This title was suggested to me by my cousin Judy who lives in a tiny country town.
It has a similar name to a book my friend wrote and has photos of roses in
supplied mostly by myself. The rose used for this illustration is "Red Coat"


The Name of the Rose is the first novel by Italian author Umberto Eco. It is a historical
murder mystery set in an Italian monastery in the year 1327, an intellectual mystery
combining semiotics in fiction, biblical analysis, medieval studies and literary theory.
First published in Italian in 1980 under the title Il nome della rosa, it appeared
in English in 1983, translated by William Weaver.

Plot summary
Franciscan friar William of Baskerville and a Benedictine novice Adso of Melk travel to
a Benedictine monastery in Northern Italy to attend a theological disputation. As they
arrive, the monastery is disturbed by a suicide. As the story unfolds, several other
monks die under mysterious circumstances. William is tasked by the Abbot of the monastery
to investigate the deaths as fresh clues with each murder victim lead William to dead ends
and new clues. The protagonists explore a labyrinthine medieval library, discuss the
subversive power of laughter, and come face to face with the Inquisition. William's
innate curiosity and highly-developed powers of logic and deduction provide the keys
to unravelling the mysteries of the abbey.