The Name of the Rose
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  • Published: 1 April 2004
  • ISBN: 9780099466031
  • Imprint: Vintage Classics
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 592
  • RRP: $19.99

The Name of the Rose

Formats & editions
Paperback
1 Apr 2004
Audiobook
23 Dec 2010
Paperback
15 Nov 2010
Paperback
1 Nov 1992
Hardback
2 Oct 2006
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The ground-breaking first novel from Umberto Eco – a murder mystery, an enthralling chronicle of the Middle Ages, a piece of biblical analysis and a stunning popular and critical success all at once.


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
  • Published: 1 April 2004
  • ISBN: 9780099466031
  • Imprint: Vintage Classics
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 592
  • RRP: $19.99
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About the author

Umberto Eco

Umberto Eco (1932–2016) wrote fiction, literary criticism and philosophy. His first novel, The Name of the Rose, was a major international bestseller. His other works include Foucault's Pendulum, The Island of the Day Before, Baudolino, The Mysterious Flame of Queen Loana, The Prague Cemetery and Numero Zero along with many brilliant collections of essays.

portrait photo of Umberto Eco

Also by Umberto Eco

How to Spot a Fascist
On the Shoulders of Giants
Chronicles of a Liquid Society
Numero Zero
How to Write a Thesis
Inventing the Enemy
The Prague Cemetery
See all

Praise for The Name of the Rose

The late medieval world, teetering on the edge of discoveries and ideas that will hurl it into one more recognisably like ours...evoked with a force and wit that are breathtaking

Financial Times

A novel of sunning intelligence, linguistic richness, thematic complexity

Il Giorno

This novel belongs with Voltaire' philosophical tales-in the entertaining guise of an erudite fiction story, it is also a vibrant plea for freedom, moderation and wisdom

L'Express

A brilliant deconstruction of the traditional crime novel

Iain Rankin, Mail on Sunday

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. Who can that miss out?

Sunday Times
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