I hope that magic and worldbuilding will get some more focus in future chapters, but right now focusing on the duo protagonists and a small group of people is fine.

So far I feel like that there are no grammatical errors, but I m not a native speaker, so take this with a grain of salt.

Give it a read!

6 Likes · Like

WentLucid

Status: ch. 65 almost eighteen years later

Dec 4, 2023

"All I wanted was a simple life" resonated with me. The tension of what is unsaid marinates, without ever being a waste. The daily life is written with short high-impact sentences that drew me into each emotion, each scenario, each aspect of the world or herself that Louise grapples with. Sometimes it's more cozy, sometimes it's more painful, but usually it's mildly anxious. For me, this never felt contrived. Not even once. Many lines read like poetry yet are great at conveying their purpose, including situations where Louise or the reader don't need to understand the nuances in play yet. The writing has momentum, and the emotions are gripping. So it's mentally easy to read, to float along with the sentences.

I suggest going in with as little foreknowledge as possible, as in, whenever you're convinced just START reading the novel instead of reviews.

The story is written as realism, and has cozy moments without becoming overly indulgent. The narration and purpose of each chapter prevent events from ever feeling like a loading screen or grinding before the next real conflict. Wherever major transformations lag it's pounding in the idea that something has got to give. It's not the idyllic fantasy variety of Slice of Life that lets go of major conflicts for fluffy arcs.

I don't want to give many hints about the emotional conflicts, the absolute core and bulk of this story. They range from sweet slow romance to how society and perspectives affect people. It was a joy to discover the core plotlines and painfully relatable subplots, the emotional melodies and disharmonies. It was a joy to see them unravel. There's a few important and very relatable themes, but as long as they aren't spelled out in the tags I hope more readers discover them organically.

The worldbuilding is economical and relevant to Louise, and has just enough to sell the impression of a much larger society and emphasize the personalities of the leads. It doesn't overstay its welcome. The supernatural or magical elements are handled well. The daily elements are foreign or alien yet realistic. I wouldn't suggest this for its worldbuilding but it does a few things I adore.

The work meshes together, doesn't run on too long, and feels complete. Yet I want more arcs. It works so well that I'd be anxious (will be anxious?) if this ever gets edited for a new edition. I only have 3 minor critiques, barely spoilers:

Spoiler

landscape/location descriptions gradually became more sparse so I felt a bit more boxed in at times than Louise's anxieties account for, maybe a me thing

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Spoiler

more wilderness travel because it was sweet and oh so short

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Spoiler

some detail on Louise's changing fitness as she transitions between lifestyles with different nourishment and activity levels (seemed a bit cynical and Hyraj isn't an ideal comparison).

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As I have no major issues with this, I guess it's masterfully told. I highly recommend it.

5 Likes · Like

ErikaHime

Status: ch. 65 almost eighteen years later

Dec 3, 2023

As the other review says, this is one of the best stories on this site. It's not perfect, nothing is, but the love and thought the author puts into their writing is truly inspiring.

What I find most intriguing about this story is how it takes two genres that are frequently used for escapism on this site, isekai and girls love (especially isekai), and uses them to create a genuinely introspective and emotionally driven story. And unlike a lot of other great isekais, it's not great in spite of the isekai elements. No, the author uses the genres to further the story's themes and the development of the main character Louise.

Speaking of Louise, she is incredibly well written. Her emotions feel real, her faults feel real, she herself feels real. Everything about her is almost tangible. And it is very important that she is written this way, as she is the vehicle for how we, the readers, experience this story. Everything from the themes, other characters, and even world building are filtered and dictated by Louise.

The world building is especially interesting, again, some of the best I've seen on this site. And that might seem weird considering how many blind spots are in it. We don't even see what larger society even looks likes. But I think those blind spots are what makes it so great. We experience the world through Louise, so we only know what she knows, and she only knows what she cares to knows. As is indicated by the title, all she wanted was a simple life, so there is no need to explore larger society or dive deeper into the intricacies of magic.

What is explored is done so with great detail. I can't imagine the amount of thought the author put into creating the little mannerisms, speech patterns, and cultural differences that people from this new world have. The dialogue in particular is great. In the beginning it feels choppy and unnatural, like reading a rough translation of a foreign language. But as Louise gets more accustomed to it, the dialogue starts to flow better, even if some quirks never go away.

One of my favorite parts of this story is the prose in which the author writes. They write Louise's emotions and relationship with the world and herself in such a profound way. The poignancy of even her stray thoughts was enough to cut deep into my heart, many moments sticking with me after reading. Emotional introspection is what I value the most in writing, and this story has it in spades.

That is most of the main points I wanted to get across, sorry if this review has been somewhat rambling. There is just so much I love about this story. I love how each character feels like they live outside of the narrative, I love how said narrative approaches romance and s*xuality, I love how getting isekaid doesn't immediately fix Louise's character flaws, I love how her relationship with children is written, I love how magic is analogized with knitting, I love how this world has unique words for different aspects of love, I love how some sentences feel like lines out of a poem, I love how much I can relate to Louise despite our different life experiences.

I could go on, but I lack the skill with words required to properly display my own emotions. I cried multiple times while reading, a first for my experience with web novels. The author's writing truly resonates with me emotionally, and if you read this, I just want to thank you for putting this out in the world. You write in a way that I aspire to one day be able to write myself, and I wholeheartedly appreciate the amount of thought you put into each sentence you write.

(I don't know if this review went through, so I reposted it on royal road)

5 Likes · Like

Herwin

Status: ch. 1 are you satisfied?

Dec 11, 2023

I love this story, I’m terrible at writing reviews but I’ll give it a go; the way it is written is super charming and I don’t normally notice that kind of thing, only really caring about the story and characters, both of which are lovely and fit the style of writing and interactions. The characters are deep and feel like people I would meet in real life, a bit broken, some trauma, but working through it. Anyway the story isn’t super action-packed and isn’t for everyone but I love it and recommend reading it when when you are feeling a little bit lonely or apathetic or just want something sweet and chill to read, or read it right now (the best option imo). Sorry for the text wall, the return button simply doesn’t work for me, 10/10

1 Likes · Like