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Berserk of Gluttony #1

Berserk of Gluttony, Volume 1

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HE'LL DEVOUR YOUR SOUL

Fate Graphite is one of the forsaken. Cursed with the skill "Gluttony," he is ever starving, never sated...until the day he kills a dying thief and devours the man's strength--and his soul. The true hunger of Fate's Gluttony has awakened, and if he can learn to control his power, he will at last be the master of his own destiny.

207 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 30, 2017

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Ichika Isshiki

32 books13 followers

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
Profile Image for Russell Gray.
672 reviews134 followers
May 22, 2023
Just when you think a protagonist can't get more overpowered or become more dark and edgy, enter Berserk of Gluttony. Against my better judgment, I picked up this book because sometimes you have an itch that just needs scratching. The best-case scenario would be a 7/10 cliche gamelit.

It didn't take long for the yellow flags to turn into red ones. It wasn't enough for our MC to follow the Cursed With Awesome trope and have a skill that absorbed part of an enemy's skills and stats. He absorbed every single attribute point of the target while he was at it. And then a random bandit evidently carried the plot-convenient Identify and Telepathy skills. Identify alone was so rare that one could live a life of luxury as an appraiser. So why did such a person become a bandit? Who knows? Probably just because the plot needed him to die to our MC. Our MC who went from attributes of 1 to 100-150 instantly. What does that mean in the grand scheme of society? No idea and the author never tells you.

Why stop with a broken Gluttony skill though? Our MC then goes to the market where his life savings of 2 silver allows him to browse a merchant's "trash" bin, where lo and behold, Identify lets him find a dark and edgy sentient sword named Greed that can cut through anything and gain additional forms by giving it stat points. He goes out to the forest and kills some goblins, taking our MC from a Stat spread of 100-150 to about 1,200 in a single afternoon. How does this stack up vs others? No idea cause the author still doesn't say and seems to just make everything up as he goes.

Not long after, our MC kills a horde of goblins and hobgoblins and doesn't harvest any of the ears to turn in for bounty cash. Sure his Gluttony skill was in starvation mode and he had to keep killing until it was satisfied, but surely a kid who grew up impoverished wouldn't leave all that money lying on the ground afterward? Right? Right....?

Anyway, the story keeps going for a while until it ends randomly about 150 pages later after hitting the Light Novel page count. Nothing really felt genuine to the character or remotely realistic, even for a half-baked derivative fantasy land.

The only reason I'm glad I read this is so I don't have to feel like I'm missing anything when Amazon keeps popping this series into my Recommended. If not for the 2017 publication date, I would think an AI wrote this after binge-watching anime.
Profile Image for Akshay.
805 reviews5 followers
March 6, 2025

Title: Berserk of Gluttony, Volume 1
Author: Ichika Isshiki
Rating: ★★★☆☆ (3/5)



Berserk of Gluttony, Volume 1 takes readers on a dark and thrilling adventure, offering a fresh take on the fantasy genre. The protagonist, Fate Graphite, is a downtrodden character who begins his journey in a world where people’s worth is determined by their special abilities. This novel blends action, emotional depth, and intricate world-building to create a compelling and engaging experience for its audience.




"There is a hunger deep inside me, one that no food or drink can satisfy." — Fate Graphite



The central theme of Berserk of Gluttony revolves around Fate Graphite’s struggle with his seemingly worthless power, "Gluttony." This ability, which initially appears as a curse, eventually reveals its darker and more potent side, allowing Fate to absorb the power of the enemies he kills. Throughout Volume 1, Fate’s transformation from a powerless, mistreated guard to a formidable force of destruction is a key element that drives the narrative forward.



Plot and Pacing


The plot follows a standard underdog narrative in the beginning but quickly veers into darker territory as Fate begins to unleash the full extent of his power. The pacing is balanced well, with enough action sequences to keep readers engaged, while also allowing time for character development and introspection. The tension rises as Fate’s hunger grows insatiable, which creates a palpable sense of dread throughout the story.




Fate’s initial suffering and hardships
Discovery of his hidden ability
His internal conflict and moral dilemma
The mystery surrounding his power



These elements are woven seamlessly into the narrative, leading readers to care deeply about Fate’s journey and his internal struggles.



Character Development


Fate Graphite is a deeply flawed and tortured character, but it’s precisely these qualities that make him relatable. His internal battle between using his power for good or allowing it to consume him makes him more than just a typical action-fantasy hero. The supporting characters, while not fully fleshed out in this volume, provide enough intrigue to keep readers interested. There’s a particular emphasis on Fate’s growing relationship with Roxy Heart, a knight who represents his ideal of justice and honor. However, as the story progresses, it’s clear that Fate’s path is much darker than hers.



World-Building


One of the strengths of Berserk of Gluttony is its immersive world-building. The setting is a typical medieval fantasy world with a distinctly dark tone, filled with nobles, knights, and magical abilities that determine one’s place in society. The author subtly introduces the rules of the world, especially the hierarchy based on skills, which plays a critical role in how the characters interact with each other. The Gluttony skill itself adds a layer of mystery that keeps readers hooked, as more is revealed about its true nature as the story progresses.



Themes and Tone


The novel delves into themes of power, corruption, and moral ambiguity. Fate’s journey is not only physical but also psychological, as he grapples with the consequences of his newfound strength. The tone of the book is dark and somber, but there are moments of hope and humanity that keep the reader emotionally invested. Fate’s constant battle to retain his humanity while being overwhelmed by his cursed ability makes for an intense and captivating narrative.



Writing Style


Isshiki’s writing is straightforward, with an emphasis on action and internal monologues. The prose is not overly complex, but it effectively conveys Fate’s emotional state and the intensity of his experiences. The descriptive battle scenes are a highlight, immersing readers in the chaos and brutality of Fate’s encounters. While the dialogue can sometimes feel predictable, it doesn’t detract much from the overall storytelling.



Spoilers and Key Moments


Final Thoughts


Berserk of Gluttony, Volume 1 is a gripping entry into the dark fantasy genre, offering readers a protagonist who is both tragic and powerful. While the story touches on familiar tropes, it adds enough unique elements to keep readers invested. The first volume leaves plenty of room for growth, especially in terms of world-building and character relationships, setting up what promises to be an exciting and morally complex series.




If you enjoy dark fantasy with flawed protagonists and high-stakes action, Berserk of Gluttony is a series worth diving into. However, be prepared for a journey that explores the darker side of power and the price one must pay for strength.

120 reviews
November 11, 2020
This light novel is a great start to a series that I can't wait to read more of. This fantasy story is a great twist on the OP hero. Fate's Gluttony skill is a double edged sword which both gives him massive power and costs him great pain and suffering. The only thing that I don't enjoy about Fate is his stereotypical dense attitude when it comes to Roxy's feelings for him. I get it, it's cute, but it's so overplayed in every light novel and anime and manga in this genre that it just makes me roll my eyes when I come across. it. Other than that, I highly recommend that you pick this up and give it a read.
Profile Image for Tarl.
Author 25 books81 followers
October 22, 2021
I admit, the cover is what pulled me into this one. Once I started reading though, it was both really good, and yet, very cliche. Pretty much your standard down on their luck boy who is abused gets a powerful girl with status who is interested in him basically adopt him while he suddenly gets an item that helps him to unlock hidden potentials. Sound familiar?

Cliches aside, I have to say I enjoyed the concept of the protagonist. Being trapped at a beginning level, never being able to evolve as a person until you find a way to steal it from others, but it comes with a huge price and requires a fair bit of management on top of it. I admit, that was what kept me reading. That and the fact that the author is actually fairly good at their craft.

Yes, the sword and mask feel very edge lord, but not even close to stories that feel like they are trying too hard, such as Torture Princess: Fremd Torturchen, Vol. 1 or The King of the Dead at the Dark Palace, Vol. 1. Instead, it fits nicely, and sets up a fairly good juxtaposition for later on between the main character and his love interest.

In the end, I will definitely be continuing this series, and mostly due to the writing and how easy it is to read. There were moments where the pacing was a bit slow, but they were there to show certain aspects of the protagonist's life and flesh out his character, which was good. I will say the end it from the love interest's point of view felt a bit weird. To find out she always liked him, and to basically get retold things we had already been told in the main storyline felt very repetitive and by the end of it I felt I should have just skipped over it.

So yeah, if you are looking for an interesting take on a fantasy world litrpg, this would be one for you.
Profile Image for LaPommequirougit.
1,261 reviews51 followers
May 25, 2021
https://lapommequirougit.com/2021/05/...

Je suis heureuse de voir de plus en plus de light novel originaux être publié en France. Autant vous dire, j’étais comme une gamine quand j’ai appris la parution de ce titre qui avait l’air d’enfer rien qu’à son résumé !

Dans le monde dans lequel nous nous plongeons. Il y a deux types de personnes. Ceux qui ont des compétences puissantes et les autres. Fate, comme toute personne dans ce monde, naît avec une compétence. Sauf que la sienne est sans doute la plus inutile au monde : elle lui donne faim.

Sauf qu’un jour, un voleur se faufile dans le château. Pour l’arrêter, il finit par le tuer. C’est alors que sa compétente gloutonnerie s’active et… dévore l’âme du malheureux. C’est ainsi qu’il acquière ses facultés spéciales ainsi que ses points de statistique. Il découvre la réelle utilité de sa compétence et se rend rapidement compte que cette dernière est autant une bénédiction qu’une malédiction…

J’ai adoré cette lecture. Je ne pouvais pas décrocher mon nez de cette dernière. Je lisais, je lisais et comme Fate, j’ai activé une compétence gloutonnerie spéciale lecture. En un rien de temps, j’avais déjà fini ce light novel.

Le récit est très intéressant. On se plonge rapidement dans l’univers et on s’attache rapidement au personnage de Fate. Évidemment, sa compétence gloutonnerie intrigue et de ce fait, on enchaîne les chapitres, afin de trouver des réponses à nos questions.

De plus, les scènes d’action sont superbes. Elles sont intenses, bien rythmées et haletantes. J’avais à chaque fois le souffle coupé, à attendre le coup final !

En bref, c’est une lecture qui m’a fait forte impression. Je suis déjà impatiente de voir la suite. J’ai hâte de voir comment Fate tournera, les choix qu’il fera.
Profile Image for Ladz.
Author 9 books91 followers
May 6, 2021
Content warnings: Abuse, violence, fantasy violence, dismemberment, death of a parent, poverty

Welcome to my first ever light novel. It came up on my radar because two of my friends had worked on the editing and localization, but I was not prepared for the fun time to be had.

Fate Graphite has an ability called Gluttony, which grants him massive power at the expense of, well, starvation. He’s a commoner who happens upon a snarky sword named Greed who helps him enhance his abilities at the cost of leveling up. He also comes under the employment of Lady Roxy, with whom he has very oblivious romantic feelings.

What surprised me is that despite the very RPG-esque descriptions of abilities and leveling, this isn’t an isekai. This light novel starts and stays in its secondary world fantasy. It’s a bit cheesy and takes some getting used to but Ichika uses it to great effect to establish stakes.

The art is great. Loved seeing the depiction of key scenes and getting to know Fate and Roxy a bit better. Seeing Greed transformed between sword and bow helped put it together better than my mind’s image could supply.

Overall, fun dynamics between characters, interesting world-building, definitely will continue reading.
Profile Image for Pablo García.
855 reviews22 followers
February 18, 2022
It is very well written, has cohesion and balance. The only faults, maybe, are that it lacks originality. Grabs too many ideas from Berserker, Re:Monster, Second Coming of Gluttony, and the Seven Deadly Sins, Is it wrong to pick up girls in a dungeon?etc. So much so that one wonders why copyrights, trademarks and patents are issued if most of the authors of the light-web novel genre are simply copy-cat-ing everything.
I'm looking forward to the rest of the series and sincerely hope that this light novel stand out from the rest.
Profile Image for Slick Daslickest .
122 reviews10 followers
January 11, 2024
Wicked awesome
Watched the anime yesterday couldn’t get enough
Found out it was light novels!

Reading is my thing idk why I even bother with movies and shows

Great book even though I watched the dope anime. This book covers half of the anime. I guess the next book will finish the first season. Excited to see what’s next. More depth to the book got me all in my feelings crying and ish.
Rofl good ish now for the next one 🙌🏾
265 reviews5 followers
November 3, 2020
Weak story

The story doesn’t bring anything new, the most interesting aspect is the sword Greed, which could make a great magic/cursed item in an TRPG campaign. Unfortunately the dialogues and rest of characters are very weak, the battle scenes are predictable and simple, and a lot of small details that rest from an otherwise interesting story.
Profile Image for Bernard.
491 reviews6 followers
January 1, 2021
The interaction between the curse and the weapon added an interesting flavor. The rest just did not work for me.

The bad guys were cartoonish. The good guys were retreads of character types we've seen many times before, with nothing all that special happening.

The book wasn't all that interesting.
Profile Image for Kristian Dobson.
411 reviews11 followers
October 16, 2021
This is your usual JRPG-styled, level-up, goblin fighting, knights and overpowered protag type Light Novel shenanigans, but Fate’s (protagonist’s name) power of Gluttony has an interesting gimmick that could lead to some actual consequences in the future. Whether that pans out remains to be seen, but this was a fun volume and a solid start to what could be a great series.
Profile Image for Emilien Pillon.
13 reviews
August 20, 2022
Une bonne surprise. Lorsque la version française est sortie, je suis tombé par hasard dessus, et j'ai décidé de lui donner sa chance. Et le voici maintenant, une semaine après, ayant dévoré les quatre premiers tomes. Ce n'est certes pas l'histoire du siècle, mais l'auteur sait ce qu'il fait, maîtrise son monde et ses personnages, et c'est intéressant
Profile Image for Canton Little.
80 reviews4 followers
May 27, 2023
For a light novel, it has compelling storytelling and an interesting plot. There are questions about the characters that are slowly being revealed. There are some pacing issues and some plot elements that should've been clearer. I look forward to the anime adaptation. I look forward to volume 2

Light novel rating: 84/100
Profile Image for Enzo.
923 reviews1 follower
January 18, 2025
I really needed a palate cleanser after two tough books. So "Berserk of Gluttony". I really enjoyed it. Fate is a good guy given immense power by Gluttony and he is trying to stay in the straight and narrow road to not overkill due to Gluttony. Now I think I can go watch the Anime and see how much it differs.
28 reviews
October 29, 2020
Good read

I like the vibe of this book. Too many times the holy Paladin's are the perfect people and everyone else is evil. I can't wait to read more about our MC who steal stats and abilities.
4 reviews
March 29, 2021
Premise is solid and it's finally not an isekai LN. Author's clearly aware of the issues with OP heroes and has a couple checks on him to avoid that from getting too out of hand. May be a bit generic at first with some common tropes and recent trends but still fairly enjoyable.
1 review
November 4, 2021
I cant read much novels mainly because I just get bored instantly so if I can read a book without putting it down its a good book in my opinion and this was the best out of those very few books
that I don't throw to the side because I find them to be shit
Profile Image for Karsun B.
99 reviews1 follower
January 21, 2022
If you want a fantasy novel that isn't an isekai definitely give this novel a read. It is a mixture of RPGs, fantasy, action, and adventure. If you don't want to read the novel definitely check out the manga which is amazingly illustrated and doesn't cut out too much from the novels.
6 reviews
June 13, 2022
Honestly going into this I thought it was gonna be really REALLY generic power fantasy. And thought it is a little bit it also shows restraint. I feel like Fay didn’t work for his abilities really but enjoyed it nonetheless. I’m excited to see Fay’s growth as well as his dynamic with Roxy.
Profile Image for Tyrannicus-Rex Stormbourne.
7 reviews1 follower
December 29, 2023
Hidden gems don’t dazzle any brighter than this!!! A series whose hype matches its title! This will have you devour it greedily with insatiable gluttony as you’ll go BESERK for the next volume(s)!!!!!!
Profile Image for Johnwilly Broyles.
8 reviews1 follower
January 22, 2021
I like it

Very good editing, word flow was smooth and the story progression was easy to follow. A short read for myself, would recommend.
25 reviews4 followers
March 26, 2021
very good story, It neither too fast or neither slow pace, even if it doesn't have too much action it very good to read.
Profile Image for Amanda Evans.
Author 5 books8 followers
December 29, 2021
An interesting story.

The character is overpowered, but the book has cute parts like his love for Roxy and the old man.
7 reviews
February 8, 2022
A well written fantasy. Explores the classic trope of how far is too far when it comes to using a darker power. I will absolutely read more.
Profile Image for Nicole Nieto.
Author 2 books4 followers
May 20, 2023
A very interesting premise. A character who is constantly hungry and can only be sated by eating the souls of other creatures. I am definitely looking forward to where this series goes.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews

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