Legion

English Title: Spice and Wolf
Japanese Title: 狼と香辛料 — Oukami to Koushinryou — “Wolf and Spice”
Author: Isuna Hasekura
Illustrator: Juu Ayakura
Translator: Paul Starr
Genre: Fantasy, Adventure, Romance
Original Run: 2006 – 2011
English Run: 2010 – ongoing
Volumes: 17
English Publisher: Yen Press
Volumes Published in English: 17 (COMPLETE)
Average Price Per Volume: Paperback – $12

Synopsis: The life of a traveling merchant is a lonely one, a fact with which Kraft Lawrence is well acquainted. Wandering from town to town with just his horse, cart, and whatever wares have come his way, the peddler has pretty well settled into his routine—that is, until the night Lawrence finds a wolf goddess asleep in his cart. Taking the form of a fetching girl with wolf ears and a tail, Holo has wearied of tending to harvests in the countryside and strikes up a bargain with the merchant to lend him the cunning of “Holo the Wisewolf” to increase his profits in exchange for taking her along on his travels. What kind of businessman could turn down such an offer? Lawrence soon learns, though, that having an ancient goddess as a traveling companion can be a bit of a mixed blessing. Will this wolf girl turn out to be too wild to tame?

Note: Some of the early volumes were originally released with a redesigned “live-action” cover. Later reprints as well as all subsequent volumes retained the original “manga-style” cover.

Volume 1
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Volume 2
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Volume 3
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Volume 4
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Volume 5
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Volume 6
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Volume 7 – Side Colors
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Volume 8 – The Town of Strife (Part 1)
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Volume 9 – The Town of Strife (Part 2)
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Volume 10
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Volume 11 – Side Colors II
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Volume 12
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Volume 13 – Side Colors III
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Volume 14
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Volume 15 – The Coin of the Sun (Part 1)
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Volume 16 – The Coin of the Sun (Part 2)
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Volume 17 – Epilogue
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Reviews of Spice and Wolf
Vol 1 — Baka Laureate
Vol 16 — English Light Novels
Vol 11 — Fandom Post
Vol 10 — Keeping it in Canon
Vol 1 — Matchstick for My Eyes
Vol 1-7 — Namels Reviews
Vol 4 — Narrative Investigations
Vol 12 — Sakura Eries’ Blog

Suggestions for Further Reading
Similar Setting (medieval Europe-esque): Adventures of Duan Surk, Guin Saga, Scrapped Princess, Slayers

Illustrations Sampler

Any broken links or incorrect information? Any thoughts on these light novels?
Leave a comment!

English Title: Sword Art Online
Japanese Title: ソードアート・オンライン — “Sword Art Online”
Author: Reki Kawahara
Illustrator: Abec
Translator: Stephen Paul
Genre: Adventure, Sci-fi, Romance
Original Run: April 2009 – ongoing
English Run: April 2014 – ongoing
Japanese Publisher: Dengeki Bunko (ASCII Media Works)
English Publisher: Yen On (Yen Press)
Volumes in Japanese: 19 (In Progress)
Volumes in English: 10 (In Progress)
Average Price Per Volume: Paperback – $10

Synopsis: In the year 2022, gamers rejoice as Sword Art Online–a VRMMORPG (Virtual Reality Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game) like no other-opens its virtual doors, allowing players to take full advantage of the ultimate in gaming technology: NerveGear, a system that allows users to completely immerse themselves in the game world by manipulating their brain waves to create a wholly realistic gaming experience. But when the game goes live, the elation of the players quickly turns to horror as they discover that, for all its amazing features, SAO is missing one of the most basic functions of any MMORPG: a log-out button. Now trapped in the virtual world of Aincrad, their bodies held captive by NerveGear in the real world, users are issued a chilling ultimatum: conquer all one hundred floors of Aincrad to regain your freedom. But in the warped world of SAO, “game over” means certain death–both virtual and real…

Volume 1 – Aincrad (v1)
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Released April 22, 2014 — ISBN-13: 978-0316371247

Volume 2 – Aincrad (v2)
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Released August 26, 2014 — ISBN-13: 978-0316376815

Volume 3 – Fairy Dance (v1)
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Released December 16, 2014 — ISBN-13: 978-0316296427

Volume 4 – Fairy Dance (v2)
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Released April 21, 2015 — ISBN-13: 978-0316296434

Volume 5 – Phantom Bullet (v1)
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Released August 18, 2015 — ISBN-13: 978-0316296441

Volume 6 – Phantom Bullet (v2)
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Released December 15, 2015 — ISBN-13: 978-0316296458

Volume 7 – Mother’s Rosary
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Released April 19, 2016 — ISBN-13: 978-0316390408

Volume 8 — Early and Late
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Released August 30, 2016 — ISBN-13: 978-0316390415

Volume 9 — Alicization Beginning
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Released December 20, 2016 — ISBN-13: 978-0316390422

Volume 10 — Alicization Running
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Released April 18, 2017 — ISBN-13: 978-0316390439

Upcoming Releases

Reviews of Sword Art Online
Anime News Network: Vol 1 — Vol 3 — Vol 5 — Vol 7
Case Suitable for Treatment: Vol 1 — Vol 2 — Vol 3 — Vol 4 — Vol 5 — Vol 6 — Vol 7 — Vol 8
Justus R. Stone: Vol 1 — Vol 3 — Vol 4 — Vol 5 — Vol 6 — Vol 7
The August Hail: Vol 1 — Vol 2 — Vol 3 — Vol 4

Illustrations Sampler

Anime Adaptation
MAL Entry — 24 episodes — Aired July 2012 – December 2012, July 2014 – December 2014
Crunchyroll (streaming) — Hulu (streaming) — Amazon — RightStuf
Note: Adapted volumes 1 to 8 of the light novel series

Manga Adaptation
MAL Entry — Published August 2010 – ongoing (English releases by Yen Press)
Amazon — Barnes and Noble — Book Depository — RightStuf

Video Games
Sword Art Online: Hollow Fragment — PSN store (PS Vita) — PSN store (PS4)
Sword Art Online: Lost Song — PSN store (PS Vita) — PSN store (PS4) — Amazon
Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization — PSN store (PS Vita) — PSN store (PS4) — Amazon

If you liked Sword Art Online, you might also want to try…

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