Isekai, a genre of the light novel involving magic and supernatural abilities manily involved with the protagonist reincarnating to another world.
Here are the top 15 Isekai light novels you must read this year.
15. Clearing an Isekai with the Zero-Believers Goddess – The Weakest Mage among the Classmates
It is written by Oosaki Isle and was released in the year 2018. There are currently 296 chapters with a new one coming every 5 days.
This light novel includes genres of action, adventure, comedy, fantasy, harem, romance, and shounen.
Taktsuki Makoto’s stats were lower than an average human’s. This is a story of a weak mage who has to battle the Demon Lord’s awakening, a person with zero believers, and a great Isekai protagonist. It is one of the Top Isekai Light Novels to read in 2021.
14. Hakai no Miko
Hakai no Miko, written by Mumei Kōbō and published in the year 2013. There are currently 398 chapters with a new one released every 2 weeks.
An ordinary high school student, Kizaki Souma, was summoned to a different world. In the world that oppressed demi-humans, Souma decides to fight against the human countries for the sake of saving the semi-monsters, who helped him, by using his knowledge from manga and games.
Hakai no Miko is the story of a boy who is going to be called a slaughterer and history’s worst destroyer in the future. It is one of the Top Isekai Light Novels to read in 2021.
13. Bijo to Kenja to Majin no Ken
Bijo to Kenja to Majin no Ken is written by Katayusa Kenta and is Japanese in origin. It was released in the year 2014 with a new chapter released every 2.5 months.
Kei Arakawa, an average salaryman around his thirties, fell into a chasm between worlds. In exchange for a single limitation, he was granted the ability to perceive someone or something’s status. But apart from that, he has no skills any ordinary person wouldn’t have. All he could do after ending up in another world was to gain insight into something’s status and use that information for his growth and survival. It is one of the Top Isekai Light Novels to read in 2021.
12. Kumo Desu ga, Nani ka?
This light novel is Japanese in origin and is written by Baba Okina. It was released in the year 2015 with a new chapter released every 10 days. Currently, there are 765 chapters.
The grand magic from the Hero and the Demon King crossed over worlds and exploded in a classroom of a certain high school.
The students who died in the explosion reincarnated into a different world. The person who had the lowest reputation in the class was reincarnated into a spider. Nevertheless, she adapted quickly to the present condition with strong willpower. It is one of the Top Isekai Light Novels to read in 2021.
11. The Lazy King
Japanese in origin, “The Lazy King” is written by Tsukikage. It was released in the year 2014 with a new chapter release frequency of 5 months.
By the time the protagonist realized it, he had been reincarnated into another world. He kept sleeping and at some point, he became a demon lord even though he never wished for it. And as the name indicates, the protagonist is lazy and wants to live in a world where there’s no work. It is one of the Top Isekai Light Novels to read in 2021.
10. Release that Witch
This is a Chinese Isekai Light novel and the author is Er Mu. Released in the year 2016, this Isekai light novel includes action, adventure, comedy, fantasy, harem, a slice of life, Seinen, and supernatural.
Chen Yan travels between worlds. He ends up becoming an honorable prince in a medieval fantasy world. Witches with magical powers and fearsome wars between churches and kingdoms rage throughout the land.
Roland, a prince regarded as hopeless by his father, spends his time developing a poor and backward town into a strong and modern city while fighting against his siblings for the throne and absolute control over the kingdom. It is one of the Top Isekai Light Novels to read in 2021.
9. Demon King, Retry!
This light novel is in the Japanese language and is written by Kanzaki Kurone. It was released in the year 2016. The main story has been completed. So, you can finish this in one go.
Oono Akira, a working adult, was transported to a different world while logged into a character known as “Demon Lord ” in a game he manages. He meets a child there with a disabled leg and they begin to travel together, but there’s no way that others will leave a “demon lord” with such overwhelming strength alone.
While being targeted by countries and saints that are trying to subdue the demon lord, they cause turmoil wherever they go. It is one of the Top Isekai Light Novels to read in 2021.
8. No Game No Life
This Isekai light had a very successful anime series of 12 episodes with the fans demanding the next season.
No Game No Life is a Japanese Isekai light novel written by Kamiya Yuu and published in the year 2012. There are currently 10 volumes of the series with each chapter coming out every 2 months.
Sora and Shiro, a brother and sister, are loser shut-ins by normal standards. But these siblings don’t play by the rules of the average society. In the world of gaming, this genius pair reigns supreme, their invincible avatar so famous that it’s the stuff of urban legend.
So, when a young boy calling himself God summons the siblings to a fantastic alternate world where war is forbidden and all conflicts are decided by the outcome of games, Sora and Shiro have pretty much hit the jackpot. But they soon learn that in the world where they were summoned, humanity, cornered and outnumbered by other species, survives within the confines of one city. Will Sora and Shiro, two failures in life, turn out to be the saviors of mankind? It is one of the Top Isekai Light Novels to read in 2021.
7. Kanna no Kanna
This story is Japanese in origin and is written by Nakanomura Ayasuke. It was published in the year 2016.
This is an Isekai light novel containing loads of action, adventure, drama, fantasy, Ecchi, Harem, Seinen, supernatural, and romance.
Kamishiro Kanna was summoned to another world to be a hero by a scheming princess, and when his mana was measured to be 0, he was to be gotten rid of. Together with a half-elf person he met in the palace’s prison, they escaped on a dragon she summoned.
The thing Kanna didn’t know was that 3 days after his escape, the princess summoned 3 high school students who happened to be his close friends. It is one of the Top Isekai Light Novels to read in 2021.
6. Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku o!
This is a famous comedic Isekai that has even got an anime adaptation. This light novel is packed with a good plot offered in a humor-some way. You will laugh and adore the characters as they do stupid things.
This is a Japanese light novel written by Akatsuki Natsume. It was released in the year 2013 and there’s a new chapter coming every 10 days!
The protagonist, Kazuma is a shut NEET who loves games. The day he decides to get out of his room, he gets ‘hit’ by a truck coming his way. He was reincarnated to another world by a goddess called ‘Aqua’. She offers him everything and asks him to help Kazuma’s new world with the Demon King. It is one of the Top Isekai Light Novels to read in 2021.
5. Mushoku Tensei
This is a light novel that recently got an anime adaptation in January 2021. It was one of the most popular shows at that time and was also considered the peak of Isekai anime. Everyone had great expectations and it delivered them.
This light novel is Japanese in origin and the author is Rifujin na Magonote. It was released in the year 2012. There’s a new chapter released every 5 months.
A 34-year-old NEET otaku, chased out of his house by his family, found that his life is reaching an end. He then recalled that his life could have been much better if he had made better choices in the past.
Just when he was at the point of regret, he saw a truck moving at a fast speed, and three high schoolers in its path. Mustering all the strength he had, he tried to save them and ended up getting run over by the truck, losing his life at that very moment.
The next time he opened his eyes, he was reincarnated into a world of sword and magic as Rudeus Greyrat. Born to a new world, a new life, Rudeus decided, “This time, I’ll live my life to the fullest with no regret!” Thus starts the journey of a man yearning to restart his life and live his life to the fullest. It is one of the Top Isekai Light Novels to read in 2021.
4. The Second Coming of Gluttony
The protagonist of this story was a gambler in real life. He turned his back on his own family and betrayed his lover. His life was pathetic according to him. To change this pathetic life, he chose the world of fantasy. Even then it was the same story. He seemed for salvation but got nothing.
Even though the summary might seem serious, this has comedy in it. Other genres include action, adventure, drama, martial arts, psychological, romance, Seinen, and supernatural.
This is a Korean Isekai light novel. The author is Ro Yu-Jin. It was not so recently published in 2017. There’s a new chapter every 13-14 days. So, you can expect many chapters in this and there are indeed many of them.
3. Youjo Senki
On the front line of a war, there’s a little girl with blond hair, blue eyes, and porcelain white skin. She commands the army with a lisping voice. Her name is Tanya Degurechaff. But in reality, she was one of Japan’s most elite salarymen, reborn as a little girl after angering a mysterious being X who calls himself “God.” And this little girl, who prioritizes efficiency over anything else and her career, will become the most dangerous being to ever exist among the sorcerers of the imperial army.
Just like all other Isekais mentioned now, this too belongs to the same genre of action, adventure, and so on. It is Japanese and the author is Carlo Zen and was released in the year 2013.
This is a slow-paced light novel with a new chapter coming every 230 days. It is one of the Top Isekai Light Novels to read in 2021.
2. To Be a Power in the Shadows
We all loved heroes in our childhood and just like that, a certain young man adored powers hidden in the Shadows. After hiding his strength and living a mediocre life of a mob character by day and undergoing deliberate training by night, he finally reincarnates into a different world and gains ultimate power. This is a story about a young boy who had adored powers in shadows and eventually reigned over the world of shadows in another world.
This is also a Japanese light novel written by Aizawa Daisuke. It was released in 2018. So, it is very recent, yet captured the attention of many people. A new chapter is released every 49 days.
The plot is mainly comedy which other viewers and as well as enjoyed a lot, but there is a subtle yet incredible drama shown by the side characters.
Other genres include action, adventure, fantasy, harem, martial arts, and school life. It is one of the Top Isekai Light Novels to read in 2021.
1. Overlord
In the 21st century, the world entered a new era of VR games, and “YGGDRASIL” is considered top of all MMORPG, but, After announcing that all its servers will be off, the internet game ‘Yggdrasil’ shut down. But for some reason, the player character did not log out sometime after the server was closed. NPCs start to become aggressive. A normal youth who loves gaming in the real world seemed to have been transported into an alternate world along with his guild, becoming the strongest mage with the appearance of a skeleton, Momonga. He leads his guild toward an unprecedented legendary fantasy adventure!
Overlord is a name that many might have heard even in the manga and anime community and why not? It’s an amazing Japanese Isekai light novel. The author is Maruyama Kugane and it was released in the year 2010.
This light novel has 154 chapters as of July 2021 and there’s a new chapter released every single month. It’s loved by a mature audience.
It belongs mainly to the action and of course the Isekai genre. But there are others like adventure, drama, psychology, and seinen.
Which is your favorite Isekai light novel? Are your favorite Isekai light novel here? Mention in the comments.
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