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celeste57 's review for:
The Name of the Rose
by Umberto Eco
challenging
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Sometimes, you pick up a book at exactly the wrong time. Other times, your expectations are set way too high, or you come into a story expecting the wrong things. And sometimes, a book you thought you would love just really doesn’t work for you.
When it comes to my experience with The Name of the Rose, all of the above are true.
I should have loved this. On paper, a lyrical, erudite historical mystery that takes place within a monastery and delves into the intrigue surrounding a labyrinthine library sounds like so many of my favorite things that a single book shouldn’t be able to house them all. I love stories where religion is a focal point, where a library is not only a setting but almost a character in its own right. I also love Sherlockian characters, and Brother William is the definition of a proto-Holmes when it comes to his brilliant mind and styles of observation and deduction. He even comes with his very own Watson in the form of our narrator, Adso, a young monk who serves as Willliam’s apprentice. The string of mysterious deaths plaguing the monks who call this monastery home were also interesting.
So, why didn’t I love this book? Why did it not only fall flat, but inspire active dislike in me as I read it? Here’s where unpopular opinions are going to come into play. I know this is a beloved novel. So beloved, in fact, that I never doubted that I would love it. Instead, I found it to be tedious, bloated, dark, and packed with so much depressing discourse on the church politics and disturbing credos of the time that the mystery had no room to breathe. By the time I waded through all of the political maneuverings and witch-hunts and hatred to actually reach the heart of the library and the mysteries it housed, I no longer cared. I was just ready for it to be over.
The only redeeming quality of the book for me was William. I enjoyed him as a character, and I really respected his brilliant mind. He made some profound observations on many topics throughout the novel, from his critique of relics to his lovely views on books and libraries. He often seemed like the only sane person within the monastery walls.
I am so disappointed that I didn’t connect with this book. It’s a novel that I’ve looked forward to reading for years, one about which I had heard nothing but wonderful things. Alas, not every book can work for every reader, no matter how much praise it garners. And The Name of the Rose just didn’t work for me.