Hoping for a volume 15.

@doceirias I see, ok. Thanks for the response.

I was satisfied with the ending we got, I don't know what has been added to the web novel so I'm not sure if the plot kept going or there are just short stories, an epilogue or whatever.
Would be nice if JNC was able to vrjng that material to us, especially for other series that were axedwithout a proper conclusion, but from what I understood it's not easy and might create problems with Japanese publishers. I'm not even sure the contracts between authors and the original publishers allow the former to negotiate with a new publisher if the series are canceled, so JNC publishing those web novels themselves might not be possible to begin with.

Audiobooks in general are not for me, mostly because I can read much faster than normal speech, but also because the voices aren't what I'm expecting.

I have the same problem with a fair amount of YouTube instructional content. Videos are good for showing some things like setting up a computer in a specific case, but I'd much rather read text than wait for someone to slowly explain something.

@leej nothing I've heard. V10 came out of nowhere when we weren't expecting it.

@Serah said in What are your favourite Top 5 (2025):

Since I know the other titles already you have mentioned in your top 5 and honourable mentions - how about the rising stars of yours? Or maybe you have another tip like Zilbagias for me.

Err, what about the Rising Stars? Or are you just asking if I have any others? Because that list hasn't changed. Though, I did read all seven volumes of Dungeon Crawler Carl recently. Not a light novel, but now it's one of my favorite series of all time.

Anyway, a few that didn't make it into my top five but have been there before or are well regarded:

Conqueror from a Dying Kingdom (currently stalled at v7) A Pale Moon Reverie (complete at v3) Fiance No More (complete at v3) Dahlia in Bloom (ongoing) Ideal Sponger Life (ongoing?)

Adding to what GeorgeMTO said, the series is published by Shufunotomosha under their Hero Bunko label. Below are four licensed series from the same publisher.

The Apothecary Diaries
Shufunotomosha released Volume 16 on 2025-05-30. That will be 161 days this Friday.

I Could Never Be a Succubus!
J-Novel Club finished Volume 6 pre-pub wise on 2025-02-08. Japan had released Volume 7 on 2024-07-31 and J-Novel Club didn't start Volume 7 pre-pubs until 2025-04-05. That is a 248 day gap, however it is possible that the delay between J-Novel Club finishing Volume 6 pre-pubs and starting Volume 7 pre-pubs had nothing to do with licensing.

The Ideal Sponger Life
J-Novel Club caught up to Japan with Volume 14 pre-pub wise on 2023-10-24. Japan then released Volume 15 on 2023-12-28 and J-Novel Club didn't start Volume 15 pre-pubs until 2025-01-28. That is a 397 day gap.

Restaurant to Another World
Seven Seas caught up to Japan with Volume 5 on 2020-10-22. Japan then released Volume 6 on 2021-10-29 and Seven Seas won't be releasing Volume 6 until 2025-11-13. That is a 1,476 day gap.

The remaining three licensed series from Shufunotomosha are Dimension Wave (last Japanese release was Volume 7 on 2024-09-30), Knight's & Magic (last Japanese release was Volume 11 on 2021-11-29), and Seventh (last Japanese release was Volume 10 on 2020-10-30).

@orchio there was a big gap between v10 and v11, so I wouldn't be too concerned right now. J-Novel Club have historically been very good at translating every volume published in Japan.

Fully translated is obviously a fair few years away though.

@HarmlessDave said in Hanashi releases The New Gate LN vol 1:

The New Gate LN

Oh that's exciting. I liked the anime. I'll have to check it out.

@Arube - bonus content from epubs is here - https://forums.j-novel.club/topic/4902/premium-e-book-bonus-contents-list-updated-may-30-2024?page=1

I'm not JNC staff, but I believe the (direct from JNC) epubs will always have all content from the printed editions plus any bonus content, while the printed versions will be missing the bonus content just like it's missing from the ebooks from Amazon, Apple, etc.

That's because the bonus content is easier to license if it's only for a more limited "JNC members" epub.

@myskaros said in What country is JNC localizing for?:

For spelling and punctuation, American English standards. For word choice and phrases, depending on the series or setting or characters the localization team can request exceptions to use British English or other dialects.

Hellsing dub versions would have been all wrong with American accents :)

(Sylvester Stallone as Alucard?)

@KanjiTatsumiSoT

Hello,

Thank you for pointing this out. A new file has been sent to all stores. The new updated file has the missing text.

While the ePub sold on J-Novel Club is available now. All other stores will take several business days to update the files.

Please try checking again next week for the update.

Thank you, and we apologize for the inconvenience caused.

@Serah that's applicable in a limited number of cases, and if the series is ongoing, you have no guarantee that quality won't go up again later. Of course there are cases where the author screwed up so badly that the plot and the characters can be saved anymore...but then we are becoming even more restrictive in the criteria. And at that point, I don't think it would make a difference.
Then, again, there is the matter of tastes. I'm currently reading Pens down, swords up volume 3 and I find it a chore...which obviously doesn't mean the book is objectively bad, but a list of series that went downhill made by me, you or yhe JNC editors is not necessarily the same.

@HarmlessDave thank you for your honest response. Subjects such as these, while I don't fault others for liking or not being bothered by them, do bother me, so I do my best to stay away from them. I really appreciate the reply. Again, thank you.

I really wish book content was more readily labeled with these things, but it is what it is. I mean, how do you sell something with a sexual assault tag for its content outside of the xxx industry? I am just glad my prior experience guided me into asking before getting through a book or two. Apparently, I was recently told, there is a bunch of pronoun usage as well. That grammar would also make it difficult for me to read through and enjoy the story as well.

Anyway, thank you HarmlessDave.

@Canyoukillmenow Bullies who aren't Aoi never win, at least ;)

But yes, that series is neither serious in its treatment of class issues (either type) nor subtle in its wish-fulfilment.

I've been finding it entertaining enough (since I stopped taking it seriously), but I certainly wouldn't blame you for disliking it. I suspect most readers will either find it amusing or insufferable, with little in between.

@JamesWannan J-Novel Club don't mention much about release dates until they put it up on the series page on the website. Sometimes things take longer than normal. It'll come when it comes.

So I've recently worked through Reincarnated as a Sword, and overall rather enjoyed it.

But the author does one thing that really annoys me. Namely, dialogs involving lots of characters during action heavy scenes (think a multi party brawl, for example), where the dialog ends up looking like this...

...She used the momentum to launch a horizontal swing, knocking the Blue Cat towards the other combatants.
“Heavy Slash.”
“What?!”
“Urgh!”
“Hiyaaah!”
The swordsman Yuan and the lancer Yosh took the main brunt of the hit...

...With multiple back-to-back unlabeled dialog sentences consisting mostly of indistinguishable onomatopoeia. I have no idea who said what, and even if I did, I'm not imaginative enough to understand the practical difference between a "Urgh!" and a "Hiyaah!".

Light novels often depict scenes where multiple parties interact. And some handle it better than others. For example, by giving each character a speech quirk, it can be clear who's speaking without excessively adding "X said", "Y said" everywhere.

But Reincarnated as a Sword is maybe my least favorite example, where it's not only unclear who's speaking, but also the speech itself is just visual noise that does nothing but distract from the action.

@pebble123 said in A Question Regarding the Release for the Physical Edition of The Water Magician Light Novel Series:

I came to this site because it looked the most promising, having a wide selection of light novels.

Yes, JNC is the publisher of the English light novels and this is their official forums.

You probably already know this but many English translations (and an increasing number of Japanese releases) are digital-only now.

By the way, one advantage of digital is JNC will continue to add corrections to some editions over time. Another is that if you buy the title directly from the JNC website, some titles include the bonus stories that were only available for in-store purchases in Japan. Finally, the JNC store versions are DRM-free.

If you have a Kindle, you can send JNC books directly to it using Amazon's Send to Kindle page - https://www.amazon.com/sendtokindle

If you have a different reader or tablet, most of them have "epub" format support.

The Water Magician LNs are fun, I'd recommend starting with volume 1 and not letting the lack of print keep you from reading it.

Edit: it looks like volumes 1-2 include bonus stories if you buy the ebook directly from JNC (not Amazon, etc.), while 3-5 do not.

The Water Magician

Arc 1 Volume 1: A Bonus Short Story
Abel and the Smugglers Arc 1 Volume 2: A Bonus Short Story
The Magic Copper Ore in the Village of Russy

https://forums.j-novel.club/topic/4902/premium-e-book-bonus-contents-list-updated-may-30-2024/12?page=1