On days where none of my favorite webtoons have an update, I sometimes pick up a random manhwa out of boredom. To vary the types of posts I have on my blog, I decided to turn my boredom-killing habit into a series called: The Ten-Chapter Take: Dive or Decline. I’ll read up to ten episodes of a random webtoon and decide if it’s worth diving into or if I’ll pass and decline.
You might be thinking that ten chapters is too small of a sample. For a medium where most series have episodes that tally up towards the 100s, you might be right. However, keep in mind that only the first 2-3 episodes are free for most major publishers. Some platforms have a “Wait Until Free” option, where a reader has to wait (usually 24 hours) before they can read the next chapter free-of-charge, so if someone were inclined to wait, they could read more.
But if the reader isn’t hooked by the third episode, would they really want to spend their time or money on more? I doubt it. So ten episodes is rather generous, in my opinion.
For my inaugural post of this series, I’m starting with Monster Duke’s Daughter. Let’s see how it stacks up.
My Thoughts
The start of the story is interesting enough: a three-year-old girl named Lotilucia (MC) is transported suddenly from the only home she’s ever known to the estate of her father whom she’s only ever heard of.
But then on top of that, the author adds:
- The father, Damian Frodium, is a revered yet feared duke who is given the nickname “Monster Duke” because he’s a powerful, master swordsman. Unknown to the general population, he’s a literal demon. Oh, the irony.
- The mother, who apparently lived in a secret magical forest that she was trapped in, disappears suddenly.
- MC finds a book in her father’s study one day that magically reveals to her a story about a little girl named Dahlia who was adopted by the duke after his other daughter (also named Lotilucia) died from a mysterious disease.
- MC meets her adopted older brother, who is not actually adopted nor is he actually her biological older brother, and there’s an immediate rivalry.
There are many things I could nitpick, and I could write a novel if I mentioned everything. I’m going to stick with talking about my biggest gripe: the magical book.
Out of everything, the book gave me the most trouble. I’m all for fantasy elements. I love them. Give me all the fantastical elements you can in a story. However, give me fantasy that makes sense.
To me, there’s enough mystery with Lottie’s mother and father and their respective origins. Add in more world-building about the human world and the demon world, and you have the ingredients for a pretty damn interesting webtoon! No magical book necessary!
But add a special, possibly prophetic book on top of all of that? Why? For what purpose? Is it the vehicle that Lottie uses to come out of her shell and be herself? “If I’ll die soon, I might as well be me” type vibes? If that’s all it is, then it’s totally unnecessary.
Maybe I’m jumping the gun! Maybe I just need to be patient. Maybe more will be revealed as the story goes on. With the way that the author revealed how Damian really felt about Lottie (spoiler: he thought that she was the one who didn’t like him), I feel like maybe the author is a fan of the delayed reveal. But do I want to stick around to find out? Meh.
Change of fate stories are a dime a dozen, so I don’t know if the author added the magical book to help it stand out amongst the crowd. But, to me, it doesn’t work. It adds another layer that the story doesn’t need.
Okay, so I’ll talk about one more thing before I conclude: Lottie’s origins. Within the first ten chapters, it’s said again and again by several characters, including the MC herself, that she is 100% human. The demons in the mansion (Duke Frodium, Veronica, Bellant and Bihan) would all be able to tell if she had any sort of demonic blood in her.
Then, I ask: how is Damian her father? I know this is a fantasy story, but…. genetics? Even if her mother wasn’t 100% human (being trapped in a magical forest screams “not human” to me), she still would be part-demon if her father is 100% demon. Even the duke, when he initially saw Lottie, knew instantly she was his daughter. So how? Is that something else that would also be revealed later on?
Final Verdict: Decline
It’s a delicate balancing act, I would imagine. Giving enough detail without giving too much too soon. Adding lots of mystery to be revealed as the story goes on. But too much was thrown at me within the first 10 chapters. There were too many things to keep track of that I lost interest in what was there.
Maybe if I read further, I’d have my answers, but I’m not invested enough to want to continue. Maybe I’m supposed to think that this story is just multi-layered and very complex, and that it’ll all pay off in the end. A lot of webtoons approach storytelling that way. But I don’t really want to stick around to find out. The art was cute, albeit a little rough at times, and I do love my mysterious lone-wolf dark-haired male leads, but I’m going to have to pass on Monster Duke’s Daughter.
Check out the Monster Duke’s Daughter for yourself on Tappytoon.
