From Publishers Weekly
Rich with historical detail and intrigue, Yarbro's 21st Count Saint-Germain novel (after 2007's Borne in Blood) unfolds in 18th-century Russia at the height of Peter the Great's effort to wrest St. Petersburg from the swamps and spearhead the modernizing of his nation. Benevolent vampire Saint-Germain plays both sides, contributing engineering suggestions to the czar's efforts and intelligence reports to the Polish monarchy. As usual, several difficulties threaten to expose his secret identity, and he battles ignorant and superstitious opposition to his enlightened teaching and doctoring skills. Though sluggishly paced in spots and minimally supernatural, this meticulously researched entry deftly displays Yarbro's ambitions to use her vampire hero as a lens to focus on the best and worst of human behavior throughout history. (Oct.)
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From Booklist
The early days of St. Petersburg, at the dawn of the eighteenth century, come to lifeΠ²Πβfrigid weather, fetid swamps, primitive conditions, and allΠ²Πβin YarbroΠ²Πβ’s leisurely paced new Saint-Germain tale. Undercover as the husband of a Polish diplomat, Saint-Germain is attacked when inspecting one of the pumping stations he has designed to help drain the swamps. Taken to a care house, he befriends the Russian noblewoman and Dutch physician there, who are allowed to attend only supervisorsΠΒ and those living in the foreign quarter. Saint-GermainΠ²Πβ’s vampirism so takes a backseat to historical detail that historical-fiction readers as much as Saint-Germain stalwarts may be pleased. --Diana Tixier Herald