It’s the story of a boy who was brutally killed by another, and a story of a monster who cruelly killed others.
Or perhaps it’s a story of a child who was abandoned by his parents, and a hero who was abandoned by the world.
Either way, it’s a story of admiration and folly.
It’s a story of love, but not a story of romance.
Someday, it will likely be remembered as a tale from long, long ago.
A horrible, tragic little anecdote.
One that was far too twisted to pass off as a fairy tale.
I assume that everyone who are reading this review have read a lot of books or mangas, so I will ask you all a question: When you finished a book, or an arc, have you ever felt a feeling of fullness? Not the normal feeling that you feel when you finish something and become sad that there are no more chapters to read. I’m talking about the feeling when you can say with 100% that the story impacted you and changed your perception on some things, or that you can feel a real end to the fictional word. Just like Lord of the Rings, for example.
When I finished vol 6 of Torture Princess (which are the latest one released in English), I felt this way. I can’t even start to describe how I have felt when I finished it. A sensation of fullness assailed me. I was sad, happy, mad, pleased, amazed, destroyed, shattered, full. Full. This is the word. It was just a perfect ending for the arc, so well-thought, so befitting with the setting, the storytelling, the journey, the narrative, all of things. It fit so well that I can’t really complain about anything.
So, since probably no one have read this volume, or even the vol 1 of Torture Princess, I will stop to talk about it and focus on the review. Just for curiosity, I will make a first section with a non-spoiler review, and then a review with spoilers, where I will go into details on the things.
NON-SPOILER REVIEW
Torture Princess is a light novel written by Keishi Ayasato and illustrated by Ukai Saki. Giving you all an insight in what is this light novel: after living 17 years foi constant abuse and pain by his father, Kaito dies and was summoned to another world by none other than Torture Princess, a peerless sinner. She was slated by the Church to slay the 14 demons that haunt the world, and she ordered him to serve her and assist her in this journey.”
I’ll be honest, when I first came upon this light novel, I was more attracted by the cover, which was dazzling, than the synopsis, but let me tell right away: don’t think like this! The cover is dazzling, sure, but the text was even more amazing, I can assure you. But why it was amazing? Heh, I will tell you, and when you finish this review, you will want to read this!
Before talking about the points, I have to make a statement. Torture Princess is a isekai, but not your typical isekai. It does not have your common storytelling and common worldbuilding, they are totally different. It is the perfect use of a isekai. It was just a mechanism to bring Kaito to Elisabeth, nothing more. Just a guy, who was killed without commiting any sin, trying to live in another world. It gives a Subaru’s vibe, but not quite it. I will try to explain it further.
So, what will make you, who are reading this review, develop a will to read this light novel?
• Worldbuilding/setting
First thing, the setting/worldbuilding. Keishi Ayasato creates a unique and distinctive world, with its own rules and beings. In this world, which is a medieval setting, the magic is obtained by inflicting pain on others. What do I mean? If you hurt someone, your magic powers increase. Alongside this system of magic, which is really creative, the world is infested by 14 demons. And you know what they do, riiiiight?
They commit massacres, slaughters, killings sprees, and all this kind of things. It is truly horrific. And the good (depends on what you think it is good) thing is that Keishi Ayasato focus on describing these scenes, to give you, reader, a sense of what is happening. I’ll put a quote of what I’m talking about:
These descriptions are not uncommon, so I advise you to not read it, if you don’t like this kind of grotesque descriptions. And I can say that they really enhance your experiences. Every time Kaito and Elisabeth (the two protagonists, I’ll talk about them later) went to a place and saw the massacres, every time the descriptions were different but equally grotesque, creepy, disgusting, dark and real. They were real. It was not some edgy quote just to made the work look dark. These descriptions enhance your perception and gave life to the scene, so you would comprehend what was happening and to make sure that the demons were demons.
There are some other aspects of worldbuilding. Since there are demons, there are God and Diablo, and they were real in this world. They existed and have specific rules to each of them. I can’t talk too much because it is a spoiler, but they have key roles in the story, so if you are interested, go read it!
Another thing are the races. In this world, there are the beastfolk and the demi-humans. But let me tell you: it is not what you imagine. When they appeared, I was really surprised, and what they did in the volumes was truly amazing. Each race had a distinctive role, and they played it well. Can’t talk more, sorry!
Oh man, this non-spoiler review is really annoying me, I want to talk about a lot of things aaaaaaaaaa.
So, last warning before the characters/plot. It is a dark fantasy, a really dark story, so if you don’t feel good with this kind of scenes, I advise you to not read it. It is truly dark haha.
• Characters/plot
I wanted to split this part into characters and plot, but, since Torture Princess is a character-driven story, I can’t see why. So, let’s talk about characters, and with them I’ll talk a bit about the plot, without spoiling, of course!
First, Kaito Sena. Our protagonist. He lived in our world, but died by the hands of his own father, after 17 years of constant abuse, just to be summoned by the Torture Princess, to live a second life. Well, you can tell that he doesn’t want to live in the start, it is obviously painful to see him just wanting to die after a live of abuse.
But things start to happen, and he, slowly, starts to change. He starts to develop a feeling that he can live in this world with a happiness inside him. A person that him admires. A person that he loves. People that he doesn’t want do die. And it goes like this. It is a complete journey, one that made me tear a lot, and it is really difficult to make me tear.
It was a complete story, one that I can boast to be a masterpiece. The development of Kaito is natural, you understand why he is doing this and that, and you agree with him! It is the kind of story that you are really cheering the character. Oh man, I just want him to be happy! Something along these lines.
And seeing him starting to change, to develop good feeling toward other, improving as a person and finally deciding what he wants to do is a truly, truly magnificent experience. Kaito became one of my favorite characters of all times.
Second, Elisabeth Le Fanu. The Torture Princess, the proud wolf and the lowly sow. She is indescribable. Such an amazing character. Extremely well-written. She was a common child, but one day she slaughtered her fiefdom. Torturing people, massacring people, killing people: harnessing their pain. And, after annihilate her fiefdom, she boasted immense power and became the Torture Princess, a woman who was on par with the demons. After that, she was imprisoned by the Church and was slated to slay the 14 demons, and after that she was to be put in the stake.
The curious thing, in the start, is that she accepted it fully-hearted. She didn’t question this decision. She burdened all the sins she committed, all the hatred of the world, and didn’t complain. She would fight alone, if not for Kaito. She was alone, and she would be forever. She became the Torture Princess, and she would die in the name of humanity. And I think that you already have a general ideia on what the plot will head. I’ll stop here, but let me tell you that it will completely blow your mind.
To illustrate her, I think this quote defines how people perceive her:
“You tortured the entire population of your fiefdom! You dismembered their bodies, ripped out their still-beating hearts, stitched every orifice in their bodies shut, carved into their bones, melted their flesh, gouged out their eyes, severed their tongues, and when you ran out of ideas, you killed parents and children, the elderly, and men and women alike! In the end, your sins reached even the nobles! Torture Princess! Elisabeth Le Fanu! Who would believe anything that came out of your filthy mouth?!”
She is an anti-hero, and what a anti-hero she is! An anti-hero, normally, is a complex character, with a lot of layers to work and develop. And with Elisabeth, it is just like that. I already gave you a general idea in the pre-previous paragraph, but rephrasing it in an easier way: she is not evil. If you get the previous quote, you might say: she is undoubtedly evil. But the story progresses, and you see her interacting with Kaito, and you get to learn more about her, you are unable to not love her. She is a woman, a fine woman, which burden the hatred of the world, but, even so, she is focused on her task. She is probably one of my favourite female characters of all times. A complex character, an enjoyable character, a character that you feel sympathy toward her and start to loves her. Oh man, I could go hours and hours talking about Elisabeth, she has so many aspects and layers to talk, but unfortunately, I can’t, due to spoilers. Well, if you are interested, I’ll make another review with spoilers, and there I’ll talk about Elisabeth and Kaito, and a lot of other things.
The relationship between Kaito and Elisabeth is amazing. It was developed in a perfect way, and I really, really enjoy it sooo much. I’ll cut to the chase: there is not romance between them. And this is a good thing. The feeling that Kaito has for Elisabeth surpasses that of romance, it is a pure and genuine feeling, one that it is not easy to have. Well, I am repeating myself, I’ll stop here hahaha.
The other major character is Hina. Differently than Elisabeth, HIna is a cheerful girl who lightens the mood. Almost all of the comedy comes for her. And she is such a enjoyable character. She is not that well-written than those two, I’ll be honest, but she is great, cute, lovely, adorable, fierce and all the kind of objectives. She plays a major role in Kaito development, and I found it truly lovely. Well, can’t talk, stop, aaaaaaa.
There are other great characters, such as Izabella Vicker, which was reaaaaally well-written, and Jeanne de Rais, which, too, was well-written. But I can’t talk about them because it is spoiler terrain, but the relationship between these two are wonderful. Izabella is a great character, and Jeanne development is amazing! Oh man, I really love these two and how they interact with each other.
Another great one is Vlad. Oh man, Vlad is a really nice character. He is your typical mad character, one who you can’t comprehend his actions based solely on madness. But he is enjoyable. He plays a key role in the story, which I am not going to talk about it, but keep in mind: he is a important existence to Elisabeth.
So, talking in general, the characters in Torture Princess are all well-written. Each one of them gets a bit of development, and you almost sympathize with them all. It is disturbing how all of them have good motivations to do what they do.
• Prose
In my previous review of Kumo Desu Ga, Nani Ka?, I didn’t make a prose section because I didn’t found it that great to make a specific one. But in Torture Princess, holy crap, the prose is amazing.
The quality of a prose is really subjective, it is not a certain thing, so don’t sweat if you disagree with me. A good prose, for me, is the one that sparkle your eyes. It is the writing that you feel delighted to read, you feel amazed by the quality of it. It comes off almost as poetic. Something that you read and can say for sure; “Crap, this is amazing.” And I got the same feeling with the writing of Keishi Ayasato.
What another method than show quotes to illustrate the prose? I’ll put here some quotes that I found really nice and that sparkled my eyes.
First, the descriptions of the massacres. I really loved how Keishi Ayasato portrayed the insanity and cruelty of the demons. It became really clear to me that they were the personified evil. The detailed massacred, the detailed defiled corpses, the detailed environment, all of these were present and it was one of the things that make Torture Princess what it is.
“You tortured the entire population of your fiefdom! You dismembered their bodies, ripped out their still-beating hearts, stitched every orifice in their bodies shut, carved into their bones, melted their flesh, gouged out their eyes, severed their tongues, and when you ran out of ideas, you killed parents and children, the elderly, and men and women alike! In the end, your sins reached even the nobles! Torture Princess! Elisabeth Le Fanu! Who would believe anything that came out of your filthy mouth?!”
“There were men and women, young and old, their bodies mutilated and cast aside. Their hands and feet had been twisted off like those of broken dolls, their chests ripped open, their limbs torn off. Eyes, ears, teeth, and tongues were all missing.”
*“There was a man whose top half was fully carbonized. An old woman with not only her head but her entire spine ripped out. A woman with her breasts cut off. A young boy whose face had been torn clean off. A half-dead child with their arms severed who had likely been trying to crawl away.
None of them retained so much as a shred of human dignity. All their deaths were gruesome. Unlike the beast, their corpses were comprehendible. That was precisely why the spectacle was so horrific, why the cruelty of it sank into one’s brain. The urge to retch welled up in Kaito’s throat before he finally managed to swallow it down.
There was no mistaking it. This was Hell.
This was a place filled with the worst things one could imagine.”*
“In the dining hall, people covered in the Governor’s spices were eating one another, all of them on the verge of death. The kitchen featured a man afflicted by poison, dead after cutting open his own chest and slurping at his innards in search of food. Down in the dungeon, a young mother had committed suicide after leaving a note detailing how she’d eaten her own baby. A young girl was slumped over a couch, her organs shredded after she’d eaten pastries filled with nails. And the courtyard’s pool was filled with the bodies of children who had drowned in a sea of cake and suffocated.”
*"What had been particularly horrific was the state of the small theater designed for the children of wealthy merchants to hold singing recitals at. The Church had invested in the construction of the building—and as a result, had been able to place restrictions on what could be performed there—which boasted a grand design. Its delicate stained-glass windows cast vivid lights onto the stage. When the ----- had burst through the wall behind the boys and girls lined up on the stage, it had devoured them from the waists down and merged all their brains and organs together.
They’d been transformed into blasphemous, repulsive objets d’art, completely unrecognizable as human. Heightening the horror of the scene was a statue of the bloody tear–shedding Saint hanging from the domed ceiling, symbolically watching over them.
Each time they were cut, the children cried out, occasionally lending their youthful voices to cherubic, haphazard songs."*
I think you already got what I was talking about. These descriptions are common in Torture Princess, and I really appreciate it. I already saw people saying that they are too “edgy”, but I don’t think so. It would be edgy if it didn’t have a meaning, but in Torture Princess it has meaning. It goes as I have said, if gives life to the massacres and make you understand the magic system.
Another good thing of the prose is the quotes of Elisabeth. She has a distinctive way of speaking, which is a bit archaic, and she is really aggressive. So here are some quotes of her. Unfortunately, I didn’t take a picture of that many, even in my reread, so I apologize for that.
“O Sinless Soul, stricken down in a manner most foul. From this day forth, you shall be my loyal servant. I am the Torture Princess, Elisabeth Le Fanu. I am the proud wolf and the lowly sow.”
“Despots are killed, tyrants are hung, and slaughterers are slaughtered. Such is the way of the world. The demise of torturers should be garnished with their own screams as they sink to Hell with no chance for salvation. Only at such a time is a torturer’s life truly complete. Yet, you tortured, not understanding that in the slightest? You embarrass yourself, ----.”
“You and I—we are fated to die, forsaken by all of creation.”
“I had no right to take the light of a single person in this world. Every person I killed led a vigorous life, a life they had every right to carry out as they pleased. They were innocent, and I murdered them. I killed them cruelly, gruesomely, mercilessly, and unreasonably. ’Tis as you say, Marianne. Not even my death will be punishment enough. I became the Torture Princess with full knowledge of what that entailed.”
“I am the Torture Princess, Elisabeth Le Fanu. I have tortured and killed more than any other, been captured by the Church, and been tasked with slaying fourteen demons. And once I’ve executed them all, I myself will be put to the stake. I have harmed, oppressed, and killed mercilessly, brutally, and arrogantly. And now the feast and feaster have switched places. Mankind has the right to use me up and slay me as they please. That is what I decided.”
*“A single young woman stood before them.
She was beautiful and wore a provocative bondage outfit. Her appearance was like the coming of a messiah or perhaps a tyrant, and her lustrous black hair and dress with scarlet-dyed interior fluttered in the wind.
Her chest was concealed by thin leather straps but was otherwise practically bare. Her erotic attire was a far cry from that of the Suffering Saint from the people’s faith. However, the beauty and solemnity of the person who had arrived in that hell made it impossible to imagine her as anything but a hallowed figure.
Hearing the people’s supplicating voices, though, the woman scowled.
“And just who do you think you’re calling a saint? Hold your tongue if you’re going to refer to me in such a repugnant manner!”*
I could keep going on and on with quotes of Elisabeth or about her, but I think you already get it. The prose is really good when dealing with her, it is very pleasing. Another thing that I really like is the presence of the narrator in third person. In most of the light novel, the narrator is in first person, which is good in a way that you become intimate with the character in question; but on the other hand, you lose the quality, versatility and usefulness of the third person. And Torture Princess, which is in third person, uses really well it, giving quotes that illustrate really well Kaito’s mind, Elisabeth’s behaviour, world’s affairs, Hina’s love, and so on. To illustrate it, more quotes (I don’t know if you are liking it, you can skip this part if you want to. It is just for illustrations of my point):
*“Loathsome Elisabeth, repulsive Elisabeth, cruel, hideous Elisabeth!
A curse upon you, a curse upon you, a curse, a curse, an eternal curse upon you, Elisabeth!”*
*“What would happen if you tied someone’s limbs together with barbed wire and then pulled on them until they reached their limit?
What would happen if you stuck tentacles into someone’s abdomen while they were still alive and then churned them around?
What would happen if you squeezed someone’s body until their bones broke and they vomited up all their organs?
Within that building, all those questions had been thoroughly answered.”*
*“There stood a fierce Valkyrie, a being who defied all logic.
Her wedding dress stained a deep red, the bride was holding her executioner’s ax at the ready.”*
“Harboring hope is worthless. Trust only in despair—and fight back against it, so that you may find a chance to destroy it.”
“The most effective method by which to unite people is to give them a common enemy. The Torture Princess has slain far too many. Burning her at the stake should prove a fitting symbol.”
*“And my nightmare is finally over as well”.
And then, with the time she had left to her,
the Torture Princess wove a gentle lullaby.”*
*“A town had died, and the Torture Princess had been born.
It was like a cruel, twisted fairy tale.*
*And yet at the same time, it was the bitter truth.
As proof of that, Elisabeth was currently visiting that place.”*
*“Within it, something was sleeping.
Whatever it was, human vocabulary was ill equipped to describe it.”*
“Flocks of sheep were, fundamentally, stupid. And that was the way things ought to be.”
“There exist shepherds who would gladly cast themselves into the fire just to catch a glimpse of a miracle. And most of their sheep will blindly follow after them. Only when the situation becomes irreparable will the people first cry out. How did things get to this point? they will say, one and all.”
“All someone had to do was possess incredible power, and others would instinctively show them deference, fear, and respect. Even if the end of the world hadn’t been nigh, the number of people following that person would probably be above zero. They would be like demon worshippers, true, but demon worshippers had existed for countless ages, after all.”
*“The things responded with laughter. (And they were screaming, too.)
The things sang a song. (And they were silent, too.)
The things composed a prayer. (And they were jeering, too.)
The things wept loudly. (And they were laughing, too.)
The things responded with laugh ( too.)
The things ( ?)
The ( !)”*
Ok, I will stop. I think you already get it, and if you read all of the quotes, congratulations! Hahaha
Last thing, the torture devices. Unfortunately, I didn’t take a picture of the names of the torture devices, so I will not quote it here. But Elisabeth summon a lot of torture devices and is really intriguing seeing them in action.
• Plot
I already spoke about it, but the plot is centered on Kaito and Elisabeth. It has a external plot, a great one actually, but the focus is on Kaito and Elisabeth. So, I’m not going to talk anything. Just bear in mind two things: one, it has a McGuffin. If you don’t know what this term means, go search it. And second, it has a marvelous foreshadowing. So yeah, it is just this that I wanted to talk.
• Art
When we talk about light novel, the illustrations really attract a lot of attention and potential new readers. And Torture Princess has a astounding art, the best art that I’ve ever seen in a light novel. I’ll put some covers, color illustrations and black&white illustrations.
Just out of curiosity, I was picking the images from my notebook and I started crying remembering the vol 6. Just this, thanks!
• Language
You already saw on the many quotes. Torture Princess has a fairly difficult language, with a lot of metaphors, adjectives and descriptions. I’m a Brazilian, and I struggled a bit in the beginning, even with my good English, so if a Brazilian or another person who isn’t a native English, bear in mind that it is a bit difficult.
• Own experience
What can I say? I love this light novel! It became on of my favorite, almost surpassing Re:Zero (which is my favorite). She is firmly my solid top 2. Elisabeth and Kaito became two of my favorite characters, and I really love all of the other characters. I love all of the things about this light novel. I really can’t think of a negative thing, really!
• Read it or not?
Well, what can I say? Yes, read it, 100% YES. It is a masterpiece of storytelling and character development, along with an awesome worldbuilding and awesome prose. It is a dark fantasy, and it does really well the “dark” thing. So, if you want a good story, a original and intriguing story, with good characters and good storytelling, Torture Princess is the light novel for you!
I have to make a statement though. I already said that, but if you don’t like the grotesque descriptions, I highly recommend you don’t read it. It goes into details on corpses, deaths, slaughters, massacres and desecration.
So, this was my review. I found it a bit big, I’ll be honest, but I hope you enjoyed reading it. I will write another one, but this will have spoilers, so I’ll be able to talk more freely about some things. So, if you read this one and are curious, go read it and then read my spoiler review! To finish my review, the best quote of Torture Princess for me, which is in the beginning also:
It’s the story of a boy who was brutally killed by another, and a story of a monster who cruelly killed others.
Or perhaps it’s a story of a child who was abandoned by his parents, and a hero who was abandoned by the world.
Either way, it’s a story of admiration and folly.
It’s a story of love, but not a story of romance.
Someday, it will likely be remembered as a tale from long, long ago.
A horrible, tragic little anecdote.
One that was far too twisted to pass off as a fairy tale.