Little Shrike: ...I don't think this is an ordinary daily life. Three years afte 64.3kFavorites217.3kClicks/ch70.2kGifts

   Curator note

   Hahahaha, all the geese in the city are dying of laughter! Part Two: The adorable Rania and the adorable Black Mist Mist, the story is very cute! The writing style is average in the early chapters, but the story is very engaging. Four and a half stars.

5. 5 末 The Apocalypse Villain Is My Work Partner 末世反派是我的工作搭子 Flowers Bloom South Of The City城南花开Romance310k WordsCompleted Office worker Yun Qingyue receives one piece of bad news and one piece of good news. The bad news is that she was supposed to be a supporting character in an apocalypse novel, helping the main villain give the protagonist experience points. Now she has to go back into that novel and complete her assignment. The good news is she’ll get paid 3.6 million, and when she comes back, she’ll have a job offer with four days on and three days off. Office worker Yun Qingyue thinks, A job’s a job, wherev 31.3kFavorites41kClicks/ch31.6kGifts

   Curator note

   Warmest congratulations on the return of Chengnan Huakai! It's still a heartwarming story, filled with both humorous witty remarks and gentle warmth. It's probably a rehabilitation story? The entire narrative is carried by the romance, with very delicate descriptions and vivid portrayals of minor characters. However, the plot itself is rather weak. It's like casually building a castle with a few blocks and then starting to do intricate hand-carving. But it wasn't a plot-driven novel to begin with, and the well-developed romance was more than enough. After reading it, I felt as clear and bright as a sky that had just been washed clean.

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