il Giardino Romantico

  by Elizabeth Kostova

Transylvania, garlic, the cross.  They have one thing in common - vampires.

The Historian is written in a form not unlike our other well-known best-seller The Da Vinci Code.  A mystery awaits to be solved, and ancient secrets are revealed by people seeming least related to them.  One can find action, romance, mystery, death, and of course a slight of humor.  These seem to be the essential ingredients to a successful novel today.

However, many would probably agree that The Da Vinci Code has more charisma because it was largely based on reliable resources. Many of the sources of reference do exist and the historical events mentioned in the story also did truly happen.  Nevertheless, if the reader happens to be a fan of Bram Stoker's Dracula, then they might as well consider this the sequel to it.

The book is satisfying enough for a casual coffee shop reading.  Suspense is not built as strongly as in The Da Vinci Code, but once you reach the crucial point, it can be just as enthralling.  Sometimes, your fingers will unconsciously be tempted to turn to the next page even though you have half a page left to read.  Though on some occasions, you may find it a little hard to continue even to the next page. 

With the profound influence of the Da Vinci Code from two readings of the book and many viewings of the film, I've caught myself picturing Helen as Audrey Toudot and Robert as Tom Hanks.  If Kostova has not been influenced by Dan Brown's work, then it is just too much of a coincidence. 


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