Books Like An Arsonist and a Necromancer Walk into a Bar

Loved An Arsonist and a Necromancer Walk into a Bar? Here are the closest LitRPG and progression-fantasy reads, ranked by trope and theme overlap. Each pick lists the elements it shares with An Arsonist and a Necromancer Walk into a Bar so you can pick by what you actually want next.

  1. Afterlife 2.0 [Litrpg in Hell] cover

    A snarky gamer navigates a glitch-ridden hellscape, exploiting broken systems and aggressive wildlife to outsmart the gods watching her every move.

  2. The Exorcist Doctor cover
    #2

    The Exorcist Doctor

    match 71%

    A disgraced doctor wields stolen arcanotech and a dying exorcist's symbiotic system to fight plague cults in a city choking on magic parasites.

  3. The Riyria Chronicles [WITTY BANTER | EPIC FANTASY | ASSASSINS | THIEVES | MERCENARIES] cover

    A disgraced assassin and a mercenary with a conscience trade sharp banter and sharper blades while unraveling a noblewoman’s deadly secrets.

  4. Empress of Fire cover
    #4

    Empress of Fire

    match 67%

    Niara traded her healing touch for flames that devour kingdoms, and now empires burn to answer one question: can a monster still choose mercy.

  5. Memoirs of Your Local Small-time Villainess cover

    A sharp-witted editor must wield the magic and misdeeds of a notorious villainess to survive a world that already despises her.

  6. Cursed Relic Collector cover
    #6

    Cursed Relic Collector

    match 65%

    A trinket merchant bargains with a forgotten god for cursed relics, gaining power to hunt his enemies—if the artifacts don’t destroy him first.

  7. Your Very Own (Pokemon OC) cover

    Luvia Juneworth must choose between fame and the ocean's hidden throne as her Pokémon journey uncovers Hoenn's submerged legends.

  8. Blood Eagle cover
    #8

    Blood Eagle

    match 64%

    A mute skáld regains his stolen magic through forbidden blood rites, turning the arena that broke him into his forge of vengeance.

  9. Bookbound Bunny cover
    #9

    Bookbound Bunny

    match 63%

    A frail bunny-girl becomes the apprentice of a fallen god trapped in a grimoire, trading penmanship for power in a high-stakes magical bargain.

  10. Underkeeper cover
    #10

    Underkeeper

    match 62%

    A disgraced mage with an illegal soul-eating familiar claws his way up from sewer maintenance into a world of deadly political intrigue.

  11. Dual Wielding cover
    #11

    Dual Wielding

    match 62%

    Two village boys trade their dull lives for the brutal trials of spirit knighthood, where monsters and rivals stand between them and the legends they idolize.

  12. Nowhere Stars cover
    #12

    Nowhere Stars

    match 61%

    Liadain wields the magic of sickness and death to carve her path to immortality from the nightmares that devour souls.

How we pick "similar"

Each pair gets a similarity score based on shared tropes, tags, tone and pacing. Top tropes carry the most weight; raw rating only nudges ties. No black-box ML — the pipeline is explained on our About page.