‘Frieren’ Stays at No. 1 for Second Week on Billboard Japan Book Hot 100

Vol. 15 of Soso no Frieren (Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End) by Kanehito Yamada and Tsukasa Abe holds at No. 1 on this week’s Billboard Japan Book Hot 100, on the chart released Jan. 1.

The Japan Book Hot 100 is a comprehensive list integrating physical books, e-books, library loans, subscription-based consumption, and social media buzz. This week, Vol. 15 (released Dec. 18) of the popular manga series chronicling the adventures of the elven mage Frieren logs its second week atop the tally after debuting at the summit last week. The volume again leads physical-store sales, while coming in at No. 3 for e-books, No. 15 for EC, and remaining within the top 50 on social media, maintaining strong performance across metrics.

Also holding steady at No. 2 is the latest volume of the Monthly Sunday GX manga adaptation of Kusuriya no Hitorigoto (The Apothecary Diaries). Debuting at No. 3 is the comic adaptation of the popular light novel Katainaka no Ossan, Kensei ni Naru (From Old Country Bumpkin to Master Swordsman) Vol. 8. The original novel series previously received an anime adaptation last year.

During the final chart week of 2025, novels see notable gains across the board, likely driven by year-end retrospectives at bookstores and among individual readers, as well as increased demand for binge reading over the holidays. Kanae Minato’s Ningen Hyouhon (Human Specimens), which recently launched as a live-action drama on Prime Video, and Mina Miyajima’s Naruse wa Tenka wo Toriniiku, the first installment in the Naruse series, each climb one position. Meanwhile, Ryo Asai’s In the Megachurch surges from outside the top 20 last week to No. 13.

See the top titles on this week’s JAPAN Book Hot 100:

JAPAN BOOK HOT 100 Top 10

(Numbers in parentheses indicate the title’s metric placements for physical stores, EC, e-books, subscriptions, and social media, top 20 only. English title given if translations or adaptations exist.)

1. Soso no Frieren (Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End) Vol. 15, Kanehito Yamada, Tsukasa Abe (1・15・3・-・-)

2. Kusuriya no Hitorigoto ~ Maomao no Kokyu Nazotoki Techo ~ (The Apothecary Diaries) Vol. 21, Hyuuganatsu, Minoji Kurata, Touko Shino (3・5・7・-・-)

3. Katainaka no Ossan, Kensei ni Naru: Tada no Inaka no Kenjutsu Shihan Datta noni, Taisei Shita Deshi-tachi ga Ore wo Hotte Kurenai Ken (From Old Country Bumpkin to Master Swordsman: My Hotshot Disciples Are All Grown Up Now and They Won’t Leave Me Alone) Vol. 8, Shigeru Sagazaki, Tetsuhiro Nabeshima, Kazuki Sato (2・-・11・-・-)

4. Honey Lemon Soda Vol. 30, Mayu Murata (6・-・2・-・-)

5. Ore dake Level Up na Ken (Solo Leveling) Vol. 23, DUBU (REDICE STUDIO), Chugong, h-goon (4・-・6・-・-)

6. Masshiro na Choucho, MAYA (-・1・-・-・-)

7. Ningen Hyouhon (Human Specimens), Kanae Minato (8・-・-・-・6)

8. Naruse wa Tenka wo Toriniiku, Mina Miyajima (-・-・-・1・3)

9. Taiyou yori mo Mabushii Hoshi (A Star Brighter Than the Sun) Vol. 13, Kazune Kawahara (-・-・1・-・-)

10. Bakudan (Bomb), Katsuhiro Go (-・-・-・18・2)