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Sword Art Online: Progressive Light Novels #8
Sword Art Online: Progressive, Vol. 8
A RACE AGAINST THE CLOCK!
The secret feud between the Nachtoy and the Korloy families, who control the Volupta Grand Casino on the seventh floor, takes an unprecedented turn when Kirito and Asuna intervene. But when Kirito attempts to expose the Korloy family’s misdeeds, he ends up stumbling into a trap. Now he has just two days to unravel a mystery, put an end to an unscrupulous conspiracy, and defeat the floor boss. It’s all leading up to a showdown in the arena where everything’s on the line!
The secret feud between the Nachtoy and the Korloy families, who control the Volupta Grand Casino on the seventh floor, takes an unprecedented turn when Kirito and Asuna intervene. But when Kirito attempts to expose the Korloy family’s misdeeds, he ends up stumbling into a trap. Now he has just two days to unravel a mystery, put an end to an unscrupulous conspiracy, and defeat the floor boss. It’s all leading up to a showdown in the arena where everything’s on the line!
248 pages, Paperback
First published June 10, 2021
36 people are currently reading
249 people want to read
About the author
Reki Kawahara
284 books913 followersKawahara Reki (川原礫) is the writer of Sword Art Online and Accel World. He also uses the pen name Kunori Fumio. His hobby is cycling.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
August 21, 2022
I have a feeling this series is going to end soon, even reaching floor 10 would be surprising at this point..
December 5, 2022
I'm really enjoying the series, in my opinion Mr. Kawahara presents exactly what I want from it, more stories and adventures from Kirito and Asuna. I really appreciate the world that has been created, every floor feels unique and has it's own background.
There are some differences in the series that I do miss a bit compared with the anime/earlier series. Combat felt really important and I always enjoy living the images in my head of Kirito (and Asuna) fighting for their lives against and/or slashing through monsters. I loved the combat system and the feel it gave when reading through such things, in the past two novels I missed this a little bit and it felt that this might be shortened purely because the novels should be readable and not too long.
Anyways, love the stories and can't wait for the next one, may it be a 2 parter floor or not. ;)
There are some differences in the series that I do miss a bit compared with the anime/earlier series. Combat felt really important and I always enjoy living the images in my head of Kirito (and Asuna) fighting for their lives against and/or slashing through monsters. I loved the combat system and the feel it gave when reading through such things, in the past two novels I missed this a little bit and it felt that this might be shortened purely because the novels should be readable and not too long.
Anyways, love the stories and can't wait for the next one, may it be a 2 parter floor or not. ;)
July 2, 2024
Chaos
So much of the first 2/3 of this book was wasted on a SIDE QUEST. Kawahara also repeats a lot of the same stuff from the previous volume. The ending felt rushed. And most importantly of all Kirito was WAY out of character.
So much of the first 2/3 of this book was wasted on a SIDE QUEST. Kawahara also repeats a lot of the same stuff from the previous volume. The ending felt rushed. And most importantly of all Kirito was WAY out of character.
June 9, 2022
This is the 10th. Anniversary of the Sword Art Online franchise. It actually turns out that this year 2022, 10,000 players will get stuck into a VRMMORPG (Virtual Reality Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game), called Sword Art Online, SAO, (on Nov. 4th. 2022). It is called a Death-Game by its author because the players must finish it or die trying…Without any pomp or circumstance, the author and his team (publisher, anime producer, etc.) have not really prepared anything special to celebrate the date in which the alternate reality world game started. They just have a second film (Scherzo of a Deep Night) launch scheduled for Japan and the U.S. For the rest of the World, the 10 year anniversary celebration will probably occur in 2023, if at all…
This Volume 8, was finished together with Volume 7 in 2020, the author and the Japanese publisher chose January 2021, for Volume 7 and March 2021 for Volume 8, Fifteen months later, the fans and readers of the SAO franchise in the rest of the World, get to read for the first time, Volume 8, which was delayed from it’s 31 of May original date, to the 7th of June, 2022.
Author is not launching or publishing any SAO volumes on the 10th. Anniversary of the Death Game. Anime producers did create a 10th. Anniversary logo (black and white) with half a face (that could be anyone and it is meant to be Kirito) and 10th. Anniversary, Animation Sword Art Online written at the bottom (from Kadokawa).
For me, Sword Art Online, was my first anime-light novel series. It had strong ethical values, a constant fight versus right and wrong, good versus evil. It was also the first time, venturing into the VRMMORPG/LitRPG genre that is so widespread today.
Changes point of view of narrator at the drop of a hat, without warning or direction.
ABEC’s illustrations of Asuna and Kirito, almost make them become other people, they look younger and different, almost as if his style of drawing changed in the middle of the Progressive series…
Volumes 7-8 were a two part volume, called Rhapsody of
Crimson Heat by the author. He uses “song” synonyms and styles in his SAO Light novel series since the beginning, he explained that he played with the idea of following a musical pace, style, etc. to tell his story. Author wrote in the “Afterword”: “to address the subtitle of the seventh-floor story, “Rhapsody” is a word that refers (among other things) to a free-flowing musical composition that is unbound by most traditional forms. My initial plan was for the seventh floor to consist of a number of independent events happening in succession, but the casino plot turned out to carry most of the weight on its own.”
Casino Floor was part of the 2 month Beta Test, according to the Progressive Series, but was not reached in the original SAO Light novel series or the anime series. (Because Beta-Testers only reached the sixth floor in the two month-time).
Author talks about the “Dark Elves - Keys Quest” will be present on Volume 9, but says that the Dark Elves arc started on Floor 3, on Volume 2 of the Progressive Series.
Volume 8, writes about foul play/ fraud, by one of the two families that are trying to gain control of the main Casino. The Progressive series deals with Asuna’s Hot-Bath fetish, and the fancy eating around the different floors that the game designers added to the SAO game. In part it was a way to change it up for the author, or to fill up the new Progressive series with bath and eating anecdotes.
Then there is a desperate quest to save a noble damsel, with vampires, poisonous snakes and even Dragons.
Knowing the author, another volume will probably be turned in, in December/January. So in English we will see it, by mid 2024. Because Volume 5-6 were a one floor, two part volume, and Volume 7-8 were also a one floor, two part volume, most probably this style of writing will continue. I think author will eventually "abandon" this progressive series, since he is taking over two years to publish each volume (on average) and Aincrad has 100 Floors, of which Kirito conquered 74 floors of them all. So about 150 years will be needed if the author keeps on delaying the inevitable abandonment of this Progressive Light Novel Series. The second film, (Scherzo of a Deep Night) will sell about 25% less of the first film (Aria of a Starless Night), just because the beginning of SAO light novel series was more important and relevant than the subsequent volumes and episodes. That and the author and his production team, seem to care little about the future of this franchise.
This Volume 8, was finished together with Volume 7 in 2020, the author and the Japanese publisher chose January 2021, for Volume 7 and March 2021 for Volume 8, Fifteen months later, the fans and readers of the SAO franchise in the rest of the World, get to read for the first time, Volume 8, which was delayed from it’s 31 of May original date, to the 7th of June, 2022.
Author is not launching or publishing any SAO volumes on the 10th. Anniversary of the Death Game. Anime producers did create a 10th. Anniversary logo (black and white) with half a face (that could be anyone and it is meant to be Kirito) and 10th. Anniversary, Animation Sword Art Online written at the bottom (from Kadokawa).
For me, Sword Art Online, was my first anime-light novel series. It had strong ethical values, a constant fight versus right and wrong, good versus evil. It was also the first time, venturing into the VRMMORPG/LitRPG genre that is so widespread today.
Changes point of view of narrator at the drop of a hat, without warning or direction.
ABEC’s illustrations of Asuna and Kirito, almost make them become other people, they look younger and different, almost as if his style of drawing changed in the middle of the Progressive series…
Volumes 7-8 were a two part volume, called Rhapsody of
Crimson Heat by the author. He uses “song” synonyms and styles in his SAO Light novel series since the beginning, he explained that he played with the idea of following a musical pace, style, etc. to tell his story. Author wrote in the “Afterword”: “to address the subtitle of the seventh-floor story, “Rhapsody” is a word that refers (among other things) to a free-flowing musical composition that is unbound by most traditional forms. My initial plan was for the seventh floor to consist of a number of independent events happening in succession, but the casino plot turned out to carry most of the weight on its own.”
Casino Floor was part of the 2 month Beta Test, according to the Progressive Series, but was not reached in the original SAO Light novel series or the anime series. (Because Beta-Testers only reached the sixth floor in the two month-time).
Author talks about the “Dark Elves - Keys Quest” will be present on Volume 9, but says that the Dark Elves arc started on Floor 3, on Volume 2 of the Progressive Series.
Volume 8, writes about foul play/ fraud, by one of the two families that are trying to gain control of the main Casino. The Progressive series deals with Asuna’s Hot-Bath fetish, and the fancy eating around the different floors that the game designers added to the SAO game. In part it was a way to change it up for the author, or to fill up the new Progressive series with bath and eating anecdotes.
Then there is a desperate quest to save a noble damsel, with vampires, poisonous snakes and even Dragons.
Knowing the author, another volume will probably be turned in, in December/January. So in English we will see it, by mid 2024. Because Volume 5-6 were a one floor, two part volume, and Volume 7-8 were also a one floor, two part volume, most probably this style of writing will continue. I think author will eventually "abandon" this progressive series, since he is taking over two years to publish each volume (on average) and Aincrad has 100 Floors, of which Kirito conquered 74 floors of them all. So about 150 years will be needed if the author keeps on delaying the inevitable abandonment of this Progressive Light Novel Series. The second film, (Scherzo of a Deep Night) will sell about 25% less of the first film (Aria of a Starless Night), just because the beginning of SAO light novel series was more important and relevant than the subsequent volumes and episodes. That and the author and his production team, seem to care little about the future of this franchise.
April 1, 2024
It gets a 3 stars besides the stale formula and crawling progress (slowed down further by it being a two parter that could be a single episode) because it adds stakes and genuine curiosity as to how he is going to get out of his new predicament. I’m guessing now they’ll do a Supernatural on the character and pull a solution out of nowhere and completely contrary to the world rules but who knows?
I definitely suffer from SAO:P fatigue though as the writing isn’t necessarily top quality. For an easy read where you can flip open your head and take your brains out for a few hours though, it is perfect. It only took longer than that for me to read because I had work to consider and other books to read alongside it. Does it deserve a re-read? Not too sure yet.
I definitely suffer from SAO:P fatigue though as the writing isn’t necessarily top quality. For an easy read where you can flip open your head and take your brains out for a few hours though, it is perfect. It only took longer than that for me to read because I had work to consider and other books to read alongside it. Does it deserve a re-read? Not too sure yet.
January 4, 2023
I thought this was going to be quite tedious, with all the monster fighting at the casino. But it turned out to be rather exciting! We’ve got some new advanced AIs coming into the picture. And a really omg event during the boss fight. I do keep wondering how existence of advanced AIs will be explained. And will they influence how the ending of the series plays out. Surely Kirito won’t want to destroy them all in completing the game?
I was also wondering what these novels are like for readers that have never played an mmorpg? Is it confusing, or more fun because it’s all new information?
On the note of mmorpgs, the mc who introduces the monsters has very similar dialogue to the beast master in an elder scrolls online dungeon! Did anyone else notice this?
I was also wondering what these novels are like for readers that have never played an mmorpg? Is it confusing, or more fun because it’s all new information?
On the note of mmorpgs, the mc who introduces the monsters has very similar dialogue to the beast master in an elder scrolls online dungeon! Did anyone else notice this?
June 2, 2024
Overall this was a good novel, better than the newest SAO novels. Kirito, Asuna are still on the 7th floor, attempting to solve the dispute between the families running he Casinos. Also there is a race against time to beat the floor boss.
The plot was enjoyable the characters are still the same enjoyable people they were in previous volumes. I do enjoy the Progressive novels more than the main SAO novels. But it's going to take a bit to cover every floor.
The plot was enjoyable the characters are still the same enjoyable people they were in previous volumes. I do enjoy the Progressive novels more than the main SAO novels. But it's going to take a bit to cover every floor.
July 18, 2022
I just love how most of this book was Kirito being made fun of by all his girl friends, it was too entertaining.
Beside that, I must say I'm quite shocked by the way events turned in the end and I'm really looking forward to seeing how the rest of the story unfolds, especially The Elf War Quest.
Beside that, I must say I'm quite shocked by the way events turned in the end and I'm really looking forward to seeing how the rest of the story unfolds, especially The Elf War Quest.
October 27, 2022
The progressive books are so good! Not sure how far into Aincrad he’ll end up taking the series and how much he’ll stick to events of the original story, but each floor is so fun. The npcs and side quests have gotten super enthralling, and the ending of this one was way cool.
January 29, 2023
I really enjoyed this book, I thought it was great especially after the last novel.
Only downside is I felt the ending was a little rushed and would have appreciated a bit more excitement for the floor boss.
Only downside is I felt the ending was a little rushed and would have appreciated a bit more excitement for the floor boss.
October 10, 2021
Better than the last book, the backstory behind the adventure on the 7th floor was good.
September 29, 2022
Well, the number of volumes already exceeding the number of floors being climbed 🤣
March 12, 2023
Quá dài dòng!
Không biết bao giờ tác giả mới có thể rút gọn 1 tầng 2 tập xuống còn 1 tầng 1 tập đây nữa.
Kiểu này chắc đến già vẫn chưa đến tầng 75.
Không biết bao giờ tác giả mới có thể rút gọn 1 tầng 2 tập xuống còn 1 tầng 1 tập đây nữa.
Kiểu này chắc đến già vẫn chưa đến tầng 75.
July 24, 2023
After spending one year repeatedly starting and stopping this book, I finally decided to push through it. Half of volume reads like fluff, which made it hard to get into. Once they start to execute their plans in the second half, it becomes more focused. Overall, this was a straightforward conclusion to the 7th floor. That's about it, just generally uninspired.
February 8, 2025
Well that's a surprise! I don't know how the author is going to deal with this and I'm kind of excited to find out.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews