A Trace of the Wonder
Honestly with a couple more drafts this story could have been really good. It's got everything on the surface level, but it's not got as much depth as I'd like. There's a bunch of things that could use more fleshing out. Like MC's friends, their personalities, watching MC properly deal or rather re-experience his losses one by one, rather then having most of them happen off panel. Having the love interest being all about control and then suddenly realize he's in love when he's been acting all psycho feels like a cop out and fake rather than a dark character actually legitimately falling in love. The plan and ambition was all there, but the execution could have used another couple drafts. I really like what this story could have been, how character driven it was. It's all rather a shame. This seems to be marked as yaoi, but it isn't. There's no smut, and the art is alright for action, but the kisses all felt pretty awkward. Especially when they were supposed to be passionate. The atmosphere was good in some of the more sexy scenes though. Also the way MC suddenly decides he wants to live after all also needed some work. Liked most of the characters, the villains were mostly one dimensional, but they didn't need to be complex when there was plenty of complexity from MC and ML. Would have been nice to know why MC was scouted. I don't find the story managed to adequately establish why or how MC was so indespensible that Mr. psycho had to have him on the team and went so far to recruit him. I also didn't end up understanding the big deal with MC getting recruited. Seemed like a really good deal for MC, so I really don't get why he was so hesitant. Like I can puzzle it out by making assumptions on my own, but it would have been fine to really show us that in story. Also I don't understand why ML was so flirty right from the get go. He's the type to do everything for a specific reason so I initially thought he was actively trying to seduce MC, but I don't think that was it. He didn't seem flirty with anyone else so ???
But yeah, wish is it was better. It's not, but I hope we get more stories like this but better. Either by the same writer improving their craft or by someone else.
I Raised My Fiancé with Money
Read this on the recommendation from a youtube video. It's not exactly what I thought it'd be and while I like the characters and the art is gorgeous It doesn't quite hit the same for me as some other stories in the genre. The leads are adorable, together and their progression seems very natural so far, but it's not really to my taste though I do believe the story has been told competently. There's some twists I can see a mile away, and some things regarding when MC decides to share information feels oddly stupid. The revenge is kind of... well it didn't manage to bring me on MC's side or really want to see the other parties downfall, if anything, the cheating fiance is a cartoon villain with nothing interesting about him. Overall I think it's good and would recommend giving this a read, but it's not for me.
The Reincarnated Assassin Is a Genius Swordsman
An assassin for a family shakes off the brainwashing employed on him to enslave him and is consequently killed for his trouble. He reincarnates into the family of a powerful king and vows revenge on his previous master by training the very technique that allowed him to break the brainwashing in his previous life.
In the first couple of chapters we are consistently told and then reminded that mc used to be the best assassin. This is not shown but it is mentioned many times. He has a loving family which he desperately wants to protect but the story doesn't take the time to really show it other then his mother cheering him on to crawl when he's a baby. MC refers to it as playing with them, because yes, he has the mind of an adult right from being a newborn. =_= I wish they wouldn't do that. It raises too many questions, and also has mc saying things like "pretending to be a baby is so humiliating I'd almost rather die." Also it feels like mc being an assassin is only to sound cool, doesn't seem like the author is gonna actually make him do much assassin craft as he just does the technique he learned in his previous life (a breathing technique or something, you know to cultivate despite this being very european in inspiration) and then thinks about making the family swordsmanship his in order to revenge. >_> so he's basically going to abandon all else it would seem. The art is so far is just a step higher to mid. The translation is alright, though they did say he's 21 when I believe they meant 12. He certainly didn't look like an adult and that confused the HIFL out of me. Anyway, not for me. Seemed rather superficial for such a high rating, the "emotional moments" or that one moment of him stepping into his power do not connect and seem like they were imitated from other stories without the substance to back it up.
Hectopascal