Lyle Walt has always been looking forward to becoming the heir of his family land. Yet as he gets older, his parents start to neglect him more often. His little sister, Celes, has become the center of their attention and defeats him in a duel on his birthday. Now turned away from everything he has ever known, Lyle takes the family heirloom Gem housing the memories of his ancestors and sets out on a journey into an unknown future.

Lyle’s core group of companions becomes his family along the course of their journey, thanks to the experiences they go through together. After being rejected from his own family, Lyle feels alone in the world. Thanks to Novem and the other people Lyle gathers along the way, he doesn’t feel quite so alone anymore. Though 7th is a story with many characters, its core group of adventurers is quite enigmatic and vibrant, providing a sort of makeshift family for each other.

After saving a stranger from a traffic collision, a NEET is reincarnated into a family in a new world as a baby. The newborn Rudeus Greyrat has kept all of his memories from his previous life, rendering him a young prodigy in this one. He begins studying the sword and magic under some of the most prestigious teachers. Yet despite his young and innocent appearance, Rudeus also retains his perverted nature from his previous life!

Rudeus is only one member of the Greyrat family, which includes not only his immediate family but a whole host of cousins and other relatives. Rudeus himself is rather unique and gifted, but many of the other Greyrats are as well. His father is a great swordsman and teaches Rudeus everything he knows, while his cousin Eris Boreas is also one of the best in the land at swordsmanship. The Greyrats are a fun and varied family—though we certainly wouldn’t want to get on their bad side!

Kyousuke Kamiya wanted nothing more than to protect his little sister. Despite this, he ended up being imprisoned in the worst place possible, the Purgatorium School of Rehabilitation! Though Kyousuke may be surrounded by beautiful women here, they are all convicted murderers. And unfortunately for Kyousuke, many of these dangerous women are drawn to him, not just for his title as the “Mass Murderer of Twelve!” Kyousuke has a chance to graduate safely, but with women like Renko Hikawa around, will he be able to last that long?

Kyousuke gives up a lot to protect his younger sister Ayaka, and he clearly cares about her quite a bit. Of course, Ayaka cares just as much about her older brother, as she would do almost anything to be reunited with him…

Shintarou Kisaragi lives a perfect shut-in life, except for the cyber girl Ene, who enjoys pulling pranks on him from time to time. One day she breaks his keyboard, and Shintarou has to head out to get another one. Even more unfortunate for him, Shintarou gets caught up in a terrorist hostage situation at the department store! It is here that he meets the “Mekakushi-dan,” a powerful group of teenagers bound together by fate.

Shintarou and his younger sister Momo are both members of the Mekakushi-dan, each with their own eye abilities. Though they are brought together with the other members of the group by circumstances, the two siblings have always cared about one another’s well being. Shintarou has always doubted his ability to take care of Momo, but he supports her in the best way he can, usually from the background or through the other members of their group.

A man who was the strongest agent in the world became a teacher, to continue to pass along his teachings to others. After some time, he was killed by evil means, finding himself reincarnated in a new world. Now born into this world as Sirius Teacher, the man retained all of his past memories from his life. Sirius quickly adapts to his new life and embraces the world around him. He trains in magic, hoping to become proficient enough in the subject to be a teacher once more. Through his students, Sirius will find his place in this new world once again!

Sirius’ main students are the Silverlion siblings Emilia and Reus, despite their similarities in age between teacher and student. Reus is initially reluctant to cede to Sirius’ teachings, but both he and Emilia come to have great respect for Sirius. While Sirius has plenty of interesting students, Emilia and Reus are easily two of the best!

Iris is an android who lives a happy and blissful life with her master Wendy von Umbrella, though Wendy does like to tease her young ward on occasion. One day, Iris is sent to a concentration camp for robots, and is introduced to an entirely different part of life, one far from the peaceful existence she had known…

With all the harshness of the world going on around them, Wendy tries her best to keep Iris sheltered from it all. She treats Iris like a naïve child or a younger sister, doting on her and caring for her until misfortune strikes them. Though they may not be a traditional family by any means, their relationship is one of care and love, one that is well worth its place on our list!

William is the only one of his kind—the only human in a city full of undead creatures, which might frighten some. Yet his memories of a previous useless life drive William onward, inspiring him to live a new life with some purpose behind it! Bolstered by his interactions with the undead of the city, William sets out to discover who he really is.

The characters of Saihate no Paladin are some of the most well-written and interesting from any light novel! William is raised by the skeleton Blood, the mummified priestess Mary and the ghostly sorcerer Gus, which sounds like a recipe for disaster, yet these three characters send so much love William’s way. Despite all appearances, Blood, Mary and Gus create a good family for William, raising him the best that they can in the situation he is in.

When a 37-year-old man is killed by a robber, he is reincarnated as a slime in another world—but he quickly discovers that he has some pretty new amazing skills as well! Now known as Rimuru Tempest, he begins to take charge of his new life, starting with befriending the powerful Storm Dragon Veldora. Rimuru eventually finds himself at the top of an eccentric group of creatures—his own following, in a dramatic turn from this old life!

Though Rimuru has created a family of his own sort, Benimaru and Shuna are actually related to one another, being the main force behind the ogres and later, the kishin. Both Benimaru and Shuna are vital members of Rimuru’s team, and some of his most trusted advisors. Rimuru assigns them both to leadership positions in his encampment, with Shuna leading the cloth-weavers in her unique skills and Benimaru even controlling the entire city while Rimuru is away.

Dungeon ni Deai wo Motomeru no wa Machigatteiru Darou ka is the story of Bell Cranel, a young boy who wants to become a great adventurer. He encounters a god named Hestia, who is looking to start her own familia. Together, they will try to achieve their dreams!

Though the Hestia familia is small, both Bell and Hestia are hard workers and strive to reach their dreams with the help of one another. They may not be a traditional family, but they rely on each other immensely, and are a great example for us all!

Dale is an excellent adventurer who is rather gifted, even though he is younger than most adventurers usually are. One day, as he is out in the forest, he finds a young demon girl who is on the brink of death. Despite his prowess as an adventurer, Dale has a soft spot for the girl and takes her in, naming her Latina. Though Dale is not sure what to do with Latina at first, he quickly becomes a parent to her. But Latina carries some mysteries from her past, ones that may come back to haunt them both…

Dale and Latina’s relationship is the most pure-hearted one we have seen among any light novel! Though they both might face challenges, Dale will always look out for Latina, and Latina will always return to Dale as her one true semblance of a family. The two make an adorable family, one that we certainly look up to!