Scan barcode
penguin_emperor_of_the_north's review against another edition
4.0
My dear and unfortunate successor:
It is with regret that I imagine you reading this. Not only for myself, for it means that I have finished this book but also for you as you consider embarking on a 600 page journey from Amsterdam to New York to Istanbul to Hungary and Bulgaria. You stand on the brink of a journey into past through Vlad Dracula's wars with the Ottoman Empire to the fall of Constantinople to 15th century pilgrimage routes.
A slow paced journey, I must confess. The action scenes will be few and far between. I dare say it is not a horror story that stands before you, rather it is an atmospheric excursion that spans centuries and continents on a quest to find Dracula's tomb and final resting place. Well, his tomb at least.
And, my dear successor, if in perusing other reviews you find that this format is less than original, that is unfortunate. But it amused me nonetheless so c'est la vie.
It is with regret that I imagine you reading this. Not only for myself, for it means that I have finished this book but also for you as you consider embarking on a 600 page journey from Amsterdam to New York to Istanbul to Hungary and Bulgaria. You stand on the brink of a journey into past through Vlad Dracula's wars with the Ottoman Empire to the fall of Constantinople to 15th century pilgrimage routes.
A slow paced journey, I must confess. The action scenes will be few and far between. I dare say it is not a horror story that stands before you, rather it is an atmospheric excursion that spans centuries and continents on a quest to find Dracula's tomb and final resting place. Well, his tomb at least.
And, my dear successor, if in perusing other reviews you find that this format is less than original, that is unfortunate. But it amused me nonetheless so c'est la vie.
jnhamm's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
sarahetc's review against another edition
Forget it. I'm still going to call this read for the time I put into it, which I can never get back. Phooey all over this.
curecaterpillar's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
4.0
kamharellano's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is one of my all-time most favorite books ever and this reread (my second) was just as fun as the first time I ever read it—I was 18 then, the same age as the book's unnamed intrepid narrator.
Dracula is probably my favorite classic, and this book captured everything that I loved about Bram Stoker's iconic novel. At its heart, Dracula is a detective story, and what is history but one great big mystery where we try to suss out answers from clues left to us by figures from the past? Told in a series of letters, articles, journal entries, and recordings (a smart literary choice, given the source material), The Historian traces Dracula's movements from his beginnings as a particularly bloodthirsty prince of Wallachia all the way to his possible existence as a vampire in post-WW2 and Cold War Europe through the eyes of a family of academics. The novel starts out with an unnamed 18-year-old female narrator, who discovers a strange book amongst her father's belongings. He then tells her a sordid tale involving her grandfather, her long-lost mother, various friends and acquaintances from Turkey, Romania, and Bulgaria, and their quest to finally vanquish the Impaler.
My favorite thing about this book is how it deftly uses Dracula as a metaphor for the evil present in history that is hard to undo in modern times, much as Dracula’s influence still lives even in the 20th century. One has to ask, who is the titular historian? Is it our unnamed narrator, who pieces together her father's past and realizes what Dracula means to her, personally? Is it her father, who bravely traverses Cold War Europe to save the woman he loves? Or is it Dracula himself, who understands more than any other character in the novel what it means to truly go down in history? Throughout the book, I've had different answers to this question, and I would say all of them are correct.
I will say though that if you're not into history in and of itself, or the process of doing research, this book may not be for you. If you're looking for a more exciting vampire adventure, this is not it.
“As a historian, I have learned that, in fact, not everyone who reaches back into history can survive it. And it is not only reaching back that endangers us; sometimes history itself reaches inexorably forward for us with its shadowy claws.”
Dracula is probably my favorite classic, and this book captured everything that I loved about Bram Stoker's iconic novel. At its heart, Dracula is a detective story, and what is history but one great big mystery where we try to suss out answers from clues left to us by figures from the past? Told in a series of letters, articles, journal entries, and recordings (a smart literary choice, given the source material), The Historian traces Dracula's movements from his beginnings as a particularly bloodthirsty prince of Wallachia all the way to his possible existence as a vampire in post-WW2 and Cold War Europe through the eyes of a family of academics. The novel starts out with an unnamed 18-year-old female narrator, who discovers a strange book amongst her father's belongings. He then tells her a sordid tale involving her grandfather, her long-lost mother, various friends and acquaintances from Turkey, Romania, and Bulgaria, and their quest to finally vanquish the Impaler.
My favorite thing about this book is how it deftly uses Dracula as a metaphor for the evil present in history that is hard to undo in modern times, much as Dracula’s influence still lives even in the 20th century. One has to ask, who is the titular historian? Is it our unnamed narrator, who pieces together her father's past and realizes what Dracula means to her, personally? Is it her father, who bravely traverses Cold War Europe to save the woman he loves? Or is it Dracula himself, who understands more than any other character in the novel what it means to truly go down in history? Throughout the book, I've had different answers to this question, and I would say all of them are correct.
I will say though that if you're not into history in and of itself, or the process of doing research, this book may not be for you. If you're looking for a more exciting vampire adventure, this is not it.
“As a historian, I have learned that, in fact, not everyone who reaches back into history can survive it. And it is not only reaching back that endangers us; sometimes history itself reaches inexorably forward for us with its shadowy claws.”
jacyjean's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
alicesbookcorner's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
lillinyra_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
4.25
1madesun's review against another edition
3.0
Response: This is a book does the job creating wanderlust for not just travelers but for lovers of history and most importantly vampires. The world is built off our own ideas, myths, and lore of Dracula. And the mystery of who or what this historic person, Vlad the Impaler was is present through every leg in the journey the characters take. Told from mainly two and sometimes three perspectives, the story never seemed lost or over complicated, even when it felt like there were two or three mysteries needing to be solved. This felt like a historical mystery novel, and I liked it.
alyssa_gallant's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0