If you liked a slight smile is very charming, this one has a similar in-game concept.

{{ Tong Nian had completely forgotten that she was toting around an account belonging to the Grandmaster group of this server... and asked: I use Q, W, E, R, and A, S, D, F to move right?

Grunt:...

... more>> Three seconds later, a row of words appeared on the team-chat screen.

Grunt: Not a hacker. ID stolen by one of the kids in the family. Everyone, watch yourselves.

Everybody fell over backwards.}}

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Tong Nian, a cosplay cover singer, falls in love at first sight with a man she spots at a Net cafe. Chasing him, she signs up for the MMO she saw him playing, albeit it's a super high ranked account a friend acquired for her. Who could have known he was a pro gamer, moreover a legend in the gaming circle at that! <<less

It's good... as expected as hui3r!! Their choice is awesome like usual.

MC is the female lead whom fall in love at first sight with the male lead.

Honey Stewed Squid is a funny and fluffy romance story between a cute girl and handsome guy. If you are the type who likes romance WITHOUT anguish and heart-breaking twists, then you will absolutely love this one. Nothing's lacking in terms of loving moments, and the Author's eloquence in narrating awkward events easily captures reader's attention. Further emphasizes this quality is the translator's high expertise in expressing Author's intention.

However, there are some spots outside Honey Stewed Squid's main plot that will probably only be understood by people who have read... more>> its predecessor, God's Left Hand. Beside of it, character development in this story is practically nonexistent. They are indeed interesting and nice characters, but rather cliche if you have read a large amount of romances.

Edit after Random Scenes #2: From what hui3r (the translator) said, apparently this story is something like sequel of God's Left Hand and one other novel that was released earlier (they haven't been fully translated, though). It is intended to give closure for Gun as one of the characters who appeared in those novels. The main plot of this "romance in e-sport saga" itself was told in those two novels, not in Honey Stewed Squid. So I reconsidered HSS status as sequel, and decided to hike its rate up from 4 to full 5 stars. It is a prime example of sequels, although not really good as standalone. <<less

I need to amend my requests for female MCs from being smart to having both a high IQ and a high EQ. I've only read the first few chapters and the last 10 chapters of this story, and I'm already dying of second-hand embarrassment here. Your chasing after the guy is torturing me, the reader, much more than it's hurting you. Sigh. One would think that before playing a game, she would at least look through a couple manuals/guides right? Right? Please, tell me how this high IQ person is... more>> so idiotic. Also, I feel like the ML has way too much of the power here, esp since the female MC can't do anything. This is the result of doting on your kids too much, guys. Of course, since this is only based off of around 15 chapters that I could stomach, at the extreme ends of the story, this probably isn't a real review. But I don't doubt that I would have been KO'd by embarrassment in the middle. <<less

It's cute and fun, but it doesn't quite make it to 5 for me. I tend to like my female leads to be competent, and while Tong Nian is actually a pretty good foil to her male counterpart, she is also a character with really random bits of expertise/stupidity. For instance, she's supposedly an excellent computer programmer and engineer, but she doesn't really have the right mindset; she's not that logical and kind of air-headed. I don't think the author gets how detail-oriented you have to be to care about... more>> every single missing semi-colon. She's conscientious, but doesn't really seem to care much about her job as a singer. All she thinks about is Gun. It's as if the author just wanted her to be "smart" and threw in a few pieces of random genius here and there... but I guess it's still better than if she was completely and irredeemably stupid. <<less

For you hardcore gamers out there, a little bit of caution:

Beware, salt-inducing stupidity in first 3 or 4 chapters of the story.

Other than that, it's a cute read. Smiling from start to finish. Got bored by chapter 37 or so. Nonetheless, a worthy story to read.

... more>> Like all MBFB stories, or rather, any story in this genre, this is heavily character-driven. So expect ass-pulls and convoluted logic just to move the story along.

Nonetheless, the characters are okay. They're all flat, but there's none of that angst BS. The misunderstanding arc was also pretty short, so it didn't overstay its welcome. Perhaps my number one gripe would be the sudden romance between MC and love interest. But hey, this one's a side-story, so I guess I can ignore the sudden shift in feelings.

Non-existent plot, unless you consider getting the heart of the love interest "plot", quirky characters with little to no personality whatsoever, character interactions that just make you smile; 4/5, mediocre, but hey, at least it's enjoyable. <<less

I read this after reading the first story, God's Left Hand, and its sequel Fish Playing While Trapped in a Secret Room. This one is a spin-off of those two. The first two have the gamer "Appledog" as their MC and follow her relationships with her old superstar gaming team and her new relationship with a younger superstar gamer. The ML of this novel, Gun, is one of her old gaming teammates and a key supporting character.

It is not necessary to read the first two beforehand (they are a nice... more>> read, but less fluffy than this one, and much more gaming-focused), however, I personally am glad I did.

If you read this novel alone, it might feel like Gun is a shallow stereotype of the cold/indifferent/handsome ML. In fact, his character setting has been somewhat like that from the very first book, where he feels like a well-rounded contrast to his former close teammates. By the time I got to this book, I already had some understanding of and fondness for him, so I didn't feel the flimsiness of the story as much. Instead, I was delighted to read a story that showed him gaining a little more happiness.

The MC is a bright and fluffy girl who, although intelligent academically and talented as an online singer, is somewhat awkward socially and loses a lot of her wherewithal when the ML is around. I didn't find her to be one of those hopelessly stupid MCs (like in Wipe Clean After Eating or Come and Eat, Shan Shan), but she's definitely in the more naive/clueless category. However, she's written endearingly, so it's enjoyable rather than irritating (unless you're one of those with a morbid loathing of any character who isn't 100% full of common sense and situational awareness).

I felt a bit sorry for the MC in the first half as she desperately tries to chase or deal with her feelings about an ML who is completely indifferent, but the pay-off in the second half is totally worth it. And there's lots of sweet pay-off to enjoy (not just some rushed chapter at the end). In the end, it really is their sweetness that makes this so enjoyable.

Although it's short and lightweight, it still manages to carry some of the intelligence and a sprinkling of the depth from the preceding stories. So, I'd recommend this to anyone looking for some sweet, satisfying, lightweight romantic fluff, and to anyone who's read the first two and wants to read more about Gun. <<less

=3.5=

The story was good, characters were exhausting. One cool-unresponsive-careless other extra-dimwit-damsel in distress-under confident, girl. It was a very potentially strong story but all the potential topics were just grazed not fully explored. So it left an unsatisfactory after taste.

Thank you for the translation but it looked like much was left out. As many a times things wont match up in sequence and I felt lost in many places in the story. I hanged on to see the extent of the story. It slightly reminded me of "The Kings' Avatar".

Plot... more>> was good but was underdeveloped. Characters were very promising but their screen time was very limited. Pacing was jerky. <<less

I'm a fan of Mo Bao Fei Bao!! Love her novels!! I've read most of her novels and they're just so good that I can't get enough of them. I'm so glad that the drama for this novel started airing!! Shout out to Author Mo Bao Fei Bao for such an amazing novel!!

I thought it was adorable. I think Tong Nian is adorable. And there were many parts that I found absolutely hilarious.

I do feel sad that Tong Nian sort of fell so head over heels in love to the point where she kind of seems to have lost sight of herself. She mostly stopped doing the things she liked most after meeting Gun. It's weird. But oh well, it's just a romance.

This reminds me of Wei Wei Yi Xiao for sure, along with Really Really Miss You - they both have... more>> famous people online and some fun internet interactions. Gun is also a really special character. But once again, I wish there was an extension of this story where their relationship develops in a more complex, realistic way. <<less

I LOVE THIS NOVEL! Why? Because its not stressful, its fluffy and its unrealistically sweet. If you watched the drama adaptation, you'll love it more. Though I must say that its too short and the novel alone doesn't provide too much background. Overall, its the type of romance that you'll wish on your own lovelife, which would probably never happen, anyway. If someone could recommend something that has the same vibes as this, I would appreciate it.

It was cute and interesting. I wouldve gave a 4 because of the ending was a little bad and really lackluster but I couldnt bear it for little squiddie

Not perfect (not so varied interaction between leads, illogical plot), but the utter cuteness and humor make up for it. Some hilarious moments. Don't take the story too seriously, just go with it. As for chemistry, in my opinion it was there. In a special way, just like they're a special couple. Finally...

Both translation quality and the writing seem better than the two prequels, which also ups the score. Some scenes are really well written.

Note that this one is entirely focused on romance, making it feel more like a side... more>> story. The prequels have more esports, more complicated feelings, more characterization.

I'm a bit less critical in my scoring on NU, so that's enough for a 5. I enjoyed it a lot. Do read the two prequels beforehand, if you don't mind that they're not that romance focused as this one. It makes reading this one a bit better. <<less

I really liked this novel. The MC is so cute and innocent!!! The definition of moe if you will. She is like a stuffed animal where she is all fluffy (and probably in the head too lol). What I mean is that she thinks about random fluffy stuff with the ML which is both funny, cute, and a little bit stupid. The ML is a little bit of a sad*st in my opinion, which has its own charm in the story. I mean someone needs to keep the MC back... more>> on track from her fantasy day dreaming all the time. The interaction between them is pretty much the MC chasing the ML until he submits. This is a very simplified version of the summary.

My only complaints are that I wish the author could have talking about the mc's singing more and that the mc's is so fluffy in the head that she pretty much is an airhead that only thinks about love and is pretty hopeless. Lol.

I hope they come back again in the sequal novel. <<less

It's cute and all, but I just couldn't believe the romance. She falls in love at first sight, and he... eventually treats her as he would a friend, but because she is female it is love. The reasons for either of them falling in love with the other are not evident - I had no feeling that either of them should be "the one" for the other. When the female lead's feelings are justified and developed very late in the story, it kind of invalidates the entire basis of her... more>> feelings in the first place. That is, after being in love with him for months, she isn't only now finding a reason to love him?

Having said all of this, the story was enjoyable to read, it made me laugh, and towards the end the couple are very sweet (I just... didn't feel the chemistry). In terms of enjoyment I would rate this highly, but in terms of satisfaction with the story, not so much (hence the rating). <<less

A fluffy and cutsy girl for a fluff loving guy... I do believe it was the interactions with our Honey Stewed Squid and God Gun that really sold me... The story was not necessarily complicated or deep but the interactions made me smile a lot and thats a win for me! And don't be afraid or worry if you hasn't read the two prequels... reading the other two would help give an idea of the background of some characters but not necessarily needed... its entirely possible to enjoy this novel... more>> without reading the other two :)

ps: Demo will always be the best character in my heart! <<less

Cute story! It basically revolves around how a quiet girl (MC) chases after a pro gamer (ML). Sadly, there is not much character development nor plot in the novel, but the sublime romance is nice. I recommend this for those who have a thing for cute lovey dovey stories.

Sorry, I couldn't even get past chapter 2. This FL is annoying me already. If you want to chase a guy go ahead, but don't use your friend's business to try to give him freebies when you're not even planning to pay for it. It's hard to run a business... and you get mad when your friend comes up behind you to stop you from saying it's free? =.= Why, are you paying for it? You've only met the guy and you want to give him free stuff already? Okay,... more>> sure. <<less

That was quite a ride. I put off reading this for the longest time and I can say that this author's works truly leave me feeling nostalgic. I probably should have read the first two books before this one, but the first one was way for technical than this. This had just eniight fluff to make me giggle.

I loved it. The translator did an amazing job as always and I am extremely pleased that I have finally decided to read it and finish it in a day ;-;

I'm kind of... more>> sad right now. I shall go sit in the corner with my little unsatisfied self.

There is one character that I really liked but...

Spoiler

Dt was a character that I had a hate love relationship with. On one hand he had a hand in the MC and ML getting together on the other hand he caused a huge misunderstanding that was resolved easily but still made me slap my forehead. Be rest assured, the misunderstanding was not between the MC and ml. They knew exactly what was going on.

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Kyaa >.<

This was definitely one of the cutest romance novel that I've ever read!

Each and every chapter that I read was just soooo adorable and fun to read.