[DeepL Translation - needs review] Volume 1 Introduction: Doris, who has been "kissed by a nobleman" on the road to the remote hamlet of Lansilva, is on the hunt for a vampire hunter. In the year 12090 A.D., vampires, who had reigned over mankind for so long, were still an awe-inspiring sight to mankind even as the species was dying, and vampire hunters were limited to those with the best skills. Doris finally meets a hunter named "D," a handsome young man wearing a traveler's hat.
(Translator: DeepL)
80s SF/Fantasy Classic
Vampire Hunter D is one of those IPs that has a long history. I picked it up because I enjoyed the movie and the books (this one included) have aged a little bit. The plot centers around D, a mysterious dhampir who hunts vampires (Nobles or 貴族 in the novel) for a living. He's sullen, quiet, and we are reminded frequently how strong and beautiful he is. In that way, it's an old-fashioned power fantasy of the mysterious guy who girls are charmed by but he is too stoic for love. He helps out with their problems then rides off on his cyborg horse into the post-apocalyptic sunset. In that sense, they are all mystery novels if you boil them down. D also has a weird parasite in his hand that provides way more dialogue and exposition than D himself, I wonder if this inspired 寄生獣? In spite of what I've said, D himself is cool and his backstory hints at being interesting, though I haven't gotten far in the series to tell you if it is or not. It's obvious that the author absolutely loves him.
That said, the language is occasionally beautiful and the world building is organic and subtle. Few things are explained at length, you're just given a concept and have to glean what that means: I found that enjoyable but I can see it being frustrating.
You might not even realize it's set in a post apocalypse if not for the occasional smattering of sci-fi lingo which was good for learning some new kanji.
This book isn't exactly ground-breaking literature but it's aesthetic and fun, the dialogue can be a bit cheesy. I found the fight scenes (and there are a lot of them) hard to follow but I can't tell if that's down to my language level or the scenes being confusing.
Bonus: There are illustrations by Final Fantasy's Yoshitaka Amano splattered throughout and though it won't help your language learning, they are beautiful.