Log Horizon: The Beginning of Another World (Log Horizon #1) by Mamare Touno and Kazuhiro Hara

Synopsis:

Thirty thousand Japanese gamers awake one day to discover that the fantasy world of Elder Tales, an MMORPG that was formerly their collective hobby, has become their cold hard reality. Severed from their everyday lives, they confront a new horizon filled with ravenous monsters, flavorless food, and the inability to die! Amid the chaos, veteran gamer Shiroe gathers his friends, the guardian Naotsugu and the assassin Akatsuki, and together they embark on an adventure to change the world as they know it!

Review:

Log Horizon: The Beginning of Another World is the first in the wildly popular light novel series that spawned a manga and anime adaptation by Author Mamare Touno and Illustrator Kazuhiro Hara, translated for the first time in English from its native Japanese.

Shiroe is a normal college student who has been playing an insanely popular online RPG titled Elder Tales for the last eight years. On the day of a new expansion’s release, over thirty thousand players are sucked into the world of their beloved video game, assuming the roles and identities of their characters. Shiroe, once a normal college student, finds himself a level 90 Enchanter in a world where everything is a mix of the two. Attempting to learn the new rules set for them, Shiroe and his teammates, Noatsugo and Akatsuki, venture out into the world to discover the great adventure they’ve been placed in.

For a short while, I’d been thinking this novel would turn out to be a simple four out of five star read, but by the time the final battle came along and the characters had been established I knew this deserved nothing less than five full stars. It takes some time for you to get a handle on everything that’s going on, and I’m certain there’s still more to be revealed, but once you get the hang of it its smooth sailing.

This is a read for gamers and fantasy lovers only. Without at least some prior knowledge you won’t be able to fathom the depth of this story. It does a great job of explaining everything in terms non-gamers could understand, but there’s still quite a bit you’d miss if you haven’t been immersed in that world. This is a complex story meant for the hardcore lovers of games and fantasy. Non-believers need not apply.

On top of the story, we’re given one page manga extracts of certain scenes from exceptional artist Kazuhiro Hara. The perfect added spice to the story, giving the reader a clear mental image of what’s happening in the book.

By the end of this book, I knew I was hooked on the whole thing. I plan on reading the manga and watching the anime as soon as possible, and you can bet I’ll be right there for the release of book two!

Five out of Five stars!

Buy the book here!

Check out Author Mamare Touno’s website here!

Check out Illustrator Kazuhiro Hara’s website here!