276°
Posted 20 hours ago

The Historian: The captivating international bestseller and Richard and Judy Book Club pick

£3.995£7.99Clearance
ZTS2023's avatar
Shared by
ZTS2023
Joined in 2023
82
63

About this deal

Is it possible that the Dracula of myth truly existed—and that he has lived on, century after century, pursuing his own unknowable ends? In fact, the narrator is never named in the novel, suggesting, as one critic explains, "that the quest for the dark side of human nature is more universal than specific to a concrete character". there's a curious holding back here as elsewhere from a really probing look at the seductive appeal of vampirism, particularly the sensuality at its core.

The Shadow Land by Elizabeth Kostova | Goodreads The Shadow Land by Elizabeth Kostova | Goodreads

Sturdy, attractive hardcover copy, spine and binding tight, pages bright and clear, and only minimal wear to covers and tips. Ong Sor Fern of The Straits Times criticized Kostova's portrayal of women, writing that her unnamed female narrator "feels even more drab and colourless than Stoker's idealised female, Mina Harker".The novel blends the history and folklore of Vlad Țepeș and his fictional equivalent Count Dracula and has been described as a combination of genres, including Gothic novel, adventure novel, detective fiction, travelogue, postmodern historical novel, epistolary epic, and historical thriller. The evils brought about by religious conflict are a particular theme and the novel explores the relationship between the Christian West and the Islamic East. As a scholastic mystery, much of the action takes place not in caves with torches or on the road in car chases but in libraries, archives and private studies.

The Historian: The captivating international bestseller and The Historian: The captivating international bestseller and

When she questions him about a strange message inside the book he starts to reveal the story of his quest to hunt down the remains of Vlad The Impaler - the historical character who inspired Bram Stoker's Dracula. The West, which is laden with the "dead" weight of this past (represented by the vampires) needs the help of Turkey (and perhaps the entire Muslim world) to recover. They travel to Istanbul to find the archives of Sultan MehmedII, which Paul believes contain information regarding the location of the tomb. Within a few pages, lo, there is the count in wolf form, and mysterious fires in the Transylvanian forest. From Istanbul, Paul and Helen travel to Budapest, Hungary, to further investigate the location of Dracula's tomb and to meet with Helen's mother, who they believe may have knowledge of Rossi– the two had met during his travels to Romania in the 1930s.What’s impressive about all this is how Kostova weaves three sizable narratives together, alternating time and place and narrative voice. While imitation of Henry James is not enough in itself to make me wish undeath on an author, it sucked the blood out of this adventure. The family lived in Ljubljana, Slovenia in 1972, while her father was teaching at a local university; during that year, the family traveled across Europe.

The Historian Characters | GradeSaver The Historian Characters | GradeSaver

Anne Vandermey, "Alum got her start in 'U' writing program" (original), The Michigan Daily (16 April 2006). After 10 years of toil on her first book, The Historian, Elizabeth Kostova sent out her manuscript to publishers.

The central thread is set in the 1970s and is narrated by the unnamed daughter of a historian-turned-diplomat named Paul. There is throughout no statement of past things wherein memory may err, for all the records chosen are exactly contemporary, given from the stand-points and within the range of knowledge of those who made them. Afterwards, Rossi mysteriously disappears and along with the professor's daughter Helen, Paul begins to investigate. Generation after generation, the legend of Dracula has enticed and eluded both historians and opportunists alike. And much like Dracula, to which Kostova’ novel The Historian owes an incalculable debt (more so than many another vampire novel), the novel is constructed as a story within a story within a story.

Asda Great Deal

Free UK shipping. 15 day free returns.
Community Updates
*So you can easily identify outgoing links on our site, we've marked them with an "*" symbol. Links on our site are monetised, but this never affects which deals get posted. Find more info in our FAQs and About Us page.
New Comment