Fast-paced ‘Historian' sinks teeth into myth of Dracula

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BY FRANCIS MOUL /For the Lincoln Journal Star

"The Historian" by Elizabeth Kostova, Little, Brown and Company, 642 pages, $25.95

 

This is the ultimate book on Dracula and vampires. It is a huge tome, a lively and highly readable novel with massive academic research and details backing up the fast-paced action. That is a difficult job to do, but the author accomplishes it supremely.

Prince Dracula was a real person, an historical figure of Eastern Europe with a horrible habit of impaling friends, foes and his own countrymen. He was bitterly opposed to the Ottoman Empire, which eventually caused his death.

Except that, in myth and legend, the fiend has become the Host of the Undead, the head of a legion of vampires who have the deadly habit of blood sucking, with enormous strength and are nearly impossible to get rid of. He is still roaming the modern world.

Elizabeth Kostova takes advantage of all the vampire literature, but extends it well beyond that of any other author. She digs into the medieval world that produced Dracula, and especially the rare manuscripts, scrolls and books that relate to him.

The plot revolves around a series of unusual, ancient books that appear mysteriously in the studies of noted historians. The books are blank save for a double page illustration of a dragon and a simple map. It is supposed to lead the way to the grave of Dracula.

The folks that receive these books go through a strange set of adventures as they try to find that elusive resting place, following clues that are centuries old. They are hampered by denizens of the underground who have been tapped by Dracula, literally, as his fanatic soldiers. There is always fresh meat to seek.

This book is a major novel, already high on the best-seller lists. It has been touted as the "Da Vinci Code" of the Underworld, doing for Dracula what the Code book did for the story of Christ. There is a great deal of truth to that boast. Kostova has written a definitive work, and besides that, it is a pleasure to read.

But, thank goodness, it is a novel, because everyone knows there really aren't vampires around. Are there?

Francis Moul, Ph.D., is an environmental historian who lives in Lincoln.