The Historian

by Elizabeth Kostova

Book Overview

An "innovative" ( The New Yorker ) retelling of the story of Dracula. Told with the flourish and poise of a talented storyteller, Kostova turns the age-old tale into a compelling "late night page-turner" ( San Francisco Chronicle ) When a young woman discovers a cache of ancient letters, she is thrown into the turbulent history of her parents' dark pasts. Uncovering a labyrinthine trail of clues, she begins to reconstruct a staggering history of deceit...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0316011770
• ISBN13: 9780316011778
• Release Date: June 2005
• Publisher: Little Brown and Company
• Length: 656 Pages
• Weight: 1.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.9" x 6.4" x 9.6"

Customer Reviews

I absolutely LOVE this book. I have gone back to it time and time again... including now when I'm p

This book has excellent character development, good historical and geographical accuracy, and an excellent backstory for Nosferatu.

A historically-enticing, nesting-doll book

One of the best adventure books I’ve ever read. And it is indeed more adventure than vampire lore in my opinion, traversing multiple countries, cultures, political complications, and timelines. The vampire at the end of the quest then adds an appropriate amount of thrill (without being too cheesy), that makes this book perfect for a read by the fire. The historical aspect is also super interesting and well-researched and the book-within-a-book tactic adds that much more dimension and excitement. 100% would recommend to anyone interested in a thrilling chase that isn’t too scary ;)

I loved this book.

Definitely one of the very best vampire books I've read. I enjoyed it thoroughly and recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good story.

Excellent!

My new favorite book! Absolutely loved this book!

This book had me on the edge of my seat.

This book is a rollercoaster of action, suspense, and drama. It is by far my favorite from the library I call a home. If you like supernatural, you HAVE to read at some point.

The best vampire book in 30 years

I loved the language, the story, the characters and description of the locations. It's a very long book but in my opinion it's completely worth it.

La Historiadora

Muy buen libro! realmente lo disfrute! todo lo sobre el dracula historico es totalmente grandioso! despues de leerlo pase bastante tiempo buscando sobre Vlad Tepes es totalmente asombroso!

A slowly-building horror novel with a huge payoff

Wow. I finished The Historian last night and I'm still in awe of how good it was. The story takes place throughout a dozen locations, mostly in Eastern Europe. It's chock full of character development, thrills of horror, and historical locales. This is what The Da Vinci Code should have been-- a deep novel of historical fact combined with compelling characters and situations. Perfect for summer reading, as it is almost 650 pages long. But don't worry-- all the buildup is most certainly worth it. It has been a long, long time since I've read a climax as horrifying, exciting, and memorable as in the last pages of The Historian. I won't be forgetting the haunting final scenes for quite a while. On a last note, I also liked how two stories were told at once through most of the book with the use of messages left in case of emergency. This was a great first novel from Ms. Kostova and I think her writing skills point towards great things in the future.

A Wonderful Read!

I don't usually go for books about the supernatural, or books that get so much publisher hype. But something about The Historian caught my eye, and I took the plunge. I am glad I did. This is a vampire tale, but unlike any other I have ever read. If you are looking for a traditional vampire story that is fast-paced and drips blood and has ghoulish thrills on every page stay far far away from this book! You will be bitterly disappointed. Instead, Kostova has crafted a slow-building story that blends scholarship and the supernatural in a unique and fascinating way. The intricately layered plot and deft characterization, both of people and place is simply astonishing and lifts The Historian from the ranks of Mass Market Summer Seller into the realm of Real Literature. Is the book perfect? No, of course not. I found it a little slow to engage me, the first few chapters were almost sedate in their pacing. But once I was hooked (about three chapters in) I was hooked good and could hardly put the book down until I finished it. Occasionally the letter within a letter narrative style confused me a little, although this never seemed to disrupt the flow unduly. The ending was another area that I have seen critiqued, and have to agree that it seems somewhat quickly cobbled together: a forced resolution. But the final chapter, a sort of post script, is as close to perfect as one can get. I closed the book and immediately began calculating how soon I could expect to read the sequel, or indeed anything at all, by this brilliant new author. I can hardly wait!

A Real Writer's Answer to the Da Vinci Code

This was such an enjoyable book, and I highly recommend it for anyone who likes Dracula stories or who enjoyed the Da Vinci Code. Unlike the Da Vinci Code, the characters in this book were complex, interesting and sympathetic, not just cardboard ciphers. But what was really fascinating was combining the characters with a plot that just kept reeling you in. The suspense of the hunt through the past was terrific and the element of creepiness and the supernatural was the icing on the cake. Definitely one of the best books I have read in a long while. Yes, it requires more careful reading than a typical James Patterson novel or other mindless thriller, but the payoff is also so much larger. I think the people who didn't enjoy it were those who were searching for something this isn't , not what it is - an extremely literate, suspenseful and enjoyable thriller.

My dear and unfortunate reader....

For once, a novel that is not horror or all blood and gore, but a truely facinating and suspensful tale that kept me awake after reading only 64 pages of it. I am not faint-hearted, nor have I ever been kept awake by any books. This novel facinated me and made me want to finish it in one sitting. Drakulya-Dracula-Vlad Tepes-whatever you want to call him is not the main character in this book, but a father and daughter historian team who are searching for him within the secrets of history. Since I have extensive knowledge of Vlad/Dracula and the events surrounding his life, I was blown away by this novel and how much more I was able to learn. Creepy and eerie, this novel haunts the reader by making its point very clear-the reader has all the power in the world, bringing a tale to life. Without someone to read this book, there is no power to this story. Within these pages is contained one of the most engrossing and imaginative tales that brings the reader to feel as though they have been inducted into a secret society. I actually feared for my life while reading this book, simply because I felt as though I WAS one of the characters. This novel starts off a bit slowly, without suspense or terror, but quickly gains steam as the story unfolds before the reader's eyes. The Historian brings together a classic tale of gothic suspense and terror, but without the usual blood spilled in every chapter. Yours with profoundest grief-