What are your Top Light Novels

Rahul Balaggan

I will include my top 10 light novels but feel free to only mention top 5, 3, or even just your favorite.

Is It Wrong to Pick up Girls in a Dungeon (and spin-offs)
The Isolator
Spice & Wolf
The Faraway Paladin (this may move up FAST)
Overlord
Goblin Slayer
The Irregular at Magic High School
A Certain Magical Index (Kazuma Kamachi has written soooooo many novels, it's a travesty that we don't have more translated)
How a Realistic Hero Rebuilt the kingdom
My Big Sister Lives in a Fantasy World

Honorable Mention: In Another World with my smartphone (this series is being translated so fast I haven't had time to reexamine my list.

Note 1 because this is a Light Novel list I did not include the entirety of the Monogatari series, I also won't say where the Monogatari series would rank if included on this list.

Note 2 because as of this post Volume 1 of Arifureta is not 100% published I will not be reexamining my list, for now.

Terrence

I'll just go by first volume / first few books, since outside of Part-Timer and Shield Hero, I haven't kept up with many ongoing series.

Goth (single volume, but released originally under LN label?)
Baccano V1
Big Sis
Paying to Win in a VRMMO
Goblin Slayer V1
Realist Hero
Part-Timer
Kizumonogatari

I can't really rank Paladin among these right now, though I liked volume 1. That and Realist Hero both have some info dumpish portions that I haven't gotten my head around (gods and creatures, and military make up respectively). Grimgar by comparison is fairly character centric and focused, though there is the bit about the destruction of the old kingdom makeup by some demon king that was unkillable (but somehow perished).

Need to get to Brave Story, Mardock Scramble, Ring, Death March, Psycome and a host of others. I know some of these are Novel novels, not light novels.

Terrence

@Rahul-Balaggan said in What are your Top Light Novels:

The Isolator

I was disappointed that Justus R Stone, our resident Light Novel YouTube reviewer, didn't really take to these. Different strokes for different folks, though with Baccano I think he admitted reading Durarara before it kind of ruined Baccano for him as it followed similar patterns.

With The Isolator, he gave up after V1 but has heard good things from others. His dourness on V1 made me want to reassess my opinion since I thought it was decent (multiple perspectives, gory real world action not Isekai, Parasyte inspired).

Rahul Balaggan

@Terrence Re: The Isolator I will be one of the people who say it gets better with more volumes.

Volumes 2 and 3 had a lot more depth and certainly added darker tones to the overall story.

I will say this out of all 3 volumes currently available in english (I am not sure if Volume 4 has been released in Japan or is even scheduled at this point, I asked Yenpress and received no response) volume 3 was my favorite volume...

And before anyone who read volume 3 asks

spoiler

erictbar

Time of Eve: Another Act
The Faraway Paladin
Is it Wrong to Pickup Girls in a Dungeon (Vol. 6 especially)
The Devil is a Part-Timer
The Isolator

Also would consider adding Arifureta after completing at least 1 volume.

linksbrawler

The Faraway Paladin
Grimgar
Goblin Slayer
Realist Hero
Big Sis

Big Sis dropped after volume 3. And I'm also considering adding Arifureta to #1 after completing volume 1. I'm a huge fan of darker plots, so I'm quite attached to Arifureta.

Jaquobus

Grimgar
Another
Book Girl
Faraway Paladin/Spice & Wolf

Big Sister

I've only read the first 3 main volumes of Book Girl, so that one could still move in either direction.

sparhawk6

hmm I can´t actually make a list like this, because I like too many LN.
But one of the best for me are : Black Bullet, Arifureta, Shinmai Maou no Testament, Highschool DxD, Mahouka, Is Wrong to Pick up Girls in a Dungeon, Magika No Kenshi To Shoukan Maou, Rakudai Kishi no Eiyuutan, Akashic Record of Bastard Magical Instructor, Eromanga-Sensei,Goblin Slayer, Death March, Rising of the Shield Hero, Re:Zero, Monogatari Serjies, No game no life, Strike the blood, Konosuba, Tsuujou Kougeki ga Zentai Kougeki de Ni-kai Kougeki no Okaa-san wa Suki desu ka? and many other haha

Bryan

No particular order:
Over Lord
Grimgar
Mushoku Tensei
Goblin Slayer

Would be my top 4

Siphonario

@Bryan Pretty much mine too. I would add Danmachi and Faraway Paladin though.

Rootbeermaster

No Game No Life
My Big Sister Lives In a Fantasy World
Invaders of the Rokujyōma
My Favorite Song - Silver Siren
Strike the Blood
Arifureta
Is it wrong to pick up girls in a dungeon?
Log Horizon
Asterisk War
Index

Terrence

@rootbeermaster said in What are your Top Light Novels:

My Favorite Song - Silver Siren

I just picked this and The Violet Knight up on that Cross Infinite World sale. Be a bit before I get to it though. =)

In terms of my interests, I didn't enjoy Paying to Win volume 3 as much and the formula + lack of any sort of interesting setting / world building in the VRMMO is holding it back for me. So that'd fall down on my personal list.

I'm in the middle of SisKan V3 (hopefully my tabs stay open with that one since I know it expired). I kind of like how they introduced this new character. They betrayed some of my expectations... well, initially. So that series is going up on my rankings.

Rokka: Braves is good, though with the light bit of info I gleaned from some posts, I hope it doesn't affect my read. I know basically nothing beyond volume 1.

Baccano V4 up next for me after Sound! Euphonium. I feel bad, but I'm way behind on Part-Timer. It's just one of those series I know will be there waiting for me to jump back in whenever I like.

myskaros

Accel World
Overlord
DanMachi
Spice & Wolf
Goblin Slayer

Eternal Wanderer

Utsoro No Haku to Zero No Maria

A Certain Magical Index

Invaders of the Rokujyōma

Spice and Wolf

The Devil is a Part Timer

i it wrong to pick up girls in a dungeon

My Big Sister Lives in a Fatnasy World

Cynigami

Utsuro no Hako To Zero no Maria

Mushoku Tensei

OREGAIRU

Gekkou

Faraway Paladin

Hyferzftw

1.Overlord
2.Grimgar
3.Realist Hero
4.Faraway Paladin
5.The New Gate
6._*Is It Wrong To Pick Up girls in a Dungeon
7.Classroom of The Elite (to long in Japanese 😅)
8.Heavy Object
9.Infinite Dendrogram (I'm think it will go up to my top 5 soon)
10.Spice & Wolf

Terrence

@hyferzftw said in What are your Top Light Novels:

7.Classroom of The Elite (to long in Japanese 😅)

I really hope someone picks this up in English soon. xC

ImIlyaz

This'll be hard. In no particular order

1. Grimgar

2. Oregiaru

3. biblia antiquarian bookshop

4. Mondaiji-Tachi

5. Hyouka? (Not a Light novel)

Bluesteel might join this list, but I've only read 1 Vol so far

saskir

Lets see

Overlord
In a different World with my Smartphone (was why I subscriped to J-Novel Club)
Death March
Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear (some times you just need a nice Slice of Life Novel)
Cook of the Mercenary Corp
Kara no Kyoukai (why oh why is there only one chapter released in english -atleast officially-)
Lottery Grand Prize (yep it is a typical Harem Story with an OP MC. But an Badass MC)
Summoned Slaughterer

Oh yeah this list doesn't mean that I am more inclined to Isekai novel although many are transportet to another world novel

There are others I enjoy to read (Baccano, Index, Irregular at Magic High School and so on)but those are the once I rerread regularly. Also I am sure that Youjo Senki will join this list shortly. But let's wait till it gets released.

Also there are some which do not fit the LN criteria like Gourmet of another World

NeoAnkara

@terrence There are fan-translation for this though and it's also the same translator for Gamers!.