Recommendations Stories with good female MC?

Last updated: 11/3/2019

Hi everyone, this is my first thread here on NU! Nice to meet you!

There are a lot of dudes and stories about dudes here on NU, but being the delicate flower of a woman that I am (pfft!), recently I've been moving away from xianxia/male MC stories and trying out more novels with female MCs. Now I'm wading through the slew of Mary Sues to try and find good, strong-willed female MCs...

Does anyone have any recommendations? Extra <3 for completed stories!

I don't necessarily need OP, super strong or talented MCs... I like realistic ones who persevere through difficulties, often with a bit of humor. I don't need romance, but a really true, slowly-developed romance is always great. I like both historical fiction and fantasy, and though I tend to prefer Chinese novels, Japanese novels are ok if they're not too cliche or "kyaa kyaa doki doki etc" XD

For reference, here is what I've read (or currently reading). Very good female MCs have a * and my favorites are bold **.

• Akuyaku Tensei Dakedo Doushite Kou Natta *
  
• A Slight Smile is Very Charming
• Ballad of the Desert **
  
• Beloved Empress
• Chongfei Manual *
  
• Chu Wang Fei *
  
• Crossing to the Future, it’s Not Easy to Be a Man **
• Cultivating to Become a Great Celestial *
  
• Doomed to be Cannon Fodder **
• Doomsday Wonderland *
• Eight Treasures Trousseau *
  
• Empress with no Virtue
• Golden Age Legitimate Fei *
  
• Grabbing Your Hand, Dragging you Away **
  
• Heavy Sweetness Ash-Like Frost
• Here Comes the Lady Chef
• I Reincarnated into an Otome Game as a Villainess With Only Destruction Flags
• It Seems Like I Got Reincarnated Into The World of a Yandere Otome Game
  
• Jiang Hu’s Road is Curved *
  
• Jun Jiuling **
• Kenkyo, Kenjitsu o Motto ni Ikite Orimasu **
  
• Kumo Desu ga, Nani ka?
  
• Legend of Concubine’s Daughter Minglan **
  
• Light Beyond
  
• Mei Gongqing *
  
• Meow Meow Meow
• Mulberry Song
  
• My Disciple Died Yet Again **
• Our Second Master **
  
• Pheonix Destiny **
• Poison Genius Consort
  
• The Rebirth of the Malicious Empress of Military Lineage *
  
• Sansheng, Wangchuan Wu Shang *
  
• Seven Unfortunate Lifetimes, All Thanks to a Single Moment of Impulse *
• Shini Yasui Kōshaku Reijō to Nana-ri no Kikōshi **
  
• Side Character Transmigrations: The Final Boss is No Joke
• Slow Prison Life
• Song in the Clouds **
• The Bathroom Goddess
• The Demoness Is Not Evil
  
• The Dreamer in the Spring Boudoir *
  
• The End Of The World’s Poisonous Mom And Monster Baby
  
• The Girl Who Ate a Death God
• The Princess Wei Yang
  
• The Tang Dynasty’s Female Forensic Doctor
  
• The Wolf Lord's Lady *
• There is an Angel in that Church
  
• To Be A Virtuous Wife *
  
• Transmigrator Meets Reincarnator
  
• Why Not Soar Your Majesty
• Xian Wang Dotes On Wife
  
• Your Highness, I Know My Wrongs
• Ziqin

These are some series on my "Want to Read" list. Which one should I try first?

• A Match Made in Heaven
  
• A Mistaken Marriage Match: Record of Washed Grievances
  
• A Tale of Two Phoenixes
  
• Accompanying the Phoenix
• Blazing Sunlight
  
• Bu Bu Jing Xin
  
• By A Slight Mistake
  
• Dragon Life
• Fortunate Wife
• Full Of My Love To You
• Gu Fang Bu Zi Shang
• Honey Stewed Squid
• Kusuriya no Hitorigoto
  
• Lost You Forever
  
• Mimizuku to Yoru no Ou
  
• Once Promised
• One Life, One Incarnation – Beautiful Bones
  
• Onstentatios Zhao Yao
• Quick Transmigration Cannon Fodder’s Record of Counterattacks
• Quick Transmigration: Heroine Arrives, Woman Rapidly Retreats!
  
• Return of the Swallow
• The Beloved Imperial Consort
• The Royal’s Cute Little Wife
• The Villainous Lady Aims to Overthrow the Heroine
• Youjo Senki
• Your Majesty Please Calm Down

These are stories that I've dropped and don't recommend (usually due to too much cliche/Mary Sue, sometimes due to boredom). Do you think I should pick any of them back up?

• A Mistaken Marriage Match: A Generation of Military Counselor
  
• Assassin Farmer
  
• Beastly Fēi that Go Against the Heaven: Coerced by the Huáng Shū
  
• Common Sense of a Duke's Daughter
• Descent of the Phoenix – 13 Years Old Princess Consort
  
• Destined Marriage With Fragrance
• Genius Doctor: Black Belly Miss
  
• Lightning Empress Maid
• Meshitaki Onna ni Yakuza no Ai wa Omosugiru
  
• Otome Game Rokkushuume, Automode ga Kiremashita
  
• Picking Up a General to Plow the Fields
• Supernatural Girlfriend
  
• The Captivating Crown Prince
  
• The Corpse Ruler Confuses the World, All Seven Husbands Are Devils
• This MC is Kickass
• Unscrupulous Enchantress: The Eldest Young Miss Has Arrived!
• Wife, You Can’t Run After Eating

These are series that I've completed but don't recommend because the female MC isn't very good.

• Heyi Shengxiao Mo (Silent Separation)
  
• Really, Really Miss You

Thank you so much for your time! Hopefully this will help some other people too...

 

I was going to post a suggestion, but based on your list it seems you know more than I do.
So I guess you should give me some suggestions instead.

 

The Girl Who Ate a Death God !

 

Stunning Edge

 

<.<;
I'll just leave it here....

http://www.novelupdates.com/readlist/?uname=Shem

*runs away*

 

Try Bewitching The Prince something...(sorry forgot the title... <.<

Accompanying the Phoenix is an amazing novel to read too...

 

The only novel with female MC that I started reading was The Good for Nothing Seventh Young Lady. It was called something like that I think. haven't read it in ages~

 

One of my favorites is Worm, a western web novel (google it). It's set in a modern world with superpowers, and the MC has the power of controlling bugs.

Some extra recommendations...
Ascendance of a Bookworm
I’ll Live My Second Life!
Kenkyo, Kenjitsu o Motto ni Ikite Orimasu
Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Bakuen o!

 

Evil Emperor’s Wild Consort

 

Body and soul from the website royalroadl


Enslaved sex worker, who reincarnates everytime she dies, frees herself to seek revenge against the whole world by deliberately creating a world war.
18+ of course

 

Will always recommend Our Second Master because it's short and sweet and pulls at the heartstrings! And Light Beyond (LN)--light novel version--is a very well-thought out one in the JP genre. Pretty surprised that Xian Wang Dotes on Wife isn't on your list yet--it's got a solid male and female lead.

All that aside, your other choices look great. I really like The Princess Wei Yang (much different from the drama, believe me), though it doesn't update very often. They say Heavy Sweetness Ash-Like Frost is a good one too, but I've yet to read it. A-anyways, hooray for female protagonists!

 

Yuusha Yori Saikyouna Kuro Kishi
Although only has 25 ch translated so far maybe it will be to your liking you can add it to your Want to Read list and wait for more

 

Yuusha Yori Saikyouna Kuro Kishi
(sorry can't post links yet)

She's a bit OP, but thats because she's supposed to watch over the "hero"; a walking caricature of a dense unbalanced harem MC who she's known since childhood so she's not charmed by him at all. The romance element hasn't really kicked in for the female lead yet(she's a tad dense and she spends most of her time dressing as a male knight), but there might be some chance in the future. This also does a lot of building up of the average soldiers, and she trains them to not be "cannon fodder".

*EDIT* seems like I was 2 minutes late, but at least that series is getting some love

 

Binary Soul.
Demon Girl ~Tale of a Lax Demon~. Not really strong-willed, but has a fair amount of humour.
Demon Wang's Golden Favorite Fei.
Endless Cage.
Lightning Empress Maid.
Reign of the Hunters.
Taint.
The Strategy to Become Good at Magic.
Whisper of the Nightingale.
Worm.

And Genius Doctor: Black Belly Miss from the ones you dropped.

 

Based on your preferences, I think you would really love Lost You Forever. It's a bit slow at first but the character and romance development are well written. The female MC is not OP, but she grows and doesn't let herself get bullied. A lot of unexpected twists, poison, hidden identities--and drama. Yep, I cried.

You can also try:
The Demonic King Chases His Wife: The Rebellious Good-for-Nothing Miss
Stunning Edge

Or check my reading list: Love
Novels like Female MC + poison/medicine + reincarnation + qi are added like Enchantress Amongst Alchemists: Ghost King’s Wife. There are also novels that are about online games (Reign of the Hunters), otome games (An Otome Game’s Burikko Villainess Turned into a Magic Otaku), and a bit of ... ecchi or more.

 

Space and Rebirth: The Favored Genius Doctor and Businesswoman

 

I cried a lot at that novel... I meant, the Lost You Forever Q~Q

Oh~ DKC \O/ ONE OF MY FAVE! And the first ever novel that i read and got me hook!

 

http://www.novelupdates.com/series/hakushaku-to-yousei/
http://www.novelupdates.com/series/mimizuku-to-yoru-no-ou/

 

I just tried/finished reading Doomsday Apocalypse an hour ago. It was a really unique apocalypse-survival story with a rational female MC. Too bad only 25 chapters are translated so far. Here's my review.

Thanks Ruyi, I loved Our Second Master too! It was really the perfect short length and so sweet. I'll try the ones you recommended!

Thank you! I almost started "Lost You Forever", but I wasn't brave enough for another book by Tong Hua... I love love love her writing style, but "Ballad of the Desert" and "Song in the Clouds" almost broke me. I cried and cried and cried... I'll read "Lost You Forever" when I'm physically and mentally ready and have a new box of tissues prepared. TT^TT

It's too bad that the translation for the prequel, "Once Promised," stopped in 2014. I'd really prefer to read the prequel first before starting "Lost You Forever." Reading "Ballad of the Desert" made "Song in the Clouds" a lot more interesting for me because of the little references to past events and characters.

 

Not sure if you're still looking out for recommendations, but...

I definitely second Light Beyond and, though I've only read the first twenty or so chapters, The Princess Wei-Yang. Even though you might prefer CNs, I highly recommend one of my favorite all-time WN Eliza (otherwise known as Akuyaku Tensei Dakedo Doushite Kou Natta). The actual title may seem long and tedious, but don't let the summary or title fool you. It's a bit of a long read, but it's brilliant in its world-building and depictions of struggles.

And while it's not exactly a novel, I think you'll like Cháng Gē Xíng. It's been a while since I've been through all these CNs, so I'll definitely come back to this discussion for reference since I have a heavy distaste for Mary-Sues/Gary-Stus... Happy reading.