Solo leveling vol 1 by Chugong

Jinwoo Sung is one of the weakest Hunters in the game, but he has to keep adventuring because the health benefits are paying for his ailing mother’s extended stay in the hospital. Jinwoo continues to put himself in harms way and put tons of pressure on himself because his sister is about to go off to college, and someone needs to pay for her tuition. Jinwoo adventures with large parties, hoping to not be killed in the dungeons that pop up all over town. The latest mission is in a D-rated dungeon, which most of the group has no problem handling. After defeating the dungeon’s “boss”, another way opens up. The team votes whether to continue on or not, and Jinwoo casts the tie-breaking vote to keep going. What they find at the end of the long tunnel changes the entire party, and sets Jinwoo on an entirely new path that he doesn’t fully understand by the end of volume one.

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One of the unique things about this volume is that it is entirely in color. It’s also read from left to right, unlike most manga. This book was originally published in Korea, making it an example of Manhwa. There are so many manga/manhwa storylines that focus on RPG elements like dungeoning and level building. The tone of this one is much more serious than many of the RPG-type series that I have read before. Within this first volume, I really see and feel the seriousness of Jinwoo’s convictions and why he needs to keep putting himself in harms way.

This first volume was pretty bloody and lots of characters were killed on page, so this might be better for older readers.

Sara’s Rating: 8/10
Suitability Level: Grades 10-12

Publisher: Yen Press
Publication Date: March 2, 2021
ISBN: 9781975319434 (Paperback)

​Tags: Rating: 8/10, Suitability: High School, Manhwa, Dungeon, Regressor, Isekai, Action Adventure, Magic, Yen Press