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Gimai Seikatsu
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Rating(4.5 / 5.0, 385 votes)
5    76% (291 votes)
4    10% (37 votes)
3    7% (28 votes)
2    3% (13 votes)
1    4% (16 votes)
Language
Support Book (#ad)
Author(s)
One entry per line
Artist(s)
One entry per line
Year
Example: 2012
2021
Status in COO
Status in Country of Origin. One entry per line
13 Volumes (Ongoing)
Licensed
Yes
Completely Translated
No
Original Publisher
One entry per line
English Publisher
One entry per line
Release Frequency
Every 10.7 Day(s)
Activity Stats
[Graph]
Weekly Rank: #3624
Monthly Rank: #2551
All Time Rank: #1235
Reading List
[Graph]
On 5074 Reading Lists
Monthly Rank: #5402
All Time Rank: #1501

Description

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From classmates to brother and sister, living under the same roof.

After his father’s remarriage, Asamura Yuuta ends up getting a new stepsister, coincidentally the number one beauty of the school year, Ayase Saki. Having learned important values when it comes to man-woman relationships through the previous ones of their parents, they promise each other not to be too close, not to be too opposing, and to merely keep a vague and comfortable distance.

On one hand, Saki, who has worked in solitude for the sake of her family, doesn’t know how to properly rely on others, whereas Yuta is unsure of how to really treat her. Standing on fairly equal ground, these two slowly learn the comfortable sensation of living together.

Their relationship slowly evolves from being strangers the more the days pass. Eventually, this could end up in a story about love for all we know.

Anime Description –

Yuuta Asamura gets a new stepsister after his father remarries, Saki Ayase, who happens to be the number one beauty of the school year. They promise each other not to be too close, not to be too opposing, and to simply keep a vague and comfortable distance, having learned important values about men and women relationships from their parents’ previous ones.

Saki, who has worked alone for the sake of her family, doesn’t know how to properly rely on others, whereas Yuuta is unsure of how to truly treat her. Standing on fairly equal ground, these two gradually learn the comfort of living together.

Their relationship progresses from strangers to friends as the days pass. This is a story that may one day lead to love.

Associated Names
One entry per line
Days with my Step Sister
義妹生活
Related Series
N/A
Recommendations
My Stepsister is My Ex (5)
We Should Have Slept While Only Holding Hands, And Yet?! (2)
The Top Idol Next Door Can’t Help But Crave My Guilty Pleasure Meals (2)
She Was Actually My Stepsister (2)
The So-Called ‘Solitary Flower’ is a British Beauty Who’s Awkwardly Attached to Me Now That She’s My Stepsister (2)
Tomodachi no Imouto ga Ore ni Dake Uzai (1)
Recommendation Lists
  1. japanese ( mostly romcom)
  2. Ranking of novels i have read
  3. Kono Light Novel Ga Sugoi! - Top 10 LNs of 2025
  4. Novels that has their taste
  5. stuff i liked a lot

Latest Release

Date Group Release
04/15/25 Glucose Translations v13c6
04/01/25 Glucose Translations v13c5
04/01/25 Glucose Translations v13c4
03/31/25 Glucose Translations v13c3
03/23/25 Glucose Translations v13c2
03/04/25 Glucose Translations v13c1
02/19/25 Glucose Translations v13 prologue
02/19/25 Glucose Translations v13 illustrations
01/04/25 Glucose Translations v12 ss
01/04/25 Glucose Translations v12 epilogue
01/02/25 Glucose Translations v12c7
12/26/24 Glucose Translations v12c6
12/25/24 Glucose Translations v12c5
12/03/24 Glucose Translations v12c4
11/18/24 Glucose Translations v12c3
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Review
51 Reviews


MasonMac
MasonMac
Feb 02, 2021
Status: v2 afterword
As of volume 2, I think it's upheld most of my initial impressions and overall improved upon itself. Previously, I anticipated that it would head in the direction of other slice of life romance novels and focus only on the romance aspect, but I'm happily surprised that it didn't. Characters, outside of the pairing, instead received additional, special 1-on-1 moments with each other in such a way that they felt a lot more realistic. I think the author has a talent for keeping things "real" while still incorporating beloved JP... more>> media aspects. Since we're still only in the introduction-ish part of the story, there isn't much more to say other than that there's still a lot more room for improvement, but I'm confident that the author will improve by leaps and bounds as we go along.

Volume 1 Review

Spoiler

Honestly, 'Gimai Seikatsu' has got to be one of the best stories I've ever read, and the only one to make me connect with a character in no more than a paragraph or two. It has a perfect balance of writing, plot, and setting that you just don't see in but the most skilled authors. Too many stories lose sight of what they promised and end up going through a hundred different side-quests, keeping you waiting for the content that you originally signed up for.* As is said in the book, 'I think you got lost in your search for originality, dear author.'

Keep in mind this is only Volume 1, however, things may change.

I would also like to applaud CClaw Translations for their excellent writing, it's not easy to translate concepts between two different languages while still sounding natural. I've seen worse from people who've been writing for years! Again, thank you.

* If you're interested in a deeper exploration into this topic, I would recommend watching Brandon Sanderson's lectures on writing (YouTube). And yes, he is that Brandon Sanderson, the famous fantasy writer.

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PonPonPon
PonPonPon
May 17, 2021
Status: v2 afterword
Recommended. Absolutely. I can even reread it more than 10 times and still not get bored of it.

The first thing made me enjoy this, is the fact that this story is NOT LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT. It is NOT too cliche.

Theres many romcoms where the FMC hates the MC or vice versa at first, but this story is different. They both do not hate each other, that made it piqued my interest

... more>> The first 2 volumes, very nice.

But if you think volume 1 is quite bad, let me tell you what I think. The first volume is made to introduce characters, story foundation to make the MC and FMC's relationship become more close, like when....... spoilers....
Spoiler

Asamura helps Ayase from getting hit by a car, or when Asamura almost gets assaulted by Ayase and Asamura stops it and listening to her problems]

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That made the 1st volume important.

., and also very realictic to real life that we can almost relate on.

Of course, , theres some downsides to it. Like theres just nothing interesting happens. I get it that this is slice of life, and theres one or two interesting stuff happen.6/5 <<less
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ziyan.offl
ziyan.offl
Dec 28, 2021
Status: v4
This novel is just perfect. After getting bombarded with all those isekai LNs and Fake harém rom coms all these years, we finally have something that is grounded to reality... at least a little. This isn't some isekai fantasy tr*sh where all the characters go joking around while the MC is surrounded by a bunch of girls who try to get his attention. Instead this novel tried really hard on building the relationships between MC and other characters, and they did not disappoint.

The latest volume (V4) really managed to make... more>> this novel even better. I really hope there will be many novels similar to this in the future, and I also can't wait to see how the story of this novel will go on from now. <<less
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h4kureii
h4kureii
Apr 15, 2022
Status: v4 extra
Translations: CClaw Translations

Solid translations. I think the language can be slightly awkward at times but enjoyable to read overall.

To be frank, I'm surprised people like this novel that much, but I suppose it stays true to its title. Be warned, Gimai Seikatsu, or directly translated, "Life with my stepsister", is not really a romance novel. There is little to no romantic action until the fourth volume (where it just begins, you're going to need to wait for another volume for actual romance). The content largely revolves around the protagonist adapting... more>> to life with his stepsister. Wow.

That aside, the series is definitely more mature than you would expect for a light novel. It spends some time developing the characters' lifestyles and worldviews, as well as their circumstances. In that sense, it's realistic.

There's just two problems with the writing: the pace is too slow, and the characters feel unrealistic. Yes, it's in the slice of life genre. Yes, we have two very cautious characters. Yes, they are suddenly thrown into the same household together. But even then, early interactions don't have much depth to them. It's not interesting to read about two characters being considerate and awkwardly hand-shaking away any interaction. The conflict is developed so incredibly slowly that it feels like watching grass grow at times. Being perfectly honest, Hiten's illustrations are the most interesting things about the early parts of the story.

Moving on to the other problem: the characters feel weird. I feel like people have this strange tendency to think that if characters discuss their philosophies, they're automatically realistic, but this is really not the case. In Gimai Seikatsu, their philosophies define all their interactions; they come off feeling flat. A person's worldview is not that superficial. Your worldview shapes your motives, but it doesn't define them. Admittedly this becomes less of an issue later on when we have actual character development, but I felt like it was significant enough to mention.

I think the novel becomes much more enjoyable when Saki's perspective starts being included (in volume 4) so there's that to look forward to. Overall, I think this novel is overrated, and I wouldn't say this is a series that everyone can enjoy, but it's not bad. <<less
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Professor Baka De DeluPerv
Professor Ba
Apr 03, 2021
Status: v5 afterword
"What would happen if two step-siblings fell in love with each other?" That's the theme of this novel.

Now, some might think its just the usual in*est filled with "events" and developments that only happens in novels. But that's not the case for Gimai Seikatsu (Days with my step-sister), this gives you a realistic view into the conflicts happening between the two sibling's heart and mind.

With every volume came growth, and as you read about their daily lifes, you will come to know how the two came to be, how they... more>> adapted to each other, how they felt the uncertainty in their hearts, how they dealt with their conflict, and how they accepted each other. <<less
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Kagefij
Kagefij
Feb 02, 2021
Status: v1 afterword
Another great story with an excellent translation by CClaw Translations.

It's a story of two strangers becoming half-siblings and adapting to each other. This story is a more realistic take on this concept. There's no overuse of cliches and it's not overly sweet. Both parties are reasonable humans. "Comfy" would be the best word I can use to describe it right now. Kept me glued to the story from the beginning to the end. Looking forward to volume 2!
9 Likes · Like Permalink | Report
LoneHeaven
LoneHeaven
Aug 29, 2022
Status: v6c14
i dont normally read light novels or frankly, this is my very first light novel that I started reading. Came across this novel through one of the comments in a youtube video and looking how much everyone raved over it, I decided to give it a shot.

"days with my stepsister" huh? Is this another one of those tacky light novels where its just your typical tsundere stepsister and a dense brother? Finished the first chapter being glad its completely otherwise.

"days with my stepsister" is a rather sophisticated light novel that... more>> goes into the life and thoughts of both saki and asamura. This isn't your comedy mind games like kaguya sama nor a tsundere dynamic like my stepmother's daughter is my ex. This was in fact just 2 characters who became step siblings, lived with each other and understood each other's personality as time pass, realising how both of their personality complemented each other so well and for them to slowly fall into each other and realise how they relied on one another way more than just siblings do. Its an entire process on the development, the process and how they are trying to get over obstacles to overcome the barrier of more than just siblings.

its frankly refreshing to have a light novel having both perspective of the characters, not just a general overview of whatever happened. Seeing how asamura actions affect saki and vice versa, you genuinely feel like you are present when all these happened. There is clearly alot of thought put into this novel with how immensive, detailed and frankly genuine the writing is from the author.

i can't wait for the anime adaptation seriously. Illustrations are already looking fantastic with how saki looks. This novel of course isnt for everyone. Those who doesnt enjoy slow pacing, u might want to give this one a miss (even though I seriously encourage everyone to try it). Its a insulin / diabetes simulator as the volume progresses and I hope everyone that got to read it will smile with sweetness and the insulin overdose this novel provides. <<less
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fakkeng
fakkeng
Apr 10, 2021
Status: v2c7
Definetly a novel that you should read since the story is fairly decent and it's well paced, and no it's not a tr*shy loser AF MC we get from tr*sh stories with the same genres

The story progression has a very stable pacing, 1 chapter for an entire day's story, then a timeskip of a month from the 1st volume towards the 2nd volume.

The story is on the perspective of the MC while at the epilogue, we get a diary on the FL's perspective, which is a good way to show... more>> us a glimpse of how things are developing in both their lives, not just in the MC's view.

The story and immersion is for people who would like to enjoy a steady pace of how things are progressing. Overall it's definetly a must read especially if there would be more volumes release since Vol2 is better than if not as good as Vol1, so I'm really expecting Vol3+ to decent as well.

Romantic Development

Spoiler

At the end of Volume 1, FL is starting to get conscious towards the MC. By the end of Volume 2, FL is able to identify a feeling she has towards the MC's workmate (which is honestly a great character) which she identifies as Jealousy. The MC is also conscious about the FL but not really leaning towards a romantic interest because he is still considering the happiness of his Dad's relationship with the FL's Mom, so if things go sour towards the MC's relationship and the FL's, then it would affect the relationship of their parents, thus he tries to avoid concsiouly, but unconsciously he does have an inkling towards her as shown in how he acts in the novel, especially in Volume 2

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uruna117
uruna117
Nov 24, 2024
Status: v3c1
Elitism stigma stinks to high heaven. The author tries to sound smart, which results in very unnatural conversations that reek of his own views and biases about the subject matter. This novel takes itself too seriously but doesn’t make readers think for themselves. Instead, it stuffs readers with a bunch of ideals that are silly at best and borderline s*upid at worst.

This novel is neither thought-provoking nor sweet. It is a "romance" novel at its core, but the abusive inner monologue results in a very corny relationship. No one has... more>> inner monologues like the main character, which are essentially paragraph after paragraph of essays reflecting how the author perceives and interacts with the world. <<less
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Just_F
Just_F
Dec 01, 2021
Status: --
Now, now, the title itself seems something that I wouldn't like. At first I thought this will be similar to those other LN that I have read and dropped. I thought this would be like those ecchi sis-con or bro-con life story seeing each other in embarrassing or le*d moments but good thing it wasn't. I had a second thought before reading this, finally I got bored and got nothing to read so I give it a chance. And wow this is just wonderful. I will not talk anything about... more>> the LN itself but simply from the emotion I felt from reading this. It's very good to the point that I can't stop reading, somehow the author try to keep it realistic which is a good one. I love how their relationship build up. I read up to the third volume and Im dying for the fourth volume. <<less
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Iyo
Iyo
Jul 27, 2021
Status: v3 epilogue
This novel is a more realistic take on the step-sister genre of romance. It's a story about day-to-day life of 2 teenagers with broken homes that abruptly became siblings. The story focused on the awkwardness of their relationship and their efforts on being considerate not only to each others, but to their parents as well. It's a pleasant read and I highly recommend it.

Well honestly, I don't really like writing a review on an uncompleted series, so, I figured I'll just list my impression of this novel so far instead,... more>> so here they are:

  • Character portrayals are great, each characters have certain amount of depths to their personality and the author slowly explored those depth and made each and every one of them unique, it feels like they are written based on an actual human being rather than following popular tropes.
  • The premise might seems generic and you are right, it IS a generic premise, BUT, the author's take on this premise is a breath of fresh air. The execution is pretty much well done, the progression is realistic and believable and the author wrote on details really well, though in regards of details, sometimes it's a bit too well detailed, but I think that just shows how much efforts the author put in writing the novels and I honestly appreciate that.
  • The pacing is relaxing and slow, the author didn't throw everything at you all at once and instead took a more systematic approach to solve and introduce more problems into the story, though this gave birth to a problem which is the relationship progression between the characters is slow, while I personally like it this way, it might turn off some of you, so please keep that in mind if you dislike slow progression.
Overall, I really like this novel, I'm excited for whatever the author has in stock for us readers. Volume 3 ended in a good note and I really want to see how the relationship between the characters go. <<less
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Eneit
Eneit
Dec 28, 2022
Status: v7c12
At first, it is quite interesting as characters seem to be more mature than in other novels. However, that fact makes the story dry, boring and hard tp understand sometime.

The progress is too slow in v7, drive me crazy as I have to skim tens of thousands of words and receive bulls*** at the end.
5 Likes · Like Permalink | Report
Raestloz
Raestloz
Jul 01, 2022
Status: v5
Translation quality is superb, translator/editor kept things flowing the way English literature usually work and Japanese terms are kept at a minimum, only used at extremely few cases where it's absolutely needed for context. This is professional quality work

===========================

Great novel that managed to subvert expectations of a generic "obviously they're gonna date sooner or later"

We both know they're gonna date sooner or later, that's how romance stories always end. As such, what matters is not the ends, but the means. Gimai Seikatsu kept the interactions realistic: each volume is one... more>> month timeskip from the last. Relationship isn't speedrun, and they don't rely on the stereotype "boy saved girl from harassment" or "boy and girl have a secret they're keeping". This is a story about 2 minds who think alike and realized it's really nice to have someone on your wavelength.

Supporting characters are kept at a minimum and they don't have dark history that explains their erratic behavior. They're normal people with normal behaviors and normal background doing normal activities. There's no broken family and history of bullying that caused a PTSD or whatever

It's incredibly refreshing. Very much recommended <<less
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k40235
k40235
Apr 16, 2022
Status: v4 extra 4
this might look like typical" I fell in love with my stepsis", but I assure you, this is different. This is more realistic than the most of the light novel/ manga/ anime that I read, author has pretty deep knowledge about psychology, author always does his research when he wants to write something that he doesnt know that deep, conversations are brilliant and lively, interactions are very carefully written, characters has unique and special personalities and author knows how to show it to us, no character is extra and relevant... more>> to the story, character development is really nice, art is not bad, content of dialogue's are both engaging and informing (both about characters and real life)

give it a go, you wont regret it

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SiBoi
SiBoi
Jan 21, 2022
Status: v4c13
This is the first time I actually ever written a public review of any literary work of any languages, so if my points were up to no good, then I beg for your pardon.

From my perspective, this book started off by giving a glimpse of the current human conditions shaped by it's surrounding environment. How we label other people based on stereotypes, with the premise of prejudice and simple minded conclusion, forcing us, member of society to become conformist with no general idea of what they meant, in other words,... more>> hypocrisy, for the sake of pleasing of other people. But the topics were more than that. It explore how one's past effect their views and expectations in their growth to maturity and how fixated they are in maintaining it. The books also showed the intricacy of human relationship with it's established environment, the desire to keep the status quo but also an equal, if not more of a desire of change and uncertainty that lingers with every ponder.

In conclusion, after binging trough all 4 volumes in a day, I shall give my highest admiration to the translation team for giving us such a remarkable translations of this masterpiece of literary. This book indeed leave a deep impression on myself, and leaving me pondering in my lonely nights accompanied with my thoughts. <<less
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Aozorah
Aozorah
Aug 29, 2021
Status: v4 afterword
A story about step siblings falling in love with each other, but with a very realistic approach. The reason for remarriage is properly explained, back story is reasonable too.

I really recommend reading this. One of the best slow paced romance/slice of life modern light novel i've ever read, paired with a very awesome translator. As long as author doesn't drag the slow romance for like 3-4 volumes, this will be a constant 5 star for me.
5 Likes · Like Permalink | Report
Vandille
Vandille
Apr 07, 2021
Status: --
Waaaahhh!!

I've always loved slow romance as these type of novels are wonderful and doesnt give the feeling that their relationships might collapse if a bad situation were to arise, this was lovely, I've been captivated by their bittersweet relationship!

Gochisosama desu!

Gobbling up slow romance like it's hot noodles on a cold Friday night while watching anime!.

Love translation too! Wish I could donate but I'm a 14 year old who barely has got any cash with me 😔.
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Chaitanya09
Chaitanya09
Apr 04, 2021
Status: v2 afterword
First of all I would like to thank the translators who did an amazing job and a fast one at that.

Now as for the novel, the one thing that appeases to me the most is the realistic take on the relationship of our two leads, as many other reviews have pointed out the same. There are no forced feelings b/w them which would make it look shallow.

The supporting characters are great and actually help the story to flow better, rather than just being there or worse, being annoying.

All in all,... more>> this was a very fun read. Highly recommended. <<less
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Sliceed
Sliceed
Mar 25, 2021
Status: Completed
This novel plot is where the MC dad and female lead mom remarry and they become step siblings that kind of plot however unlike the other novels this novel is realistic there are no step sister hates the MC because he is disgusting or step sister loves the MC at first sight etc, no not that kind of stuff. The relationship at first are only that of step siblings no hate no love just like real step siblings though there probably will be love in the future but who knows

Anyway... more>> I recommend people to read this <<less
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Coba
Coba
Apr 23, 2021
Status: V1 and V2
I love it.

I actually am not romcom reader. The reason I read it because I want something that tell me about how human relationship is through story (well I'm like a naive person for that matters)

Yes, I know, wanting to learn about human relationship from light novel moreover romcom feels a bit off from reality, but I want something that I can enjoy.

... more>> And fortunately, this novel gives some interesting common sense, with interesting comedy and romance that I can really enjoy.

Volume 1 is special about first encounter I guess, so basically someone can call this session dry, but for me it's a gentle first impression about how yuuta and saki start to live together as family in the same roof and school. While in the near end of the volume 1, the problem blown up and yuuta can prevent it.
Spoiler

The frustration saki of quick money and the fear of indebtedness because of her dependent traumatic with her father.

[collapse]
(What I know something that can happen like to independent university japanese girl)

Volume 2 is something fresh up with the appearance of seed of romance and unconscious jealousy of saki. And this is a volume where the real romance comedy of this story begins, and also with a gentle plot and interesting leak of saki diary like in volume 1 as a way of us the readers to know what actually the stoic saki really think and do in the past few days that yuuta curious about.

I'm really can't wait for Volume 3 of this story.

Thanks a lot for all the translators of this story. Great job. <<less
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