Customer Reviews

Night Blooming

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

 

 

This series never fails to enthrall with its fastidious attention to historical detail and its equally charming vampire hero. It's really quite amazing how subtly and so casually author Yarbro deals with the mundanities of vampirism, which never gets in the way of the plot or the history. Saint-Germain himself just gets better all the time. What a fabulous character, created from a bit of history himself! The supporting cast -- his manservant, his former-lover-turned-best-vamp-bud, and her charming and witty ghoul amanuensis --- are so well developed throughout the series, they now seem like old friends. Admittedly, Anne Rice and her Lestat, worthy of praise and adultation, tend to overshadow the more quiet seduction of Yarbro and S-G; that seems a bit unfair, but then this kind of historical fiction does not appeal to everyone. If you love Rice, you should though at least give Yarbro a try. The same is true for fans of Laurell Hamilton, whom this writer finds to be an acquired taste which just hasn't happened for him yet, if ever. NIGHT BLOOMING is a superb additon to the S-G chronicles.

Or sixteenth, if you count "Out of the House of Life", a spinoff novel mostly about Madeline de Montalia, Saint Germain's lover from the first novel in the series, "Hotel Transylvania", by the time of "House" a vampire in her own right.

Or nineteenth, if you count "A Flame In Byzantium", "Crusader's Torch", and "A Candle For D'artagnan", all centering on the life of Olivia Atta Clemens, his lover from "Blood Games", third in the series, likewise a vampire herself in these stories.

As in all of the books in this series, Saint Germain is an unmitigated hero, gentle, kind, suave, cultured, generous, intelligent, wise. Some readers of vampire fiction don't want their vampires to be good guys; at best, they want engaging bad boys like Anne Rice's "Lestat". At worst, they want ravening demons. If you fall into this category, don't read this book (or any book in this series). You won't get what you're looking for here. In Yarbro's books, the bad guys are generally the political and religious powers that be in the historical periods that she writes about.

Which brings us to one of the most fascinating things about this series: the historical settings. Saint Germain is a vampire who has lived for 4000 years; as such, each novel sets him in a different time period; this one sets him in the court of Charlemagne, circa 800 CE. Don't read these books as vampire fiction; read them as historical romances.

One of the few negative aspects to this series is that regular readers know from earlier-written books set in later historical periods that most of the romances are doomed to tragic endings; if they weren't, the romantic interests would have become vampires, and we'd have seen them or heard them referred to in later-period books. This gets a bit depressing after a while, but is hardly enough to keep the series from being worthwhile.

I would put this book about on a par with "Blood Roses" or "Darker Jewels", not as good as "Writ In Blood" or "Better In The Dark", but better than most of the series.

I've read every one of CQY's vampire novels. Yes, they are slightly formulaic, yes they are historical--but what do you think the life of a putative vampire who is thousands of years old would be? Most tellingly, Saint-Germain, despite his several long-lived friends, suffers boredom and loneliness, and struggles against cynicism. The beauty of these novels is their portrayal of history without the rose-colored glasses present in most history books. Partially epistolary in form, these novels allow us to see history not through the rose-colored glasses of distance, but through the eyes of those living it as their present, and then supplies "commentary" in the form of Saint-Germain, whose 4,000 years of life have allowed him the time to develop modern sensibilities, as we see them. If you're looking for a horror story, you'll be disappointed; Saint-Germain is much more. If you expect institutions such as the Church and various historical figures to come out smelling like roses because the simplistic history you learned at school or even in your church suggests that it is so, you'll be disappointed as well. The reality and politics of the dark ages, say, or religion is often much nastier than we want to suppose, though it takes looking at primary sources--rather than TV and movies--to understand this. I am grateful that CQY does do this research, and then writes these novels, so the rest of us can see history--and humanity--with new eyes. A little fresh blood never hurt anybody, so to speak.

At last I know what happens to a mosquito that bites the Count. I thought it just went on and on doing the same thing forever, but became harder to swat, being stronger and faster.
Seriously, I'm under the spell again of Ms. Yarbro's words and character. The only problem I have is that just about everyone in the religious life is in it for greed or power, and more time is spent on one-upmanship by formality or insinuation than true piety. No one becomes a bishop or a simple nun for love of goodness. The only goodness usually found in the novels are that of the Saint himself who always gets victimized himself for showing humanity. Thanking a slave for service was the height of suspicious behavior. Could everyone have been that bad?

In 796 Gaul, Karl-lo-Magne (Charlemagne) has summoned Europe's finest minds to attend him in an attempt to resurrect the Roman Empire. Karl-lo-Magne discusses rare maps with one of the scholars, Rakoczy, whose vast knowledge and strange practices makes His Highness question what the Count is, but he still bestows favors and property on the "foreigner".

Nearby at about the same time, albino Gynethe Mehaut visits a convent seeking help with her constant bleeding palms. The local church is divided between her representing divine benediction and the Antichrist. Proving his leadership ability by placing the monkey on someone else's shoulders, Karl-lo-Magne dispatches Rakoczy to escort Gynethe to the Vatican so Pope Leo III will have to deal with the problem. As the duo travels south avoiding sunlight for different reasons, they form a deep passion for one another, but to save her life, Rakoczy must defy the two most powerful mortals in the world: the monarch and the pope.

As expected with a Count Rakoczy novel, the astute historical background provides a powerful opportunity for the audience to luxuriate in a bygone era. The story line is typical of the long running series yet grips the audience with the feel of the battle for supremacy between the monarch and the pope mostly through the perceptions of the traveling couple. Fans of Chelsea Quinn Yarbro and those newcomers who delight in a historical compassionate vampire tale will want to read NIGHT BLOOMING, a robust end of the Dark Ages tale that showcases Rakoczy in top form because his companion brings out the best in him.

Harriet Klausner

Having read all of Chelsea Quinn Yarbro's St. Germain novels, I can't stop now, but it does seem to me that CQY has written herself into a rut. The first 5 or 6 books were engaging, exciting, and fun to read. Now we still get to see St. Germain, and in this outing, we even get to visit with Olivia in Roma, but the tone is consistently depressive.

As always, the historical details are of interest and presumably impeccably researched. Some of the changes Yarbro keeps ringing, however, are just getting to be tiresome. How long can we keep hearing Roger and Germain referring to each other as "old friend", without really seeing any evidence that they are really "friends". Yes, Roger is always concerned for Germain's needs, but neither character ever really discusses their concerns with the other. One reveiwer remarked that centuries of butlerhood must be getting old for Roger, and I would have to agree. It also becomes increasingly difficult to see why Germain wants to continue his extended existence. In the earlier books, he was much livelier, but in the last several, it's been just one depressing century after another.

Finally, a word or two specifically about this book. What is with the stigmata? They seem to be there as just a plot device. For all his concern over his albino, stigmatic love, Germain never really concerns himself with WHY her hands are always bleeding. Is she really a Saint? Does this mean that there is a God, and he is into manifestations of sainthood? Is she nuts? A self-mutilator? We are led to believe that she is a true innocent, whose palms have been bleeding off and on (but mostly on) since childhood, but no rationale is so much as suggested. And, finally, how about some guidance in pronouncing her name (Gynethe Mehaut)?

OK, OK, so I still would recommend reading this book, especially if you've read all the rest, but please---CQY, try to recall the vivid, heroic, undead gentleman from the first few books, and let the old boy have some fun!

Another excellent C.Q.Yarbro novel with Saint-Germain as the lead chacter. For those of you who are new to Chelsea Quinn Yarbro's much beloved vampire, fear not-this novel will bring you up to speed on our hero, his very long life and his rather unique "needs". (and I am not just talking blood!!)
I was struck by the sad tone of the novel. Saint-Germain often laments on how lonely his life is and this novel definely drives that point home. Gynethe Mehaut truely is a lost soul that Saint-Germain fights Heaven and Earth for. A very disturbing and gripping ending to this well written and researched novel.
A definate "must read" novel.

I used to love Yarbro's St. Germain books. I devoured the first 8 or so. But after a while, I got tired of the perpetually persecuted vampire, who gets himself involved with a damsel in distress while fighting religious authority amid political upheaval.

Although I tend to agree with what seems to be Yarbro's negative opinion of religion, this particular book -- in which stigmata is presented as a real phenomenon, without explanation -- was the final straw. It baffles me how one can condemn religion while at the same time showcasing one of its biggest frauds as being a real occurrence.

As much as I love the historical detail she puts into her work, I wish Yarbro would write St. Germain in the present day. But then, her formula (see above) wouldn't work quite so well.

Of the many novels starring the vampire Saint-Germain that Chelsea Quinn Yarbro has written since 1975, this is definitely another one.

Historic setting? Check; the kingdom of Charlemagne (or Karl-lo-Magne) around AD 800. ... male-dominated society and religion full of ignorance, superstition, and pervasive abuse of women? Check. Sensitive, intelligent damsel more than usually distressed by this nasty culture? Check. Reason she's singled out for extra distress? This heroine's both an albino and a stigmatic -- someone who bears spontaneous wounds resembling Christ's in the palms of both hands.

Two main variations in the formula this time around. The romance is so low-key as to be almost non-existent. The 'evil superstitious patriarchal society' plot takes up a correspondingly larger amount of room. In this one, the vampire or the damsel can barely say "please pass the salt" without the remark being construed as treason, heresy, or witchcraft by the uniformly nasty cast surrounding them. Some local peasants whose story parallels the damsel's have no better luck, in spite of being mostly male. As is so often the case in this series, their eventual destruction is the result of an ill-considered charitable act by St. Germain earlier in the book.

Yarbro does do her homework on historical matters. As always, she does an admirable job of evoking of a society unfamiliar to her readers. She describes every single one of them as superstitious, petty, and cruel to women, but at least she doesn't skimp on the details. The other bright spot is the brief return of Olivia, a Roman matron who is one of the hero's former lovers now turned vampire.

If you like the series, you should have no serious gripes with this entry. If not, I wouldn't recommend this book as a starting point.

Sooooo...this was an exercise in how many unpronounceable names can you put in one book. Or perhaps how many times can you have repetitive conversations about religious blindness. Was there a story in there? OK, so it was better than Come Twilight, which was painful to read but still...more than 250 pages into the book and our hero hasn't met his babe for more than a fleeting moment. He's too busy mucking around giving his Word (does that capitalization grate on anyone else's nerves?) to Great Karl and the peasants and generally having a very dull time, sing halleluiah. Once we leave the north and travel to Rome the story tries to pick up steam, but in the end it seems someone forgot to hitch the coal car to the engine. Fizzle fizzle thunk. The short scenes with Olivia and Niklos are the only relief from the monotony. If you're looking for an historical picture of religious fundamentalism at its intolerant worst you've come to the right place. If you're looking for a captivating story with remarkably well-drawn characters too bad for you. I keep coming back to this series because of my love for Yarbro's Saint Germain, but the last three books have been really trying. Where is the man from Hôtel Transylvania and Blood Games? Has the well run dry? Will the next book also tank? ...this one certainly did.