Customer Reviews

Borne in Blood: A Novel of the Count Saint-Germain

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I always await Yabro's next installment in the St. Germain saga with great anticipation. Some of her novels are full of big historical events that nearly overwhelm her vampire hero. The Chinese invasion of Genghis Khan and the decline of classical Rome fall into this category. Others are set in quieter times and give an impression of what normal problems a four thousand year old entity can face and how he addresses them. Of course, St. Germain has extra abilities that make his problem solving unique. This latest chapter in St. Germain's long "life" is set in a period between tumultuous events, shortly after the defeat of Napoleon. Consequently, no battle scenes interrupt Yarbro's exploration of the vampire's efforts to connect with the humanity he lost four millennia ago.

You've Read This Book Before

Sure you have. Except for its setting it is exactly like all previous Saint-Germain novels. Same oppressed damsel in distress, same altruistically rescuing yet personally imperiled alchemist-vampire count, same resolution, even several lines more or less lifted from past exploits in this decades-long series. As I've said before, Ms. Yarbro definitely needs to vary her plots. (Her stories need new blood, ha-ha.)

The reason I keep reading her books is for the fact that few other fiction writers active today can match her ability to truly give the past so much multi-dimensional clarity. When you read her works you come away knowing almost everything about a time period. You know what challenges people of the age had to overcome in order to survive, you know what they were thinking, what frightened them, what they hoped to achieve, what they ate, drank, wore, believed, what was happening in the world in terms of climate. When you read a Saint-Germain book you even come away understanding what a particular time and place smelled like. All that is brilliant. It is so brilliant, in fact, that it pardons much that is less impressive about Quinn's novels, and has kept me reading for many years now when I've sometimes wondered if I shouldn't abandon the series.

I have asked before, though, why does this author have so much difficulty in varying her plots? They are all as formulaic as A+B=C. Every time! I'm not joking. In every novel it's: unjustly tormented women meets heroic vampire figure who delivers her from evil. End of story. And this book was no exception. Surely someone with Chelsea Quinn Yarbro's creativity and intellect knows this about her books, so why can't she make things a little different?

I did enjoy Borne In Blood's setting, its exploration of emerging modern science, the lengths to which Napoleon Bonaparte was deservedly vilified for the ongoing disastrous impact his megalomaniacal ambitions had on Europe long after he himself was dead, and it was also nice to check in on old friends and see, well, what the heck the Count was up to in the 1810's.

I'm not emptily picking on this author. Ms. Yarbro can write. She also utilizes her exhaustive research well in weaving her stories. If only I could find some variety in her plotlines, I'd hail her as a genius, instead of a fine historian masquerading only moderately successfully as a novelist.

About 3 ½ stars, mostly because she does history so well.

This is another in a fine series by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro - for those already familiar with St Germaine, it is a must have, for those unfamiliar with the character but interested in vampire romance, bear in mind it's not Anita Blake.
Written on a number of levels, historical, romance and horror, it illuminates a period of St Germaine's life previously hinted at in previous works by the author, and referencing previous works.
Definitely a must have.

As a fan of Yarbro's St. Germain series, I'm happy to enjoy the similarity of these novels, enjoying the setting and the small differences of character and plot. Hero is charming and sympathetic, and the Count
admits that he cannot feel for her as he does for the great loves of his life, but he nevertheless protects her and improve her situation. The time, just after Napoleon has ravaged Europe, leaving famine and disorder, is not a well-known one. I like it that St. Germain manages in this book to avoid
being swept up in great matters of state, instead remaining in a back-county Swiss castle for most of the action, tending to his shipping and publishing interests mostly at a distance. I hope we get to find out in later books what happened to the major and minor new characters in this book.

To me this is a successful St. Germain book.

Borne in Blood is Chelsea Quinn Yarbro's 20th entry in her Saint Germain series. I've been reading the counts adventures from the beginning. At this point it feel like I'm catching up with an old friend. Her meticulous attention to detail really helps to visualize the time period of the book. Borne in Blood takes place right after the end of the Napoleonic wars. Saint-Germain has taken as a companion a woman, Hero, widowed by the war. Hero is in a struggle with her father-in-law to have access to her children. Yabro highlights just how few rights women have in this time period. It also shows how women are so used to such treatment that they just accept it without questions. In a sense this is more a story about Hero, than it is the count. As such the threat this time is directed toward Hero, and it is up to the count to rescue her.

The ending was predictable, but that didn't bother me. As I said in the beginning, the count seems like an old friend, and I don't always want to see him battered at the end of the book.

Borne in Blood: Count Saint Germain #20

The life of Count Saint Germain is extraordinary. This time, Yarbro sets our sights on the Swiss countryside of 1817. Culturally speaking, the Swiss population is recovering from the Napoleonic wars and very severe weather. By this time period, the printing industry had advanced, and guided by 3800 years of `living' behind him, his wisdom has now firmly been established and now he is able to help spread his knowledge through publishing. His lover, Hero Corvosaggio, was widowed by Napoleon and their 2 sons are being raised by their grandfather. Hero, is a tragic figure, haunted by the loss of her prestige and sons, and yet buoyed by her love for the Count. While this personal relationship blooms, Saint Germain becomes intrigued with Graf Von Ravensbergs' research into blood. Clearly fascinated with the results, Saint Germain keeps abreast amidst the romantic interest of Hyacinthe in him. Love triangles can be dangerous, especially when a vampire is involved and mental instability characterizes Hyacinthe.

Like any Saint Germain book, Yarbro has included details that create a `been there' atmosphere. Her research into what actually occurred in a household of that time is extensive and help create an intimacy with the locale. Even the correspondence has the feel of just having been delivered by courier. The Saint-Germain chronicles are more romance than vampire fiction, and it is perhaps that element that is their genius. Why would an `immortal' just exist to drink blood and spread a curse? Over the course of an average life, knowledge and wisdom are copious, how more so over millennia?

To say this is `just' another novel would be not enough. Come, enter into the world of 1817, and the existence of Saint Germain, one more time.

Tim Lasiuta

[...]

Yes, I have read all of the St. Germain books and conclude that this gem belongs at or near the top of the list. Rich in historic detail, the time and place are firmly set and there were heroic figures and contrasting evil doers. In this story the characters are truely odd with complex interactions and flaws; I didn't even figure out who was aiding St. Germain's enemies. Superb action in the climax, too. St. Germain always "lives" to love another day. Just a great read.

As always, I really enjoyed this entry into the St Germain series, but I dont think it was CQY's best effort. The character development seemed a bit choppy, sometimes even missing, and I kept expecting something more about the Graf's studies of blood. It seemed as though maybe part had been edited out. I still enjoyed the book & would reccomend it- just not as a first read of the St Germain books. (I'd make that Hotel Transylvania, Tempting Fate or Blood Games.) Still, if you have read ANY of Yarbro's books, you'll enjoy this one. Hero is written as a more realistic character than some of the females in other Yarbor books, and the Count is more, well, human, too. All in all, a good read- worthy of adding to the bookshelf.

I have been a big fan of this series for years. I envy those who haven't yet discovered St. Germain. They are in for a treat. New readers be aware that this is less about vampires and more about a being out of time who finds himself having to survive no matter when - and not lose his "humanity" in the process.

I've enjoyed reading Yarbro's historical fiction novels about the legendary Count St. Germain for several years. In Yarbro's work, St. Germain is portrayed as a vampire... a very romantic, rich, well-dressed, intellectual, passionate, handsome vampire who is only interested in giving women pleasure and promoting social justice.

Anyway, this is not the best of the series to get an understanding of this world's cosmology (i.e., how vampirism works in this series of books), but it's an excellent portrayal of societal mores of this time period, shortly after the defeat of Napoleon. It does not move as slowly as some of the earlier novels, and is not as sad, although melancholy is a lingering feature in this series. If you are already a fan, I would recommend it.