The Historian
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About this listen
The record-breaking phenomenon from Elizabeth Kostova is a celebrated masterpiece that "refashioned the vampire myth into a compelling contemporary novel, a late-night page-turner" (San Francisco Chronicle).
Breathtakingly suspenseful and beautifully written, The Historian is the story of a young woman plunged into a labyrinth where the secrets of her family’s past connect to an inconceivable evil: the dark 15th century reign of Vlad the Impaler and a time-defying pact that may have kept his awful work alive through the ages. The search for the truth becomes an adventure of monumental proportions, taking us from monasteries and dusty libraries to the capitals of Eastern Europe - in a feat of storytelling so rich, so hypnotic, so exciting that it has enthralled readers around the world.
“Part thriller, part history, part romance...Kostova has a keen sense of storytelling and she has a marvelous tale to tell.” (Baltimore Sun)
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By: John Fowles
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Instruments of Darkness
- A Novel
- By: Imogen Robertson
- Narrated by: Wanda McCaddon
- Length: 11 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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In the year 1780, Harriet Westerman, the willful mistress of a country manor in Sussex, finds a dead man on her grounds with a ring bearing the crest of Thornleigh Hall in his pocket. Not one to be bound by convention or to shy away from adventure, she recruits a reclusive local anatomist named Gabriel Crowther to help her find the murderer, and historical suspense's newest investigative duo is born.
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Not The Best, But Not Too Bad...
- By MJ on 01-13-13
By: Imogen Robertson
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My Beautiful Enemy
- By: Sherry Thomas
- Narrated by: Charlotte Anne Dore
- Length: 9 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Catherine Blade's uncommon beauty and daring have taken her far in the world, but she still doesn't have the freedom to live life as she chooses. Finally given the chance to earn her independence, who should be standing in her way but the only man she's ever loved - the only person to ever betray her. Despite the scars Catherine left him, Captain Leighton Atwood has never been able to forget the mysterious girl who once so thoroughly captivated him.
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my least favorite from this author, and still good
- By Christina on 09-04-14
By: Sherry Thomas
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The Distant Hours
- By: Kate Morton
- Narrated by: Caroline Lee
- Length: 22 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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Edie Burchill and her mother have never been close, but when a long lost letter arrives one Sunday afternoon with the return address of Milderhurst Castle, Kent, printed on its envelope, Edie begins to suspect that her mother’s emotional distance masks an old secret.
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Right Mood At The Right Time
- By Simone on 11-13-12
By: Kate Morton
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Winter Journey
- By: Diane Armstrong
- Narrated by: Deidre Rubenstein
- Length: 14 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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Halina Shore is a Polish born forensic dentist living in Australia. When she travels to Poland to take part in the investigation of a war crime, she finds herself at the center of a bitter struggle in a community that has been divided by a grim legacy. As the investigation proceeds, her professional assignment becomes a confronting personal odyssey as the truth about her own past begins to emerge.
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Historical Story Marred by Unnecessary Fluff
- By Debbie on 11-30-15
By: Diane Armstrong
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Haunted Ground
- By: Erin Hart
- Narrated by: Jennifer McMahon
- Length: 12 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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When farmers cutting turf in an Irish peat bog make a grisly discovery, the perfectly intact body of a young woman with long red hair, archaeologist Cormac O'Callaghan and pathologist Nora Gavin are thrown together by their shared scientific interest in human remains. Because of the preservative effect of the bog, it is difficult to tell whether the body has lain there for two decades, two centuries, or two millennia.
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Mysteries old and mysteries new
- By Linda on 11-25-03
By: Erin Hart
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Wildest Dreams
- By: Jennifer Blake
- Narrated by: Carrie Russo
- Length: 13 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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Joletta Caresse's beloved grandmother dies, taking with her the secret to the formula of a legendary perfume that is now the most sought-after perfume on the market. Joletta tries to track down the formula through journals written by her ancestress, Violet Fossier, who in 1854 made a grand tour of Europe. As Joletta follows Violet's itinerary across the continent, the story goes back in time, to 19th-century Europe and a scandalous love affair that is intimately bound up in the mystery of the perfume.
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Made me cry
- By Amazon Customer on 02-14-23
By: Jennifer Blake
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The Lost Carousel of Provence
- By: Juliet Blackwell
- Narrated by: Xe Sands
- Length: 10 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Long, lonely years have passed for the crumbling Château Clement, nestled well beyond the rolling lavender fields and popular tourist attractions of Provence. Once a bustling and dignified ancestral estate, now all that remains is the château's gruff, elderly owner and the softly whispered secrets of generations buried and forgotten. But time has a way of exposing history's dark stains, and when American photographer Cady Drake finds herself drawn to the château and its antique carousel, she longs to explore the relic's shadowy origins.
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Loved It!
- By T Heskett on 09-23-18
By: Juliet Blackwell
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The Seduction of Water
- By: Carol Goodman
- Narrated by: Christine Marshall
- Length: 13 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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For Iris, he sudden impulse to write a piece about her mother leads to a shot at literary success. The piece recounts an eerie Irish fairy tale her mother used to tell her at bedtime - and nestled inside is the sad story of her mother's death, a strange, untimely end in a fire 30 years ago. When Iris returns to the remote Hotel Equinox in the Catskills, the place where she grew up, to write her mother's biography and search for her mother's missing manuscript, she unravels a haunting mystery that threatens to envelope her.
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Disapointing
- By Susan Delaney on 02-19-09
By: Carol Goodman
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The Lost Book of the Grail
- A Novel
- By: Charlie Lovett
- Narrated by: Charles Armstrong
- Length: 10 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Arthur Prescott is happiest when surrounded by the ancient manuscripts of the Barchester Cathedral library, nurturing his obsession with the Holy Grail and researching his perennially unfinished guidebook to the medieval cathedral. But when Bethany Davis arrives in Barchester to digitize the library's manuscripts, Arthur's tranquility is broken. Appalled by the threat of modern technology, he sets out to thwart Bethany, only to find in her a kindred spirit - and a fellow Grail fanatic.
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A Lot of Fun...But
- By Thursday Next on 04-20-17
By: Charlie Lovett
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A Share in Death
- By: Deborah Crombie
- Narrated by: Michael Deehy
- Length: 7 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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A week's holiday in a luxurious hotel is just what Scotland Yard's Superintendent Duncan Kincaid needs. But his vacation ends dramatically with the discovery of a dead body in the whirlpool bath. Despite a suspicious lack of cooperation from the local constabulary, Kincaid's keen sense of duty won't allow him to ignore the heinous crime, impelling him to send for his enthusiastic young assistant, Sergeant Gemma James. But the stakes are raised significantly when a second murder occurs....
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series readers, start here
- By connie on 02-09-13
By: Deborah Crombie
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The Medusa Amulet
- By: Robert Masello
- Narrated by: David Colacci
- Length: 15 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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Benvenuto Cellini, master artisan of Renaissance Italy, once crafted a beautiful amulet prized for its unimaginable power - and untold menace. Now the quest to recover this legendary artifact depends upon one man: David Franco, a brilliant but skeptical young scholar at Chicago's world-renowned Newberry Library.
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A great historical fiction book, fun and intriguing
- By Nicole on 04-14-16
By: Robert Masello
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Named of the Dragon
- By: Susanna Kearsley
- Narrated by: Katherine Kellgren
- Length: 9 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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The charm of spending the Christmas holidays in South Wales, with its crumbling castles and ancient myths, seems the perfect distraction from the nightmares that have plagued literary agent Lyn Ravenshaw since the loss of her baby five years ago. Instead she meets an emotionally fragile young widow who's convinced that Lyn's recurring dreams have drawn her to Castle Farm for an important purpose - and she's running out of time.
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Not Kearsley's best
- By Sindy on 06-27-16
By: Susanna Kearsley
What listeners say about The Historian
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- MovieFan
- 01-01-24
First Favorite Audiobook
I have great difficulty with audiobooks. I don't like them. However, I needed something for my work commute and my family spoke highly of this book. I chose the ensemble cast, hoping that would help, and it did! I absolutely LOVED this book! So much so, that I am considering listening to the unabridged version too, even though it only has 2 readers instead of the 6 on this abridged version. The story was intriguing and thrilling, with enough history to interest the history nerd in me. I cannot recommend it highly enough!
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- Sherri L. Smith
- 07-10-19
outstanding!
this is a fantastically Rich story, made even richer by the storytelling. it brings the story to life in a very eerie but intriguing way. I highly recommend this audible book!
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- Hilde
- 08-29-18
Almost fantastic
A fine work of fiction. That the story is read by each caracter workshop surprisingly well. The disappointing factor is that it is abridged, and that distupts the flow of this allready intricate tale.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Katarzyna
- 10-31-18
The sound effects!
I read this book when it came out, I was much younger and enjoyed very much. And always tough about it as a light autumn reading. However this audiobook ruined for me. The horrible sound effects.
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- Thomas
- 09-17-13
Great accents, wonderful background music and more
What made the experience of listening to The Historian the most enjoyable?
The use of different voices for the reading of different letters. Each character is voiced by a separate actor or actress performing with a different accent. As I am a fan of all accents, it made the story very pleasant to listen to.
What was one of the most memorable moments of The Historian?
Rossi's missing letters meant to be sent from Romania. They reveal SO much about the historical Dracula as well as the story's plot.
What about the narrators’s performance did you like?
As mentioned before, the accents. The best was the guy who did the man with a mixed Scottish/Romanian accent. It was superb and an excellent example of hard work and top-notch voice acting.
Who was the most memorable character of The Historian and why?
Perhaps Rossi himself but each plot line has its own quirks. The unnamed narrator's recounting of her trip to Italy and Slovenia has its own charms too.
Any additional comments?
I've listened to this recording many times. It is fitting when the Autumn chill fills the air and you want something intellectually satisfying yet a bit dark.
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2 people found this helpful
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- R. GOMEZ-POND
- 01-11-11
Kept me on the edge of my chair
Going into this book, which was suggested by my mom-in-law, I was a tad hesitant because I am not a person who watches scary movies let along hear them. I can say that I was happy that I took a chance and listend. All the way through I was held in suspense for the next thing to possible pop out from the darkness.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Miss.Katonic_13
- 01-15-24
Beautiful book to read & listen too
The performances are top notch, the story is absolutely beautiful, one of my favorites. You really can't go wrong with this one.
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- Jaime
- 10-14-14
Probably better unabridged
Where does The Historian rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?
Top 5
Who was your favorite character and why?
The father I guess, he's the protagonist.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
Yes.
Any additional comments?
The unabridged version would probably be worth the extra money. I purchased this one because it was only 10 hours long, and I had a 10 hour car trip, and I wanted something digestible. However, the characters are not very well developed, the plot is jumpy, and the language is rushed in this abridged version. Even the sample sounds better in the unabridged.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Patricia
- 08-31-15
Interesting story but didn't hold my interest
What did you like best about The Historian? What did you like least?
Had a few interesting twists and I did not expect it to be about Count Dracula, so it was different for a change
What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?
the story told from the different parties
What didn’t you like about the narrators’s performance?
The father (Paul) was totally not a good fit to be the narrator. It was obvious that he was reading, so difficult to lose yourself in the story, and he was far too effeminate to be her father....I just couldn't reconcile the narration with his role. Liked all the other narrators though!
Could you see The Historian being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?
No - it was too drawn out in parts
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Overall
- Meg
- 03-17-10
Dracula revisited
I loved this book when I read it a few years ago, and I was a little aprehensive about the abridged version, given that the full story is so wonderful and dense. This audio version is well worth the download.. It flowed seamlessly and I did not once get the sensation that I was listening to only half the story. One of the authors has a bit of a funny tone to his voice, but the primary narrator is engaging and easy to listen to.
I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys -real- vampire stories, where the creatures are terrifying and intelligent (unlike more contemporary interpretations of Vampires being pretty, shiny, go to high school and are no more frightening than a pair of bunny slippers). Vampire stories that cause your gut to clench in fright.
For those who like their stories with a little history thrown in, Kostova has brought the legend of Vlad Tepes (AKA Vlad Dracul or Dracula) into a relatively modern setting, with the story's protagonists being hunted by Vlad Tepes' sinister inhuman agents as they move throughout Europe in their hunt to find, and destroy Tepes once and for all.
Download, read, enjoy! :)
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9 people found this helpful