If you're looking for a novel with none of those harem or MC get's all the girls etc, than this novel is the one for you. MoE has monsters such as vampires, werewolves etc, and a little wuxia in it.

The story may start out slow, but as you keep reading the story builds and you'll learn more about the world of MoE.

Look no further.
Are you suffering from nonsensically, overpowered MCs? The world-building of a 7 year old's sand castle? A plot that repeats itself like a broken recorder? Translation work requiring you to learn a new language? Rest assured, you have made it.

Monarch of Evernight is a real gem. If Brandon Sanderson decided to do a similar take, I would think it'd be something similar. It's like Mistborn and the Stormlight Archives combined together, but with cultivation.

The plot is extremely deep, I'm simply shocked how seamless things click together. Early chapters suddenly become relevant, and get tied into the story much later. The amount of political intrigue and undercurrent is fascinating. Side characters are really fleshed out and multi dimensional.

Translation by Legion is simply wonderful, I'm really glad he picked this up from Alyschu. The grammar, structuring, speed, pacing is all there. Also, a huge fan of the chapter image teasers!

Be warned, I am prone to ranting about. You have been warned.

First of all: the translation quality is really good.
No matter how good all the parts that come together to make a story were, if I were to slog through terrible wording, butchered grammar, or straight up MTL, I'd probably bounce off after few chapters at best.

The setting is rather... uncommon. I mean steampunk-ish Xianxia-ish story taking place on floating continents?
And the cover art was even more promising! (the one on WW, the one here is nice, but it lacks that "something", dunno)
And the flintlock designs kinda interested me.
Though to be honest, the machine guns, trucks, motorcycles, grenades and the rest of unmistakably modern things... kinda disrupted the pretty picture I had in my mind. I could live through it. I honestly have no idea how to picture them anymore... Their descriptions had that Steampunk feel to them... but then again: the longer into the story, the more modern it feels.

The Cultivation part is indeed a bit uhh... weird, the "skills" feel kinda umm... pulled out of the ass, so to speak, they kinda appeared without a rhyme or reason, just do that MC could get a boon for levelling up.
At least to me they felt kinda random "He just picked +10% to Firearms Damage on his last milestone level" ← while it is not explicitly worded that way, it felt like that to me.
Besides that, the cultivation is rather toned down, it took quite a few chapters for profound cultivation techniques to pop up, and it's not like everybody and their dogs have profoundly profound arts and techniques. Well, they do appear, but they aren't EVERYWHERE or, at least, characters don't have dozens of them each, all equally deeply profound and exquisite.
I did mention it to be Xianxia, and yes, Deeply Profound Cultivation Techniques do appear... but they don't feel so commonplace for everyone and their dog to have a bunch of them, but then again, it isn't straight xianxia.

As for the plot, I'm no grand prose critic, only thing I can say is I ENJOY IT.

The characters? Well... some are likeable, other not so much, and some have better plot armour than some protagonists...
coughBaicoughKongzhaocough.
While I sometimes forget the names, I'd say that they all (besides the random mooks that die, or those that exist only to stand in the background (or die)) are quite distinct and I never had a moment like: "which one of the bunch is being mentioned now, because unless they explicitly mention the name, it's impossible to know". On a side note, I find criticising the protagonist for being a wussy and the like... somewhat umm... weird.
I'm certain all those tags are completely mistaken, and the MC doesn't change at all by growing up in a special training facility, where they mould kids into elite soldiers. and for whole 500 chapters has completely no change.

All in all it is a solid novel, worthy of at least giving it a shot (by that I mean reading more than 6 chapters before making any judgement based on say, the character of the MC when he still is a kid).
Sure, it might not suit your tastes, but it is a good novel nonetheless.

MoE is among the best novels that are currently being translated.

It had a rather dark and gritty beginning which a lot of people didn't manage to understand as they had a hard time accepting the way the MC acts. He had a certain kindness to him despite being in a truly dark place and hangs on to that strand so that he won't turn as animalistic as many other scavengers did.

Following the novel we see Qianye grow up while undergoing training, survive through many life and death situations, create bonds... more>> and forge friendships, clash with enemies that have actual personalities instead of being just one-dimensional fodder for slaughter, be enveloped in plots that he doesn't even know about yet, see him fall for someone with whom he is separated by a chasm that cannot be bridged by simply growing unbelievably strong, find out about the circumstances of his origin, learn more of his world and explore the various fascinating places the author sends Qianye to explore.

Additionally grows a force of his own and establishes his own stronghold with quite the ambition to expand on the Continent of Evernight, a barren plane from which humanity originally stems.

All in all, it is a dark, mature novel that doesn't simply have good and bad, but instead consists of countless shades of grey creating a unique World full of dark fantasy elements. <<less

Sorry for typos I might make here as English is not my first language. This is a wonderful novel and is one of my favorites, only comparable to Warlock of the Magus World. If you are the type that only likes the novels where the protagonist have all the beautiful girls, this is not for you, the main character only hook up with a girl once in a while. This a well-written story with no loopholes (by what I could see) and with well developed characters. I particularly like world... more>> represented, which for some reason remember me the novel I said in the beginning. This a good novel. <<less

I'd say this is hands down the best light novel I've ever read. The world building is solid and the characters are well developed.

There's no BS "MC gets stronger and beats everyone ever, because MC". The MC does have plot armor, but only to a degree. He's still a fish in a pond that can be taken out if he oversteps his bounds. There's not 10 billion cliches like the whole arrogant young master routine. When the cliches are present, they're based off the world building and not put there... more>> just to pass the word count.

If I had a negative thing to say it's that there are a few points or characters that are left frustratingly unexplained, as well as the novel being slow at times. But these are minor things.

A solid novel and an absolute must read. <<less

Hello folks,

Monarch of Evernight (MoE it's funny abbrevation) is a darker steampunk era novel with cultivation, nobels and dark races as humanities enemy.

I've read up to chapter 219 over the course of 4 days (you can binge more than 500 chapters at this moment) and im still very much enjoying it.

... more>> I would recommend reading about the first 20ish chapters (up to where he is training), that gives you a good idea:

what the novel is about, if you like the writing style, and if you are okay with some mu*dering (not very detailed imo (ppls heads cut off etc., but no extra dark elements I think))....

Also if your starting I recommend reading chapters from Wuxiaworld

(atleast for the old chapters there is a second translation listed at NU, but the quality of Translstion is a lot worse on puttytranslation)

I recommend this novel! <<less

It is a great novel, the pace although a tad slow on the beginning become enjoyable soon enough.

The MC is attaching and is actions are (almost) always understandable considering the grim and dark setting of this novel.

The steampunk setting is what made me read the novel and is really enjoyable (still can't find a novel of the same type)

All in all, this novel is great, the translation and pace of release are really convenient so I highly recommend it.

I like the theme and premise of the story and I like the development, albeit and I can't quite say that same about the writing style of the author; which makes reading this novel a little bit stressful, taking away some of the fun. There are some parts that I didn't like but, overall, the story is good. Also the translation is phenomenal which makes reading it much more enjoyable.

I stopped at near the end of v4 few months ago and I have only continued reading it few days ago.... more>> So far so good, and I only hope I continue enjoying it until the end. <<less

Well, so far the story is amazing! The MC holds an allure that wants to make you keep reading. The power the MC holds is extremely balanced, in the sense that he is not destroying everything in his path but he has to use his ingenuity to get by. Can't wait to read the remaining 400 chapters translated so far!

To sum it up in a few words the novel is great. It's one of the best I have read, starting from the beginning there's a layer of mystery and that mystery is still being unravelled so far down the line. Then you have the guns, it's one of the few novels that have guns of any type being used, and that have great effect even at the later stages.

Plus the writing is done very well, showing that the author has taken great care in this work, makeing it an... more>> enjoyable read I can't wait for it to be fully translated. <<less

To be honest, this is one of the best novels I've read so far. I had stopped quite some time ago as I had caught up to the translations but I have picked it up again and I am not disappointed at all. There are so many deeper plots in this novel and numerous mysteries that are beginning to unfold. The protagonist, Qianye, is one of the more rational, cautious and not pretentious protagonists I've seen so far. He is relatable and not one of the characters that are lucky... more>> during every arc. He is shown to also lose and have his weaknesses. He is not OP from the beginning and the way the author portrays his feelings and all his tribulations throughout the novel really make us readers sympathise with him.

The setting is also one of the more rare types, and I am so glad that I had started to read this as this is so unique and refreshing. Although this novel is quite mature, I feel that the author has not made it overly gory and bloody. The pacing of the novel is also quite fast, but it does cover quite a lot of details. Overall, this novel is a MUST READ. <<less

This story is a bit dark.

The MC is a bit of a wuss in the early chapters but as the story progresses, the MC would slowly "grow up" like literally he would slowly mature as he faced multiple challenges that fate throws at him.

World Building - 4/5

... more>> Char. Growth - 5/5

Story Plot - 4/5

Translation - 5/5

All in all, it is.... AWESOME~! 5 Stars for recommendation!

Read it, you bunch of lazy a**!

P.S - MC is not an idiot like those from other novels, he's also decisive on his decisions.

I ranked this novel as Third of the best that I've read so far with 1st, Coiling Dragon and 2nd, My House Of Horrors! <<less

This novel is a bit darker then average, and while it includes gun fights, guns aren't the end all and you still get some enjoyable melee combat.

As always, the cliffs are to die for... Thanks legion...

Slow paced in the beginning, but kicks up after a bit of dredge. It's a bit "overpowerd underdog" story, but the amazing descriptive writing and characters keeps me from putting it down. The dark setting of the world and the fleshed out political facets of the story forces me to, everyday, check for latest updates. Although, there are some stretches that seem a bit tidiouse, it's usually worth the time. Love the story and the MC.

-From a fantasy-lover

This is an interesting novel, I realy like it because of the development. The MC grows troughout the whole novel and it is realy nice to unravel the secrets behind his identity with him. What is nice about this particular novel is that the MC doesn't flaunt his wealth or strenght like any chinese novel. I recommend this one for everyone

This is a great novel. I dont understand why so many gave it 1 star, this is far better than many novels that have a high rating on here, but I suppose to each his own, I can only tell you why I like it and it is up to you to give it a shot.

The good:

• • The setting is pretty rare in this genre, a mixture of your traditional cultivation novel with a dark theme of vampires, werewolves, and other creatures, sprinkled with some gun slinging. So this is a good choice for people interested in reading something fresh.

• • The writing is very good, at least compared to the majority of the novel in the same genre.

• • There is character growth, people complain that the MC is weak or naive, but I think these people gave up on the novel too early. If the MC is flawless from the get go what growth can he have?

• • The relationship with other character is great, specially the recurring side characters, they are unique and have a story of their own and are not just backup dancers.

• • The fights are interesting

The bad:

• • The story can move slowly at time
    • Sometimes you can go multiple chapters with zero dialogue which makes the story feel even slower.
    • Fights are fun, but too much time is spent on fights with nameless, one-off characters which can also make the story feel slower.

A solid 4, if I could I'd give it a 4.5.

Story itself avoids tired old formulas (never ending tournaments, or the constant struggle to top a magical list just because), somehow avoids the usual pitfalls of constant repetition or annoying reaction chapters, and moves along at a nice measured pace.

There's a measure of world building without being too wordy. It doesn't dwell too much on minute details that will become irrelevant later on.

... more>>

Spoiler

If ever, the only negative comment I'd put on it is its somewhat unitary forms of combat: coming from IET novels with a lot of Dao / martial techniques, or from the Douluo Dalu series where people have variations in not just their martial souls but on the techniques they gain in advancement, the no frills Origin Force which so far only grants a passive ability enhancement at ranks 2 and 4 (no explanation given how and why >.<) is kind of lackluster. Basically, the MC gets to shoot more bullets at a given time on rank up. 0_O. Thankfully, the vampiric powers he has is becoming more interesting with time, hopefully more attention gets thrown that way

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People who are used to instant power ups, constant treasure hunts, and a stream of more abilities would most likely be put off, but hopefully people will have more patience with this one as it's more of a gem than other, more popular novels out there that's more flash than substance. <<less

Really enjoyed the novel for the first few hundred chapters, but afterward the MC is just plain idiotic with how often he’s schemed against and used by just about everybody. What really killed any favorability I had for this novel was when he was schemed into imp**gnating those two women and how oblivious to things he was painted out to be. He doesn’t realize how much of a fool he’s been up until the last several dozen or so chapters and finally retaliates, but even then it felt subdued in... more>> comparison to how much he was toyed with. So many matters were left up in the air at the end as well, like the MC’s other children were completely disregarded and the build up to who his mother is was so disappointing. Overall, really mediocre. <<less

Past chapter 300 the author feels like they gave up with the story. It becomes a loop where the main character heads somewhere to kill senselessly. Feels like I'm reading a different book.

Side characters were really interesting before but now the author gave up on editing and dialogue becomes chapters long, talking about virtually nothing, poorly edited. I'm not sure why but character perspectives/location just randomly switches, which gets really confusing.

Dropping this as the editing has become progressively worse. The translation is painful to read expecially the dialogue which feels... more>> almost as bad as machine translation. <<less