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The Historian cover art

The Historian

By: Elizabeth Kostova
Narrated by: Justine Eyre,Paul Michael
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Summary

THE SUMPTUOUS INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER.

Breathtakingly suspenseful and beautifully written, The Historian is the story of a young woman plunged into a labyrinth where the secrets of her family's past connect to an inconceivable evil: the dark fifteenth-century reign of Vlad the Impaler and a time-defying pact that may have kept his awful work alive through the ages. The search for the truth becomes an adventure of monumental proportions, taking us from monasteries and dusty libraries to the capitals of Eastern Europe—in a feat of storytelling so rich, so hypnotic, so exciting that it has enthralled audiences around the world.

©2005 Elizabeth Kostova (P)2021 Hachette Audio UK

Critic reviews

"Quite extraordinary...Kostova is a natural storyteller.... She has refashioned the vampire myth into a compelling contemporary novel, a late-night page-turner." (San Francisco Chronicle)

"Filled with fascinating details of archaic vampire lore, the splendours of the Ottoman Empire and the beauty of the Romanian countryside." (Times Literary Supplement)

What listeners say about The Historian

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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A mystery with history

I read this book in hardback back in 2006 and absolutely loved it, I decided to purchase this version on audible as it is unabridged and it renewed my love of this book, the narrators are outstanding and I was completely enraptured

3 people found this helpful

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Long, clever, but ultimately rather disappointing

I liked a lot of this book but the ending was not as good as the plot build-up lead me to expect it would be - and the epilogue 'twist' was so predicable. It wasn't helped by Justine Eyre's deadpan delivery of the final 'action' scenes. I felt both she and the author were both tired of the whole thing and just wanted it to be over. That said, it is generally well written and has some intriguing ideas - and Paul Michael is excellent as the male narrator.

2 people found this helpful

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Captivating

I loved this from beginning to end. Superb narration and it works well having two narrators. I’m just sorry I’ve finished it. It’s one I’ll listen to again in a couple of years.

2 people found this helpful

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Read it!

An astonashing book, with a language and story that capture you so you don’t want to put it down or to end. Hope for a sequel. Just loved it.

1 person found this helpful

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Superb writing, story, narration. A great listen.

So very enjoyable, thought provoking, well written and well researched. A great travelogue. And powerful homage to Bram Stoker's Dracula.

1 person found this helpful

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Brilliant, but...

This is one of my favourite audio books. I read the physical book years ago and have reread it several times since. When it popped up in Audible it was a no brained to give it a listen.
I don't usually go for horror stories but this is so much more. Part historical fiction, part travel and part thriller, it is a wonderful yarn.
My one reservation is the reading. To be more exact half of the reading. The gentleman reader is engaging, sympathetic to the nuances of the story, and generally enjoyable to listen to. unfortunately I find the lady reader to be lacking in emotional involvement with the story. There are many mispronunciations which I found grating
Once you get in to the meat of the story the male reader has the lion's share of the reading and it becomes much more enjoyable.
I still recommend it totally as it is a great, epic and unpredictable gothic tale which I have thoroughly enjoyed yet again.

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This is brilliant!

I’ve read this book before, as a paperback and gave it five stars then. Felt a little hesitant to pick it up again, but it is still so good!

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Superb

I read this book at least twice in the past, then came across it on audible. A brilliant telling of this intriguing story. Loved every minute of it.

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Terrible voice!

The story is mysterious, romantic and and an academic thriller in the time before the iron curtain fell.

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enjoyable

loved every minute of this book. it was so enjoyable to listen to and so easy to follow

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  • Kareem Belgharbi
  • 04-04-21

Best novel ever written

The unabridged version is definetely worth the listen, all of the chapters added a lot to the story and none felt unnecessary. The narration was excellent and I found myself checking a few tunes to see if it was only narrated by two people.

1 person found this helpful

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  • Utilisateur anonyme
  • 12-07-22

Long, disappointing yet satisfying.

Very long and repetitive at times where I feel the reader didn't need a reminder. Though with the order of events being a bit confusing at times I suppose it's meant to help. I found myself loving and living myself in to the events and cultures. On the edge of my seat even! but felt torn away from it in moments of long exposition or strange racial profiling of most of the characters. Dragging my feet along and dreading having to go though it, but then a new character or place interested me again. I ranted to my friends about all the parts I didn't like yet I'm giving it a four stars, why? because I enjoyed the experience. Beautifully done research and characterization, so many good and charming characters and places.

spoilers?:

The ending/death for dracula, Helen and her husband left me sad and empty while the epilogue of Dracula/Vlad made me excited to hear more! and again empty and disappointed when it was over! I wanted more- I could read a whole book just about this characterization of him before and after he became a vampire. Scary but really attractive.

So perhaps even if I feel this book was much too long it could also not be any shorter! inspires me to involve more historic references in my vampire works, I've always wanted to but been afraid of coming off as too much of a nerd. This book feels like it was written by someone who is truly passionate and nerdy in the best way.