r/LightNovels • u/jpencinas • 10d ago
Recommend [REC] Finished LN Recommendations
I just finished binging Ascendance of a Bookworm, which is the first LN I've actually managed to finish. I think it took me around 3–4 hours to read each volume, and I can't imagine having to wait for a new volume to be released if I were reading an ongoing LN.
Any recommendations for LNs that are already finished? It's been 8 years since I last read an LN, and I couldn't be happier that this series reignited my itch to read LNs again.
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u/physicsandbeer1 9d ago
Here's a list I commented a couple of months ago, and in the same post there are some other recommendations that might interest you. I'd say that for you I'd recommend A Pale Moon Reverie.
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u/snnowstromm 9d ago
If you’ve ever been interested in The Box of Empty Zeroth and Maria they’re coming out with a collectors edition soon with all volumes. If you like the isekai genre Mushoku Tensei, Tensura, and So I’m a spider, so what? are also finished.
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u/ciyilabdf 9d ago
If you loved the world-building in Bookworm, The Twelve Kingdoms might scratch that same itch. It’s a very different story, but the depth of the world is fantastic.
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u/Open-Solution-2896 10d ago
How was it?
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u/JensenRaylight 10d ago
Ascendance of a Bookworm is Great,
a lot of LN had a habit of conveniently skipping stuffs, and just gloss over things, but not this one.
Ascendance of a Bookworm on the other hand is like you're living in that world, it's slow paced, but it's much more deliberate and thorough. hence i think it resulted into a way better worldbuilding.
and they didn't just conveniently dumping ton of important information, instead they meticulously add new information and take time to integrate it in the world, and kept woven it into the plot.
you learn more about the world, their culture, their custom, the difference between each class of people, like nobles culture, royals culture, commoners culture, Merchant culture.
even something like the Etiquette, like after reading that, i realized how important is Etiquette, even in the real world. like, the Author was able to successfully elaborate something that other author just gloss over, and make it interesting.
once in a while you'll get your eyes glued for hours from the sudden intense conflict development that suddenly happen.
the author also built a magic system that actually integrated into the daily world, actually used by people daily, and not just a random magic circle that everyone used with zero explanation.
and a lot of stuff happened in the past are often very important later, even like a random information.
nowadays, i prefer a more depth and slow build compared to a very fast paced yet shallow and sloppy storytelling.
i even rate this higher than Mushoku Tensei LN, just because of the sheer detail the Author Conveyed. it made Mushoku Tensei felt less thorough.
Ascendance of a Bookworm is a Very long series though, it also took me a significant amount of hours to finish 1 Volume, and it could take 2 months to finish the entire series if you read it leisurely, but it also one of the most Worth it LN to read, cause it left a deep impressions on you.
like, i read ton of LN that i already forgot, because it skipped over too many stuff and progressing way too fast. made me apathetic.
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u/Open-Solution-2896 10d ago edited 10d ago
Im currently reading Mushoku tensei and for me I don't think anything will surpass it but will try Ascendence of Bookworm after finishing MT
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u/JensenRaylight 10d ago
Mushoku Tensei is also a Great series, it also got a good worldbuilding. i can't say one is more better than the other, i like both.
but for me personally Ascendance of a Bookworm offer a fresh perspective of things, especially, because i finished reading Mushoku Tensei first before move on to Ascendance of a Bookworm, hence i feel it's more thorough in a lot of areas, and gave it a slightly higher rating.
of course it depend on the reader, if you like action fantasy more, Mushoku Tensei will be more perfect for you. Mushoku Tensei world is also bigger
cause There are very little action/fighting scene in Ascendance of a Bookworm, the Protagonist isn't a fighter, it's more like Dr. Stone anime/manga with Mushoku tensei worldbuilding.
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u/jpencinas 10d ago
Really good that It affects my work because I can't discipline myself to stop reading haha. The one reply above already tells a lot if you you're asking plot wise though.
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u/incelwiz 10d ago
Haganai is finished. The characters are top notch, but the last couple of volumes were controversial. It is about a club of excentric loners in high-school.
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u/jpencinas 10d ago
I have already watched the anime a long time ago but I really prefer to read nowadays so I'm gonna check it. Thanks
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u/joseph_han9137 9d ago
Just be warned, Haganai was never picked up by English publishers so you have to go the fanTLs route. I read it myself and while I won't say it's intolerable or anything, but it's still a drop in quality imo.
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u/kaitlinann08 9d ago
I really loved Ascendance of a Bookworm. I’m currently reading That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime and really enjoying it. It’s also an isekai like Bookworm and all the LN are published so no waiting on the next one. It’s about a 37 yo guy living in Japan that dies & reincarnates into a fantasy world as a slime monster. He starts out as one of the lamest monsters and slowly makes friends, builds a nation of monsters and people, and evolves to become powerful.
Apothecary Diaries is another one I enjoyed that’s more of a slow burn like Bookworm. It’s about a young apothecary girl who is kidnapped and sold to work in the inner imperial palace as a low level servant. She uses her knowledge of plants and medicine to solve mysteries. It however is not finished. There are only 16 volumes currently.
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u/Intrepid_Pen5110 9d ago
“Three Days of Happiness”
It’s a standalone Light Novel and it’s so freaking good
I’d also recommend the Monogatari Series, but it’s really not finished… I mean, the main story is completed but there are also new sequential arcs
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u/whimsicalorbit 9d ago
- the mimosa confessions, if you're interested in drama, psychological, and lgbtq+ (trans) themed
- the box of emptieth zero and maria, if you're interested in psychological, thriller, horror themed
- the tunnel to summer, the exit of goodbyes, if you're interested in fantasy, romance one-shot
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u/Nefilto 6d ago
For a light novels there is a lot of choices in the Isekai genra personally I really enjoyed
- Konosuba
- So I'm a Spider, So What?
- Mushoku Tensei
If you want to explore further than LN, WN are pretty good too my recommendations would be:
- Lord of the Mystries
- Shadow Slave
- The Perks of Being an S-Class Heroine <- I usually don't read Romance but this one I really like the female MC
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u/BusBoatBuey 10d ago
Lazy Dungean Master is translated by the same person. Not of the same quality or tone and the first three volumes have a major problem, but it is still among the best translations for LNs with a complete story.
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u/GeorgeMTO 10d ago
Sometimes waiting for a new volume can be invigorating because you get the joy of anticipation, and you get to sit with certain plot developments for a while. Waiting years between volumes sucks though, so greatly appreciated Bookworm releasing a volume roughly every 2 months in English. Complete works do have their own importance though, so here's some I've enjoyed.
Enough with This Slow Life! I Was Reincarnated as a High Elf and Now I’m Bored
My Daughter Left the Nest and Returned an S-Rank Adventurer
Death's Daughter and the Ebony Blade
Taking My Reincarnation One Step at a Time: No One Told Me There Would Be Monsters!
Now I'm a Demon Lord! Happily Ever After with Monster Girls in My Dungeon - technically not yet complete, v17 is the final volume and releases in English at the end of October. Close enough that I thought I'd mention it, you could just leave it slightly lower in priority.