It's hard to write good reviews for the books you like, because there's a strong tendency to fangirl and write a review that consists of "OMG! THIS BOOK IS SO GOOD!!1! RAGOCZY IS SO HAWT. ROWENA IS SO DUM. SHE TOTALLY DOESN'T DESERVE HIM! BUY IT!! OMG I LOVE YOU CHELSEA!!"I'll try to do the book justice. First of all, ignore the bodice-ripper cover, because it does NOT give you a good idea about what the book is really about. Midnight Harvest is MORE than just a paranormal romance novel. It is a brilliant, detailed work of historical fiction with a main character who just happens to be a vampire. Taking place during the Depression, just before WWII, it starts out with the revolution in Spain. The main character, Count Ragoczy, has one of his factories seized by the Spanish for the war. With a death sentence on his head, he is forced to flee to America, where he becomes reunited with one of his paramours from another time...But the Spanish aren't going to just take that. They send a man, a chilling sociopath, to take Ragoczy--and anyone else who gets in their way--out. For good. The list of suspects seems endless. Especially with the bigoted sentiments of the farmhands in rural California, who hate all foreigners, and are about as accepting of the Count as a vampire at a... well, hemophiliac party.Seriously, this book was just SO well-written. I love this series so much much because it combines my two favorite genres in such a beautiful way. If you like Anne Rice, I strongly recommend you check out Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, because she is so, so, better at the genre. And if you don't like Anne Rice, read this series anyway. Especially if you love historical fiction, like me./fangirling
Midnight Harvest tested my patience with the Saint-Germain novels, and seemed to be completely lacking in motive. The plot just seemed to carry on without much explanation, and equally, without much reason. What's more, for the 'ideal citizen' that Saint-Germain infallibly is (Does this character have the depth of a flaw? I've yet to see it), he certainly garners a lot of negative attention, hate and suspicion, and never for his vampirism! I find the extreme of declaring him an enemy of the state (and such the same for his companion) and attempting to kill him as shown in this book to be completely unreasonable, and therefore, hard to believe. Yes, even under the political tensions of the time, this is just never given enough reasoning to look like anything beyond being plucked out of the air to advance story.Because this book was set in 1936/37, the element I find most appealing about Yarbro's writing was missing, and that is her richly crafted historical atmosphere -- and I am aware that is my own personal ruling, for I don't consider the 30's to be an intriguing historical setting -- it is simply too modern and recent for my tastes. I still very much enjoy Yarbro's style and composition, which is what kept me reading, but the lack of the elements I most enjoy left this book feeling dried out.
What do You think about Midnight Harvest (2005)?
These books are enjoyable once you decide to embrace Yarbro’s weirdly stilted, expository dialog, and if you don’t mind the endless repetition: Saint-Germain is always distrusted by the authorities because he’s foreign and wealthy; he’s always spied on by his employees and doubted by his lovers. If you don’t mind watching over and over again as he flees from persecution and sets up house in a new location, where his manservant Roger runs his bathwater and lays out his stylish clothing.This book begins in Spain in the 1930’s, at the onset of Civil War, and Saint-Germain is forced to flee to the United States, which is suffering the Great Depression. There he meets up with an old lover and is pursued by an enemy from Spain.Yarbro takes pains to portray each historical setting, and it’s interesting to watch her immortal characters adapt and immerse themselves in the current culture, always as outsiders. I know that some readers don’t like seeing him in a modern setting, but I rather enjoy watching the ancient vampire driving cars and figuring out how to create a passport photo when his image doesn’t register on film.
—Jamie
