Reviews

The Dante Club by Matthew Pearl

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casspro's review against another edition

1.0

The book started off with a bang and slowly fizzled out. The details were too dry, too historical--and yes, I realize it's a historical read of sorts. And I'm all for historical fiction, but I need the fiction to balance out the historical, otherwise it feels like I'm reading a dusty tome in the scary university library basement. I starting skimming around page 80, searching for the more gruesome details regarding Dante's Inferno. Once you find them (about 150 pages in), the read picks up dramatically. It's hard not to compare it to DaVinci Code or Angels and Demons--a highly intelligent man who's good at one very specific subject happens to solve a crime that revolves around his very area of expertise. In this case, the Robert Langdon is the Fireside Poets and Co. If you've got the patience to slug through the highs and lows in the canticles, then it might be worth the long read. But if you're like me and want a little more action and lot less exposition, then I'd pass this one by the wayside.

anovelobsession's review against another edition

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4.0

I really enjoyed the writing in this book. It was almost like you are reading a classic novel. Very interesting characters, based on Longfellow and other great writers of his time.

mr_rogers_el_camino's review against another edition

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challenging informative mysterious reflective slow-paced

2.75

I'm not gonna lie, when I started this book it felt like I was back in high school because reading it felt like homework. The authors use of old English dialogue and overwrought sentence structure made me feel like I was back in English 101 struggling through Dickens again. That being said once I got caught up in the story and my poor old brain adapted to the syntax it wasn't that bad. The murder mystery was well thought out and the kills all appropriately grusome, but where the book really excelled was in its supporting characters and rich descriptions of the time period. This included a horrifically detailed account of some of the battles in the Civil War and the devastating effects this had on the soldiers once they returned home and tried to reintegrate into civilian life.

psallitay's review against another edition

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Was in the mood for a fast-paced murder mystery and this was not that. Reading more than 3 pages at a time felt like a chore.

femmeinthestacks's review against another edition

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1.0

It’s incredibly rare I give up on a book and don’t finish it. I’m talking... maybe I’ve done it one other time. 5 chapters in and I couldn’t get past how pretentious and dull this was.