The Name of the Rose

By: Umberto Eco

Narrated by: Sean Barrett

Brought to you by Penguin.

Read the enthralling medieval murder mystery.

The year is 1327. Franciscans in a wealthy Italian abbey are suspected of heresy, and Brother William of Baskerville arrives to investigate. When his delicate mission is suddenly overshadowed by seven bizarre deaths, Brother William turns detective.

William collects evidence, deciphers secret symbols and coded manuscripts, and digs into the eerie labyrinth of the abbey where extraordinary things are happening under the cover of night. A spectacular popular and critical success, The Name of the Rose is not only a narrative of a murder investigation but an astonishing chronicle of the Middle Ages.

'Whether you're into Sherlock Holmes, Montaillou, Borges, the nouvelle critique, the Rule of St. Benedict, metaphysics, library design, or The Thing from the Crypt, you'll love it' Sunday Times

© Umberto Eco 1980 (P) Penguin Audio 2010

Brilliant novel, brilliant narration

A brilliant blending of a detective story and medieval history. I read this book in the mid-1980's and enjoyed it greatly. I was even more impressed by the audio version - a masterly reading by Sean Barrett which gives life to a very disparate group of characters while sustaining an atmosphere of mystery and mounting tension. Inquisitor Bernard Gui's interrogation of Remigio the cellarer is particularly gripping. The work is an intellectual tour de force with many dimensions and levels of complexity, but my advice is to forget this and just enjoy the journey.