So I'm a Spider, So What?, Vol. 1 (light novel) (So I'm a Spider, So What? (light novel))

This ex vol one book was amazing. After reading the original series and blown away I needed more spider and here it got it. Without spoiling I’m going to just tell you how entertaining it all was. It’s more of getting parts of missed or cut scenes that didn’t fit in the original story, parts from vol 1,3,8 etc, in order chronological so it’s not too confusing. You get extra info and story from a lot of characters and it’s just great, getting to around at most volume 12/13

This series is perhaps a bit one that could be thought of as more tailored to "girls", but I found it to be quite enjoyable and think it appeals well to all audiences. I especially liked the main character's spunk and fun personality and take on things. This series mixes Isekai with being thrown into a game world elements with an interesting take on both aspects. My sister and I have rather different tastes, but I liked it so much and felt it tailored to enough different tastes that I bought a few books in the series for her so we could talk about it. There are some aspects and parts that are confusing and to avoid any spoilers I will avoid any details, but most are actually resolved fairly well eventually in later books. I highly recommend the entire series and have yet to find a bad book in the bunch. There is a bit of a disconnect between certain segments of the story which I fear will lead to some inconsistencies and essentially "rewrites" with the inconsistencies ignored, but it isn't nearly enough to detract from the enjoyment of the series. With just one character for most of the book I was a bit worried, but she is such an interesting character she carries it on her own which in my reading experience is very hard to do well. The manga version isn't as good, but I seriously hope they turn this into an anime released here so I'm supporting both versions in that hope. I've been disappointed in anime versions of several of my favorite series in this "genre" like "Didn't I say make my abilities average", but I still hope for one of this series and that they don't fall for the same problems those other series suffered like cramming way too much into the first few episodes and major changes from the story for no reason like with "Average".

A few differences from the anime. But I still thought it was entertaining. Going to download the next book now.

The other world genre is really exploding these days with the sub genre of being reborn in one. I’ve read a few of these, with some of my favorites being the Tanya the evil stories and Felicia’s second life. So I’m a spider, so what? (Siasow) is an interesting take, but even it isn’t alone in these genre. There have already been books about being reborn as a slime and other monstrous tales from indie authors and light novels alike. If you wish to dive into this pool, know it runs deep. Still, Okina Baba manages to carve a spot out of this crowded space with a fun romp through an otherworldly labyrinth. When first picking this book up you might be expecting light hearted humor and a quick and easy read. This expectation is remarkable since the book was originally written in Japanese and humor and style would need to cross the language and culture barrier, but it does so fantastically. There are some cultural sticking points, but for the most part there is nothing about this book that should give you any difficulty, or jokes that seem to fall flat. For the most part it felt like watching an anime (and in fact is being adapted as one). Okina’s easy style and a masterful translation results in a book that could have been written in the US and you might not know the difference. But, you say, spiders are ick, how could this possibly be fun to read. That is an excellent question and Okina does take a direct approach, going for the cute style rather than spending much time on the gross aspects of being a spider. Half of the book occurs in the human world, with a lot of time spent digesting the difference between this world and the one the characters came from, which is a rough approximation of our own. World building takes a shockingly large amount of time, even though politically and culturally you aren’t left with much. The actual world feels empty, but it is supposed to feel empty. The author was emulating something on purpose as part of the plot and she succeeds in doing so. I will not explain further as that might spoil something, but if you want to find out you’ll have to read it for yourself. Another similarity this book had which is enjoyable is to the Is it Wrong to pick up girls in a dungeon series. Both this book and that one take the role playing game aspects and incorporate it directly into the world. Which series does it better could probably span several pages of reddit arguments, so probably best to leave that alone, but it was still fun to see in this book. Geek culture takes center stage the entire time and lovingly pokes fun at itself. Since you’re reading a review for a light novel, you probably have seen a bit about geek culture yourself, so this should feel right at home. Culturally the book stands up pretty well, though it clearly occurs from a Japanese point of view, there are a few things that might seem a little off. For one, the notion that a boy who becomes a girl in a fantasy world is still a boy, despite having grown up as a girl. Were this told from an American author it might seem like a political statement, but here it seemed to be more an attempt at humor. Additionally, though this is a fantasy world, the notion of gender differences, despite the role playing game aspect, still play a role. Of course this could be on purpose too given the book is deliberately trying to make a play at fantasy worlds we have come up with which are typically kind of sexist. If the author was English speaking, I might of written to ask. In the end this book is one of my favorites and the second book is already on pre-order. The genre is getting crowded, but apparently that doesn’t prevent true gems from coming to the surface. If you’re on the fence then you should pick this book up and if you’ve read my review (You have to be to see this right?) then you need to pick this book up. You won’t regret your time spend in Okina’s fantastic world.

This series has been on my "must read" list since I first heard the season 2 opening "Bursty Greedy Spider". And no I have not watched the anime, this book is my first exposure to the series. My absolute favorite thing about this series is the world building. The author has put so much detail into the creatures and skills. I also like how the main character is so light hearted and carefree. She's not trying to take over the world or get back to her old world, she's just trying to survive and deal with her new life. All in all it was a great book that I couldn't put down until I was finished with it. I am looking forward to starting the next vol. Also I HIGHLY recommend this series to anyone who likes Isekai.

This series is a unique take on the fantasy genre of another world. The story revolves around a Japanese high school got reincarnated as a spider monster in a magical world that is like an RPG. Unlike other stories in this genre, our main character is neither a hero nor a villain. She is more like a jack. The series centers on the monologue of the MC. Occasionally, it switches to other characters' perspectives. It is important to read the story several times to get the full picture. Since the light series is adapted from the web series, I think the adaption is poor. I did check on the web series. There is virtually a little to no change comparing the two. Certain details felt out of place to me. However, I have no problem with grasping the picture if I read it once more. Unlike other series that I own, side stories in this one are very important. They do not only provide additional details regarding the main story, but they are also crucial to the plot. In term of the story, Vol.1 focuses on the MC's struggles. It's more action-driven comparing to the later volumes. Very little information is revealed regarding the new world. We won't see much of the plot until Vol.3. Every day, the MC has brushes with death several times. You will learn more about the MC more than anything else. PS: if you like the manga, the light novels have a much darker sense of humor. The MC is not nearly as likable as it's in the manga.

I chose to read this book two days ago so I could wait for a book I was looking forward to arriving in the mail. So I picked this book up and read through it and, I might've ordered four more volumes of this series. Yeah. This book raised my empathy and sympathy levels more then it should've. I've heard the main character was sassy which made me appeal to the series, but I didn't expect the depth in their character. The author is good at making you just feel so bad for them at every inch. Like dang I just want to hug and comfort them. They aren't as bitchy as I assumed they'd be, I'd say they even undercomplain lol, and they'd oddly adorable at times when they finally have something figured out. The humor is definitely my type of humor too, the protagonist comments on things in a funny charming way and is sarcastic. Also thank god the physical copy is matte instead of the usual plastic covers since I am pouring with sweat, which will def leave fingerprints on plastic. I've heard people complain about the grinding being too slow and the side character POV being too much at the beginning of the LN, I knew that ahead of time so I readied myself. I honestly liked those parts, you probably won't think of them as tedious if you're a patient enough person. I just say ready yourself for some slowish action and enjoy. This was oddly more emotional then I thought'd it be maaaan. At one point in the middle where the protagonist was quite injured and in quite pain trying to make it through just to survive, thinking about the contrast to this new life and their old one, I was even tearing up, which seems pathetic since I don't think this was meant to get you to cry, at all. I think the protagonist being so likable made my empathy skyrocket.

The author has written an excellent story that I suspect may become a major breakout and end up generating an anime. At the very least, it has a strong cult following. If you enjoyed Overlord, you will enjoy this. If you enjoyed the Reincarnated as a Slime story, you will enjoy this. This is a top tier Isekai story. Like any other, it is easy to find it online for free, but if you buy into it, you help support the author and increase the chances that it will be made into an anime. I have been following this story for well over a year, perhaps even around two years, for free, online. I decided today that I cannot in good conscious continue to enjoy such an excellent product and not support the author. If anyone like-minded is reading this, I recommend the very same to you. Support the products that are worthy of support. THIS is worthy of support.

So I picked this series up since an anime adaptation was being made that looked somewhat promising like the series reincarnated as a slime. Well for me this book was little hard to get into in the beginning since the flow felt slow, it felt repetitive at times but nearing the end of the book I started to get more and more into the series since finally it started to interesting with the story. So even if you maybe feel it's tad bit slow at beginning don't give up try to at least read vol 1 and 2 since they got me hooked.

Easy read, plot is what you expect of a isekay but is funny simple enough to follow

It's a really good serie, not the best isekai i've read but definitly in the top 5, that volume and the 2 next are good but they mainly rely on how fun the main character is and the story is a bit lacking. The other character pov are good, less interesting than the part about Kumoko (the spider) but they raise question on the timeline and give a better view on the world. And keep in mind that as good as they allready are the first 3 volumes are the less interesting part of the story. Conserning the print it's great the cover is in a good material, the paper is also quite good and the double color page at the beginning look cool, if you like the serie they're great as collectable.

I bought this series a long time ago. I bought it up to the 11th volume, and let me tell you. It is a must-read. It has that game-like feel to it and the main character is hilarious. You watch the MC adapt and change to her new form as a spider. It also gives you other perspectives of other characters too, making it diverse. I highly recommend this series.

Dieses Buch war mein Einstieg in die Light-Novels (nicht nur dieser Serie sondern allgemein). Ich habe hier die ersten Episoden des Animes gesehen und wollte wissen wie es weitergeht. Nach dem der Manga ja leider zu stark abweicht, habe ich diesen nach Band 3 zur Seite gelegt und mich auf die Light-Novels gestürzt. Es war mir nicht mehr möglich, das Buch aus der Hand zu legen! Ich habe es von Band 1 bis Band 10 (aktuell der Letzte) durchgeschmökert. Sowas hatte ich seit meiner Kindheit nicht mehr und es war ein absolut tolltes Gefühl. Die Story ist spannend und entfaltet sich immer weiter. Handlung: Was diesen Isekai für mich so besonders macht, ist dass die Protagonistin nicht als übermächtiges Wesen in eine fremde Welt kommt, sondern als Ende der monstertechnischen Nahrungskette wiedergeboren wird und vom ersten Augenblick an ums überleben kämpfen muss. Sie behilft sich dazu ihrer Gewitztheit und Strategie. Zusammen mit einer gehörigen Portion Sarkasmus hält die Story eine Dynamik aufrecht, die einen festhält und nicht mehr los lässt. Schreibstil: Dynamisch, mit vielen Dialogen, erzählen die Charaktere die Geschichte aus einer wechselnden Ich-Perspektive, die Einblicke in alle Charaktere ermöglicht und die Handlungen derer Nachvollziehbar macht. Das Englisch, in dem die Geschichte erzählt wird, ist leicht verständlich und nach wenigen Seiten ist man im Lesefluss drinnen. Ein paar Worte musste ich Nachschlagen (trotz umfassender Englisch-Kenntnisse dank meiner Arbeit), da sie nicht alltäglich sind, aber dies war definitive nicht störend! Fazit: Eine fesselnde Geschichte im Isekai-Genre die alles andere als herkömmlich ist. Lustig und Sarkastisch, gefüllt mit liebenswerten Charakteren und einer spannenden Story, die sich Seite um Seite mehr entfaltet und ihre Tiefgründigkeit preis gibt. Ich warte schon gespannt wie es weitergeht, wenn endlich der 11. Band rauskommt (März 2021).