The Historian, by Elizabeth Kostova: A Review

The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I loved this book. I loved the complexity of the characters, like they could be real people with real dirt under their nails. the kinds of people who exist somewhere off the page. I think that's why it gave me nightmares.
I loved the rich wording and the way it evoked memories of late nights prowling the stacks in search of the right book for research, and the way Kostova wove cultural background into the characters without creating cliches.
This book is quite possibly my favorite vampire book, partially because of the way it veers from the typical vampire stereotypes, and partly because Kostova was writing a book about people whose lives were uprooted by the malice of a vampire, rather than a book about vampires and how awesome or evil they are, which has become far too common within the genre.
The fact that throughout the entire book, the focus seemed to be on the characters' humanity places this book at the top of the list for Vampire novels.
I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for an entrancing and literary treatment of the genre.