709. The Name of the Rose

The Name of the Rose
Umberto Eco
1980
Around 540 pages

Some bad dates you know are going to terrible as soon as you are seated. But I actually thought I was going to love Umberto Eco when I settled down with this novel. A medieval murder mystery just sounds sexy. But Umberto Eco is the professor you don't want. He is so determined to show off his intellect that there is very little room for anything else. 

This sounds like a story Dan Brown would come up with, although if I said that in front of any Umberto Eco fans I would probably get my teeth knocked out.  In 1327, Franciscan friar William of Baskerville and Adso of Melk, a Benedictine novice traveling under his protection, arrive at a Benedictine monastery in Northern Italy to attend a theological disputation. The monastery is disturbed by the death of Adelmo of Otranto, an illuminator. A second murder follows the first, and god this sounds way more intriguing than it actually is.

Like I said, Eco writes likes a professor, so the narrative is weighed down by mathematical, historical, theological, and political significance. When you actually peel back the layers, the heart of the story is a compelling mystery with a clever wrap up. And there were sequences in this novel I enjoyed, even if you feel Eco's self satisfaction on every page.

If I weren't so interested in this time period, this would have been an absolute slog to muddle through. I can't imagine Eco being happy with a movie adaptation, because it couldn't possible communicate the breadth of his intellect. And the poor chap needs that.

RATING: **---

Interesting Facts:

Sold over 50 million copies.

UP NEXT: City Primeval by Elmore Leonard