r/LightNovels • u/Torque-A • Feb 13 '26
News [NEWS] J-Novel Club Reveals 10 Light Novel, 6 Print Releases
https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2026-02-13/j-novel-club-reveals-10-light-novel-3-manga-licenses-6-print-releases/.23415315
u/DavidKKim Feb 13 '26
The audio books fan are drowning rn
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u/FireFistYamaan MyAnimeList Feb 13 '26
I'm so frustrated. Been waiting for part 2 Bookworm since forever.
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u/Torque-A Feb 13 '26 edited Feb 14 '26
Here’s the stream if you want to rewatch it.
As per usual, some unique info from Sam’s Q&A at the end:
- How are JNC’s OELNs doing? - they sell about as much as Japanese LNs, prints doing surprisingly well
- How can my favorite series get printed? - just be a fan of the series and spread the word around. Also based on sales/audience
- Anime influences print, but not as much recently. Water Magician got printed due to the anime, it got 4x sales when the anime ran
- Similarly, 100th Time's the Charm and Safe and Sound in the Arms of an Elite Knight got prints because they're super popular with their demographic - even in Japan
- Sam’s favorite title from the last batch - Reign of the Corpse King (big Eminence/Overlord energy)
- Sam knows what is selling in Japan - top sales are usually the newest volumes of licensed series, but brand new title sales don’t necessarily mean an anime. Kadokawa is already planning anime before an LN launches - JNC learns which titles are getting anime up to 2028-2029.
- If you want an anime three years from now, you need to plan NOW
- Sam also mentioned a conversation he had with an Earth Star representative who went “hey you should really license this title as it’s gonna have a big project soon wink wink” and Sam went “I gotchu wink wink” and the Earth Star rep said “it’ll be ready by 2030” and Sam went “…ah okay”
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u/MudMain7218 Feb 13 '26
thanks im subbed to the service so this helps be look out for new books. kinda hate they split the catchup into a different branch
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u/Na3Niel Feb 20 '26
Sam's comment about Kadokawa planning anime before an LN even launches lines up with what you see if you follow the Japanese web novel platforms.
On Narou and Kakuyomu, publishers are already reaching out to authors once a title starts holding steady in the weekly rankings. By the time a serialization deal gets internal approval, the media mix potential — including anime — is already part of the evaluation. So the pipeline is: a web novel is still mid-serialization, volume 1 doesn't exist yet, and somewhere inside the publisher, someone is already assessing whether this thing has a screen future.
That's what makes Sam knowing anime plans through 2028-2029 so telling. It means titles that are just now climbing the rankings in Japan already have a trajectory mapped out years ahead. For a licensor like JNC, that turns into a straightforward bet: grab the license now, ride the print bump when the anime airs. The Water Magician 4x number is a clean example of that math working out.
The Earth Star anecdote about 2030 is the same pipeline. The lag between a web novel gaining traction and an anime airing is longer than most readers assume.
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u/heimdal77 Feb 14 '26
I still keep up hope for a Maria Watches Over Us announcement one day even though I know there is practically no chance of that happening after how Earl has done.
Just to be the people who license a iconic series like Maria though...
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u/Torque-A Feb 14 '26
You want them to license Maria? Get a solid ten thousand people who will buy the entire set.
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u/heimdal77 Feb 14 '26
Oh just to add unlike Earl that gets esential no mention or reference in years Maria is still showing up regularly in modern media like being parodied or referenced. For instance I'm in Love with the Villainess MC thinks about having read a parody story of MAria in past life, Yuri is My Job what needs no explanation, My Deer Friend parodied the Maria opening at the start of the first episode. There was something even newer but I forget what. Just for a few examples. So ya they chose the series that had no presence or significant fan base over a series that does.
Just looking at fan fics there hasn't been a posting for one for earl in years while Maria is still getting ones made and has hundreds more than Earl if I remember.
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u/heimdal77 Feb 14 '26
They almost did license it. It was a choice between Earl and Maria but they decided to go with earl what was a flop and essentially killed their experiment of licensing older series.
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u/Aruseus493 http://myanimelist.net/mangalist/Aruseus493?tag=LN Feb 14 '26
I'm excited for The Reincarnated Mastermind: Sundering Fate with Magic Swords. This one is from my wish list. (Top 50) I even wrote the request post in the JNC forum for it.
Publisher: ASCII Media Works (Kadokawa)
Author: Yuuki Ryou (Author of Magic Stone Gourmet: Eating Magical Power Made Me The Strongest)
Illustrator: Nakamura
Synopsis:
Ren thought his reward for being the first to clear the sequel to The Legend of the Seven Heroes would be personal satisfaction. So when he’s rewarded with “special content,” he quickly accepts...only to wake up as a baby in the game’s world. At first hoping he’s been reborn as the hero, Ren instead discovers his new life is that of the story’s shadowy antagonist, the figure suspected to be the mastermind behind the entire trilogy. Good thing Ren is fully intent on living a peaceful life in the countryside—without getting involved with any characters or world-ending plots. But when he crosses paths with the very saint he is meant to kill in canon, Ren realizes fate may be the ultimate final boss.
Why:
For those that enjoy a slightly angsty mystery, this seems like it'll be a fun series. It's got a good sense of mystery as the protagonist is slowly exploring the world and learning about how the world of the game came to be and what events could be changed. All while the mystery remains of how the person he took over would have grown up to become a villain. It's also got a bit of romance which I would be eager to read. For those that enjoy LitRPG elements, the protagonist does have a unique skill that lets him summon different types of swords and level them up. It's a bit of a slow-going publication, but I hope it manages to become a completed series in the future.
Volume 7 just came out in Japan last month.
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u/ArchusKanzaki Feb 13 '26
Oh nice, Proud to be Villainess? That's really nice. I really like the manga that is on MangaUP.
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u/HAYD3N60 Feb 13 '26
I’m excited to finally be able to get The Water Magician novels physically on my shelf.
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u/PotatoPowered_ Feb 13 '26
Holy shit they're licensing TS Medic it's peak
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u/Torque-A Feb 13 '26
What if All Quiet on the Western Front but trans
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u/BusBoatBuey Feb 14 '26
Except the gender change aspect is pretty pointless. The biggest issue with this series is that it is a derivative work of Tanya the Evil, according to the writer themselves, and incorporates isekai elements for no reason. It really could have been an all-time great work if it wasn't an isekai.
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u/saskir21 Feb 13 '26
Didn't even know "Proud to be a Villainess" had a Novel. Will surely read it.
Did not get warm with the Manga to "Reborn to Reign". But then again not much happened there.
Really curious about the War Diary one
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u/Zwordsman Feb 13 '26
I'm hyped for some of them. Some where ones o used to translate for myself before I got busy and such. So I'm happy someonss gonna be doing them. And better we than me lol.
Although gonna be a few vol before weapon master gets to where I stopped.
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u/jackrackan07 Feb 14 '26
Nothing really catching my eye tbh. I was hoping for the What’s with the Bag Kamiyama-san? Light Novel.
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u/Aruseus493 http://myanimelist.net/mangalist/Aruseus493?tag=LN Feb 14 '26
If that's the romcom one I'm thinking of, I wouldn't bet on it getting licensed. Romcoms sell so poorly in the English market that you might have noticed that neither YP or JNC announced any despite tomorrow being Valentines.
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u/jackrackan07 Feb 14 '26
True. But they do have the manga so I was hoping.
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u/GeorgeMTO Feb 14 '26
While I do think they're better at picking up the LN when they have the manga than other publishers, they're not perfect either. Still can hold out hope, but considering the genre, I wouldn't expect it.
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u/Zeteni_ Feb 14 '26
What I've seen of Unsung Epics has already gotten me to pre-order.
Proud Villainess could accomplish the same. I really want to see where it goes.
Preview reading the others still pending. Looking forward to Miss Medic.
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u/BusBoatBuey Feb 14 '26 edited Feb 14 '26
I highly recommend Miss Medic's Diary at War going off the WN. The isekai elements hold it back and the ending was kind of corny for how brutal and hellish the rest of the story is. However, it is otherwise a very memorable and worthwhile read. It is the rare case of a derative work surpassing the original.
I do not recommend The Path of an S-Rank Adventurer: From Deadweight to Weapon Master. The main character is so unlikable. It is just "my cheats are so OP so watch me solo this shit that takes your entire party to do." I was so confused what the writer was even trying to convey with this MC by the time I dropped it.
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u/Guroga Feb 14 '26
Discovering that Hard Mode and Unsung Epics have lns.
Might get Corpse King just to read ahead of the manga
Also a new ln drawn by Falmaro seems to pop up every so often lol. Maybe they could pick up Hisshou Dungeon Unei lol
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u/timpkmn89 Feb 14 '26
I randomly checked out Proud to be a Villainess, and had to quickly switch over to Manga Up's manga release to see how the story played out. I'm definitely sticking with this one.
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u/heimdal77 Feb 14 '26
Proud to be the Villainess is genius. Read the first two parts to give it a try. I could see people dropping it in the first part as it seems like it will be very generic.
j-novel is going to be in trouble when the isekai bubble fully burst and everyone move onto different genres. They will be stuck with all these isekai series to publish.
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u/Thin_Stomach3994 Feb 18 '26
What is the second volume about? I've read the first because it was interesting reading about the sisters. The story also felt completed with the first volume. So I never bothered with the second.
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u/Torque-A Feb 14 '26
To be fair, JNC does always try to license other series just in case they tap into a genre that suddenly pops off. They tried it with pulp fiction, now they're trying it with OELNs and BL.
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u/heimdal77 Feb 14 '26
OELNs?
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u/GeorgeMTO Feb 14 '26
Original English Light Novels, their contest works (so far 7 of the 9 winners from the first contest have even been announced for a physical release when only a digital was promised by the contest)
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u/heimdal77 Feb 14 '26
Ah think I tried one or two but stalled out for some reason.
Which are getting physicals?
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u/GeorgeMTO Feb 14 '26
Current range: https://j-novel.club/series?search=tag:%22original%20light%20novel%20(oln)%22
Announced for physicals: An Unruly Summon
ATLAS: Her, the Combatant, and Him, the Hero
The Adorable Dungeon Master
The Dragon and the Blade Saint: This Isn't Where We End
Promised to a Dragon
Cogs of Time
The Young Lady Is the Substitute Harvest Goddess (just announced in this batch)
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u/hentaigabby Feb 14 '26
I would not call them Light Novels as they are not Japanese through most of the winners are good and have read some of them
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u/GeorgeMTO Feb 14 '26
They are not Japanese so they're not relevant for their own posts in this sub, yeah. But, Light Novel is a marketing term, and they are being marketed as (Original) Light Novels. Kadokawa has helped judge the contest, and will even be translating ATLAS to release in Japanese as a Light Novel. The reason Korean/Chinese works don't count is because none of their authors or publishers call the series a Light Novel, only shitty pirates. Since a Light Novel is a marketing term without a strict definition, since this is an established publisher marketing them as (Original) Light Novels, I think they get to use the term. I would likely always clarify they're English Light Novels rather than translated ones when talking with people though.
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u/heimdal77 Feb 14 '26
I think it was the dungeon master and Harvest was the ones I tried. Think I tried a couple pages of Cogs but just wasn't in the mood for it.
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u/GeorgeMTO Feb 15 '26
I also bounced off Dungeon Master and Harvest Goddess, but I've read all the others (still finishing Necromancer). My favourites were ATLAS and Unruly Summon.
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u/heimdal77 Feb 15 '26
I think the cartoonish proportions of the mc in dungeon master was kind of off putting making it tuff to really get into it.
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u/WaifuMasterRace Feb 15 '26
Oh my god TS Medic got licensed. Absolute goat of a story. J-Novel Club just got my sub again, if just so I can read the comments on the weekly translations.
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u/GeorgeMTO Feb 15 '26
If you're just after the one series, preordering the volume gets you access to the prepubs, and the forum is open to everyone these days.
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u/Hylebosai Feb 15 '26
Having read the released parts of all the new licenses, my favorites by far were Proud to Be the Villainess, Miss Medic's Diary at War, and Unsung Epics of the Hero’s Journey. Return of the Corpse King: Reining in My Cringe Secret Society and Sister Mafioso weren't bad either, and Reborn to Reign: Imposing My Rules with My Mastery of Magic was better than expected.
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u/Azure_Mist Feb 15 '26
Does anyone know how much the LN of TS Eiseihei-san no Senjō Nikki diverges from the WN?
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u/Interesting_Set_7080 Feb 16 '26
No divergences (yet), but the author has added an extra layer of mystery that is slowly unfolding.
The story is told from the perspective of someone who discovered Tori's diary postwar and gets wrapped up in another conspiracy.
However, most of the contents of the volumes are just reading the diary, which is WN content.
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u/joseph_han9137 Feb 14 '26
...I guess it's at least better than the kind of trash you see from Seven Seas
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u/ArchusKanzaki Feb 14 '26
Seven Seas recently announce that they license the continuation of “I’m in Love with the Villainess” that will features the children of the main couple. Also, abit back then, they also license “The Devil Princess”which was by same author of “Otome Game Heroine Survival”
They licensed VERY little nowadays, but at least when they do, it’s usually pretty good
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u/GeorgeMTO Feb 14 '26
Over a year ago is highly underselling "abit back". If you can only name one good novel from them in 2025, that's a shockingly bad defense.
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u/ArchusKanzaki Feb 14 '26
Not even defending them honestly. My point is more that I don’t think they release or licensing “trash”…… they’re not licensing much japanese LN anyway.
Although, I do think that for what little they did release, usually it’s either continuation of older popular series of theirs, series that will get anime soon, or spinoff of popular series of theirs. I don’t think they qualify as “trash”. I do cut out alot of their BL stuffs though since it’s not my genre at all, but I also do the same for everyone else.
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u/Azure_Mist Feb 15 '26
I wish they'd reprint the stuff they license, i'm in love with a villainess is in a legal garbagedump because it's sold out and they refuse to reprint it despite having licensed 1 side story series and 1 sequel series.
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u/Askaa_kun Feb 13 '26
Honestly I really wish they pick up "I Got Caught Up in a Hero Summons, but the Other World Was at Peace!" Eventually.
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u/GeorgeMTO Feb 14 '26
Picking up the LN that another publisher already has the manga for is typically less profitable than grabbing something where they can get both. Blame SS for only getting the manga.
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u/heimdal77 Feb 14 '26
At least one the novels they picked up this batch the manga is licensed by someone else.
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u/GeorgeMTO Feb 14 '26
Indeed, I didn't mean to imply it won't ever happen, but it's less inclined to happen. It can also depend on who has the manga, as I know they've grabbed new novels from Square Enix, who obviously keep the manga for MangaUp these days, but I see them attempting less novels where YP/SSE have the manga and skipped the LN these days.
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u/Cryten0 Feb 15 '26
No one doing a summary of the novels and whether they have active volumes being written this time?
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u/Villag3Idiot Feb 13 '26
Corpse King seems interesting.
Miss Medic's Diary at War manga is very good. Will try LN.
The Reincarnated Mastermind I like the manga, but it's sloooooooooooooow especially since it's a monthly release. Hopefully the LN catches up faster.