Customer Reviews

Blood Rights (House of Comarré)

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is the first book in the House of Comarre trilogy by Kristen Painter. The second book, Flesh and Blood, is supposed to release in Nov of 2011. The third book, Bad Blood, is scheduled to release a month later in December 2011. This was a great book. There are some very creative ideas in here and some great characters; it made for a wonderful and engaging story.

Chrysabelle has spent a hundred years serving as a Comarre to a high ranking vampire. On the eve of her test to escape service by combat; her master is killed. This leaves Chrysabelle free but she is also forced to flee since she is suspected of murdering her master. Now Chrysabelle is forced to try and blend in with the human world until she can clear her name. When Chrysabelle tries to get help she runs into Mal. Mal is a royal vampire who has been declared anathema. Mal and Chrysabelle don't get along well, but working together may be the only way they can both get what they want and clear Chrysabelle's name.

This was a very well done book. The world created is interesting. The book is set in the near future, 2060 I believe, most of the common things are recognizable but some of the technology has changed quite a bit. With the futuristic setting the book ends up being a pleasant blend of sci-fi, urban fantasy, paranormal romance, and mystery.

The most intriguing part of the society Chrysabelle comes from is the House of Comarre. The House of Comarre has a lot of secrets, some you find out in this book but there is still a lot of mystery involving this group of individuals. The whole idea behind the Comarre is fascinating even at face value, but when you find out about all the mystery behind this House it becomes an even more fascinating and engaging idea.

The book is very well written, easy to read, and moves at a quick pace. The action scenes and romantic tension between characters is very well done. It was hard to put down and when I finished it I immediately wanted to read more.

The characters are wonderful; lots of mystery and dimension to all of them, even the side characters. Chrysabelle and Mel make great leads; they have great tough personalities, yet are complex. The banter between these two is wonderful and had me laughing out loud a few times. The romance between them is sweet, steamy at times, but never graphic. There are also a lot of relationships/romance going on between various side characters in this book; love seems to be a big driving force in the plot in general.

The mystery that Chrysabelle is trying to solve is set up nicely and very well done as well. The result of the mystery totally surprised me; I love it when I can't predict where the story is going to end up. The book ended at a good place; the main mystery is solved but Chrysabelle and friends will also have a bigger mystery to deal with in future books.

I also have to mention the cover, this has got to be one of the most stunning covers I have seen all year. When I saw this cover I had to read the book. I'd like a print of this cover to hang up in my house, it is just so darn beautiful.

Overall I really really enjoyed this book. The world is very interesting and creative; the mystery behind the House of Comarre absolutely sucked me it. The characters (even the side characters) are very engaging, likable, and fun to read about. The book is well-written, well paced and easy to read. I was really impressed with how Painter blends sci-fi, urban fantasy, romance, and mystery elements together to make an intriguing and engaging story. Pretty much everything in this book was well-balanced. There are some sensual scenes in the book but they never get too detailed or graphic, so older young adults could probably read this book (although the book is about adults, not sure about future books though). I really look forward to reading Flesh and Blood, I can't wait to see what happens next...and I don't have to wait very long either!

I would recommend this book to those of you who like urban fantasy with some romance or paranormal romance books.

I will admit it, when I picked this book, it was all about the cover! I know we all say "don't judge a book by it's cover" but be honest . . . we do! And this cover is spectacular. It just jumped off the computer screen for me! It immediately filled me with a feeling of mystery and beauty - and I found it all in the pages of this book.

Blood Rights are set somewhere in the future but you will not find this reflected in any of the scenes in the book. The world feels very real and very now . . . It is also labelled as an Urban Fantasy (not a genre that I usually prefer) but I felt that everything was mostly about the characters. There is lots of action off course but you will not be disappointed with all the romantic tension between Chrysabelle and Malkolm.

This is the first book of The House of Comarre series and we are introduced to the world of the comarre. We are only allowed to see fleeting glimpses but what a world it is. It is such a new view of vampires and all their companions that I hope much more of this world will be revealed to us in the books to come. You will see vampires in a whole new light.

Chrysabelle has been comarre (or blood slave) to her patron for a hundred years. On the night that she hopes to be set free, he is found murdered and she becomes the number one suspect. She flees into the open world and into the arms of Malkolm, a vampire that has fallen from grace. But has she now run into the arms of even greater danger?

Malkolm is one of the most tortured souls that I have read in a long time - both physically and mentally. He has been cursed to kill all that he drinks from. His body and soul are covered by all his victims and sometimes they force their way out. Their voices are always present in his mind and he permanently has to cling to his own sanity.

For a large part of the book, Chrysabelle and Mal try to convince themselves that they do not need or want each other but it is a lost course. They are meant to be together, if only to stop the evil and power-hungry Tatiana from starting a war between mortals and the supernatural.

We also meet a lot of secondary characters - fae, shifters, vampires, fake comarre, ghosts and demons. I just loved the relationship between Doc (a cursed shifter) and Fi (a ghostly victim of Mal) that live with him in his disintegrating house.

Even though some parts of the book were a bit slow and the villain, Tatiana, a bit one-dimensional, it is a great opening book for the series. I would like to see what author, Kirsten Painter throws at us in the next books.

I was initially drawn to Blood Rights because of the breathtaking cover art - I preordered it immediately, unsure what to expect, but hoping to get a bit of enjoyment out of the story at least. This book far exceeded my expectations. What I found within its pages was a pulse pounding adventure story, with a good helping of mystery, with great world building, likeable characters, and a smoking hot romance.

~ Premise ~

Chrysabelle is one of the Comarre - a woman trained from childhood to be a companion, and blood source for vampires. Much like the geisha's the Comarre are taught to be graceful, gracious, learned, and well spoken, and are then auctioned off to the highest bidder - a patron from one of the great vampire noble houses.

When Chrysabelle finds her long time vampire patron dead, she is accused of his murder and the theft of a valuable artifact, and forced to flee into the human world. She is hunted for murder and theft, and for being what she is - a Comarre - a status symbol and source of pure, empowering blood. Beset upon at every turn, Chrysabelle enlists the aid of the oh so very sexy Malkolm - a outcast vampire noble, with a dark past. Together they work to untangle the complex weave of lies and politics surround her patron's death, and the importance of the artifact that the other nobles seem to covet so desperately.

~ World ~

While the world building in this book isn't breaking any new ground, it was very tight, creative, and well thought out. This story focuses primarily on the vampire world, and that of their blood slave servants, The Cromarre.

The author put a lot of work into creating the politics, magic, and structure of both her vampire houses, and the Comarre. Her fae are also very unique - I've never seen their like in fiction before.

~ Characters ~

Chrysabelle: Our protagonist - who sadly suffers from a bit of first-book awkwardness. Like so many urban fantasy heroines, Chrysabelle hasn't really settled in as a character. She's over 100 years old, trained to be a graceful, well spoken companion to the upper echelon of vampire society. I would expect her age and training to make her someone self-contained, wise, and socially savvy. What we get is a more standard sort of bad ass urban fantasy vixen with a bit of a temper, a tendency to flare up at people, and a "slice first ask questions later" mentality. Sound familiar? Yup she's like many other urban fantasy chic out there - which works and it's certainly an enjoyable archetype, it just doesn't make sense to me based on her age. I also didn't get a strong sense of her phycology - why she is the way she is. Her internal monolog didn't reveal enough. Because of this, I didn't feel as attached to her as a character. Things I did appreciate about her - she's open minded, loyal, protective of those she cares about. She doesn't turn her back on friends. I did actually come to like her, I just didn't feel close to her as a character. I expect this will change in later books - And the male lead, makes up for any lack I find in Crysabelle.

Malkolm: Now here is a truly swoon worthy vampire. He's an exiled noble, twice cursed, bearing the names of every victim he's ever killed tattooed on his body. He's haunted (literally) by the victims he's drained the life from. They follow him incorporeally haunting his days. He hears their voices in his head, an incessant madness urging him to kill. And yet, despite all this darkness, he is one of the most honorable and kind characters in this story. His internal monolog helps us know him, and love him. His past is very well fleshed out, and incredibly moving. I really loved his character.

There are a host of side characters that lighten or add depth to the story - Fi and Doc are loveable side kicks, but I never felt very close to them. Chrysabelle's aunt Maris was beautifully written and I ended up caring for her a great deal.

~ Plot ~

This story doesn't waste any time - there are few if any dead spots in the pace of the action. It is chalk full of adventure, and mystery, and even surprises. While reading this book I felt it was mostly an adventure story - I didn't look deep into the mysteries of the story or expect any surprises. But the end of the book packed not one but several big reveals that left me reeling. Well done, Ms Painter!

~ Romance ~

Ah the romance - thanks to Malkolm's hotness the romance in this story practically sizzles. He years for Chrysabelle but can't let himself have her - ensue angst, yearning, and violent passion. Yum!

~ Summary ~

This is a first book, and as such it's not flawless or 100% polished, but it's an amazing start to a series that promises to be fantastic. This book will draw you in, surprise you, and keep you reading late into the night. Highly recommended!

I was drawn to BLOOD RIGHTS because it sounded like an interesting spin on the vampire/dhampir mythos, with the heroine as a member of a high-status slave race whose blood is especially attractive to vampires. Chrysabelle is wrongly accused of murdering her master after spending 100 years in his service and goes on the run partly to escape justice but partly because she wants a taste of freedom.

A character we never actually meet and have no reason to trust suggests that Chrysabelle seek help from Mal, an outcast vampire of noble descent. He's living with a couple of pretty horrific curses which are slowly driving him insane, so who knows why the off-stage helper thought Mal would be a great go-to guy, but it doesn't matter because Chrysabelle and Mal never get around to doing any of the things you'd expect: they never go hunting for the actual murderer, and they don't run anywhere, either. Actually, they spend the first half of the book - HALF, literally HALF - just fighting about whether or not he's actually going to help her.

The lack of forward momentum is maddening. Chrysabelle can't decide if she wants to go or if she is going to stick around and demand Mal's aid. Mal can't decide if he's going to toss Chrysabelle out or lock her up and keep her. They're much too busy having dumb fights to cooperate. Here's a prime example: Chrysabelle goes a little crazy if she doesn't drain her blood regularly, so she's frequently after Mal to drink from her. Mal tries to resist the temptation, though it's very strong. And yet, at one point, Chrysabelle gets all mad and accuses Mal of thinking of her as food. What? She spends most of her time REMINDING him that she's food!

The only thing worse than Chrysabelle and Mal's stupid drama are the many scenes written from the perspective of BLOOD RIGHTS' one-note villain, Tatiana. Man, Tatiana is annoying. All of her thoughts are like this one, which is taken from a scene where she's made her boy-toy perform some difficult task on her behalf, and she leads him off to bed with this bit of internal monologue: "He deserved a reward for his efforts, and what was better than being allowed to pleasure her." How...very...boring. I can handle a one-note villain but I'd bet that at least 20% of BLOOD RIGHTS is written in Tatiana's POV and I cannot stand THAT MUCH one-note villain. She's arrogant and power-hungry and she kills people without remorse, I get it, enough already.

The really cool thing about BLOOD RIGHTS is the mythology. I really dug the different houses, the curses, and especially the culture of the comarré, the vampire blood-slaves. Everything about them is meant to remind vampires of daylight - they're pale, blonde, they wear white and decorate themselves with gold tattoos, they even have summery, floral scents and glow to supernatural eyes. I like the contrast between how wealthy the comarré can be as a group and even individually, and yet how powerless they are. Painter went deep with her worldbuilding and I think the results could have been awesome, if she'd put even half that effort into crafting a decent story. Unfortunately, the story is awful.

The lacy gold mapped her entire body. A finely-wrought filigree of stars, vines, flowers, butterflies, ancient symbols and words ran from her feet, up her legs, over her narrow waist, spanned her chest and finished down her arms to the tips of her fingers.

Born into a life of secrets and service, Chrysabelle's body bears the telltale marks of a comarré--a special race of humans bred to feed vampire nobility. When her patron is murdered, she becomes the prime suspect, which sends her running into the mortal world...and into the arms of Malkolm, an outcast vampire cursed to kill every being from whom he drinks.

Now Chrysabelle and Malkolm must work together to stop a plot to merge the mortal and supernatural worlds. If they fail, a chaos unlike anything anyone has ever seen will threaten to reign.

An unbelievable story honestly. Starts from the beginning with a mystery and ends fantastically.

I'm always wary when it comes to vampire books anymore. Twilight has killed my want to really peruse the field of vampire stories. But when I won this one I gave it a go. I couldn't put it down! I couldn't wait till I got to end of the story. But I must say I was quite disappointed when it did end.

The jumping around of the story was a bit confusing to be honest. The story changed different point of views several times but after I read a bit more I got pretty used to it all. The mystery behind the characters was quite fascinating. I did not expect the twist at the end of the story either. It wasn't just one, or two but three! The answer to the main reason why Chrysabelle is on the run is reveals and it blew me away. I literally pouted when the story was over. I can't wait to read the second book of the series!

BLOOD RIGHTS is one of those Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance mixes that really combines the best of both of those genres. Excellent nuanced worldbuilding set in Paradise City, but with a consuming romance that builds gradually and seductively though every chapter. Chrysabelle is a comarré, basically a geisha/slave to vampires, a hybrid human raised and prized for her pure blood. The culture of these comarré was riveting. The training, history, secrets, skills, etiquette, and symbiotic relationship with vampires was endlessly captivating. And it set up the star-crossed romance between Chrysabelle and the outcast vampire Malkolm perfectly.

Chrysabelle and Malkolm have the kind of relationship that you can't tear your eyes away from. Love and hate, desire and despair, rage and gentleness. There were so many volatile emotions flying between these two, and yet every single one was cultivated with such deliberate care and purpose that they felt completely honest and raw. It was just beautiful to experience. And as this it the first book in the series, their relationship promises to become even more explosive in the future. I lacked the same strong connection with some of the supporting characters, but not enough to really detract from my enjoyment of this otherwise fantastic and unique debut.

Overall, BLOOD RIGHTS offers a fascinating and provocative new twist on human/vampire relationships. The world we are introduced to is both frightening and utterly addictive. After the cliffhanger ending, I'm salivating for the next book in the House of Comarré series called FLESH AND BLOOD which will be published in November, followed by BAD BLOOD in December.

Sexual Content:
Kissing. References to sex

A daring novel in a book world full of vampire fiction, Blood Rights by Kristen Painter is a devilishly amusing read with plenty of action around every bend and a rich suspenseful plot line that will leave readers hanging on to every word and chapter heading.

Chrysabelle lives in a world full of vampires and gold. Raised and trained as a constant meal for her master vampire, the one that will choose her and buy her, Chrysabelle only knows the life of a Comarre. A life filled with exquisite blood that runs through her veins and vampires surrounding her. When her master vampire comes up dead, beheaded, but not ash, Chrysabelle is the first suspect. Without waiting for a verdict, Chrysabelle runs to her aunts house in New Florida and into a series of events that leave her not only changed, but full of a wanting she never expected.

In today's fiction, vampires run rampant through the streets of book isles everywhere, glittering, biting, sucking and grasping for the attention of every person who glances their way. In YA fiction, there is no shortage, so it is with great pains that each and every author who plows into the genre must face making their vampire and vampire world unique and beautiful. Kristen Painter has done just that. Blood Rights, a Gothic dystopian world where the comarré are inked in beautiful gold filigree, made to make their blood even more heavenly and pure to the vampires that would use them for the red that fills their veins, is distinctive with it's very own voice. Chrysabelle is one of the purest of comarré. Ranked highest among comarré, her filigree outranks all in number and design.

But, at over 100 years old, Chrysabelle does not want to be owned, she wants freedom. Mysterious and strong, Chrysabelle is a strong female protagonist who doesn't let anyone tell her what do do. She is arrogant and sometimes unwilling to part or compromise with what she wants, even at times when it seems that there is a better option. In this matter, we love Chrysabelle, but we also want to smack her upside the head. I blame this solely on the male protagonist of the book, Mal.

I'm not sure if it's because as readers we can see where the book is headed, but most likely it's because of the third person narration, and so we know what each character is thinking and all we want is for both Chrysabelle and Mal to stop dancing around each other and get to it. Of course, Ms. Painter loves to torture us as readers and to be honest, I don't mind because, really what would the fun be in any kind of HEA if there wasn't some pain along the way. Lucky for me, Mal is everything I love to read about and more. Tormented constantly by the voices of everyone he's ever killed, swimming around in his head, Mal is very brooding vampire. He may have once been a murdering fiend, but the voices have given him the gift of constant guilt and therefore a good reason to stop sucking the life out of everyone he meets. Delightfully anguished in one count, snarky and witty in another, he is well layered and graciously conflicting. I love him. He's enchanting, even while he debates with the monstrous voices within, of whether or not Chrysabelle would be better off if he killed her. Then again, I could just be a sucker for the sexy brooding vampire. On the other hand, I think the voices provide an evil sort of comedic relief.

Even more so than the main characters, the world building of Blood Rights is dark and different, creating a world that sets more than just setting, but also mood. Infiltrating ever corner of our imagination, New Florida and Romania's dark atmospheres and pungent smells and sounds darken the scene and enlighten our minds. And with the host of secondary characters running through the streets, it's a benevolent beauty of a thing to be able to see it all in my mind's eye.

Overall, Blood Rights is dark and intense, with characters that are well developed and wickedly layered. Ms Painter has successfully planted herself as a unique contender in the vampire world and I can only hope one day I can find myself some gold filigree. I give Blood Rights, the first in the series, a 4 out of 5 and recommend it to fans of Young Adult, Vampire Fiction.

~* 3.5 Stars *~
Chrysabelle is on the run. Her patron has been murdered and members of the vampire nobility want her to answer for the crime. Unfortunately, that's not the worst of it. One of them thinks she has a priceless and powerful ring that had been in her patron's possession, and that has painted an even bigger target on her back. She is comarré, an elite breed whose blood is prized by the richest of the nobility for its power and taste. The comarré are a secretive, highly trained group, but they are in service to vampires, and Chrysabelle can't turn to them for help.

That's why she goes looking for someone on the fringes. She's trying to meet with a human. She comes face to fangs with a vampire instead.

Malkolm is anathema. Double-cursed and outcast, he's doomed to kill every time he feeds from the vein, then have each victim's soul torment him for eternity, screaming in his head until he becomes a raving monster. The last thing he needs is to come across the seductive scent of a comarré. The last thing he wants is to have anything to do with whatever crap Chrysabelle brings with her. Unfortunately, she doesn't seem keen on leaving him in what little peace is afforded to him.

Maybe he's thrice-cursed, after all.

Now he's stuck helping her stop a vicious, power-hungry vampire from revealing the mystical races to humans and starting a war that could only have one bloody, catastrophic end for all concerned. Doesn't mean he has to be happy about it, or with Chrysabelle for dragging him into it all.

~*~

Stong, independent heroine who can kick a fair amount of butt. Check. Dark, tortured hero who exudes a delectable sensuality. Check. Complex world and mythos, vibrant settings, and a narrative that reads with smooth ease. Check. A plot that is both grim and dangerous, a little mysterious, ripe with secrets and conflicting agendas, and just enough humor sprinkled throughout to keep it from being morose. Check.

Kristen Painter's Blood Rights has just about everything that most tickles my fancy in urban fantasy series debuts. Because of that, there were parts of this book that thrilled me and made me excited to continue on to book two. There were also a few things that gave me some trouble.

Though I loved the idea of the futuristic setting (the year is 2067), there wasn't enough world building for me to grasp the culture and social differences in that time, nor was there anything inherently futuristic in the technology or industry that I noticed. The existence of vampires and othernaturals wasn't enough to do it because of the very covenant that keeps the mortals oblivious to them. There were some mentions of locations, like New Florida, but without any frame of reference or explanation, there just wasn't anything to solidify the world in my mind. The futuristic setting ended up seeming inconsequential. Also light on definition was the vampires place among humans and comarré origins and history.

The Big Bad was definitely both big and bad, though. A real nasty piece of work there. I wish she was a little less clichéd in her motivations and edge-of-insane thirst for world domination, but there were a couple of unexpected twists, too. I love unexpected twists.

I have to admit, the plot got a little confusing to me towards the end. And there were some things about Mal's dual curses that never made a whole lot of sense to me. Some of those plot elements could have been better-developed and more thoroughly embellished.

Thing is, though, even when combined, those are relatively minor issues that could very well be cleared up in the next installment. They didn't detract all that much from my appreciation of this debut. More troubling was my reaction to Chrysabelle and Mal. I was over halfway through the book and I still wasn't loving either of them. In fact, at the halfway mark I was actually disgruntled by my disappointment in them as the main characters. I didn't find Chrysabelle sympathetic for her cushy century-long existence and I thought Mal was a pretty morose jerk. I warmed to them both in second half of the book, but my negative impressions of them in the beginning affected my overall enjoyment of their story.

One of the most positive aspects of the book for me was that it felt very much like the start of a series arc the author has well thought out and tightly planned, as opposed to some that feel more like an initial overall idea that will meander a bit alongside and around each book's individual plot arc. I don't mind the meander in my paranormal romance series, but I prefer my urban fantasy to have a well-defined series arc that progresses through each book as the characters evolve and develop alongside it. If the impression I got from this book bears out in this series, I'll be a very happy reader.

Oh, and one more thing. I don't normally comment on it because it has no bearing on book content, but wow... That is one stunningly gorgeous book cover. Truly fantastic.

Disclosure: An ARC of this book was provided to me by Orbit publisher Hachette Book Group via NetGalley. This rating, review, and all included thoughts and comments are my own.

~*~*~*~
Reviewed for One Good Book Deserves Another.

I have to admit that it took till Chapter 6 to then get me interested in the book. But after that chapter it was like wildfire! I couldn't get enough from each page.

Blood Rights: House of Comarre is an alluring mix of elegance, fangs, seduction, thrill, romance, and some nitty gritty. A series you most definitely not want to miss out!

Since birth, Chrysabelle was raised to be a comarre. The most praised of all the comarres. But when her patron vampire nobel is found dead and her being MIA, all eyes are on her for the murder. Limited to whom she can trust and where she can go, she's left to do things she never imagined she would. Going against all the things she's been raised to do for more than a century.
Malkolm, an anathema among vampires has his own personal demons. He bares not one, but two curses that ceases to give him a breathe of air. Not that he needs it. But you know what I mean. Curse 1.) For killing his own sire, he is cursed by whomever he sinks his fangs into he will drink them dead. Curse 2.) For every soul he kills through drinking their last drop of life, their names will forever be inked on his body and their voices will plague his mind. Always telling him to "drink" "kill" "feed." An unending struggle to stay sane from all the voices.

Blood Rights just beckons you to read it all the way through and begging for more. It's well written, perfectly paced, and the twists are spellbinding. I'm just blown away on how engaged I was. I'm so happy that the series will release a month right after each other.

Blood Right Book #1 - October 2011
Flesh & Blood #2 - November 2011
Bad Blood #3 - December 2011

Another one to add to the 2011 MUST READS and Favorites!

I can't say how many of these paranormal type books I've picked up, started to read and put down after the first chapter because they were just; well, too stupid. After the "Twilight" and "Sookie Stackhouse" stories emerged; so did a slew of paranormal fiction written in an attempt to mimic these plot lines. Many of them weak attempts at that.
Then came Kristen Painter's House of Comarre series. I immediately loved the cover art which made me pick the book up and skim through it. I quickly asertained that this was NOT another boring attempt at tapping into the paranormal fiction craze post "Twilight". It actually wades into the Sci-Fi/Fantasy category.
The main character and heroine, Chrysabelle, is nowhere near the love-struck vampire victim and the book begins with her kicking major ass. You know exactly who she is from the beginning; but, WHAT she is unfolds in the first quarter of this book. Amazing creativity on behalf of the author!
I plowed through all three of "The House of Comarre" books and would love to see them be turned into a comic book series. I believe the story would appeal to male readers in this format. The build up of the characters and the timely introduction of them keeps one quickly turning the pages. Could not put down. There are no wimps in this series...action through and through!