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A review by rebeccazh
Lost You Forever by Tong Hua
4.0
3.5 stars. I binged Lost You Forever on Netflix over the weekend and I was intrigued by how the female lead was strong till the end of the season, and the romance is quite 'equally divided' among the three male leads without the quality of the show suffering (usually cdramas are pretty bad at both). I then picked this up because I was pleasantly surprised to discover that this is the same author as The Time Never Back, which was such a great character-driven coming-of-age high school story that was really nostalgic.
Koala translated this online and their translation is pretty good. Their commentary also added depth to the story. I started around chapter 30/31 which is where the Netflix drama stops. The story is divided into three volumes. Volume 1 is on Xiaoyao's past, volume 2 is on Cangxuan's rise to power (he's called Zhuan Xu in the novel for some reason), Volume 3 is on Xiaoyao's true heritage and more political machinations. In the novel, it's much more clear who she'll end up with from the beginning. Tbh I liked the actor for Cangxuan but I just can't see him in a romantic relationship with Xiaoyao. They seem better as 'family who chooses each other over everyone else'. Xiang Liu though. Tan Jianci is a fantastic choice.
Anyway, Tong Hua writes well and her stories come off a bit more mature than many other webnovels I've read. The story is a good length and she doesn't drag it out, and I loved the character growth Xiaoyao goes through. It was very rewarding when she acknowledged that her relationship with Tushan Jing was so messed up because she never fought for it. She was so afraid of losing people that it became a self-fulfilling prophecy. The three male leads also have consistent characterizations and each undergo their own change and growth. I love character-driven stories and loved this.
So sad about Xiang Liu tbh...
Koala translated this online and their translation is pretty good. Their commentary also added depth to the story. I started around chapter 30/31 which is where the Netflix drama stops. The story is divided into three volumes. Volume 1 is on Xiaoyao's past, volume 2 is on Cangxuan's rise to power (he's called Zhuan Xu in the novel for some reason), Volume 3 is on Xiaoyao's true heritage and more political machinations. In the novel, it's much more clear who she'll end up with from the beginning. Tbh I liked the actor for Cangxuan but I just can't see him in a romantic relationship with Xiaoyao. They seem better as 'family who chooses each other over everyone else'. Xiang Liu though. Tan Jianci is a fantastic choice.
Anyway, Tong Hua writes well and her stories come off a bit more mature than many other webnovels I've read. The story is a good length and she doesn't drag it out, and I loved the character growth Xiaoyao goes through. It was very rewarding when she acknowledged that her relationship with Tushan Jing was so messed up because she never fought for it. She was so afraid of losing people that it became a self-fulfilling prophecy. The three male leads also have consistent characterizations and each undergo their own change and growth. I love character-driven stories and loved this.
So sad about Xiang Liu tbh...