Novels like The Black Diary
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as The Black Diary, best match first.
- 51 A Love That Crosses Mountains and Seas 跨越万水千山的爱情 A love that crosses mountains and seas 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 52 Contract Marriage: The CEO’s First-Love Secretary 契约婚宠：总裁的初恋小秘书 [Secret Crush]+ [Workplace]+ [Sweet Romance]+ [Both Leads Are Each Other’s First and Only]+ [Reunion After Years Apart] Also known as "The Promise of Gu Panyao" Shen Nianyao never dreamed that, ten years after reuniting with her high school first love, Gu Shiqian, he would turn out to be her direct superior. Her mother was pressuring her relentlessly to get married, and her blind dates were arrogant and outrageous. Just as she was overwhelmed by it all, Gu Shiqian handed her a contract. “Let’s g —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 53 The Neighbor Who Makes My Heart Race 我的心动女邻居 On a rainy night, Sister Ling came to my house and asked if I wanted a wife. I never expected Sister Ling’s marriage to have been betrayed! It all begins with getting close to the mistress! My name is Chen Feng. This is my youth, and this is my story! [A Huoshaofeng production, guaranteed quality!] 46.8kReads8.3Score3.1k14d adds
- 54 After Breaking Off My Engagement, I Became the Regent's Beloved 退婚后我成了摄政王的心尖宠 Shen Zhaozhao, the legitimate daughter of the Duke of Zhenguo’s household, gave everything for love in her previous life, only to be plotted against by her half-sister, betrayed by her fiancé, and left to die miserably in the Cold Palace. Reborn, she tears off her gentle disguise. She breaks off her engagement, turns the tables, takes on her half-sister, and kicks her worthless ex to the curb, fighting her way back to the heart of power and vowing to make her enemies pay in blood! What she never 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 55 Earth Dragon Ridge 土龙岭 The novel Earth Dragon Ridge was written by Fu Jun and Fu Xiuxin. Through snapshots of the lives and outlooks of several generations, the novel brings to life characters such as Zheng Wantong, Zheng Youwen, Yin Xiang, Yin Chenggang, and Yin Chengjun. Following their struggles over the course of a century, from 1911 to 2010, the story symbolizes China's journey from the Xinhai Revolution to prosperity. It reflects the transformations of the Chinese era and celebrates a century of Chinese people 95Reads—Score—14d adds
- 56 I'll Wait for You in Gusu City 我在姑苏城里等你 After failing the college entrance exams, I left home alone and came to Suzhou, where I met two girls who would shape my whole life... One was as passionate as fire, the other as gentle as jade... At eighteen, I didn't understand what love was... A cigarette, a glass of wine, and so much sorrow in the city of Gusu... Note: This isn't a wish-fulfillment novel, and it takes its time getting going. If you enjoy plot-driven stories, you can start at Chapter 39. Thank you! 2kReads—Score19514d adds
- 57 A Marriage of Money 钱婚 To become the dutiful daughter, good wife, and loving mother everyone expected, Liu Xiaoqing buried her youthful dreams and deepest desires before the age of thirty-three, living a life of constant compromise. After graduating, she painfully gave up her dream of becoming a writer and took the civil service exam, becoming a government employee. At home, she endured her in-laws' repeated provocations, again and again, just to preserve her marriage. At work, she likewise chose to put up with her 57Reads—Score—14d adds
- 58 Two Good-for-Nothings Embrace 两个废物抱一抱 #Urban Life #Realistic Romance #Bickering Couple #Startup Story #Working Stiffs #Lighthearted Comedy #Heartwarming Healing A middle-aged unemployed programmer and a fresh graduate who can’t find work team up in an urban village to make short videos, saving each other and turning their lives around against the odds. Chen Yiming is 35 and has worked as a programmer for ten years. Then his company “optimized” him right out of a job. The day he walked out of the building carrying a cardboard box was 79Reads—Score—14d adds
- 59 My Beijing Girl 我的北京女孩 A young man with nothing going for him can't move on after a breakup. When he accompanies a friend to Beijing, he encounters new things and new people... His life quietly changes course. What kind of love story will he find as he sets out to reclaim his dream? 127Reads—Score1314d adds
- 60 Those Years in Dongguan 在东莞那些年 This book tells the story of an ordinary loser who finds love while working at a factory. After his future mother-in-law demands an outrageous bride price, he works hard, sets out to build a business, and pursues his dream. Giving up a high-paying job, he leads his friends back to their hometown to start a business, transforming a place so poor that no one could find a wife into a place young women are eager to marry into. 86Reads7.6Score—14d adds
- 61 The Girl in the Viewfinder 快门里的姑娘 | Romance | | Urban | | Realistic | | Slice of life | I turned my longing into pages. When no one understood them, I burned them into a sky full of starlight. A loosely adapted slice of life [Realistic fiction] After a work dinner, I (Rui) blacked out on the street. At the lowest point in his life, he spent every day drinking away his sorrows. By chance, he met a lovely young woman and began to dream of settling down and building a good life together. Everything seemed to be moving in the right 3Reads—Score—14d adds
- 62 After Tearing the Scumbag to Shreds, the Heroine's Life Goes into Overdrive 手撕渣男后，女主的人生开挂了 They once loved each other so deeply, from their school days to their wedding. But even the strongest love can apparently be no match for temptation. The male lead betrays the female lead, who, lost and confused, searches for a new direction in life. This is a slow-burning story. I hope you enjoy it. The story is entirely fictional, and any resemblance to real people or events is purely coincidental. Please don’t assume it’s about you. 5Reads—Score—14d adds
- 63 I Once Flew Thousands of Miles for You 为你，我曾飞越千万里 Before being sent to Africa, An Qi imagined endless grasslands and vast starry skies. After arriving, she found a struggling economy and lawless streets. On top of that, the exhausting workload and monotonous life made her want to find an excuse to quit every day. Then, because of one person, she fell in love with this city far from home... This story is dedicated to all the girls who still believe in love! (One man, one woman; both devoted to each other; a sweet romance with no angst) 234Reads9.0Score—14d adds
- 64 A Collection of Modern Shanghai Stories 上海现代故事集 Volume Two: A New Shanghai Mom. She has a second child, a son and a daughter, though her daughter’s troubles in middle school already have her at her wits’ end. She used to think she’d be happy as long as she had a modestly comfortable life, and at least she could count on her husband. But then her deranged sister-in-law shows up and turns both families’ lives into a complete mess! Volume One: An only daughter who has been abroad for twenty years rushes back to Shanghai to claim her grandmother 204Reads—Score—14d adds
- 65 A Forty-Year-Old Divorcée's Comeback: Starting Over After Divorce 四十岁弃妇逆袭，离婚后重启人生 [Divorce / Light Mystery / Second Marriage / A Middle-Aged Woman's Comeback] After graduating from college, forty-year-old Yao Qing married her “decent man” upperclassman and devoted eighteen years of her youth to her family. She served her husband, raised their daughter, and cared for her ailing in-laws, yet they treated her like a free maid. She thought her selfless sacrifices would earn her gratitude. Instead, she was hit with a devastating shock. Trapped inside a closet, she was forced to 198Reads8.4Score—14d adds
- 66 A Life That Never Gives Up 永不言弃的人生 This is a tale of a woman’s growth into the heroine of her own life, a set of rules for cultivating herself amid the mortal world. It is also a drama of life, where lofty ideals collide with harsh reality, and a painful tug-of-war between personal aspirations and life’s unpredictability. How do you survive? What kind of life do you want to lead? Imagination is pointless, and life offers no rehearsal. Once you step onto the stage, there’s no turning back. —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 67 Help! A Yandere Loli Is Forcing Me to Play Games with Her! 救命！病娇萝莉逼我陪她打游戏！ [Yandere System, games, growing male lead, angsty main plot] After taking his own life, a failed web-novel author was dragged into a strange space, where a yandere, scheming little girl of a System forced him to play one game after another. Plants vs. Zombies, Red Alert, Warcraft… What lies behind the levels? What truth is hidden in the world beyond the cage? Embark on a bizarre, hilarious fantasy adventure and play a different kind of hero’s game. 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 68 Thank You for Loving Me 谢谢你爱着我 After my first love broke up with me and told me the cruel truth, I followed in her footsteps to Shanghai. Sadly, I still couldn’t win back our innocent love. Fueled by resentment and a desire to succeed, I struggled for eight years in Shanghai, yet still ended up living like a joke. When she and the others began entering my life one by one, I started to question my resolve... 3Reads—Score—14d adds
- 69 Our Lost Love Rekindled 逝去的爱又复燃 Wang Xiaorong and Wang Guangming were childhood sweethearts, but their love was full of twists and hardships. After each married someone else, married life brought them not happiness, but endless pain. Once Wang Xiaorong and Wang Guangming had both emerged from the shadows of their tragic marriages, their love rekindled. 3Reads—Score—14d adds
- 70 The Turnaround Memoirs of Cai Gen 菜根逆袭回忆录 Half a lifetime gone, my heart is calm as still water. Dreams rise and desires fade; success and failure come to the same end. At ease through fortune and adversity, I quietly watch the tides rise and fall; Fearless of gain or loss, I talk of life's dawn-to-dusk toil and rest. A novel exploring human nature and the clash of different ways of life. The Ming dynasty thinker Hong Yingming once said, “To forge a character of pure gold and flawless jade, one must temper it in raging fire. To accompli —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 71 A Lonely Guest Outside Gusu City 姑苏城外客愁新 There are no thrilling lives of transmigration or rebirth here, only the naked cruelty of the real world. There is no boundless magic from fantasy or immortal heroes, only the helplessness and sorrow of ordinary people struggling at the bottom. There is no romantic love between princesses and princes, only the unreachable fantasies and longings of ordinary nobodies. There are no glorious achievements by kings, nobles, generals, or ministers, only the desperate struggles and cries of common folk —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 72 The City of Woven Sand 织沙之城 [The first online novel set in Nansha District, Guangzhou, the heart of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. A 2023 key project supported by the China Writers Association] A heroine’s coming-of-age story + the gentle flow of everyday life + women’s entrepreneurship What is home? What does one’s hometown mean? As the Pearl River rushes toward the sea, Mai Jiaying, a post-90s small-town exam ace, grows tired of her salt-scented, out-of-the-way hometown. All she wants is to fly to the ca 6Reads—Score—14d adds
- 73 Run! Your Blind Date Is from Chaoshan 快跑，相亲对象是潮汕人 Period novel / realistic fiction / ensemble cast The actual story is the opposite of what the title suggests. The heroine, Yang Biyao, eventually feels fortunate to have chosen the responsible male lead, Cai Zekun, who puts his family first. Synopsis: Through a friend’s introduction, Yang Biyao goes on a blind date with a man from Chaoshan. Her life then unfolds through negotiating the bride price, moving far from home after marriage, holding a wedding banquet, helping her husband inherit the fa 571Reads8.1Score10514d adds
- 74 The City’s Masked Man: Go Ahead, I’m Watching You Act 城市假面人，演，我看着你演 An ordinary person acts so convincingly that he could win an Oscar, living behind a mask as marriage, family, and career all deal him blow after blow. Like a cockroach, he is reborn against all odds. See how he copes with the chaos of everyday life and becomes a master of life's many skills! 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 75 A Lawyer and His Three Women 一个律师和他的三个女人 Romance + law + workplace Lin Fan entered Xingzhou's top law firm with dreams of upholding the law, unaware that beneath his mentor Zhou Mingli's refined facade lay nothing but dirty dealings. He became mired in a world of lust: Bai Lu, the infatuated receptionist, sacrificed herself to him and turned him into a slave to desire; Zhao Ya, the heiress to a wealthy family, lured him into a life of extravagant pleasures and dragged him into a criminal maelstrom. As he walked the line between money, 9Reads—Score—14d adds
- 76 Breaking Free 逃离束缚 Su Yu and Tang Yilan met on a blind date arranged by their university professor. After spending some time together, they both decided they liked each other, so they went to meet each other’s parents. At first, everything seemed to go smoothly, but after they got married, they argued over whether to rent a place of their own. Su Yu also has an older brother, Su Lun, who has been married to Zhao Yanan for years, but still has no children of his own. After finally getting married, Tang Yilan reali 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 77 My Five Sisters Raised Me, So I Bought Each of Them a House 五个姐姐养大我，我送每人一套房 When I was seven, Mom and Dad were gone. My five older sisters took turns raising me. The eldest dropped out of school to work a sewing machine. The second scavenged rotten vegetables at the market. The third earned money competing in tournaments. The fourth never had an entry labeled “for herself” in her ledger. The fifth cut off her long braids and sold them for eight yuan to pay my tuition. Chen Zi'en lived next door. He was the school bully, feared by everyone. He'd never lost a fight, but 3Reads—Score—14d adds
- 78 Died by the River 逝于江河 Two years into their marriage, Meng Ran became pregnant with Yang Peng's child, but something about it all felt wrong. Those choices that seemed so firm were really just hesitant attempts to weigh the pros and cons. “How wonderful it is to be young” was nothing but an illusion. We all once held lofty dreams, but now we live ignobly. Can Meng Ran and Yang Peng clear away the fog, cross the wilderness, and make a steady passage into the real world? Or are they headed for ruin? 7Reads—Score—14d adds
- 79 Saving Our Marriage Starts with Divorce 保卫婚姻从离婚开始 [No System, No Transmigration, Two Heroines, Marital and Workplace Rivalries, Male Lead’s Rise] This novel was originally titled "Protecting a Marriage Starts with Divorce". The second installment, "You’re My Wife, So Who Else Would I Spoil?", is currently being written. Stay tuned! Su Yuchen and Cheng Yao are an ordinary married couple. After entering married life, conflicts over family and careers eventually trigger a marital crisis. Their stubborn refusal to back down pushes them toward divor 5Reads—Score—14d adds
- 80 One Mountain Range, One River Crossing 山一重，水一重 Love and hate intertwine, hearts pull against each other Sun Pengchun is a successful man with a disability, and he bravely sets out to pursue love. Meng Xinhui is a woman who hides emotional scars deep within. Can she let go of the past and embrace the future? The shadows of the past, unfinished feelings, and three intertwined souls will compose a tangled symphony of love and hate. When obsession meets a love left unfinished, who can cut through the layers of confusion? Where will their fates l 23Reads—Score—14d adds
- 81 A Media Veteran's Career Change in a New Era 传媒老兵降维求职记 If you're looking for a job, about to start looking, or planning to switch jobs, this one's for you! This novel is based on real people's experiences of falling into job-hunting traps. It's practically an online job seeker's guide to spotting scams and avoiding pitfalls. Read Tomato Novel and learn how to protect yourself from fraud. It's fun and useful, a win-win. Dong Shizhang and Zong Jinli's media company is on the verge of collapse, and the online loans they took out are coming due. With no 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 82 The Fake Live-In Son-in-Law 挂名赘婿 Tian Yougen, the 17th-generation heir to the Tian family’s traditional Chinese medicine lineage, has been bright and quick-witted since childhood, yet rebellious by nature. First he gives up medicine to pursue literature, then falls out with his future in-laws over marrying into their family. Proud and haughty, he has only his exceptional medical skills to rely on. With those skills in hand, he travels the world, healing the sick without seeking fame, asking only to keep a benevolent heart and a 716Reads7.3Score10114d adds
- 83 A Comeback: The Most Thrilling Lives Belong to Those Who Never Give Up! 逆袭，不服输的人生最精彩！ Hua Feng was on the verge of reaching the pinnacle of his life. But overnight, not only did his beautiful wife run off with a pretty boy, the woman also made off with the millions he had scraped together through countless hardships, leaving nothing but a complete mess... Life’s dramatic ups and downs came far too quickly. He could only start over from scratch! Want to laugh at me? Get lost! What, you want me to back down? Who do you think you are? Keep dreaming! Watch as a man who has hit rock b 117Reads—Score—14d adds
- 84 Dr. Fang’s Heart-Pounding Trap 方医生的心动陷阱 Xu Ruxin, a radiant and sharp-witted heiress, falls in love at first sight with Fang Yifan, a composed doctor with a brilliant mind, but a misunderstanding makes her hesitate. Through a twist of fate, the two gradually grow closer and eventually realize that each is the other's one true soulmate. 39Reads—Score—14d adds
- 85 The One Who Made Me Reborn 让我重生的那个她 [Romance and everyday life] [One heroine] [Pure love] [Music] [Mutual salvation] [Slow burn] [No rebirth] [No golden finger] Ten years ago, I gave up my job, my fiancée, and even my dreams, yet I still couldn't find what I was looking for. Ten years later, the girl I happened to take in changed everything without either of us realizing it... There are no flashy tales of coming back from the dead or transmigrating across time. Just one moving story grounded in reality... Because there is another 12Reads8.5Score—14d adds
- 86 The Language of He Flowers 禾之花语 A love story about Ye Xihe, a talented and beautiful landscape architect who cares for her older brother, Ye Chen'an, who was born with autism, as they both search for true love... Because of her brother's condition, she was hurt and abandoned. Zheng Jiawei does everything he can to win back the pure love he and Ye Xihe have shared since their school days... Zhou Ye, Ye Xihe's second older brother and someone she considers family, remains devoted to protecting the Ye family... Because of her fam —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 87 Shuying Carves Out Her Own Place Amid the Mess of Married Life 淑英在婚姻鸡毛中闯出姐的一片天 A child who never felt loved by their parents believes that the small kindnesses shown by Zhou Xiaotian, the man they meet as an adult, are love. Desperate to hold on to happiness, they never expect Zhou Xiaotian to change completely on their wedding day! The heroine, Shuying, keeps yielding, only to face increasingly brutal beatings and insults. When she finally comes to her senses, the true face of Zhou Xiaotian, the man before her, is gradually revealed. Shuying begins a struggle to resist he —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 88 A Love Affair Across Half a Lifetime 半世情缘 After a lifetime, the most painful thing is still parting. Chen Xiang has lived through love and affection, hardship and helplessness. Come along with this book, and let’s take a look at one man’s life so far. Who loves him? Whom does he love? Hardship and good fortune go hand in hand. Career and true love are both part of his life! What kind of lives do the people around him lead? This is a realistic story. Very realistic. 33Reads—Score—14d adds
- 89 The Sound of Falling Snow 听见雪落的声音 Realism + family-of-origin issues + healing I am Lu Zhiyao, a child who isn't particularly easy to love. My parents gamble, I suffer bullying at school, I endure an unspeakable pain worthy of "The Girl in the Pic"... and then the only person who truly loves me, my grandmother, passes away. Sometimes, I wish the whole world would be destroyed. But one day, simply because I stuck my nose where it didn't belong, I found a ray of light, a light that belonged only to me. He said to me, “Come on, l 10Reads8.9Score—14d adds
- 90 Three Hundred Years of Cold 寒生三百年 Wu Hansheng died in the spring of his twenty-seventh year. After death, his soul transmigrated to an unknown ancient era. Wu Hansheng: Pei Xiu, give me a smile! Pei Huaiyu: Mm. Wu Hansheng: ? A carefree, easygoing female ghost VS a cold, restrained prince in name only One-line pitch: For love, the aloof beauty pulls the other person onto a divine pedestal. —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 91 Chang'an Road Is Long 长安路远 [Urban daily life + romance + campus + friendship + work + emotional journey] Lin Da cherishes friendship, loves life, and longs for a beautiful future. He had a wonderful childhood and a colorful youth, and chose the love he wanted. Then, for the sake of making a living, he went far from home to work, and before he knew it, half his life had passed... Every encounter in life is part of its journey, and every encounter brings another story... 11Reads—Score—14d adds
- 92 The Insider 内部人士 In the early 21st century, China’s real estate economy was booming. Many ordinary people caught a favorable wave amid the great tides of history and amassed considerable wealth. The protagonist is an average person with no particular gifts, but as he grows, he continually learns from the wisdom of those around him, including some truly remarkable people. Through constant learning and reflection, he eventually develops a unique kind of wisdom and achieves success of his own. It seems as though fa 10Reads—Score—14d adds
- 93 On the Seventh Day of the New Year, I Poured My Life into a Nongfu Spring Bottle 正月初七，我把人生倒进了农夫山泉瓶 On the seventh day of the first lunar month, I poured my life into a Nongfu Spring bottle. 5Reads—Score—14d adds
- 94 The Bittersweet Trials of Marrying Far from Home 远嫁的那些酸甜苦辣 Marrying far from home is a gamble. You may never feel at home with your in-laws, yet be unable to return to your own family. Amid the chaos of childbirth, raising a child, and life with a second baby, marriage becomes a mirror that reflects the most honest truths about human nature. Marital happiness has nothing to do with whether you marry far from home. It depends on whether the person you marry truly loves you and understands you. The joys and sorrows of marrying far away are part of the exp 2.2kReads8.2Score11814d adds
- 95 You Made Me Your Nanny, but Heaven Made Me the Heroine 你逼我当保姆，老天让我当女主 Because of her sweet, pretty looks, the female lead was bullied by her cousin from a young age. But fate seemed terribly unfair to her. When she was 28, a car accident killed both her parents, leaving her all alone. Her well-off cousin took pity on her and invited her to move to the city. From then on, her life changed completely. 4Reads—Score—14d adds
- 96 The Pure Wife Awakens 纯妻觉醒 [Romance]+ [Family and everyday life]+ [Self-awakening and ambition]+ [Urban life] Pure-hearted Liu Zi married Yu Feipeng, a classmate she'd had a crush on for years. She thought their marriage was solid, but her masseuse, Xiao Ling, had her eye on her husband. Yu Feipeng fell deep into Xiao Ling's gentle trap and went out of his way to trample on and humiliate Liu Zi… When Liu Zi finally fought back, she discovered that the pure, innocent flower her husband saw in Xiao Ling was actually filthy 40Reads—Score—14d adds
- 97 Simmering Tears to Brew Youth 轻煮眼泪熬青春 In the 1980s, an accident changed the fate of a beautiful fifteen-year-old girl forever. Family, love, and friendship backed her into a dead end. She went far away from home and met an overbearing CEO who loved her. Their love began a journey of mutual healing, as their lives unfolded through streaks of blood and warmth, peeling back the bittersweet layers like an onion. 59Reads6.7Score—14d adds
- 98 Blueberry, the Leftover Woman 剩女蓝莓 Blueberry is an unmarried woman who’s still living at home. She has two unreliable best friends: Mihua is a bit of a flirt who teases men and ended up kicked out by her husband with nothing, while Feifei loves mahjong and dreams only of marrying into a wealthy family… Three women, and plenty of drama. Love, ethics, human nature… They say hotpot is all about the lively world around the table. Our story begins with a hotpot meal… The story is a slow burn. I hope you’ll enjoy it! 42Reads—Score—14d adds
- 99 Housewife: My Husband Wants a Divorce 家庭主妇：老公想离婚 Chen Mofei is the head of the hospital's gynecology department, and Tao Yan is a housewife. They were once a harmonious couple, but Tao Yan has a sharp tongue and a kind heart. Her cutting, hurtful words repeatedly push her husband's patience to the limit... The messy, petty troubles of ordinary people! The story takes its time getting going. I hope you'll enjoy it! 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 100 Demolition Debris Hits My Head! The Land Grab Ending Had Me Rolling 拆迁砸头！抢房结局笑疯 Demolition debris hits him on the head! The scramble for the house ends in hilarious chaos. 2Reads—Score—14d adds
