Like The Historian, Elizabeth Kostova's first novel, Swan Thieves, her second, is a mystery that is told through a variety of time periods and voices. Unlike The Historian, which is a fantastic retelling of the Dracula story, it makes no reference to mythical or folkloric components. Kostova's writing tends to be lyrical, descriptive, and she gives herself an easy subject for this in Swan Thieves: art. Swan Thieves is about works of art and artists and she writes on several of these, some real and some make-believe. And, as we wind our way through places, and places in time, discovering art and pasts and secrets, there is also a love story, or at least the bare bones of one.
There is a theme here of self discovery, and it's really a pretty good theme. Does one choose to follow a dream, and for how far? Does one live for self or for others in order to find fulfillment? The thread is there and it's an enjoyable under-the-surface discussion that gives the otherwise light book a little more depth. But the book has its flaws. The characters are not entirely believable, especially the main narrator and hero, Dr. Marlow. The majority of the book is spent solving a mystery that was probably solved by the reader in the first few chapters, and then wraps it up with a heavy dose of deus ex machina that rears its ugly head not only to solve the mystery but also to wrap up the character relationships. Still, it was an enjoyable light read.
Book 11 on my way to 52 in 2011
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