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The Dante Club
The Dante Club
Author: Matthew Pearl
A New York Times Bestseller — Words can bleed. — In 1865 Boston, the literary geniuses 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 remar...  more »
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ISBN-13: 9780375505294
ISBN-10: 0375505296
Publication Date: 2/4/2003
Pages: 384
Rating:
  • Currently 3.2/5 Stars.
 34

3.2 stars, based on 34 ratings
Publisher: Random House
Book Type: Hardcover
Other Versions: Paperback, Audio Cassette, Audio CD
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

reviewed The Dante Club on + 9 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 12
Story about a murderer who kills people with methods described by Dante. The book is set in the 1860's, and focuses around a group of poets. The writing style is "old" and period appropriate. I enjoyed this, but the writing style made for a somewhat difficult read. None of the characters are particularly moving or endearing. They don't seem to have a lot of depth, either.
reviewed The Dante Club on + 5 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 11
HATED IT. I only finished it because my bookclub was discussing it. It is written in a period appropriate vernacular and very difficult to get through. The murder scenes are incredibly grisly, not for the squeamish at all. I just found the tone condescending and was somewhat taken aback that the author thought he could perceive the thoughts and actions of such iconic historical/literary figures like Longfellow. The one good thing - it has inspired me to read Dante and it was nice to have it under my belt when I read Jodi Picoult's The Tenth Circle (which I did enjoy).
gsisk avatar reviewed The Dante Club on + 192 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 8
Set in Boston of 1865. Longfellow and several of his poet-friends (Lowell, Holmes) are translating Dante's "Divine Comedy" (against resistance from Harvard functionaries). A series of murders happens, which are basically reenactments of some of Dante's punishments in hell. The "Dante Club" helps the first mulatto police officer in Boston to find the murderer.

Even though this book is very well-written (old style), I had a hard time "getting into it". On the one hand, the book is filled with details - you learn a lot about post-civil-war Boston, on the other hand, it feels as if it is an account by an impartial observer. The characters show no emotions, sometimes it is hard to figure out who is speaking or why someone acts a certain way.

I liked the story idea, and the writing is excellent, but the characters are too flat.
Heloise avatar reviewed The Dante Club on
Helpful Score: 3
Excellent mystery set in 1860s Boston. A group of scholars want to translate and publish Dante's "Divine Comedy" so all Americans can enjoy his work. But a series of murders takes place around the city, based on the fate of some of Dante's characters.
reviewed The Dante Club on + 3 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 3
This is one of the best books I have ever read! Though it is a bit gruesome in some parts, it is definetly worth the read. It centers around Longfellow's translation of Dante's Inferno and various murders that are happening in Boston, post Civil War. Definetly worth your time!
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reviewed The Dante Club on + 12 more book reviews
Read this because I liked The Last Dickens by Pearl but this wasn't as good but then I am more of a Dickens fan than of Dante. This was pretty gruesome but still a good mystery.
reviewed The Dante Club on + 232 more book reviews
This is an incredible book that hooks you & won't let go til the end. In 1865 Boston poets & Harvard professors Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes & James R. Lowell are working together to find a serial killer. They are also concluding a translation of Dante's The Divine Comedy but powers that be feel that it will prove corrupting to the American reading public. Dr. Holmes & Nicholas Rey, the first black member of the Boston police dept place their careers on the ine in their efforts to end the killing spree - it is of course a blend a fact & fiction but mesmerizing.
reviewed The Dante Club on + 13 more book reviews
Well-reviewed murder with a literary flair. As the cover blurb says: "Boston, 1865. A series of murders, all of them inspired by scenes in Dante's INFERNO. . . "
reviewed The Dante Club on + 14 more book reviews
Whodunit of unusual class and intellect
reviewed The Dante Club on
Good plot. Interesting use of real individuals.

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