The Saga of Tanya the Evil, Vol. 5: Abyssus Abyssum Invocat

The Saga of Tanya the Evil Light Novel #5

by Carlo Zen

Winter is roughly two months out. The time limit has been set.But the Empire's military leaders are fiercely divided on what to do. Should they conduct aggressive offensives in hopes of a break through, or should they weather the winter and use that as a chance to reorganize, restructuring the lines of battle? In the end, they decided that while they gather supplies for a theoretical offensive, they would conduct an investigation to collect intelligence. Naturally, Tanya's Salamander Unit was the first candidate for the mission. Should they push ahead, or should they hold their ground? There's no time to hesitate. As the hellish conditions worsen, the war shows no sign of slowing down or becoming any less brutal. Everyone has no choice but keep what they hold dear close to their hearts as they march ever onwards toward the battlefield. Everything for the sake of the motherland, for the fatherland.

Genres: Light Novel, Fantasy, Fiction, Military Fiction, Historical Fiction, Manga, Action

336 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 30, 2016

Reviews

[Aaron · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Salamander Kampfgruppe's garrison twists and shifts with the whims of its ridiculous overseers. On the eastern front, as autumn gives way to winter, the Imperial Army's tenuous hold on positions of interest -- often out in the middle of nowhere -- could very well drive Tanya insane. This is of little surprise. The snarky lieutenant colonel (yet another promotion, yet more honors) has little patience at this point: the war is dragging on, her men are exhausted and resources are growing scarce. In volume five of The Saga of Tanya the Evil, readers encounter a truism as painfully valid as it is dark: however much one revolts against the brandishing of intellectual malfeasance, one cannot prepare for the crippling toll of evincing such foolishness in the mirror.

Whereas the previous volume tweaked the narrative model by forcing the army to suffer the consequences of Tanya's ego run amok, the current volume takes this dilemma to its logical conclusion: what happens when Tanya realizes she's made a mistake . . . and is solely responsible for ensuring her mistake does not doom the whole damn military?

Tanya advocates for personal freedom and independence above all else. So, what happens when all that free thinking results in a losing war of attrition? What happens when all that arrogance over market determinism gets in the way of discerning whom among her ranks are specialists versus run-of-the-mill soldiers? What happens when her finely tuned loathing of communism mistakes the antecedents of nationalist fervor for the machinations of political strife?

"If you have a contradiction that can't be resolved, it's almost certainly an issue with your premises [. .] If the base upon which you're building your assumptions is wrong, you have to admit your mistake despite the shame [. . .] If your premises are wrong, you'll be mistaken no matter how sharp and prudent of a strategist you are" (pp. 69, 75).

This volume pushes Tanya into a corner and forces her to succumb to the shame of her wrongheadedness, beg her superiors for a chance to get things right and finally get back to the front lines to re-convince herself her instincts are as sharp as they've always been.

Zen weaves together a story that pushes and pulls at Tanya's emotional resilience unlike before. Tanya loses battles. Tanya loses soldiers, several of them. Tanya also loses a small battle of wits she isn't entirely aware she's fighting. The lieutenant colonel overshoots her capacity to hit her mark, repeatedly, and she pays the price for it. She adapts, yes, and she fights back as hard as she knows how . . . but this is one soldier who fears disappointing herself more than anything else. Halfway through the novel, the General Staff Military Intelligence division awards Tanya a spurious honor: the White Wings Grand Iron Cross. Forty-six pages later, while grieving fallen soldiers, she loads a single round into her pistol and puts a hole into the medal: "[T]rust should be placed in people" (p. 168) she demands, not politics, not country, not institutions, not military honors and hero worship, and most definitely not in god.

The fifth volume of The Saga of Tanya the Evil brings the antihero as low as she's ever been. And while there's no promise that she'll bounce back, it does seem inevitable. War does that sometimes, it teases success from unfamiliar origins out of necessity rather than out of the convenience of absolute certainty. Will the Federation finally collapse? Will the Commonwealth give up on its overextended support of outliers? Will the Empire realize it doesn't have the resources to push as hard as it wants? The war is at a curious inflection point.

It's anyone's real guess what direction Zen is taking the story but it has become abundantly clear he loves tormenting Tanya's battalion. The team is battered and bruised and only barely survives . . . only to wreak havoc on their one-time tormentors. Such is war, one supposes. Kudos to the book's English language translation team for keeping the faith, so to speak, in bringing this saga of death and desperation to the fore.

Other notes for this volume include the rarity of Lieutenant Serebryakov narrating her own chapter section. The adjutant is such a brilliant side character, it's a wonder why the author so ardently protects her from the dangers of the conflicts at hand and refuses to challenge her outright. This chapter section from Visha is only six pages long, but contained within is a clever and sensitive spoken admiration of the colonel that mixes fear with pride and disgust with respect. She serves as eye witness to the "rapturous" and "amusing" chaos of combat in the sky. She admits to feeling inadequate in Tanya's shadow, but even so, she's enjoying herself: "Let's have some fun for now," (p. 211).

Cautiously, on the other side of the fight, First Lieutenant Mary Sue remains a tepid annoyance. Whether her inclusion signals the eventual downfall of the protagonist or represents some sort of casual Ego-Id moral counterbalance, it is both arduous and difficult to sympathize for this naïve optimist when all she does is screw things up . . . and survive. For better or for worse, this is one troublesome antithesis that won't go away on its own.

[RODRIGO ARGUMANEZ · Rating 4 out of 5]

La novela amplia el conflicto al frente oriental con tramas explicando las tácticas de la Inglaterra ficticia y la opinión del resto de países del estado comunista del mundo de Tanya, en el libro se detallan muchas tácticas utilizadas ya durante la guerra y el avance de la unidad creada por el protagonista y de una nueva táctica que toma el gobierno, la creación de estados separatistas dentro del estado comunista la cual dará paso al siguiente libro además de la no menos importante llegada del temprano invierno.
El libro hace una descripción de los pensamientos del personaje narrador de forma que las conversaciones se hacen mas largas y algunas al ser casuales y no aportar mucho a la trama pueden causar que sean tediosas. Otro aspecto es que en el libro se ve como uno de los puntos más bajos del protagonista al perder varios miembros, cambiar de ambiente en varias ocasiones y tener que lidiar con la falta de recursos humanos, la dificultad del libro viene dada de que si uno viene del anime o del manga le resultan extraños algunos cambios narrativos, sobre todo si uno no se ha leido el manga.

[Parker Streets · Rating 5 out of 5]

Carlo Zen delivers once again. I think the best part of the series is that it does a good job of depicting characters (namely the main character) in a way that makes them very believable.

When I first was introduced to the series, I was a little put off by the narrator because he attempts to be solely rational and self-interested. It’s subtle, but Tanya/the narrator really grows as the series progresses and this volume sees a lot of it, particularly with how Tanya handles the death of her men.

The setting is also incredibly great. While a lot of the leaders are just straight rips of historical figures with the names barely changed, this feels like a world that has history and consequence. It helps that Carlo has a lot of material to work with from history, but the things he does change seem plausible and also keeps the suspense up. I haven’t read the web novel, so I don’t know the ending. But this would be incredibly boring if we knew that history would play out exactly as it did in real life. The fact that Tanya can change so many of the events owing to her/his experience and knowledge from our world keeps the pacing up and still makes it engaging.

I do think that some of the leaders can seem a bit one-dimensional, but these characters are also figures typically underexplored in history which makes them plausible. Most of the politics are also more focused on how the countries interact, rather than the sort of great man history that we’re used to. It benefits from the fact that the politics are represented as being made up of multiple different people rather than just one guy or a faceless organization. This complexity alleviates some of the complaints I’ve seen regarding certain characters, Loria, being just awful people.

Overall, great addition to the series, only wish it was longer. I can’t wait to see how the saga continues.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

As the enemies on all sides strain against the material of the empire we begin to see the effects eat away at Tanya and her battalion this volume focuses more on the political and propaganda side of warefare as one of the critical flaws of the empire is its attempts to sterilize threats purely through military force in a sense it’s akin to a muscle the empire the empire has never to use before

One of the most entertaining parts of Youjo Senki is the critical awareness it has in the minutia of the military wether it comes down to the practicality of gear and weapons or the effort it takes to train up soldiers to permissible level

And in that way we get to see Tanya flex her historical knowledge on how to combat various aspects of political and military warefare that have yet to rise up in this new alternate world

Tanya thinking of herself as a pacifist and almost humanitarian figure and scorning Being X for his statistic viewpoint of humans is all at once humorous as it is fascinating

Tanya sees people as capital and in that way she is apathetic and sociopathic but in the same light she wishes to maximize the inherent value of people it’s an interesting perspective

[kurogane shiroikaze · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not exactly the strongest volume of the series, but an important one nevertheless to show that even Tanya is human and can suffer setbacks.

Have to admit, the scattershot writing and callbacks to WWII parallels were some of the best parts of the series but this volume was somewhat lacking in that department. Overall, felt more of a bridging volume to the next big event, the winter offensive between the Empire and the Federation

[Ricardo Matos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great volume! This series requires some commitment as the volumes are quite long, but the pay off is great
It's great to see the author diverge a bit from actual History now that Tanya has affected quite a few war scenarios. She had to get to a certain "status" in order to actually change History!
It was funny to read about the German army retreating rather than destroying their army by trying to invade Russia in the winter :D

[S.Q. Eries · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Summary

A really wonderful installment here. In addition to a decent narrative pace compared to the bogginess in previous volumes, we get to see Tanya command multiple units and figure how to turn political differences into a weapon. But probably the most striking part of this volume is when the 203rd Aerial Mage Battalion encounters more than it can handle. She’s been accused of being an unfeeling monster before, but she’s strikingly human as she and her men mourn their fallen comrades.

The Review

I’m not certain if Zen-sensei’s writing has improved or if I’ve just gotten used to his style, but Volume 5 is a much easier read than previous volumes. While Zen-sensei still has a propensity to be too light on backdrop details, he’s reined in his tendency to overexplain to the point of tedium. On top of that, the war narrative takes on intriguing twists and turns which exposes hitherto unseen aspects of Tanya’s character.

The volume begins with Tanya’s newly formed Salamander Kampfgruppe defending a salient on the Eastern Front. We’ve seen her personally leading her battalion before; now she’s commanding multiple units from base headquarters. Although she’s giving orders from a completely different vantage, those who enjoy the tactical aspect of this series will continue to see Tanya leveraging the scant resources at her disposal to attain victory. In addition to countering guerrilla attacks, Tanya must also deal with the Federation soldiers they’re captured. What starts as a kind of dilemma leads to a massive perspective shift on the Eastern Front. Whereas the Empire’s other conflicts are purely military in character, Tanya makes the realization that the war against the Commies will also involve fighting propaganda with propaganda.

No sooner has the Salamander Kampfgruppe jelled as a cohesive fighting force than it gets disbanded. (As Tanya complains, “The higher-ups really just do whatever they want.”) Not only that, Tanya and the 203rd Aerial Mage Battalion get yanked from the Eastern Front and sent to take on the monster ship, RMS Queen of the Anjou. This arc has a lot of similarities to the previous northern ocean battles in that it involves submarines, ships, and the Commonwealth. However, it differs in that the Commonwealth’s collaborator is not the Entente Alliance (although Mary Sue is present to go berserk against her father’s killer), but the Federation. The Commonwealth-Federation alliance is one between two mutually distrustful parties, and the lead up to their collaboration is an indicator of how desperate everyone’s become.

The other major difference is that the 203rd Aerial Mage Battalion suffers casualties. Tanya hasn’t lost anyone since the shovel training on the Rhine, which is astounding considering they’ve been in the thick of fighting on every front since. However, it’s because of this astounding record that the loss of nearly a quarter of the battalion hits so hard. von Lerghen’s accused Tanya of being an unfeeling monster before, but even though she doesn’t turn into a weepy mess, you can’t say she’s unaffected by her men’s deaths (which is probably why von Lerghen’s not spouting his usual von Degurechaff-is-abnormal criticism in this volume).

Then it’s back to the Eastern Front and a new Salamander Kampfgruppe. While the 203rd Aerial Mage Battalion stays with Tanya, the mages sent to replace her fallen men are all raw recruits. In fact, the majority of her new troops are green. Thus, Tanya’s not only with faced with the problem of repelling enemies but also the challenge of managing difficult-to-work-with personnel. As a former HR professional, she ultimately finds a way, but she can’t do a thing to stop her next enemy: winter.

Extras include map and fold-out illustration in color; appendixes of the history timeline and rough sketches; author afterword; and six black-and-white illustrations.

For more manga and book reviews, drop by my blog Keeping It In Canon!

[LiteratureIsLife · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this review (and others) at: https://literatureislife.com/2020/10/...

Abyssus Abyssum Invocat. One misstep leads to another. Literally translated as “hell calls hell”. A very appropriate title given this is the point where Tanya’s actions come back to bite her personally. The longer this war goes on, the worse things get for every side involved. But up to this point, Tanya has been fairly lucky. Volume 5 even pokes fun at this at one point, with the enemy believing they have intelligence leaks because no one is lucky enough to ruin as many of their operations as Tanya has. But the last book showed us that Tanya’s ego is starting to have consequences for the Imperial Army. Now those consequences affect her personally.

One of Tanya’s core flaws is failing to put herself in other people’s shoes. Now, this is not always a bad thing. Because she has knowledge of Earth’s military history, she is able to examine the current war with a unique viewpoint. But the flipside of that is assuming her preconceived notions are correct. When something happens that utterly and blatantly proves one of her assumptions wrong, it blindsides her.

Tanya has put trust in her instincts and experience up to this point, and for good reason. It can’t be said that she’s had zero setbacks before, but she has always come out ahead. Improvise, adapt, overcome. No matter what’s been thrown at her, she always manages to keep moving forward. But this time, she hits a wall. No one wins forever; everyone makes a mistake eventually. For someone like Tanya, who fears failure on an extremely personal level, having to confront that becomes a devastating challenge.

War is hell. Well, actually, war is war. Hell is hell. Tanya has never been disillusioned enough to not believe that. But success after success has conditioned her expectations. Volume 5 gives us the first time she experiences not a setback, but a complete and utter failure. It brings her to an absolute low point, the type of crippling negative emotion that can break people.

This is (most likely) the point in the series where the protagonist is at their lowest. They’ve been kicked down into the dirt and it will take everything they have to rise up again. But Tanya is as stubborn as she is anything else. And this being a war story, when she comes back with vengeance you know it will be bloody.

[Akshay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Abyssus Abyssum Invocat - A Dark Descent into Chaos and Consequence

In The Saga of Tanya the Evil, Vol. 5: Abyssus Abyssum Invocat by Carlo Zen, the relentless saga of Tanya's ruthless quest for power and survival continues to push the boundaries. With its uncompromising warfare, complex characters, and exploration of the consequences of ruthless ambition, this volume takes the series to new depths of chaos and moral complexity.

Zen's storytelling thrusts readers into the heart of a world consumed by war and political intrigue, where the lines between right and wrong blur with each passing conflict. The ever-present tension and grim atmosphere create a palpable sense of dread, emphasizing the brutality of the battlefield. The fantasy elements continue to shape the narrative, introducing magical elements that add both intrigue and danger.

Tanya's character development remains a central pillar of the series as her moral ambiguity deepens. Her calculating ruthlessness is juxtaposed with moments of vulnerability and introspection, making her a character of complexity and depth. Her interactions with other characters reveal the layers of humanity within her and those around her.

The plot is a relentless march towards chaos, as Tanya's ambition and tactical brilliance lead to increasingly dire consequences. The pacing remains intense, ensuring that both large-scale battles and personal conflicts receive the attention they deserve. The narrative's twists and turns keep readers engaged and eager to see how Tanya's choices will impact her world.

Zen's writing style remains engaging and emotionally charged, immersing readers in the intensity of war and the moral dilemmas faced by the characters. The dialogue is sharp and reflects the urgency of the situations, conveying the motivations and emotional stakes of the characters.

In comparison to other military fantasy novels, The Saga of Tanya the Evil, Vol. 5: Abyssus Abyssum Invocat stands out for its uncompromising portrayal of the consequences of ambition and the ethical complexities of warfare. While other works may emphasize fantastical elements, this series excels in its profound examination of the human condition under the extreme conditions of war.

In conclusion, The Saga of Tanya the Evil, Vol. 5: Abyssus Abyssum Invocat is a powerful continuation of Tanya's journey through a world of conflict and moral ambiguity. Carlo Zen's complex characters and relentless portrayal of the consequences of ambition make this volume a compelling read for fans of military fantasy with philosophical depth. Readers seeking an intense and morally challenging exploration of war will find this work a captivating and unforgettable experience.

[TG Lin · Rating 4 out of 5]

又 K 完一本「不像日式輕小說」的日本輕小說了（每冊都厚達四百頁）。這一集的故事，女主角（某大叔）已經晉升為中校，並帶領她的老班底魔導大隊，擴編成帶有步砲裝甲部隊聯合編制的「沙羅曼達戰鬥群」，向東線戰場的敵人共產主義的「聯邦國」（影射現實世界的蘇聯）發動作戰。劇情發展到目前為止，大體上還是遵照現實世界的二戰發展︰西線打垮了「共和國」（影射法蘭西）且餘黨竄入北非殖民地，西北海峽與「聯合王國」（影射不列顛）進行海上僵持，東線則去打那腹地廣大的「共匪」。不過，本書最末章，主角所屬陣營為了不讓軍隊在冬天的聯邦國（／蘇聯）給「融化」掉，於是便在當地扶持分離主義的民族政權——這部分倒是與現實不同，二戰蘇聯可沒被德意志裂解出所謂的傀儡國︰或許，作者想從這裡開始「改變歷史」了？
　
在閱讀這部小說時，我常常在懷疑，作者 Carlo Zen 是不是真有在社會的民間企業上過班？要當個軍武宅或經濟理論宅並不難，但本書除了描寫女主角（某大叔）在戰場上幾乎是「無敵」的之外，花了更多的篇幅在這個架空的世界裡鋪陳他對「組織運作」的想法；雖然是理想化的情節，不過公司人事的各種上下應對、與不同部門間業務的協調衝突，也是《幼女戰記》故事中的一項鮮明的特點。一般輕小說描寫龍傲天式的主角，大部分只著重在戰鬥與策略（套路滿滿，順便燃燒48763小宇宙），至於他們要不要吃飯睡覺與休整，好像資源都能從天上掉下來一樣簡單，頂多一句話帶過。但本書在後勤方面與人事組織的著墨很多，非常有趣。
　
這一集的「存在 X」又沒有出場，而女主角（某大叔）的所謂宿敵「瑪麗蘇」還是一樣沒什麼用。十分奇特的反套路的戰爭輕小說。

[East · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a great read. It was the kind of book that I rushed home to continue, and refused sleep to get some more pages in. I could literally see the action behind my eyes. The speech is lit. Tanya's influence on the whole world is just outstanding. 4 stars instead of five because I can't help but want more from this volume. What happens after Tanya does "..."? What does the allied kingdom think? How does the russy federation react? Loria is for real a sicko. Mary Sue got spanked. I wonder what happened to that crazy mage gun from volume 4? Gotta preorder volume 6 now.

[Marlon Kramer · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is nice that the story really gets going about now. I mean that in such a way that it gets more personal. More detailed. Whereas some previous books covered years or large parts of a year, this one focusses on just under 4 months. And it is better for it.

We get so many character prespectives and interesting story beads that it is really in a stark contrast from the early books.
The intrigue and political scheming as well as the intelligence work we only can speculate about are interesting and engaging.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Waiting impatiently for vol 6

With how this volume ended leaves me believing that the next one will be the climax and oh boy am I eager to find out. This tension reminds me of how I felt after halo 2. With how impossible things are getting for Tanya it’s going to be interesting to say the least!

[vantis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once again, Tanya never misses (literally)

That pedo dude is a weird thing to add to the story as it doesn’t add much other than a motivation for a character which could’ve been anything else (ex: power, money, status) but nope… so I’ve gotta take 1/2 a star since I think it’s unnecessary and just used to unsettle the reader without any story backing it

4.5/5

[Zaphied · Rating 3 out of 5]

Everything not to do with Not!Communist-Russia was great. Otherworld Russia's military were also great. It's the leadership that brings it down. The pedophilia angle is creepy and not in a good way. Which probably shows good writing but yea I could not get over it without squeamishness.

[Wildeflit · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's fun that Tanya's own faults end up making some of the same mistakes that occurred, just enough to make sure she doesn't escape the inevitable. Or is it? I guess we'll find out if she really can break fate someday.

[Marian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Winter is here and with it new leafs have turned. Cant wait to read the next novel.

[Ahmed · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great read

[Neeks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Carlo making the decision to rename Winston Churchill to Churbull is criminal 😭😭 man is def rolling in his grave lol

[nighttime reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

this might be my fav of the books so far.

[Cviki Cviki · Rating 5 out of 5]

still clears all classics

[Phi LE · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s great and thrilling as always. 🤩🤩🤩