Vol. 1 - light novel, Overlord

An anime fandub would probably do a better job at translation...

The story does surpass the mediocre translation though. Worth buying the first book to see if you'll be able to stand the remaining books in the series.

I found out about Overlord through the anime series. After watching some of it off of YouTube I just had to buy the book. The book is just flat out awesome and the art inside is fantastic. Seriously just buy the book it's amazing.

This is Isekai. Protagonist is overpowered from the beginning. Everyone who is not a member of main cast will be likely to have a grim and dark ending usually resulting in death.

Now that you are aware, welcome to the ride. Plots, massacres, intrigues, worldbuilding and endless Sasugas start from this book. There are 12 Volumes out right now and they are being translated.

I have read the fan version of overlord from volume 1-9 already. I still bought the novel because it contains more details and better understanding of the overlord series. Sometimes I can't wait for the new novels to come out, I go to read the fan version. However, since buying it on kindle is a good deal, I usually buy it in order to support the author. THIS IS HOW AMAZING IT IS. I kind of hope they could come out with the translation of the novels quicker though. We are already at the 11th volume for Japan but they barely came out with 3rd volume in English. Overall, Kugane Maruyama is awesome.

Definetely the afterword was more than enough to justify the purchase. However, since I need a couple more words to have a valid review, then I guess I cpuld point out that the light novel is enjoyable.

I just found out that Yen Press, the company which lisenced Overlord has been paying the og japanese authors very little for their work. Sources I have state only 40% to 20% of the sales actually go back to the author. I disliked Yen Press before, but now I hate them. If you want to read the english translations, use SkytheWood's translation. If you want to support the author, buy the japanese novels. Either way, besides the niche that want a physical english copy, DON'T BUY THIS BOOK.

It arrived earlier than expected.
The book's cover is actually just a separate part of it and its paper-ish. I had hoped the art would be the actual book's cover. Instead its just a blank black book if removed(which is easy to remove/fall off)
There is also a sticker on the back that makes it a bit ugly telling that it is a new item, what it is, and the number. Its easy to remove if careful not to rip the actual cover.Behind it there is just the original(?) barcode and age restriction, so you choose what you prefer to have - an original, clean look, or how-it-arrived look

I absolutely enjoyed the anime, so I decided to pick up the light novel to start fresh. All I'm going say is the book it's by far better then anime (per usual). There's this gloomy amotsphere that wasn't emphasized in the anime adaptation and some scenes within the book were really well executed. The artwork is also a nice bonus to the book, which provides a nice face to various characters, and depicts some nice scenes.

The quality is great. Book is hardcover, it comes with a sleeve so you can take that off and read it in public just fine. Has an inside pull out poster of the main cast. The paper feels nice. Just top notch quality.

The translation seems clunky first off (Ex: "That level of damage wasn't even damage... Pg. 43).

The writing is pretty bad. The pace is very slow. The idea doesn't seem very original. This is basically "Tron" except set in a JRPG. The main character, Mormonga, is sucked into the world of his favorite, but outdated, online game as it's servers are about to be shut off. Unfortunately for the reader, he is a "Gary Stu". His NPC friends spend lots of time talking about how smart, sexy, and strong he is for no particular reason. The first hundred+ pages consist of a very drawn out introduction to his home dungeon and his various minions from its different levels. Somewhere else, briefly hinted at in the introduction, there are some bad knights or something; meanwhile, the cast of predictable JRPG stereotypes fawns over Mormonga and is amazed at his every action. The writing isn't executed in a thoughtful way, there is too much "telling" and not enough "showing". I imagine this is due to it being an adaptation of a manga, but I would still hope the people doing the work would put more thought into translating a visual medium into a written one. Thankfully I did not pay for this book, a friend who's judgement I know question insisted it was a great read. Based off of the first volume I have no intention of continuing the story. If you want a book that is slow, predictable, and full of two-dimensional characters then this is for you.

Overlord finds itself as the latest entry in the growing field of trapped in a game world series. YenON publishes other series of this type (Log Horizon, Sword Art Online, No Game No Life), so fans of their books will easily find themselves at home here. What sets this one apart is that instead of having a lead who provides all the solutions to ever problem with his epic skills as the fated human, we have a big bad raid dungeon boss of an undead variety who has no other allies except the ones he created who faces the challenge of trying to spread his guilds name while trying to be somewhat human. Easily he ranks high up on the list for leads that actually kill characters and at times one wonders if he is an antagonist but I think he stays somewhat human. This makes the book very interesting.

The writing starts off a bit slow with little to no conflict provided beyond just detailing the world, but that sort of mystery provides the intrigue to keep people interested. Why is Satoru Suzuki trapped in this world? Are there are other humans here? How does this world have elements of Yggdrasil in it? Will the guardians of the floors turn back on him ever? All this and more are things that kept my interest and will keep my interest in the series.

The cast is filled with great characters who have many rich interactions with each other and with the lead character. I cant wait for more time with many of them.

Easily this is the best fantasy book of this year thus far.

Quality wise, excellent paper choice chosen for this hardcover book helped to enhance the great colored artwork on the pages. so-bin has great art and the style works well with the paper choice, it truly feels like a ornate tome you'd find in any medieval setting.

There were about four noticeable grammar typos though. Minor but noticeable.

I just found out that Yen Press, the company which lisenced Overlord has been paying the og japanese authors very little for their work. Sources I have state only 40% to 20% of the sales actually go back to the author. I disliked Yen Press before, but now I hate them. If you want to read the english translations, use SkytheWood's translation. If you want to support the author, buy the japanese novels. Either way, besides the niche that want a physical english copy, DON'T BUY THIS BOOK.

It arrived earlier than expected.
The book's cover is actually just a separate part of it and its paper-ish. I had hoped the art would be the actual book's cover. Instead its just a blank black book if removed(which is easy to remove/fall off)
There is also a sticker on the back that makes it a bit ugly telling that it is a new item, what it is, and the number. Its easy to remove if careful not to rip the actual cover.Behind it there is just the original(?) barcode and age restriction, so you choose what you prefer to have - an original, clean look, or how-it-arrived look

I absolutely enjoyed the anime, so I decided to pick up the light novel to start fresh. All I'm going say is the book it's by far better then anime (per usual). There's this gloomy amotsphere that wasn't emphasized in the anime adaptation and some scenes within the book were really well executed. The artwork is also a nice bonus to the book, which provides a nice face to various characters, and depicts some nice scenes.

The quality is great. Book is hardcover, it comes with a sleeve so you can take that off and read it in public just fine. Has an inside pull out poster of the main cast. The paper feels nice. Just top notch quality.

The translation seems clunky first off (Ex: "That level of damage wasn't even damage... Pg. 43).

The writing is pretty bad. The pace is very slow. The idea doesn't seem very original. This is basically "Tron" except set in a JRPG. The main character, Mormonga, is sucked into the world of his favorite, but outdated, online game as it's servers are about to be shut off. Unfortunately for the reader, he is a "Gary Stu". His NPC friends spend lots of time talking about how smart, sexy, and strong he is for no particular reason. The first hundred+ pages consist of a very drawn out introduction to his home dungeon and his various minions from its different levels. Somewhere else, briefly hinted at in the introduction, there are some bad knights or something; meanwhile, the cast of predictable JRPG stereotypes fawns over Mormonga and is amazed at his every action. The writing isn't executed in a thoughtful way, there is too much "telling" and not enough "showing". I imagine this is due to it being an adaptation of a manga, but I would still hope the people doing the work would put more thought into translating a visual medium into a written one. Thankfully I did not pay for this book, a friend who's judgement I know question insisted it was a great read. Based off of the first volume I have no intention of continuing the story. If you want a book that is slow, predictable, and full of two-dimensional characters then this is for you.