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A Love That's Beautiful - Detailed Feedback

Intro:

A Love That's Beautiful was written by boraaurora. It follows BTS member, Kim Seokjin, as he falls in love with an unnamed nurse. An important thing to note is that it takes place during the BTS enlistment era.

I chose A Love That's Beautiful since it's the first book in the series, but I would be willing to review the other books in the future if you would like more reviews. Totally up to you though!

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What Worked:

I liked the decision to not have the female character be named. I know you said it's because you aren't comfortable with Y/ns in your work, but regardless of the reason, I think it works in the story's favor. Seeing as Jin is trying to figure out who this mysterious person is, keeping her name in the dark allows the audience to feel the wonder with Jin, making the narrative more engaging.

Normally I'm not a huge fan of super short chapters and stories, but I think the format works very well here because, in the later chapters especially, it feels more like a poem. I think that format works for the story you're telling here, especially considering the element of mystery and beauty that makes up the core of the narrative.

The plot idea is nicely executed. It's simple and fits the narrative. Jin falls in love and does his best to win the girl. It's a classic plot that doesn't overstay its welcome thanks to the quick pace and development of the story.

Even though this is short and the character arcs are minimal, I still liked Jin and the female lead. Jin is just as Jin as ever, but I enjoyed the romance aspect giving him another layer where he yearns for some form of comfort outside himself. He wants her warmth, and she wants his even though she doesn't admit it at first.

I also admire the message of the story. The use of the mask to hide the female lead's face made us curious about who she was and what she was hiding. Jin yearning to see her beauty established a want for his character, and at the same time, it made the readers curious about why the female lead was wearing a mask.

She's a nurse, so at first I thought she was wearing it due to her profession; however, as the story unfolded, I began getting more invested and grew to wonder why so much attention was being called to this mask. That was when I realized you were setting up an insecurity in the female lead that would have to be addressed later. The story had interesting set up and pay off that made it more engaging. I was invested in the female lead's story and why she was the way she was. I felt Jin's curiosity because, as I mentioned earlier, I too was curious about her. As a result, I found myself relating to Jin more.

You were right in your opening note: this is a story that can be read in one go, and I like that. Not every story needs to be super long or even medium-sized. As I mentioned earlier, I think the short chapters benefit the story, but it goes beyond that. The chapters are easy to read thanks to their short and to the point sentences. While there is some strong word choice in there to bring out more emotions from the audience, you do a good job not making things too long and complicated.

You don't make sentences longer for the sake of making them sound "prettier" or something like that because you don't need to. The sentences do their job. The story is written in a poetic way without feeling over the top or like the sentences didn't have substance. Every line contributed to the narrative, and I appreciated that.

Lastly, I enjoyed the ending. I thought it wrapped up the plot and characters well, and it made the theme very clear. The reveal at the end with the female lead's face was set up well throughout the short story and it provided a powerful message to walk away with. Even though it was an emotional ending, I still found it very cute due to the dialogue that I think fit in with the characters and what you were trying to say. Overall, I think the entire story was wrapped up well with the final chapter.