Okay I've always been a Trinity Blood fan from the moment I heard about the anime. It just had such a unique art style that looked elegant yet violent at the same time. Combining themes from classics like Vampire Hunter D, Hellsing and even Trigun I couldn't help but be drawn in. Though the anime story was incomplete and to some extent so was the manga, mainly because the original writer Sunao Yoshida died in 2004 and thus couldn't finish the story. This came as a shock and bitter disappointment for me because I could see he was setting things up but was never given the chance to bring that huge plot revelation he wanted. Nevertheless as a fan I sought out any medium that could hint at something I didn't see in the anime or manga and it lead me to the original source material- the light novels. Unfortunately this novel isn't one of the new stories from the overall series, actually its pretty old within the first 10 eps of the anime. But I didn't mind reading it in its original form-always nice to see anime in literary form anyhow.

The synopsis goes like this, in the fallen capital of Istavan which lies in between the Methuselah (vampire) Empire and the Vatican (human) territory), life is ruled by the Marquis of Hungary Gyula. Gyula happens to be a vampire nobleman, one who spites humans to the point of inducing great suffering to the population with high taxes, martial law etc. But aside from this Gyula seems to have greater plans, plans that can put the entire world at risk. Now the protagonists of the story are split into two individuals, the first is a young nun called Esther Blanchett who secretly leads a rebel group of partisans under the alias Star to stop Gyula's obvious oppression. The second is a bumbling young priest Abel Nightroad who has been sent to Istavan by the Vatican to investigate Gyula and his secret plans while apparently having a much deeper persona.

Keeping away from most spoilers, I'll say that despite the story's episodic nature and the fact that I already knew what was going to happen (having seen the anime already) I was still entertained. The characters were very engaging with Abel acting very humourous and awkward but switching his personality at just the right moments, hinting at a sinister more all-knowing version of himself. Esther does well to be an innocent bystander unknown to the true nature of things. Even Gyula has great motivations behind his villainy and does well as a three-dimensional enemy. The minor characters are also interesting including Tres Iquis AKA Gunslinger the terminator-like gunman, and the very passionate Caterina Sforza who serves well as Abel's superior and shows the politics involved in the Vatican. Even the greater evil Rozencruz Orden does well to capture my attention.

Plus the series combines sci fi,fantasy and horror so masterfully. Only a few stories can rival it.

Also this individual story ended in a complete way hinting at a greater plot which should be continued in further novels or volumes. I just wish that this story did have some sort of ending because I personally think it could've been one of the greatest vampire stories out there, even surpassing Vampire Hunter D in some respect.

3 1/2 out of 5 stars ( )

I felt that the second of the Trinity Blood light novels was more successful and, in many ways, a better introduction to the series than the first. Its length and the fact that it tells a single story rather than a series of shorter ones allows readers to actually get to know the characters.

Fans of the anime will find the plot and characters familiar, as the events of the book correspond to episodes three and four of that series but the story does play out differently and the book is worth your time. I am still very much enjoying the original iteration of the Trinity Blood franchise and will definitely be continuing to buy the books as they are released. ( )