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The Dante Club (Abridged) Audiobook
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(3.00) - 21,045 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
In 1865 Boston, the members of the Dante Club—poets and Harvard professors Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes, and James Russell Lowell, along with publisher J. T. Fields—are finishing America's first translation of The Divine Comedy and preparing to unveil Dante's remarkable visions to the New World. The powerful Boston Brahmins at Harvard are fighting to keep Dante in obscurity, believing that the infiltration of foreign superstitions onto American bookshelves will prove as corrupting as the immigrants living in Boston Harbor.
As they struggle to keep their sacred literary cause alive, the plans of the Dante Club are put in further jeopardy when a serial killer unleashes his terror on the city. Only the scholars realize that the gruesome murders are modeled on the descriptions from Dante's Inferno and its account of Hell's torturous punishments. With the lives of the Boston elite and Dante's literary future in America at stake, the Dante Club must find the killer before the authorities discover their secret.
Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes and outcast police officer Nicolas Rey, the first black member of the Boston police department, place their careers on the line in their efforts to end the killing spree. Together, they discover that the source of the murders lies closer than they ever could have imagined.
The Dante Club is a magnificent blend of fact and fiction, a brilliantly realized paean to Dante, his mythic genius, and his continued grip on the imagination.
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"I liked the writing style of this book. It was a bit more intellectual than many novels, almost feeling like reading a literary criticism, even with the fictional story line. The mystery was engrossing, and I've always been fascinated with Dante's Inferno, so liked the insight into a classic that would likely drive me nuts trying to read the original poetic style."
— Andra (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“Matthew Pearl is the new shining star of literary fiction—a heady, inventive, and immensely gifted author. With intricate plots, classical themes, and erudite characters…what’s not to love?”
— Dan Brown, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Da Vinci Code -
“Ingenious…Working on a vast canvas, Mr. Pearl keeps this mystery sparkling with erudition…Pearl, with this captivating brain teaser as his debut novel, seems also to have put his life’s work on the line in melding scholarship with mystery. He does justice to both.”
— New York Times -
“Pearl’s triumph is mixing these two cultures: wealthy, cultivated men of letters faced with the mysterious and seedy streets of a nineteenth-century Boston…creating not just a page-turner but a beguiling look at the US in an era when elites shaped the course of learning and publishing. With this story of the Dante Club’s own descent into hell, Mr. Pearl’s book will delight the Dante novice and expert alike.”
— Wall Street Journal -
“A hell of a first novel…The Dante Club delivers in spades…Pearl has crafted a work that maintains interest and drips with nineteenth-century atmospherics. The real test of a book like this is whether, upon reaching the end, readers feel motivated to delve into Dante for some firsthand glimpses of the netherworld. Those who don’t weren’t paying close enough attention.”
— San Francisco Chronicle
Awards
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A New York Times bestseller
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A #1 Washington Post bestseller
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A #1 Boston Globe bestseller
The Dante Club Listener Reviews
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" Still trying to make it through this book. So far it's been so boring that I put it down and have finished Dick Francis' Flying Finish and am already half-way through Dan Brown's The Lost Symbol. Maybe I'll pick it up again later, but I'm struggling to get excited about this book. "
— Marcy, 2/20/2014 -
" Like The Last Dickens, this was a very clever book. I thought it was a little better than The Last Dickens. "
— Daniel, 2/19/2014 -
" I really like the way the author brings the historical people to life as well as making well-rounded fictional characters along side. The fictional murder mystery blends seamlessly with the historical facts and you can tell the author has done a lot of research. "
— Debbie, 2/16/2014 -
" the book is good to read. it encourages reader to look into dante's "Divinia Comedia" an excellent work. "
— Ravi, 2/1/2014 -
" I enjoyed this intelligent literary mystery. The characterizations of the poets are delightful and the commentary on Dante's Inferno actually inspired me to read it at the same time. It is well written and the plot is interesting. "
— Cindi, 1/17/2014 -
" A mystery for book lovers and people interested in the 19th century. Pretty gross death scenes. I love Dante, so if you stick it in the title, I will read it. "
— Stephaniesrichter, 1/12/2014 -
" 2 parts Dan Brown conspiracy, 2 parts A.C.Doyle murder mystery, 1 part academic Downton Abbey. Good, well-written fun! "
— Scott, 1/8/2014 -
" So far so good. . . "
— Kathryn, 10/22/2013 -
" The end of the book was a disappointment to me. Most mysteries lead up to an exciting ending and I was left with that is it? I enjoyed hearing about the flies and learning about Dante. The book gave a great background about Dante's Inferno. "
— Melinda, 9/13/2013 -
" you didn't need to have read the inferno to like this book.loved the historical format nd has great characters "
— Sheri, 8/20/2013 -
" Great read on it's own, but even better when read in conjunction with Inferno...and makes Inferno better too! "
— Alicia, 6/2/2013 -
" Hated it....could not get past the stuffy, self-important characters (and author?). Just a painfully slow read for me. Maybe I'm not intellectual enough! "
— Feline, 5/28/2013 -
" Found it hard to read but glad I finished it. "
— Piper, 5/7/2013 -
" Well written, enjoyable historical thriller. Nice, exciting end to the book "
— Chris, 4/16/2013 -
" I just couldn't get into this book guess it wasn't my kind of read "
— Derek, 8/10/2012 -
" Gripping, combines the traditional theme of a murder mystery with a literary and historical setting.. recommended for fans of historical novels, thrillers and of course, Dante "
— Abhinna, 7/20/2012 -
" Very interesting book based on Dante's Inferno. A really good page turner. "
— April, 3/17/2012 -
" Although there is some historical research about the period and the authors, the character's motivations are absurd. "
— Jack, 2/1/2012 -
" It started and ended well, but the middle was a bit of a roller coaster. The story pace would pick up and then it would get bogged down in talking about publishing house successes of the different authors in the story. Not as good a read as I was hoping. "
— Katy, 12/23/2011 -
" Great premise but it started out sooooo slow and boring. It took a while to really get into the meat of it, and by then I just didn't care anymore. "
— Leslie, 11/20/2011 -
" Great book if you enjoy historical fiction. Also must find slightly gruesome murder mysteries interesting. "
— Barb, 9/17/2011 -
" This ambitious first novel reads a little like someone's mfa thesis. I wanted to like it, but maybe the whole famous literary/historical figures solve a mystery has been a bit overdone. The characters did not ring true for me, and the writing was uneven. "
— Constance, 5/27/2011 -
" A little slow to get going, but a nice little mystery, and very fun to include the Dante Club (which really did exist).<br/> "
— Annette, 5/24/2011 -
" I bit gross at times, but a stimulating read. "
— Kristi, 5/9/2011 -
" you didn't need to have read the inferno to like this book.loved the historical format nd has great characters "
— Sheri, 5/1/2011 -
" Inferno inspired murders, mystery thriller. Hard to get into "
— Phil, 4/28/2011 -
" An interesting read about The Divine Comedy, prompted me to pull out the original cantos and read them myself. "
— Enrique, 4/26/2011 -
" A little slow for my taste. "
— Dara, 4/24/2011 -
" I don't normally read historical fiction but this one might change my mind for future book. Well written with plenty of intrigue and as fast paced as a dan brown (cough) novel... Especially after about page 75 or so. "
— Robert, 4/22/2011 -
" I have to say that the preface and the first chapter was nearly enough to make me walk away. I was almost physically ill. But I found that I continued to think about the book and had to come back to it. Ultimately loved it but make sure you have a stomach of steel for the beginning. "
— Linsey, 4/13/2011 -
" Could not get into this book. I gave it about 35 pages and had to give it up. Very disappointing. "
— Bethanybodyhome, 4/12/2011 -
" Started twice could not get past chapter 7. So much nothing. "
— Susan, 4/11/2011 -
" I wish I spent the time reading Dante instead. Such bland and heavy wording, it was clunky and never captured my attention. "
— linnea, 4/10/2011 -
" Just couldn't get into this book and never bothered to finish it. "
— Therese, 4/7/2011
About Matthew Pearl
Matthew Pearl is an author whose novels have been international and New York Times bestsellers translated into more than thirty languages. The Taking of Jemima Boone is his nonfiction debut. His nonfiction articles have appeared in the New York Times, the Boston Globe, The Atavist Magazine, and Slate. He has been chosen best author for Boston Magazine's Best of Boston and received the Massachusetts Book Award for Fiction.
About Boyd Gaines
Boyd Gaines is an Earphones Award–winning narrator and an actor whose many film credits include Second Best, I’m Not Rappaport, Heartbreak Ridge, Fame, and Porky’s. He’s won two Tony Awards for performances in the The Heidi Chronicles and the musical She Loves Me. On television he has appeared in A Woman Called Jackie, A Son’s Promise, and in the popular series One Day at a Time.