Vampire Hunter D Volume 6: Pilgrimage of the Sacred and the Profane

Vampire Hunter D #6

by Hideyuki Kikuchi, Yoshitaka Amano (Illustrator), Kevin Leahy (Translator)

Granny Viper is a "people finder," a searcher for lost souls along the roads of a forbidding wasteland. Her latest mission: the safe return of a young woman named Tae, kidnapped eight years ago by vampire Nobility and held in Castle Gradinia on the Frontier's far border. But rescuing Tae is only half the battle - Viper knows she and the girl can't cross the formidable expanse to the town of Barnabas alone. After making the fatal mistake of hiring the mercenary Bullow Brothers to help her, Granny turns to the legendary Vampire Hunter D for salvation. As they traverse the bleak desert between the Inner and Outer Frontier, the two women and D find themselves in a race for their lives. And they soon discover how cruel the desert is - and how very ruthless the Bullow Brothers are.

Genres: Fantasy, Horror, Manga, Vampires, Science Fiction, Paranormal, Supernatural

206 pages, Paperback

First published March 5, 1988

Reviews

[F.D. Gross · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hideyuki definitely went in another direction with this installment. A sentient desert that traps victims within its endless sand dunes. A small cast of characters and the near absence of vampires had me wondering with this one. It seems that D might be the one who is hunted here.

Aside from the typical left hand snide comments and the very limited dialogue that is expected of D, the story was a fresh take on character development for a change. Not nearly as much action as the other novels. Which is funny because Hideyuki coined the term Action Horror genre in his postscript, labeling his work as such.

If you like vampire hunting stories, check out my trilogy.

4 out of 5 stars

F. D. Gross

[Vaughn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dear Mr. Kikuchi,

We know D is beautiful, and you should mention it less. Thanks.
Me

[branewurms · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meanwhile, in the middle of the desert:

Granny Viper: "..the sand sort of welled up out there and was making a beeline for you, so I put a round into it. What the hell was that thing, anyway?"

D: "A shark."

Granny Viper: "Huh?!"

D: "..."

Lance: "You were standing there stock-still the whole time, so I figured you were up to something, and then all of a sudden you pulled out your sword and Whap! What on earth did you lay into?"

D: "A shark."

Lance: "What?!"

D: "You mean to say you didn't see it?"

Lance: "Nope."

D: "..."

I am not even making this up. I am not even paraphrasing! Was it supposed to be this hilarious?! Was D trying to make fun of them?! With this series, I CAN'T EVEN TELL.

(...SUCK MY DICKKKK, I'M A SHARRRRRRK)

[Samantha · Rating 2 out of 5]

So far, these books seem to have no collective plot. I've been spoiled, so I don't think it will stay that way. I'm getting into the series quite a bit, though, and I like the world that Kikuchi has made, but his prose - my GOSH. It's like Stephanie Meyer's Twilight all over again. There's the mandatory seventeen-year-old damsel and the tortured "gorgeous youth." However, this addition to the series has a little depth to the characters, and I hope Kikuchi will get even better with this.

*SPOILERS BELOW*

Also with #6 comes some questions to encourage a plot beyond a single novel. Here we meet Tae, a girl who was abducted by a vampire and rescued eight years later. In the journey to get Tae through a sentient desert to her only living family in the town of Barnabas, we find that she is pregnant with a dhampir by the same vampire who fathered D himself: Dracula. But why? We know Dracula's been trying to keep his race alive, and we know D was his only "success." Is he still experimenting or does he have the answers he needs? Why is Dracula trying to maintain the existence of vampires if it is he who said, "transient guests are we," indicating that he acknowledges that vampires cannot last forever? Does D have other living family somewhere out there?

[Paulo "paper books only" · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know why I enjoy this series but I do. Unfortunately only twice I've managed to give a rating better than 3. This was not one of them. You've got D which is enigmatic as ever and he is travelling from one place to another while traversing a desert. Meanwhile they are joined by a old crone who is leading a young girl to her family after saving from some nobles. They are join by two mercenary brothers.

They've encountered several people along the way - all of them died.

With only 175 pages I think it felt longer like all other novels before it. The writing (the translating) at times felt a bit dense and as I said it felt longer novel. Since I don't read Japanese I don't know if it's the writing or the translator fault.

There are some information about D and what it means to be a Dhampir (half vampire, half human). I enjoyed that introduction. I will continue to read more novels from Vampire Hunter D. This don't detain me. If you have read the first five then you will like this one. Don't start here.

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story follows D and a group of misfits on a trek across an evil, living desert. Kikuchi has got a tremendous imagination, as the characters and weapons he comes up with are great and very creative. The story itself is mostly just the long journey through the desert dealing with sand people, spider people, living forests and more. It's pretty typical stuff for Vampire Hunter D, but that's good.

[Carl Bacher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hmmm klart en af de bedste, hvis ikke den bedste Vampire Hunter D bog indtil videre. Ikke nok med at det er en spændende historie, så har den også noget god worldbuilding og (dare I say) character development. Hvis det er den her retning serien kommer til at fortsætte i, og med nogle af de ting der bliver sat op, så kan jeg bare sige at jeg glæder mig.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pilgrimage of the Sacred and Profane might just be one of my favorite novels currently so far in the Vampire Hunter D series

When it comes to VHD one of its most defining aspects tends to be it's engrossing world of occult sci-fi and horror, with the aesthetic of western and also elements derived from classic vampire films wrapped up in a pulp action adventure story

Despite the character of D typically being a timeless static character the emotion in the novels comes from how such a timeless and monolithic incarnation of perfection interacts with the more grit and determined mortal characters of the frontier, how his presence provokes them, and how the stories of these broken or damages individuals clash with his stoic and cold resoluteness and how the events that pass whether they be tragic or grim manage to spark a ray of a smile on the immovable countenance

with Book 6 I feel the narrative in my opinion combines the more kinetic plot of Demon Deathchase with the poignant narrative and tragic catharsis present in Raiser of Gales and what it means to me is an undeniable growth of the author when they're able to combine precedent novel beats and elements into a beautiful mixture of the two

per usual with a VHD novel it manages to weave even more incredible notes of bewildering supernaturalism and impossible science fiction into a world that seems like a gaping maw of rife with it already

While I did say that the story takes similar beats in previous novels I also enjoy how it refits them to be fresh so instead of a kinetic moving chase where all the characters in the story are split into different groups with conflicting and overlapping goals instead D is given company along this sun-beaten journey which helps to create a more vivid and colorful dialogue with character whether it be arrogant and initially stormy younger Billow brother Clay or the silver-tongued flattering and witty people finder with a precedent for actions which seem as callous as they are eluding to a more empathetic backstory Granny Viper and D whose sharpened edges of taciturn darkness soften in the face of merry company

This boisterous and rocky band of personalities makes a cursed track through the wastes a bittersweet edition to the timeless and agelong tale of D

[Vakaris the Nosferatu · Rating 4 out of 5]

all reviews in one place:
night mode reading ;
skaitom nakties rezimu

About the Book: Granny Viper is known for her ability to deliver things, even through pretty dangerous places. But the value of the merchandise, and the looming desert ahead make her take precautions and hire extra hands. Among whom is a vampire hunter known only as D. It’s not really a job he’d normally take, no. But the curiosity, and direction too, won the damphir over, as the merchandise in question is a young woman who has been held captive in an infamous castle of the few remaining vampires…

My Opinion: Same old cons. Dull, sometimes even shallow writing, with too high an emphasis on the protagonist looks. But everything else is pretty great. There’s more of the unusual adventures, in unusual place, with some more story on how changed the world is, reminding the reader it’s definitely a science fiction book, as strange and unique as Warhammer 40k, but incomparable even then. D was very, very slightly better written too, as he showed more proper curiosity, and, gasp, almost humanity. Basically, these books are definitely not bad. They’re just not good either.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm giving this book 5 stars relative to the other novels I've read in the Vampire Hunter D series thus far... This is definitely my favorite of the Vampire Hunter D novels yet, and finally, FINALLY we get our first kick ass female character in the series - Granny Viper!! Granny is AWESOME, my favorite character in the series so far. I loved her so much, and the fact that (slight spoiler) she lives this crazy dangerous life taking the jobs she does to fund her dream of opening her own fabric store one day, haha. Everything about her is so interesting, vibrant, & wonderful, and she makes a great counterpoint to D, I adored their interactions so much! Also the fact that she's a grandma meant there was no weird sexual tension going on between them, HALLELUJAH.

The story was really good, and so was the action. The cast of characters worked well together and it was a really enjoyable page-turner. Definitely my favorite of the Vampire Hunter D novels I've read so far. :)

[Jayme · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perilous trek through a dangerous desert. I'm always begging for a short cast of characters, and I got it with this entry.

This seems like Kikuchi's real first attempt at a romance subplot, but it's so sudden and abrupt that it really didn't hit. On top of that, the twist reveal towards the end fell flat when it recounted the 'clues' that were supposedly dropped. Overall, I feel it was a good draft but there's a lot that could've been done to give greater impact to both the romance and the twist, since both felt like an afterthought in the back end of the story.

I wish Kikuchi was as plain in his description for twists occurring - key plot events that you really can't afford to misunderstand - as much as he was when writing internal monologues for character, because I've really noticed that the parts I understand the least are also the most important parts of these stories.

Regardless, the short cast was a breath of fresh air, and learning about the desert and its powers was intriguing. The deeper exploration into what it means to be a dhampir and its implications for parents who know what to expect for the life of their child born as a dhampir was well worth the read.

[Angel Tortora · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally good characters! Granny at least. Very good atmosphere, fun read!

[Crazed8J8 · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars, rated down
The more and more of these books I read, the less and less they are about Vampire Hunter D. This book, in particular, was mostly about his companions rather than him. It was an interesting read, and the desert was a pretty cool idea. The end was a bit abrupt, but all in all, it was an enjoyable book.
I listened to the regular audiobook rather than the dramatized adaptation, the narrator, who has done all the other books, remains a decent reader.
I think more appropriate titles would be "The Travel Companions of Vampire Hunter D" or "The Lives Touched by Vampire Hunter D" since he is becoming more of a periphery character.
Nevertheless, I did enjoy the book.

[Brian · Rating 2 out of 5]

I usually try to write at least a few hundred words for each book I review, but I'm having a very hard time thinking of what to write for this book. It sticks very closely to the formula that Vampire Hunter D books have already established, where there's a waifish teenage girl who needs protecting, a group of terrible people that D meets in the course of his travels, and the Sacred Ancestor performing experiments with the goal of perfecting the race of vampires but actually just seeming to get people killed for no reason. You know how it goes.

If the Vampire Hunter D books maintained characters other than D and the hand from book to book, I think Pilgrimage of the Sacred and the Profane could have been much more interesting. Force people together as they travel across the desert, see how their actions change as the threats become more environmental and less monstrous. But since it's a Vampire Hunter D book, I knew the new characters were probably going to be irredeemable jackasses and I was mostly right. Granny Viper was a welcome character, a woman who wasn't a waif, wasn't a teenager, and was capable of holding her own the entire time rather than suffering a power-down so that D could demonstrate how amazing he is. But Tae was the typical damsel and the Bullow Brothers were the usual jackasses, so it wasn't enough to really keep my interest.

There was an odd lack of consequence throughout most of the book. Once it's established that the dangers in the desert are guided, and are mostly illusions, then there are no consequences to their defeat because they were never there in the first place. This ends up carrying over to the other dangers the group faces as well. Their supplies are in danger, but then they find a secret oasis. They pick up another traveller, but then he's gone. One of the Bullow brothers wanders away for most of the book and his powers remain vague and unclear even when he returns. The desert threatens the travellers for most of the book and then is defeated in a page and a half. Nothing matters and that makes it hard to care. It's the same problem I had with The Stuff of Dreams, but that had a more interesting setting and characters for me, so it just barely edges above Pilgrimage of the Sacred and the Profane.

If more had been done with the experiments performed on Tae, I might have liked it more, but the consequences are pushed off past the end of the book so it's just more Sacred Ancestor shenanigans. Rereading this, I can see why I didn't remember anything about it.

Previous Review: The Stuff of Dreams.
Next Review: Mysterious Journey to the North Sea, Part 1.

[Bhiri (Maja) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was hesitant to give this book 5 stars, because as a standalone book it suffers from many shortcomings, but I have to say this one is one of the best in the series so far, thus I will stick to the full rating.

Now the series is not something terribly original and from what I understood out of Kikuchi's postscripts, he never intended to make it original in the first place. In fact, the character of D is more of an homage to old vampire stories that seem to have deeply influenced Kikuchi in his young years.

I still really enjoy the idea of a post-apocalypse, post-nuclear war setting, where the vampires are referred to as the Nobles conducting experiments on humans, full of sci-fi mixed with western genre, and I always found D to be a very intriguing protagonist. As a dhampir - half-human, half vampire, but never accepted by either party, he is depicted as an almost perfect and gorgeous androgynous hunter, with inhumane strength and abilities, who makes both woman and men week in their knees, yet he is so hopelessly tragic.

I really enjoyed this book, even though the writing style (or perhaps the English translation) can be very difficult to follow, but this book didn't seem to suffer from it as much. I liked the characters, the plot twists (didn't see them coming at all!), the way D was given a bit more emotional freedom here, and even though the middle part seemed to slow down, the ending made up for it. For being a sci-fi horror series that never claimed to be revolutionary and started out in the 1980s it's a fun read. I don't necessarily like everything about Kikuchi's fantasy world, but it's his world, so who am I to judge.

[J.S. Eaton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vamp D Vol 6

The author hits another one out of the ballpark with this book, Volume Six of the not-near-as-popular in-America-as-it-should-be Vampire Hunter D series. I liked this one as much as the first and second, which currently tie as my favorites so far. Action, suspense, twists, this one has it all!
He wrote this one really well, and that’s a tall order when you’re dealing with a character that we know by now is nearly invincible, has unearthly beauty that no one can resist, etc… There still manages to be plenty of suspense throughout most of the book. Another rare glimpse into D’s murky background is offered, on par with the hints dropped in Vol. Two. Not nearly enough to tell you who he really is, but it’s something anyway.
D’s crossing a desert in this one, a desert that turns out to be alive. He’s helping to bring a girl home who was held by the Nobility(vampires), but he’s not helping. You just have to read it to really understand, it’d just take too long to explain. There’s a moving forest in this one too, I thought that was pretty cool. And the supporting characters are interesting as well. You can never be sure about some of them, and that’s the mark of a great writer. One of them anyway.
I’ll admit I was starting to get a little worried about the series, the fourth and fifth volumes weren’t quite as compelling as the one and two, but this one brings it right back up there. A great series that you can’t wait to read another one.

[Caroline Eising · Rating 3 out of 5]

I recently read the manga version of this book, and all up I think I prefer the book more. I found the manga hard to follow at some points, but in the book much more time is spent explaining the characters motives and what is going on. Overall it was a trifle repetitive though - a lot of time talking about how gorgeous D is, and how terrible it is for a dhampir, and how damn good looking he is. And although a lot of different encounters happen in the book, it doesn't seem to add up to all that much, as if the characters are untouched by the world they are traveling through and aren't changed by it. It reminds me a little of D&D for some reason. And through it all, D is the silent, brooding, mysterious hero like a Clint Eastwood cowboy with a very, very heavy dose of emo.

I still like the setting though. It's a kind of post-apocalyptic world, which was once ruled by vampire 'nobles' and although little of that old world is revealed in this book, there are a lot of hints about how the world used to be. It's all very strange, and the world is much more charismatic than any of the characters, in my opinion. Except for Granny, who kicks butt.

[Lynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Today's fiction post is on Vampire Hunter D Volume 6: Pilgrimage of the Sacred and the Profane by Hideyuki Kikuchi , and Yoshitaka Amano (Illustrator). It is 178 pages long and is published by Dark Horse. The cover has D and his horse in the moonlight on it. The intended reader is someone who likes dark adventure stories with stoic characters and strange monsters. There is mild foul language, mild sexuality, and violence in this novel. The story is told from third person god narration. There Be Spoilers Ahead.
From the back of the book- The Cruel Desert between the Inner and Outer Frontiers has a mind, and heart, of its own.
Granny Viper is a "people finder," a searcher for lost souls along the roads of the forbidding wasteland of 12,090 A.D. Her latest mission: the safe return to her family of an "abductee," a young woman named Tae, kidnapped eight years ago by vampire Nobility and held in Castle Gradinia on the far border of the Frontiers. Rescuing Tae was only half the battle- Viper knows she can't make the rest of the journey with the across the formidable expanse to the town of Barnabas alone. But the wizened crone makes a fatal mistake in hiring the mercenary Bullow Brothers to help her, and when she turns to the legendary Vampire Hunter D for salvation the two women and D finds themselves in a race for their lives across the blinding desert sands.

Review- Another interesting adventure for D and the world that he lives in. In this novel he meets another dhampir and they have some very interesting interactions. The action is mostly about the characters just trying to survive the desert, which has a will and plans for all of them. The most interesting part of this novel is interactions between D and the other dhampir. They a lot in common and that makes their conversations very important and add depth to the world and world building. The art in this novel really add to the story and we get a good look at D's face in this volume. All in all this volume was a great read and added so much to the world building and to D's overall character.

I give this volume a Five out of Five stars. I get nothing for my review and I bought this novel with my own money.

[A.M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have decided that I am a BIG fan of cyborg horses… no saddle sores, no shying at a branch…

D is annoying people - by existing - again.

He is crossing an uncrossable desert and a few others have decided that they will go along with him, as he is sure to know where he is going.

Granny Viper, the people finder, has a girl with her, rescued from vampire bondage, and has hired the Bullow brothers to guard them. But D and his hand demon know that the girl’s future is probably very dark; they never come back well OR are eventually betrayed by their own families who have spent so much emotion and resources to get them back and resent that.

the whole thing is a trap within a trap; D is meeting a rich man on the other side of the desert and that man hired the Bullow brothers to kill D, knowing he needs to make this journey.

oh now - Granny is a dhampir and we have not met another one so far as I can recall; and an OLD one. But the girl is pregnant with a Noble vampire’s child which means it, too is a dhampir and given the rank of its parent it will be a very powerful one like D.

The sentient forest / storm / desert turns out to be a kind of AI factory that was left alone, and has tried to keep fulfilling its purpose… and isn't THAT a warning for the current age?!@#

The Bullow brothers attend the funeral of Granny and then STILL try to kill D. Assuming that because he took his hat off to walk in the full sun he’d be weaker. Nice guys, eh?

This is a harsh, cruel world.

4 stars

[Daniel Callister · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perfectly in keeping with the rest of the series so far. The author's literary skills are a bit wanting and he too often resorts to cop-outs like "beyond description" (c'mon, authors, it's literally your job to describe!)

There was no vampire hunting in this installment, nor does the title of "Pilgrimage of the Sacred and the Profane" fit anything that happens in the book. However, I have a place in my heart for these books and I look forward to reading one every October as I've done for several years now. The author is very creative and the world of Vampire Hunter D is rich and marvelous. He's good at keeping things moving at a brisk pace and throwing in a few surprises here and there that keep things interesting.

[Jacob Rohrbach · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not my favorite of D's stories, but it's still a pretty good one. I really enjoyed the setting of this magical storm that D is unable to escape from and Kikuchi is a master at coming up with brilliant encounters to coincide with the setting. I also like this series' shift in focus from cool stories to big, character-focused pieces. Especially since the side characters have grown to be my favorite part of these stories.

That all said, its not as memorable as the other books in this series. The storm goes on for such a long time and it gets exhausting after the 3rd or 4th monster that shows up to fight D. But its still a good time so I can't complain too much

[Shane Perry · Rating 4 out of 5]

D is tasked with helping Granny Viper a “people finder” as she is on a mission to cross a sentient-desert in order to return the young woman Tae who was taken and held captive by the Vampire Nobility for the past 8 years to her family. This installment had a lot less action then the previous VHD books, however it felt like it held more weight than the past few books as it progressed and the world around D continues to expand. What will await us in the future for our favorite Dhampir? I’ll be reading on to find out.

[Ricardo Matos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Quite liked this one. A good balance of sci-fi, tragedy and plot twists. The Vampire Hunter D novels are a hard hit and miss: either great, poetic and tragic, or a complete mess of senseless action and random events. This one is definitely one of the best.

I double checked if the translator had change but it's the same one. Either the author is writing better or the translator is doing a better job as this volume read considerably better than the previous ones!

[Saija Unique · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm giving this 4 stars because i got a bit lost half way through the book. I felt like it jumped around quite a bit and I had a hard time keeping up at times. And some of the character development fell flat. I'm not a big fan of the ending. We know how attractive D is and i got a bit annoyed that it was mentioned in every paragraph on every page. At this point in the series, we could focus more on the missions and the story and less on the hunters looks.

[Adrien · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite book series of all time!!!! I absolutely love the writing style and the plot is always engaging and interesting. Cannot explain how much i love these books, the art and all 10/10!!!

[MaskedSkull · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me hizo llorar este libro TwT que bonito final. Fue muy interesante y lleno de misterio, así como incluso un tinte de romance tragico y esperanza, fue un grupo de personajes muy interesantes y me dolió lo que le paso a la Abuela Viper y a Lance. Muchas sorpresas en el camino.

[Aldo Sánchez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Por fin ya están empezando a dar más detalles sobre el pasado y la vida de D, a través de una novela medio de relleno. Eso sí, buenísimos personajes los que maneja, pero sí, esta sí se sintió algo de relleno.

[Calw Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easily the best one so far. Every scene holds relevance and excitement. Side characters are memorable and fun. Fitting ending scene. All around my favorite

[Redletalis · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the better books so far, with less sudden and out of character actions and more information about D. Definitely worth a read.

[The Caffeinated Bookworm · Rating 5 out of 5]

Emotional damage
(In the best way possible)