Recommendations The Best of the Best for a novice reader(ess)

Hello and sorry for my post being so long. I'm relatively new to light and web novels. Previously I've only read The Slayers and the Durarara novels, after watching their respective anime. With the Slayers being miles above the latter, the difference in quality was striking...

And so, because I don't want to wade into bad\mediocre LNs on accident and drop my foray into LNs altogether, I'm asking for LNs\WNs that are considered the best in quality and have good enough translations! They should be the best not necessarily in ranking, coz we all know that, say, stuff like ecchi and harems "sells", but I'm a woman (and pretty straight), so to me this is something I'm going to skip over. It doesn't mean I won't read anything with a harem, but it has to be something that is merely an addition to a good novel, not the main draw. (And that's why I'm asking in the forum rather than just looking at the rankings on this site).

So far, I'm planning to read Overlord, both WN and LN, as the anime made me a big fan of it.

This is stuff I'm currently reading and my impressions so far, if that helps you judge what I might like or dislike:
- Legendary Moon Sculptor, I've heard that it started the litRPG genre, which is impressive. So far I've read volume 1, it was pretty interesting, although I couldn't find a perfect translation (spelling errors and words that were obviously meant to mean something else). Even so, the translation is good enough to understand everything.
- Common Sense of a Duke's Daughter... a la kingdom-building, and pretty interesting. The beginning is a bit lackluster with its unrealistic chocolate business (I happen to know how chocolate is made, lol!), but it gets better with all its internal and foreign politics (which is just personal preference, really, I like politics). I'd say it's on par with LMS volume 1 and even more interesting in later stages.
- How a Realist Hero Reformed a Kingdom... I've read volume 1, it's moderately interesting for its small politics\economy kingdom-building bits, but the presentation is bad. The hero is worshipped by everyone around (in a serious, not a comedic manner a la Overlord) and all NPCs exist merely to praise him; the harem takes too much space; actual polygamy (sorry but that's an insult to my gender); some of the hero's ideas feel... childish... like making a cooking TV show in the medieval world. All that said, I have no complaints about the translation.

Here's the genres I like (or rather tags I guess): Kingdom building, MMORPG, Game Elements, Historical, Fantasy, Economics, Politics, Adventure. A female protagonist would be nice, but not necessary.

 

Apart from MMO, Game and Female Protag. Release that Witch suits most of your needs.

 

The first japanese novel i read is Overlord

For chinese novel, i reccomend Coilling Dragon to you

 

you can try Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? one of the best harem series among jap light and web novels in my opinion

 

To Be a Power in the Shadows was nice
Stop, Friendly Fire!
Cultivation Chat Group
The Legend of Sun Knight
My Disciple Died Yet Again

 

I want to recommend Arifureta with its Fantasy, adventure, and game elements. but this one is quite depended to each reader taste and many dropped it because of sudden pace change from the first arc to the second one.
This one either become your favorite or turn you to a hater. Never really saw those who see Arifureta as 'okay'

From your assessment at those novel, you truly are a new reader around, eh? Never see one before, those guys usually just lurkers.

Also why the SARA?

 

Spice and Wolf
Maoyuu Maou Yuusha

 

When you are a newbie and already start out with the "Best" set.......
It will be hard for you to take on "junk food" from now on, if you don't start from the "Bottom" 1st

 

you can try Hyakuren no Haou to Seiyaku no Valkyria - this one have Fantasy Kingdom buildings elements . Historical referance a litle bir of Economics and Politics elements ( go on that novel coner for download ) .

 

Kenkyo Kenjitsu
The Girl Who Ate a Death God
Altina the Sword Princess

 

There are a few classics (at least to me) that I started out reading that really got me hooked to light novels and such, I'd like to recommend them to you!

Among the LitRPG genre, I started off with Tensei Shitara Slime Datta Ken

It has an anime going on right now. Though I don't think it fits everything you want, it was one of the more popular novels a while back.

Kumo desuga nanika?

It's another LitRPG. The story follows a protagonist who reincarnates as a spider stuck in a dungeon. It takes a while for her to get out, and the true meat of the story is when she starts moving to solve the problem of the world (which takes a while). No romance.

Akuyaku Tensei Dakedo Doushite Kou Natta?

A novel that breaks away from the cookie cutter reincarnated into an Otome game villainess mold. Not LitRPG, but includes lots of darkness and politics. I think you'd like this one, actually.

If you're looking to ease into Chinese novels, My Disciple Died Yet Again might be a good starter? Or for when you're tired of the normal Chinese xianxia/wuxia mc, because this mc basically fights against them and tries to keep her modern morals (though she's not perfect). It's a 1v1 romance and a comedy so try it out if you get the itch ;3

 

My most favorite LN is definitely Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei
IIRC, my very first LN was Mondaiji-tachi ga Isekai kara Kuru Sou Desu yo? Which I also really liked.
Genjitsushugi Yuusha no Oukoku Saikenki has some pretty good kingdom building.
Alderamin on the Sky and Altina the Sword Princess are both really good for war and millitary.

 

I planned to be a lurker, I guess, but something compelled me to make this topic.

What is the SARA?

Fair enough, but maybe I don't need junk food? There are plenty other venues of entertainment to take the best of the best from

 

No Hero (plus Eclipse Hunter)
Dominion’s end
Ark/ Ark The Legend
Praise the Orc
Seoul’s Station Necromancer
Genius Doctor Black Belly Miss
Grandmaster Strategist
Back to the Apocalypse
Quickly wear the Face Of the Devil
My fiancé is in love with my little sister
I said make my abilities average
Kenkyo, Kenjitsu o Motto ni Ikite Orimasu
Albert Ke no Reijou wa Botsuraku wo go Shomou desu
The Rebirth of the Malicious Empress of Military Lineage
Hamster 233
Strange Life of a Cat
Superstars of Tomorrow
Coiling Dragon
I shall seal the heaven
Warlock of the Magus World
Side Character Transmigrations the last boss is no joke

 

Half Prince, its pretty much the only female protag novel i enjoyed

 

Read Mushoku Tensei it is by far my favorite novel its complete with around 20 volumes and has an amazing translation

 

City of Sin
Monarch of Evernight
Everyone Else is a Returnee
Warlock of the Magus World

CoS and EER feature a harem, MoE and WMW don't. All but EER have fairly dark settings, and the tone isn't exactly bright either. EER reads like an action movie, which seperates it from the three others. In quality CoS and MoE beat the crap out of most if not all novels on NU.

 

I would recommend rise of the Shield Hero, it's fully translated and top quality. A lot of litRPG's also borrow elements from it clumsily, so it's a good place to see it done right.

MMOWise- Virtual World: Peerless White Emperor is lots of fun. Rebirth of the thief Who Roamed the World keeps finding ways to be interesting, and The King's Avatar does a fantastic job of feeling like an actual mmo, but the latter part is about esports and you'd have to read it on pastebin. Reign of the Hunters has a female protag, and is decent, but falls into the common mmo pitfall of not actually sounding like a game that would succeed in the real world.
For something more lighthearted, Only Sense Online is actually a really nice fluffy mmo JP story with a trap protag (female avatar) who does alot of crafting.

Also The Death Mage Who Doesn’t Want a Fourth Time is a really good fantasy story that's sorta a kingdom builder.

 

Recommend alot of the Korean novels being translated right now especially if you search NU by Korean category and by rating. Top Management, and Novel's Extra come to mind as some of the best novels I've read so far (although I may be biased). I feel like a majority of the JP and especially CN novels translated really lack a interesting factor as they all tend to be seemingly following the same template with different names plastered on.

 

The starting few will be oneshots with good quality and the remaining have lots of volumes
Oneshots:
A Game To Make Him Fall
The Probability I Can Kill My Wife Without Being Found Out - this one and the one above are one set
Tabi ni Deyou, Horobiyuku Sekai no Hate Made
Manuscript Screening Boy and Manuscript Submitting Girl
In a World Without Life
Gekkou
Aura: Koga Maryuin’s Final Battle
We Don’t Open Anywhere - A bit dark
About the Reckless Girl Who Kept Challenging a Reborn Man
Tada, Sore Dake de Yokattan desu - recommended by my favourite translator Hellping

Novels:
Allison and it's sequels.
Ookami to Koushinryou
Seikai no Monshou
Utsuro no Hako to Zero no Maria - One of my favourites
Rakuin no Monshou
Hikaru ga Chikyuu ni Itakoro…… - One of the two harems I could complete considering I hate them, the other was Mushoku Tensei.

Edit: I also recommend any novel translated by hellping, he has one of the best translations I've seen and many of his works were liscensed... that is a good indicator if I may say and a slightly sad one as well.